Deep-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystems host a diversity of fauna, from microbes to tubeworms to crabs.  These ecosystems are characterized by patchily distributed habitat on the sea floor, separated by uninhabitable area. Habitat patches are connected to one another by the dispersal of individual organisms, typically during a larval stage.  These habitats are also subject to disturbance, both natural and anthropogenic.  Such habitat characteristics are well-captured by so-called metapopulation and metacommunity models.  We developed and analyzed new metapopulation models, to assess how dispersal, disturbance and species interactions interact to affect biodiversity in dynamic environments like those at hydrothermal vents.  We also used such models to study the sustainable management of metapopulations and metacommunities.

We also analyzed previously collected data, including long-term colonization data from one hydrothermal vent system (the East Pacific Rise (EPR)). We used these data to study the recovery of biological function after a catastrophic eruption. Our results indicate that eruptive disturbance at the EPR opens space for functionally distinct species. Directly after the eruption, the majority of organisms were medium-sized, crawling deposit feeders that reproduce sexually. Over time, the community became dominated by small, sessile suspension feeders that reproduce asexually. The relative abundance of high trophic level organisms and the number of functional feeding groups increased over time. The largest, fastest-growing organisms colonized earliest, likely driven by high nutrient input following the eruption. These results provide new insight on ecological interactions, contribute to successional theory in the marine environment, and highlight the importance of considering function when assessing resilience.

Broader impacts of our project included sharing research products with potential stakeholders, including organizations that advise, manage, and conduct activities related to sea floor mining and Marine Protected Areas.  A notable contribution was the lecture (by PI Mullineaux) at the UNESCO High-Level Scientific Conference: "From COP21 towards the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development."  A second highlight was our development of new content for the NOAA Science On a Sphere? (SOS). This new content is currently distributed to the SOS Users Network which includes 135 science centers across the U.S. and more than 20 other countries. Our new content for the SOS is designed to emphasize the Next Generation Science Standard (NGSS) Disciplinary Core Idea ?LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience." At our public event in the Wildlife Education Series at the Buttonwood Park Zoo, New Bedford, MA, we debuted our new content for the SOS: "Animals on the Move: Stories of Migration and Dispersal Over Land and Under Sea." These stories target this specific NGSS, to be learned by the end of Grade 5: "When the environment changes in ways that affect a place?s physical characteristics, temperature, or availability of resources, some organisms survive and reproduce, others move to new locations, yet others move into the transformed environment, and some die.? To enhance the participation of under-represented groups at the event, we also engaged middle school teachers and students from Our Sisters School in New Bedford, MA.

Last Modified: 04/30/2021
Modified by: Michael G Neubert