Explorers find ocean animals thriving beneath the seafloor


Ocean animals: An intertwined mass of white tubes with red tops on the seafloor.
Deep ocean animals such as giant tubeworms commonly live on the seafloor around hydrothermal vents. But a new study discovered they’re also one of several species that can survive beneath these vents, in subseafloor cavities. Image via Schmidt Ocean Institute (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).

Scientists discover ocean animals beneath the seafloor

For the first time, researchers have discovered animal communities thriving beneath the bottom of the ocean. They found the ocean animals – including giant tubeworms and sea snails – below hydrothermal vents some 8,250 feet (2,515 m) from the Pacific Ocean’s surface. And they said these seafloor and subseafloor communities connect through passageways at the bottom of the ocean.

The scientists, led by Monika Bright of the Schmidt Ocean Institute, made the discovery during an expedition in the summer of 2023. And now they’ve released a paper detailing their findings. The peer-reviewed journal Nature published the paper on October 15, 2024.

Thriving communities beneath hydrothermal vents

We’ve known that animal communities thrive around hydrothermal vents since the discovery of these ocean features in 1977. Hydrothermal vents are like hot springs on the seafloor, where seawater seeps through cracks in the ocean crust and magma superheats it from below. This causes the heated water to rise with force, dissolving minerals from the crust as it does so. And the spreading of minerals allows animals to live around the vents. But it was thought that only microbes and viruses were hardy enough to live beneath them.

But now we know the space below these vents is habitable for animal life, too. Exploring a part of the volcanic mid-ocean ridge known as the East Pacific Rise, Bright’s research team used the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s underwater robot SuBastian to peel back small sections of the seafloor. They found roughly 4-inch (10-cm) tall cavities teeming with life. Volcanic activity heats the water in the cavities to a balmy 77 degrees F (25 C), making it a suitable home for creatures including giant tubeworms, polychaete worms, mussels and sea snails.

The claws of a machine at the top of the image are peeling up a grey slab of the seafloor, revealing the white tubeworms living in the subseafloor cavity.
The scientists used a remote-controlled machine to peel back the ocean floor. There, they found giant tubeworms and other species. Image via Schmidt Ocean Institute (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).

Ocean animals take pathways from above to below the seafloor

One of the key findings of the new paper centers on the giant tubeworm Riftia pachyptila. This species is a common feature of hydrothermal vents, but few tubeworm larvae have been found in the ocean around them. How do the larvae make their way to new vents? The team hypothesized they could be traveling through passages beneath the seafloor. And that’s exactly what they found: Giant tubeworm larvae, the scientists said, are able to traverse these cavities until they come across new hydrothermal habitats. Vent currents then draw some of them to the seafloor. But others simply settle and mature in the cavities below.

So not only has the team discovered a new ecosystem below the seafloor, but they’ve established that it’s intertwined with the seafloor community. Bright said:

Two dynamic vent habitats exist. Vent animals above and below the surface thrive together in unison, depending on vent fluid from below and oxygen in the seawater from above.

A new ecosystem to protect

We don’t yet know how far these hidden communities could spread, or how widespread they might be. The team is planning further investigation. They hope more knowledge could aid a push for better management of the ocean floor. In particular, they highlighted the urgency of protecting this newfound habitat from deep-sea mining.

Bottom line: Scientists have discovered ocean animals beneath the bottom of the ocean, where worms and snails thrive in cavities beneath hydrothermal vents.

Source: Animal life in the shallow subseafloor crust at deep-sea hydrothermal vents

Via Schmidt Ocean Institute

Read more: Hydrothermal vents on ocean moons could support life

The post Explorers find ocean animals thriving beneath the seafloor first appeared on EarthSky.



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Ocean animals: An intertwined mass of white tubes with red tops on the seafloor.
Deep ocean animals such as giant tubeworms commonly live on the seafloor around hydrothermal vents. But a new study discovered they’re also one of several species that can survive beneath these vents, in subseafloor cavities. Image via Schmidt Ocean Institute (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).

Scientists discover ocean animals beneath the seafloor

For the first time, researchers have discovered animal communities thriving beneath the bottom of the ocean. They found the ocean animals – including giant tubeworms and sea snails – below hydrothermal vents some 8,250 feet (2,515 m) from the Pacific Ocean’s surface. And they said these seafloor and subseafloor communities connect through passageways at the bottom of the ocean.

The scientists, led by Monika Bright of the Schmidt Ocean Institute, made the discovery during an expedition in the summer of 2023. And now they’ve released a paper detailing their findings. The peer-reviewed journal Nature published the paper on October 15, 2024.

Thriving communities beneath hydrothermal vents

We’ve known that animal communities thrive around hydrothermal vents since the discovery of these ocean features in 1977. Hydrothermal vents are like hot springs on the seafloor, where seawater seeps through cracks in the ocean crust and magma superheats it from below. This causes the heated water to rise with force, dissolving minerals from the crust as it does so. And the spreading of minerals allows animals to live around the vents. But it was thought that only microbes and viruses were hardy enough to live beneath them.

But now we know the space below these vents is habitable for animal life, too. Exploring a part of the volcanic mid-ocean ridge known as the East Pacific Rise, Bright’s research team used the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s underwater robot SuBastian to peel back small sections of the seafloor. They found roughly 4-inch (10-cm) tall cavities teeming with life. Volcanic activity heats the water in the cavities to a balmy 77 degrees F (25 C), making it a suitable home for creatures including giant tubeworms, polychaete worms, mussels and sea snails.

The claws of a machine at the top of the image are peeling up a grey slab of the seafloor, revealing the white tubeworms living in the subseafloor cavity.
The scientists used a remote-controlled machine to peel back the ocean floor. There, they found giant tubeworms and other species. Image via Schmidt Ocean Institute (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).

Ocean animals take pathways from above to below the seafloor

One of the key findings of the new paper centers on the giant tubeworm Riftia pachyptila. This species is a common feature of hydrothermal vents, but few tubeworm larvae have been found in the ocean around them. How do the larvae make their way to new vents? The team hypothesized they could be traveling through passages beneath the seafloor. And that’s exactly what they found: Giant tubeworm larvae, the scientists said, are able to traverse these cavities until they come across new hydrothermal habitats. Vent currents then draw some of them to the seafloor. But others simply settle and mature in the cavities below.

So not only has the team discovered a new ecosystem below the seafloor, but they’ve established that it’s intertwined with the seafloor community. Bright said:

Two dynamic vent habitats exist. Vent animals above and below the surface thrive together in unison, depending on vent fluid from below and oxygen in the seawater from above.

A new ecosystem to protect

We don’t yet know how far these hidden communities could spread, or how widespread they might be. The team is planning further investigation. They hope more knowledge could aid a push for better management of the ocean floor. In particular, they highlighted the urgency of protecting this newfound habitat from deep-sea mining.

Bottom line: Scientists have discovered ocean animals beneath the bottom of the ocean, where worms and snails thrive in cavities beneath hydrothermal vents.

Source: Animal life in the shallow subseafloor crust at deep-sea hydrothermal vents

Via Schmidt Ocean Institute

Read more: Hydrothermal vents on ocean moons could support life

The post Explorers find ocean animals thriving beneath the seafloor first appeared on EarthSky.



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