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Dense cold‐water coral garden of <i>Paragorgia johnsoni</i> suggests the importance of the Mid‐Atlantic Ridge for deep‐sea biodiversity

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Dense cold‐water coral garden of Paragorgia johnsoni suggests the importance of the Mid‐Atlantic Ridge for deep‐sea biodiversity

DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8319

Type: Publication

Year: 2021

Citations: 21

AZORES DEEP-SEA RESEARCH
Publication Open access November 2021

Dense cold‐water coral garden of Paragorgia johnsoni suggests the importance of the Mid‐Atlantic Ridge for deep‐sea biodiversity

Ecology and Evolution

10.1002/ece3.8319
Open DOI
Total authors
12
Involved team members
7
Citations
21
References
31

Citations by year

6 years
2026
2
2025
7
2024
3
2023
5
2022
3
2021
1

Related to this work

ATLAS MERCES iAtlantic Blue Azores 2018

Abstract

Mid-ocean ridges generate a myriad of physical oceanographic processes that favor the supply of food and nutrients to suspension- and filter-feeding organisms, such as cold-water corals and deep-sea sponges. However, the pioneering work conducted along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge failed to report the presence of large and dense living coral reefs, coral gardens, or sponge aggregations. Here, we describe the densest, near-natural, and novel octocoral garden composed of large red and white colonies of Paragorgia johnsoni Gray, 1862 discovered at 545-595 m depth on the slopes of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, in the Azores region. This newly discovered octocoral garden is a good candidate for protection since it fits many of the FAO criteria that define what constitutes a Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem. The observations described here corroborate the existence of a close relationship between the octocoral structure and the ambient currents on ridge-like topographies, providing new insights into the functioning of mid-ocean ridges' ecosystems. The ubiquitous presence of biogenic and geological topographies associated with mid-ocean ridges, which could act as climate refugia, suggests their global importance for deep-sea biodiversity. A better understanding of the processes involved is, therefore, required. Our observations may inspire future deep-sea research initiatives to narrow existing knowledge gaps of biophysical connections with benthic fauna at small spatial scales along mid-ocean ridges.

Authors

7 involved team members
C
Christian Mohn
0000-0002-4331-1365

Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark

+1 more

O
Oscar Ocaña Vicente
0000-0002-4594-8642

Departamento de Biología Marina Fundación Museo del Mar Ceuta Spain

I
Inês Tojeira
0000-0001-5778-6196

Portuguese Task Group for the Extension of the Continental Shelf (EMEPC) Paço de Arcos Portugal

E
Emanuel J. Gonçalves
0000-0002-3918-6215

Oceano Azul Foundation Oceanário de Lisboa Lisbon Portugal

+1 more

Record details

Type
article
Language
EN
Volume
11
Issue
23
Pages
16426–16433
ISSN
2045-7758

Keywords

Coral Ridge Biodiversity Oceanography Deep water Mid-Atlantic Ridge Geography Fishery Ecology Biology Geology Cartography

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Governo dos Açores
Oceano Azul
Eurofleets
FCT
FCT Investigador
Governo dos Açores
Portugal 2020
Rolex
RP
RP Ciência
União Europeia
Governo dos Açores
Oceano Azul
Eurofleets
FCT
FCT Investigador
Governo dos Açores
Portugal 2020
Rolex
RP
RP Ciência
União Europeia

Location

Institute of Marine Sciences — Okeanos, University of the Azores

Departamento de Oceanografia e Pescas — Universidade dos Açores

Rua Prof. Doutor Frederico Machado, No. 4
9901-862 Horta, Portugal

Contact

Email: azoresdeepsea@gmail.com

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