Fluid Venting Activity on the Costa Rica Margin: New Results from Authigenic Carbonates

Carbonate precipitates on mounds and along tectonic scarps off the Costa Rica margin are manifestations of subduction-induced dewatering. The long-term dewatering history is recorded in mineralogical, petrological and isotope signals of carbonates recovered from these sites. The carbonates are strongly depleted in δ13C (−11 to −53‰ PDB) and enriched in δ18O (+4 to +8‰ PDB). Thermogenic methane and biogenic methane were identified as sources of the carbon. Chemoherm carbonates and seepage-associated carbonates formed in a focused flow regime have lighter δ13C values, while others formed in a more diffusive flow regime have slightly enriched C isotope values. Three fluid components were inferred based on the calculation of equilibrium δ18O: clay dehydration water, gas hydrate water and seawater. Calculated equilibrium δ18O values of carbonates from different down-core depths as well as from different precipitation stages show that the δ18O of the precipitating fluid is progressively depleted with time. Dolostones showing a methane-C source and a well constrained O-isotope signature are thought to have formed at depth in the sediment and subsequently became exhumed. Glauconitic sandstones cemented by methane-derived carbonate provide evidence that fluid and solid material have been expelled by the mud volcano

Presence of two phylogenetically distinct groups in the deep sea mussel Acharax (Mollusca, Bivalvia, Solemyidae)

The family Solemyidae represents ancestral protobranch bivalves with the shallow-water genus Solemya and the deep-sea genus Acharax. All known members of this family host symbiotic sulfur-oxidizing bacteria in their gill filaments. Analysis of 18S rRNA gene sequences of Acharax specimens from methane-seeps off Makran (Pakistan), Java (Indonesia), the Aleutian Trench and off the Oregon, Costa Rica, and Peru margins revealed that Solemya spp. and Acharax spp. are well-separated genetically. This supports the current systematic distinction based on morphological criteria. We found 2 clearly distinct clusters within the genus Acharax, with specimens from the Makran, Oregon and Peru (MOP) margins in one (MOP–Acharax) cluster, and those from Java, the Aleutian Trench and Costa Rica (JAC) in the other (JAC–Acharax) cluster. The separation of MOP– and JAC–Acharax clusters from each other and from Solemya (S. reidi and S. velum) is well-supported by phylogenetic calculations employing maximum likelihood and maximum parsimony. Compared to genetic distances among other protobranch groups, distances between the MOP– and JAC–Acharax clusters would justify the affiliation of these clusters to separate species. This implies that species differentiation in Acharax based on shell morphology is likely to underestimate true species diversity within this taxon. Furthermore, our results support the hypothesis that genetic separation of Solemya and Acharax is congruent with the phylogeny of their bacterial endosymbionts

Morpho-acoustic variability of cold seeps on the continental slope offshore Nicaragua: result of fluid flow interaction with sedimentary processes

Based on multibeam bathymetry, high-resolution deep-towed sidescan sonar and Chirp subbottom profiling 32 cold seep sites, already identified in Sahling et al. (2008a), have been studied in an approximately 1000 km2 large area ranging from 800 to 2600 m water depth along the middle slope of the active continental margin offshore Nicaragua. Ground truthing is available from towed camera surveys and coring on seven of the structures. The seeps occur in different settings on the slope: upslope and along the headwall of large submarine slides, as isolated eroded massifs, and forming linear ridges between deeply incised canyons. The seep sites show a wide range regarding their size and morphology, their backscatter intensity patterns, their structure in subbottom profiles, and their fluid venting activity inferred from seafloor observations. Surface extension of the seep sites ranges from less than 200 to more than 1500 m in diameter, and relief height varies between no relief and 180 m. Indications of extruded materials such as mud flows are not observed in the area of the seep sites. Instead the seeps are characterized by high proportions of authigenic carbonates. The carbonates occur as crusts, detritus, or single layers embedded in the seafloor sediments. They appear as high backscatter intensities on sidescan sonar images. On some seep sites living vent fauna indicative of active seepage is observed, but gas bubbles have not been observed. To explain the high morphological variability of the features, we propose a generic model including the interaction of several processes: (1) episodic fluid venting and associated authigenic carbonate formation; (2) background sedimentation and subsidence; (3) linear erosion along canyons and denudation on the slope surface

The physicochemical habitat of Sclerolinum sp., at Hook Ridge hydrothermal vent, Bransfield Strait, Antarctica

At Hook Ridge hydrothermal vent, a new species of Sclerolinum (Monilifera, Siboglinidae) was found at a water depth of 1,045 m. On the basis of investigations of multicores and gravity cores, the species habitat is characterized. Sclerolinum does not occur in sediments that are most strongly influenced by hydrothermal fluids, probably because of high temperature (up to 49°C) and precipitation of siliceous crusts. About 800 individuals m-2 occur in sediments that are only weakly exposed to hydrothermal flow and have the following characteristics: 20°C (15 cm sediment depth) to 21.5°C (bottom water), 18-40 cm yr-1 advection rates, pH 5.5, <25 µmol L-1 methane, <170 µmol L-1 sulfide, and <0.0054 mol m-2 yr-1 sulfide flux. Comparison with geochemical data from other reducing sediments indicates that the two groups of Siboglinidae, Monilifera and Frenulata, occur in sediments with low sulfide concentration and flux. In contrast, sulfurbased chemosynthetic organisms that typically occur at hydrothermal vents and cold seeps (e.g., Vestimentifera, vesicomyid clams, and bacterial mats) occur in sediments with higher sulfide availability; threshold values are around 500 µmol L-1 sulfide and 0.1 mol m-2 yr-1 sulfide fluxes. We did not find typical hydrothermal vent species at Hook Ridge hydrothermal vent, which might be explained by the unfavorable physicochemical habitat: At sites inhabited by Sclerolinum, sulfide availability appears to be too low, whereas at sites with higher sulfide availability, the temperatures might be too high, siliceous crust precipitation could preclude their occurrence, or both

16S rDNA-based phylogeny of sulfur-oxidizing bacterial endosymbionts in marine bivalves from cold-seep habitats

The phylogenetic relationship of sulphur-oxidising endosymbiotic bacteria from bivalves of the families Vesicomyidae (Calyptogena sp. C1, Calyptogena sp. C3), Solemyidae (Acharax sp.) and Thyasiridae (Conchocele sp.) from cold-seep habitats were determined by 16S rDNA nucleotide sequence analyses. The endosymbiotic bacteria form distinct groups within the gamma-Proteobacteria and are well separated from each other and from free-living sulphur-oxidising bacteria of the genera Beggiatoa, Halothiobacillus and Thiomicrospira. The endosymbiotic bacteria of Acharax sp. from cold seeps off Oregon, Indonesia and Pakistan have sequences highly similar to each other but quite distinct from other thiotrophic endosymbionts. This includes endosymbionts from Solemya spp., to which they are distantly related. Symbiotic bacteria of Conchocele sp. from a cold seep in the Sea of Okhotsk are similar to those of Bathymodiolus thermophilus and related species, as shown by their overall sequence similarity and by signature sequences. The endosymbiotic bacteria of Calyptogena spp. from cold seeps off Oregon and Pakistan are closely related to those of other vesicomyids. Endosymbiont species found off Oregon corresponded to 2 different clusters of Calyptogena spp. symbionts in the same samples. The results corroborate the hypothesis of a monophyletic origin of the symbionts in vesicomyid clams, and support the existence of deeply branching groups in solemyid symbionts and of divergent lines and distribution for thyasirid symbionts. The results also indicate that certain symbiont species cluster according to the depth distribution of their hosts, and that in consequence host species together with their symbionts may have undergone depth-specific adaptation and evolution

Mapping deep-water gas emissions with sidescan sonar

Emissions of methane gas from cold seeps on the seafloor have a strong impact on a number of biogeochemical processes. These processes include the development of deepsea benthic ecosystems via the process of anaerobic oxidation of methane [Boetius et al., 2000] or the precipitation of carbonates [Ritger et al., 1987]. The fluxes of other chemical species associated with methane emissions may even influence the chemical composition of seawater [Aloisi et al., 2004]. Such gas emissions may have been much more intensive in the past with a strong impact on global climate [Dickens, 1999], as suggested by carbon isotope data

Fluxes and fate of dissolved methane released at the seafloor at the landward limit of the gas hydrate stability zone offshore western Svalbard

Widespread seepage of methane from seafloor sediments offshore Svalbard close to the landward limit of the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ) may, in part, be driven by hydrate destabilization due to bottom water warming. To assess whether this methane reaches the atmosphere where it may contribute to further warming, we have undertaken comprehensive surveys of methane in seawater and air on the upper slope and shelf region. Near the GHSZ limit at ?400 m water depth, methane concentrations are highest close to the seabed, reaching 825 nM. A simple box model of dissolved methane removal from bottom waters by horizontal and vertical mixing and microbially mediated oxidation indicates that ?60% of methane released at the seafloor is oxidized at depth before it mixes with overlying surface waters. Deep waters are therefore not a significant source of methane to intermediate and surface waters; rather, relatively high methane concentrations in these waters (up to 50 nM) are attributed to isopycnal turbulent mixing with shelf waters. On the shelf, extensive seafloor seepage at &lt;100 m water depth produces methane concentrations of up to 615 nM. The diffusive flux of methane from sea to air in the vicinity of the landward limit of the GHSZ is ?4–20 ?mol m?2 d?1, which is small relative to other Arctic sources. In support of this, analyses of mole fractions and the carbon isotope signature of atmospheric methane above the seeps do not indicate a significant local contribution from the seafloor source