Ecosystem

services (“Freebies”) from the Oceans

Climate Water Oxygen

Biodiversity Food Shoreline

Protection

Recreation Transportation Power

Ocean stewardship is important

 People depend on coral reefs

500 million
30 million
Deep-Sea Coral-Sponge Communities: iconic & important

Johan Ernst Gunnerus

Trawling for deep-sea fish destroys habitat

Trawled
Trawler

Orange Roughy Untrawled

(Claire Nouvian/Bloom Association)
 Corals live for centuries to millenia
Cross section Avoid collecting live colonies

12 mm, 250 yr
Andrews et al.

Bubblegum Bamboo
Fossil fuel emissions change ocean conditions

Warming
Year CO2(ppm)
Deoxygenation
1850 280 Ocean Acidification
2019 412
2100+ 1000?
Sea Level Rise

Warming inhibits deep mixing

Leads to reduced oxygen

in deep waters
Fossil fuel emissions change ocean conditions

Warming
Deoxygenation
Ocean Acidification
Sea Level Rise
CO2

CO2 + H2O H2CO3 (Carbonic Acid)

• More Acidic
• Fewer minerals
for shells
How do animals cope with change?

What to
do..?

• Migration
• Acclimation
• Adaptation
• Extinction
Timing is everything…
Life thrives during periods of climate stability

600 Extinctions
Families

400

200

500 400 300 200 100 0

Millions of years before present
Sheehan 1996
400,000 year history of CO2 and Ocean Acidity

Atmospheric CO2

Atmospheric CO2 (ppm)

Ice Ages
Ocean pH (units)

More acidic
Ocean pH
Changing ocean chemistry is a “100 million-year storm”
Ice Ages

Effect of fossil fuel

emissions
More acidic

Turley et al 2005
Shallow Coral Reefs (bleached) Deep-Sea Corals
Deep-Sea Coral-Sponge Communities

Important Focal point:

• Deep-sea oases
• Biodiverse
• Habitat
• Inspire

Vulnerable
• Fishing
• Pollution
• Climate change
Knowledge Gaps
Exploration, discovery
• Diversity
• Distribution
• Environment
• Biology

Ecosystem function
• Food webs - energy flow
• Ecological roles
• Vulnerability
• Restoration
NOAA - 2019

NOAA - 2017
 Deep-Sea Coral Observatory
Research Themes
MBNMS SESAs Sur Ridge • Biology ó Oceanography
• Population dynamics
• Biodiversity
• Reproduction, Growth
• eDNA
• Climate Change
• Restoration

Oceanography

Predation

Feeding

Flow measurement Age & growth

Ocean Access & technology play a key role
Flow measurement

Western Flyer Oceanographic sensors Benthic Respiration Sys.

ROV Doc Ricketts Mapping AUV Sediment Traps

Ultra-high resolution maps allow detailed study
Sur Ridge

<- 100 m ->

Sinking organic debris feeds 99% of the deep-sea
Chlorophyll Marine Snow

Bamboo coral
Particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) helps study feeding

sponge
siphon

2 cm
Sponge respiration measured with
oxygen sensors

sponge
siphon

2 cm
 Coral flow dynamics
2 cm
 Aug. 2017
Predation is a significant threat

Dec. 2017
Nudibranch predator +4 m

Sweeper Tentacles
Jul. 2018
Stinging Cells
+11 m

Regrowth
Chemical defense plays a role

Deep-sea species:
• 100’s of natural compounds isolated
• Sponges, anemones, corals, sea stars, mollusks, ….
• ~75% bioactive
• Antimicrobial
• Anticancer
Will deep-sea coral restoration help?

Group A
Coral transplant directly at depth
Same day redeployment

Overnight on ship
Deep-Sea Coral-Sponge Ecosystem Observatory

MBARI
Ocean Access
Technology

Deep-Sea
Coral
Observatory

Exploration & Coral Biology Outreach - Coral

Discovery & Ecology Inspiration Conservation
What to do? …plenty