The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Community structure and feeding preference of nematodes associated with methane seepage at the Darwin mud volcano (Gulf of Cádiz)

Community structure and feeding preference of nematodes associated with methane seepage at the Darwin mud volcano (Gulf of Cádiz)
Community structure and feeding preference of nematodes associated with methane seepage at the Darwin mud volcano (Gulf of Cádiz)
We sampled the Darwin mud volcano (MV) for meiofaunal community and trophic structure in relation to pore-water geochemistry along a 10 m transect from a seep site on the rim of the crater towards the MV slope. Pore-water profiles indicated considerable variation in upward methane (CH4) flow among sediment cores taken along the transect, with highest flux in the seep sediment core, gradually decreasing along the transect, to no CH4 flux in the core taken at a 5 m distance. Low sulphate concentrations and high levels of total alkalinity and sulphide (H2S) suggested that anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) occurred close to the sediment surface in the seep sediment core. High H2S levels had a genus- and species-specific impact on meiofaunal densities. Nematode genus composition varied gradually between sediment cores, with the genus Sabatieria dominating almost all sediment cores. However, genus diversity increased with increasing distance from the seep site. These limited data suggest that the community structure of seep meiofauna is highly dependent on local (a)biotic habitat characteristics, and a typical seep meiofaunal community cannot be delineated. Stable isotope values suggested the nematode diet up to 10 m from the seep site included thiotrophic carbon. The thicker hemipelagic sediment layer (photosynthetic carbon), the increased trophic diversity, and the heavier nematode ?13C farther from the seep site suggest a decrease in thiotrophy and an increase in photosynthetic carbon in the nematode diet.
Cold seep, Diversity, Stable isotope, Nematode, Diet
71-83
Pape, E.
54cfd4bd-9e20-4f66-bf0f-b4bb4e47f7aa
Nara Bezerra, T.
c6042e3d-4cf8-4419-80c8-925768fac27f
Vanneste, H.
af98e6b9-6878-4a0a-9330-dce07174afa6
Heeschen, K.
a7da037f-19c2-40aa-95a6-e70deaa3de4d
Moodley, L.
17d2b644-922f-483a-9ff9-7a93f0158827
Leroux, F.
da719147-4eae-4649-af5d-c6b73d7ca42e
van Breugel, P.
23d9e033-5b5f-437b-b4a1-87c77d4ddcf9
Vanreusel, A.
086a3d54-88cb-4152-b33a-a0c710b2cd3b
Pape, E.
54cfd4bd-9e20-4f66-bf0f-b4bb4e47f7aa
Nara Bezerra, T.
c6042e3d-4cf8-4419-80c8-925768fac27f
Vanneste, H.
af98e6b9-6878-4a0a-9330-dce07174afa6
Heeschen, K.
a7da037f-19c2-40aa-95a6-e70deaa3de4d
Moodley, L.
17d2b644-922f-483a-9ff9-7a93f0158827
Leroux, F.
da719147-4eae-4649-af5d-c6b73d7ca42e
van Breugel, P.
23d9e033-5b5f-437b-b4a1-87c77d4ddcf9
Vanreusel, A.
086a3d54-88cb-4152-b33a-a0c710b2cd3b

Pape, E., Nara Bezerra, T., Vanneste, H., Heeschen, K., Moodley, L., Leroux, F., van Breugel, P. and Vanreusel, A. (2011) Community structure and feeding preference of nematodes associated with methane seepage at the Darwin mud volcano (Gulf of Cádiz). Marine Ecology Progress Series, 438, 71-83. (doi:10.3354/meps09278).

Record type: Article

Abstract

We sampled the Darwin mud volcano (MV) for meiofaunal community and trophic structure in relation to pore-water geochemistry along a 10 m transect from a seep site on the rim of the crater towards the MV slope. Pore-water profiles indicated considerable variation in upward methane (CH4) flow among sediment cores taken along the transect, with highest flux in the seep sediment core, gradually decreasing along the transect, to no CH4 flux in the core taken at a 5 m distance. Low sulphate concentrations and high levels of total alkalinity and sulphide (H2S) suggested that anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) occurred close to the sediment surface in the seep sediment core. High H2S levels had a genus- and species-specific impact on meiofaunal densities. Nematode genus composition varied gradually between sediment cores, with the genus Sabatieria dominating almost all sediment cores. However, genus diversity increased with increasing distance from the seep site. These limited data suggest that the community structure of seep meiofauna is highly dependent on local (a)biotic habitat characteristics, and a typical seep meiofaunal community cannot be delineated. Stable isotope values suggested the nematode diet up to 10 m from the seep site included thiotrophic carbon. The thicker hemipelagic sediment layer (photosynthetic carbon), the increased trophic diversity, and the heavier nematode ?13C farther from the seep site suggest a decrease in thiotrophy and an increase in photosynthetic carbon in the nematode diet.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: 2011
Keywords: Cold seep, Diversity, Stable isotope, Nematode, Diet
Organisations: Geochemistry, Marine Geoscience

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 202783
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/202783
PURE UUID: cb317420-e09e-4512-85a8-409e9e834c8d

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 09 Nov 2011 10:54
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 04:25

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: E. Pape
Author: T. Nara Bezerra
Author: H. Vanneste
Author: K. Heeschen
Author: L. Moodley
Author: F. Leroux
Author: P. van Breugel
Author: A. Vanreusel

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×