Ecology of deep-sea meiobenthos in the western Pacific |
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| Authors: | Yoshihisa Shirayama |
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| Institution: | 1. Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo, 1-15-1, Minami-dai, Nakano-ku, 164, Tokyo, Japan
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| Abstract: | I am deeply honored to have been awarded the 1988 Okada Prize of the Oceanographical Society of Japan. The present paper reviews my previous works regarding the ecology of deep-sea meiobenthos in the western Pacific area. The outline cen be summarized as follows:| 1) |
On the basis of multivariate analyses, it was found that the rate of the organic-matter flux to the sea bed and the amount of the interstitial space within the sediment are the main factors regulating the abundance of meiofauna in the deep sea.
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Two indices were proposed to characterize the vertical distribution of meiofauna in the sediment profile,i.e. their maximum depth in the sediment and the degree of their concentration in the surface layer of the sediment. The index of maximum depth was closely related to the oxygen concentration in the interstitial water. On the other hand, the index of degree of concentration in the surface of the sediment tended to be higher where the supply of food seemed lower.
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Some taxonomically important species were found from the axis of the Izu-Ogasawara Trench. They arePliciloricus hadalis, the first species of the newest phylum Loricifera from the Pacific area, from the hadal deep sea and the fine clay sediment, andOccultammina profunda, the first infaunal species of Xenophyophorea, a group of rhizopod Protozoa.
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The vertical distribution ofOccultammina profunda coincided well with the unusual distribution of210Pb in the sediment profile. The organisms concentrated as high as 500 dpm g–1 of210Pb in their stercomare and granellare. The steady state model confirmed that the species made the peculiar subsurface peak of210Pb in the sediment.
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The depth in the sediment profile where the distinct peak of MnO2 can be seen showed strong correlation with the vertical distribution of meiofauna. This relationship suggests that oxygen concentration in the interstitial water regulates the structure of the characteristic three layers of the calcareous ooze in the deep sea. This idea was proven by the vertical distribution of free oxygen in the sediment calculated on the basis of respiration rate of deep-sea meiofauna measured using the cartesian diver technique.
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Radio-isotope techniques used to measure the rates at which particulated organic matter was ingested and dissolved organic matter was absorbed, suggested that deep-sea meiofauna obtained a significant fraction of their energy by absorption.
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The work carried out so far has revealed the important role of meiofauna in the benthic ecosystem, and emphasized the necessity for intensive research from various points of views on these microscopic organisms.
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