Radiolarian tests as microhabitats for novel benthic foraminifera: observations from the abyssal eastern equatorial Pacific (Clarion–Clipperton fracture zone)

We investigated benthic foraminifera inhabiting the empty tests of radiolarians in surface sediment samples from the abyssal Clarion–Clipperton Fracture Zone (13°50’N, 116°35’W; ~4080 m water depth), eastern equatorial Pacific, an area licensed for the future mining of polymetallic nodules. Based on two megacore samples (>150 µm, 0–1 cm sediment layer; 78.6 cm2 surface area), we examined 288 radiolarian tests that were occupied by ‘live’ (stained) inhabitants presumed to be foraminifera based on test morphology and wall structure; these quantitative data were supplemented by qualitative records from three additional cores. The radiolarian inhabitants comprised organic-walled and agglutinated monothalamous (single-chambered) and less common polythalamous (multichambered) forms. Among the 27 distinctive morphotypes, a few can be assigned to a described superfamily (Komokiacea) or to genera such as Lagenammina, Thurammina and Hormosinella, while two brown, organic-walled multichambered forms resemble the genera Hospitella and Placopsilinella. The remainder were assigned to informal morphotypes. The radiolarian inhabitants are generally small (9% of the total ‘live’ (stained) foraminiferal assemblage, thereby making non-negligible contribution to local species diversity and foraminiferal abundance in our study area. Our new observations, and previous studies of benthic foraminifera inhabiting the empty shells of other foraminifera, suggest that high biodiversity among meiofaunal-sized deep-sea organisms (particularly foraminifera) is enhanced by the colonisation of small cryptic microhabitats. Based on their complex test morphology, we suggest that at least some of the diverse monothalamous foraminifera that typically dominate abyssal foraminiferal assemblages have little or no mobility, making them well suited to this mode of life

Novel benthic foraminifera are abundant and diverse in an area of the abyssal equatorial Pacific licensed for polymetallic nodule exploration

The benthic biota of the Clarion–Clipperton Zone (CCZ, abyssal eastern equatorial Pacific) is the focus of a major research effort linked to possible future mining of polymetallic nodules. Within the framework of ABYSSLINE, a biological baseline study conducted on behalf of Seabed Resources Development Ltd. in the UK-1 exploration contract area (eastern CCZ, ~4,080 m water depth), we analysed foraminifera (testate protists), including ‘live’ (Rose Bengal stained) and dead tests, in 5 cores (0–1 cm layer, >150-μm fraction) recovered during separate megacorer deployments inside a 30 by 30 km seafloor area. In both categories (live and dead) we distinguished between complete and fragmented specimens. The outstanding feature of these assemblages is the overwhelming predominance of monothalamids, a group often ignored in foraminiferal studies. These single-chambered foraminifera, which include agglutinated tubes, spheres and komokiaceans, represented 79% of 3,607 complete tests, 98% of 1,798 fragments and 76% of the 416 morphospecies (live and dead combined) in our samples. Only 3.1% of monothalamid species and 9.8% of all species in the UK-1 assemblages are scientifically described and many are rare (29% singletons). Our results emphasise how little is known about foraminifera in abyssal areas that may experience major impacts from future mining activities

In Search of a Sustainable Global Agri-Food System

The potential to meet global food demand fully exists through global development of the high-technology (HT), high-intensity type of agriculture and food processing system prevailing in developed countries. This system unfortunately is also responsible for much natural resource degradation, environmental damage and ecological imbalance. Meantime the Earth's human population continues to grow, placing ever-increasing demand on global natural resources, not only for food but also for living and recreational space. A more sustainable agri-food system must evolve. Sustainability is complex, and ought to be approached from a multidisciplinary perspective and compromise sought in resolving the obvious conflicts amongst biological, environmental, ecological, socio-economic, and other individual disciplines and competing philosophies. These form the basis for comparing three different agricultural production systems: high technology (HT); reduced input (RI), and organic (ORG). The three systems are compared empirically using primary data from farms in each group in southern Ontario, Canada. HT systems prevalent in Canada is highly productive, but its sustainability is questionable. It was concluded that the HT system should not be the model for the future. The ORG system is the least inimical to the environment, ecology, and human operators. It was concluded that the ORG system is sustainable except for its requirement for extensive use of land. The RI system causes minimal environmental and ecological damage. It is most profitable and is supportive of rural farm community viability. It was concluded that the RI system holds the best potential for meeting overall sustainability for the global agri-food system.Farm Management, Land Economics/Use,

Formation of agglutinated cysts by the foraminiferan Sphaeroidina bulloides on the Porcupine Abyssal Plain (NE Atlantic)

Benthic foraminiferal species sometimes produce a covering made of sediment and detrital material around their tests (shells). These sedimentary envelopes, termed ‘cysts’, have been observed in a number of species, from organic-walled and agglutinated to calcareous (e.g., Linke and Lutze 1993; Cedhagen 1996; Gross 2000, 2002; Gooday and Hughes 2002; Heinz et al. 2005). However, almost all published records of this phenomenon originate from coastal or bathyal settings, and there are very few examples from abyssal depths, i.e. deeper than 3500 m. During the analysis of Megacorer samples (25.5 cm2 surface area, formalin-buffered, 0–1 cm sediment horizon, >150 ?m fraction) collected in the area of the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (PAP-SO) in the northeast Atlantic (49°N 16.5°W, 4850 m water depth), we observed benthic foraminifera that had created partial or complete muddy coatings. Most belonged to Sphaeroidina bulloides d’Orbigny, 1826 (Fig. 1), and a few to Melonis barleeanus (Williamson, 1858). The S. bulloides cysts occasionally incorporated juvenile planktonic foraminiferal tests (<50 ?m), and always included one or more flexible agglutinated tubes (20–35 ?m wide, 140–400 ?m long) that extended out of the main structure (Fig. 1a–e). There was no evidence of the presence within the cysts of microscopic organisms, comparable to the ciliates and nematodes observed by Linke and Lutze (1993) inside the cysts of Elphidium incertum

Unique benthic foraminiferal communities (stained) in diverse environments of sub-Antarctic fjords, South Georgia

Sub-Antarctic fjords are among the environments most affected by the recent climate change. In our dynamically changing world, it is essential to monitor changes in these vulnerable settings. Here, we present a baseline study of “living” (rose-bengal-stained) benthic foraminifera from fjords of South Georgia, including fjords with and without tidewater glaciers. Their distribution is analyzed in the light of new fjord water and sediment property data, including grain size and sorting, total organic carbon, total sulfur, and δ13C of bulk organic matter. Four well-defined foraminiferal assemblages are recognized. Miliammina earlandi dominates in the most restricted, near-shore and glacier-proximal habitats, Cassidulinoides aff. parkerianus in mid-fjord areas, and Globocassidulina aff. rossensis and an assemblage dominated by Ammobaculites rostratus, Reophax subfusiformis, and Astrononion echolsi are in the outer parts of the fjords. Miliammina earlandi can tolerate strong glacial influence, including high sedimentation rates in fjord heads and sediment anoxia, as inferred from sediment color and total organic carbon  sulfur ratios. This versatile species thrives both in the food-poor inner reaches of fjords that receive mainly refractory petrogenic organic matter from glacial meltwater and in shallow-water coves, where it benefits from an abundant supply of fresh, terrestrial, and marine organic matter. A smooth-walled variant of C. aff. parkerianus, apparently endemic to South Georgia, is the calcareous rotaliid best adapted to inner-fjord conditions characterized by moderate glacial influence and sedimentation rates and showing no preference for particular sedimentary redox conditions. The outer parts of fjords with clear, well-oxygenated bottom water are inhabited by G. aff. rossensis. Ammobaculites rostratus, R. subfusiformis, and A. echolsi dominate in the deepest-water settings, with water salinities ≥ 33.9 PSU and temperatures 0.2–1.4 ∘C, characteristic of winter water and Upper Circumpolar Deep Water. The inner- and mid-fjord foraminiferal assemblages seem specific to South Georgia, although with continued warming and deglaciation, they may become more widespread in the Southern Ocean.Polish National Science Centre (grant no. 2018/31/B/ST10/02886

Global genetic homogeneity in the deep-sea foraminiferan Epistominella exigua (Rotaliida: Pseudoparrellidae)

Epistominella exigua is one of the most common deep-sea foraminiferal morphospecies and has a world-wide distribution. A recent molecular study revealed high genetic similarity between Arctic, Atlantic and Antarctic populations of this species. Here, we show that the small-subunit (SSU) and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA sequences of an E. exigua population from Pacific are almost identical to those reported previously from the other three oceans. This result confirms the genetic homogeneity of E. exigua, which contrasts with the prevalence of highly differentiated populations in planktonic and shallow-water benthic foraminiferans. We discuss special features of diversifications mechanisms in the deep sea that may be responsible for the lack of genetic differentiation and global distribution of some meiofauna species

A new genus and two new species of saccamminid foraminiferans (Protista, Rhizaria) from the deep Southern Ocean

FIGURE 3. Leptammina flavofusca gen. et sp. nov. Assemblage of individuals from Stn. 102 # 13 EBS. A. Fresh, newly collected, and probably alive individuals. B. The same individuals after fixation in formalin. Scale bars = 1 mm

Abyssal hills: influence of topography on benthic foraminiferal assemblages

Abyssal plains, often thought of as vast flat areas, encompass a variety of terrains including abyssal hills, features that constitute the single largest landscape type on Earth. The potential influence on deep-sea benthic faunas of mesoscale habitat complexity arising from the presence of abyssal hills is still poorly understood. To address this issue we focus on benthic foraminifera (testate protists) in the >150-?m fraction of Megacorer samples (0–1 cm layer) collected at five different sites in the area of the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (NE Atlantic, 4850 m water depth). Three sites are located on the tops of small abyssal hills (200–500 m elevation) and two on the adjacent abyssal plain. We examined benthic foraminiferal assemblage characteristics (standing stock, diversity, composition) in relation to seafloor topography (hills vs. plain). Density and rarefied diversity were not significantly different between the hills and the plain. Nevertheless, hills do support a higher species density (i.e. species per unit area), a distinct fauna, and act to increase the regional species pool. Topographically enhanced bottom-water flows that influence food availability and sediment type are suggested as the most likely mechanisms responsible for these differences. Our findings highlight the potential importance of mesoscale heterogeneity introduced by relatively modest topography in regulating abyssal foraminiferal diversity. Given the predominance of abyssal hill terrain in the global ocean, we suggest the need to include faunal data from abyssal hills in assessments of abyssal ecology

Loricifera inhabiting spherical agglutinated structures in the abyssal eastern equatorial Pacific nodule fields

Loriciferans are known to survive in extreme environments, most notably in the case of a recently described Spinoloricus species from a hypersaline anoxic Mediterranean basin. Our new discovery of members of the genus Rugiloricus inside spherical agglutinated structures from sediment samples collected in the manganese nodules fields of the eastern Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ, abyssal equatorial Pacific) demonstrates that these tiny animals are able to spring fresh surprises. Nearly all developmental stages of an undescribed Rugiloricus species were found inside the spheres, from the first instar larva and large free larva to the two stages of the postlarva inside the larval exuvium. Only the adults were missing. The spheres themselves were almost certainly not created by the loriciferans. Their origin is unclear, although similar agglutinated structures from the same study area contain cells that resemble monothalamous foraminifera, suggesting that they are possibly made by foraminifera. One of our CCZ samples also yielded a single free specimen of the loriciferan genus Pliciloricus that was not hidden inside an agglutinated structure. This specimen is particularly interesting because, like nested Russian dolls, it has all stages inside the larval exuvium: first the larval exuvium itself with the two toes, then a very thin postlarval exuvium and finally the adult male with two testes filled with mature spermatozoa

Benthic polychaete diversity patterns and community structure in the Whittard canyon system and adjacent slope (NE Atlantic)

We examined deep-sea macrofaunal polychaete species assemblage composition, diversity and turnover in the Whittard Canyon system (NE Atlantic; 3500 m water depth). Replicate Megacore samples were collected from three of the canyon branches and one site on the continental slope to the west of the canyon, all at c. 3500 m water depth. A total of 110 polychaete species were recorded. Paramphinome jeffreysii was the most abundant species (2326 ind m-2) followed by Aurospio sp. B (646 ind m-2), Opheliidae sp. A (393 ind m-2), Prionospio sp. I (380 ind m-2), and Ophelina abranchiata (227 ind m-2). Species composition varied significantly across all sites. From west to east, the dominance of Paramphinome jeffreysii increased from 12.9 % on the slope to 39.6 % in the Eastern branch. Ordination of species composition revealed that the Central and Eastern branches were most similar, whereas the Western branch and slope sites were more distinct. High abundances of P. jeffreysii and Opheliidae sp. A characterised the Eastern branch of the canyon and may indicate an opportunistic response to a possible recent input of organic matter inside the canyon. Species diversity indices were higher on the slope than inside the canyon, and the slope site had higher species evenness. Within the canyon, species diversity between branches was broadly similar. Our data does not suggest that the Whittard Canyon makes a substantial contribution to the regional diversity of soft-bottom benthic polychaetes