Document of bibliographic reference 380775
BibliographicReference record
- Type
- Bibliographic resource
- Type of document
- Journal article
- BibLvlCode
- AS
- Title
- Diversity, habitat endemicity and trophic ecology of the fauna of Loki’s Castle vent field on the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge
- Abstract
- Loki’s Castle Vent Field (LCVF, 2300 m) was discovered in 2008 and represents the first black-smoker vent field discovered on the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge (AMOR). However, a comprehensive faunal inventory of the LCVF has not yet been published, hindering the inclusion of the Arctic in biogeographic analyses of vent fauna. There is an urgent need to understand the diversity, spatial distribution and ecosystem function of the biological communities along the AMOR, which will inform environmental impact assesments of future deep-sea mining activities in the region. Therefore, our aim with this paper is to provide a comprehensive inventory of the fauna at LCVF and present a first insight into the food web of the vent community. The fauna of LCVF has a high degree of novelty, with five new species previously described and another ten new species awaiting formal description. Most of the new species from LCVF are either hydrothermal vent specialists or have been reported from other chemosynthesis-based ecosystems. The highest taxon richness is found in the diffuse venting areas and may be promoted by the biogenic habitat generated by the foundation species Sclerolinum contortum. The isotopic signatures of the vent community of LCVF show a clear influence of chemosynthetic primary production on the foodweb. Considering the novel and specialised fauna documented in this paper, hydrothermal vents on the AMOR should be regarded as vulnerable marine ecosystems and protective measures must therefore be implemented, especially considering the potential threat from resource exploration and exploitation activities in the near future.
- Bibliographic citation
- Henningsen Eilertsen, M.; Kongsrud, J.A.; Tandberg, A.H.S.; Alvestad, T.; Budaeva, N.; Martell, L.; Ramalho, S.P.; Falkenhaug, T.; Huys, R.; Oug, E.; Bakken, T.; Høisaeter, T.; Rauch, C.; Carvalho, F.C.; Savchenko, A.S.; Ulvatn, T.; Kongshavn, K.; Berntsen, C.M.; Olsen, B.R.; Pedersen, R.-B. (2024). Diversity, habitat endemicity and trophic ecology of the fauna of Loki’s Castle vent field on the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge. NPG Scientific Reports 14(1): 103. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-46434-z
- Topic
- Marine
- Is peer reviewed
- true
- Access rights
- open access
- Is accessible for free
- true
Authors
- author
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- Name
- Mari Henningsen Eilertsen
- author
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- Name
- Jon Anders Kongsrud
- author
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- Name
- Anne Helene Tandberg
- author
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- Name
- Tom Alvestad
- author
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- Name
- Nataliya Budaeva
- author
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- Name
- Luis Martell
- author
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- Name
- Sofia Ramalho
- author
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- Name
- Tone Falkenhaug
- author
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- Name
- Rony Huys
- author
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- Name
- Eivind Oug
- author
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- Name
- Torkild Bakken
- author
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- Name
- Tore Høisaeter
- author
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- Name
- Cessa Rauch
- author
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- Name
- Francisca Carvalho
- author
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- Name
- Alexandra Savchenko
- author
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- Name
- Tone Ulvatn
- author
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- Name
- Katrine Kongshavn
- author
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- Name
- Cassandra Mari Berntsen
- author
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- Name
- Bernt Rydland Olsen
- author
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- Name
- Rolf-Birger Pedersen