For years scientists viewed the deep sea as calm, quiet, and undisturbed, with marine species existing in an ecologically stable and uniform environment. Recent discoveries have completely transformed that understanding and the deep sea is recognized as a complicated and dynamic environment with a rich diversity of marine species. Carefully designed to provide practical information in an easily accessible format, Methods for the Study of Deep-Sea Sediments, Their Functioning and Biodiversity covers how to investigate the biological components through analysis of their biodiversity. It also provides the protocols and methodological details needed to investigate some aspects of the functional biodiversity of variables commonly utilized to describe and understand the drivers of deep-sea ecosystem functioning.
This volume contains detailed protocols for analyzing all benthic components from benthic viruses, prokaryotes, protozoa, foraminifera, to meio-, macro-, and megafauna. It includes step-by-step procedures, with additional notes on the crucial steps or possible difficulties arising from the analysis. Each chapter provides a brief introduction, a description of the sampling procedures and/or the sample treatment, and then the laboratory protocols, providing information on instrument setting and/or the solutions utilized. Each chapter also contains a visual scheme of the protocol for use during laboratory activities and for tracking each laboratory step. Linking information on biodiversity with the functioning of the marine ecosystems, Methods for the Study of Deep-Sea Sediments, Their Functioning and Biodiversity covers all living components of the benthos. It provides practical information for anyone studying deep-sea habitats, their characteristics, functioning, and biodiversity.
Deep-Sea Environmental Variables
- Total Organic Matter and Water Contents, Grain Size, Bulk Density, Porosity, and Redox Potential of Sediments
- Total Organic Carbon, Total Nitrogen, and Organic Phosphorus in Marine Sediments
- Bioavailable Organic Matter: Total and Enzymatically Hydrolyzable Proteins, Carbohydrates, and Lipids
- Photosynthetic Pigment Concentrations in Marine Sediments
Food Supply of Organic Matter to the Deep-Sea Floor
- Fluxes of Labile Organic Matter to the Sea Floor
- Total Carbohydrate Flux from Sediment Trap Samples
- Total Protein Flux from Sediment Trap Samples
- Total Lipid Flux from Sediment Trap Samples
- Total DNA from Sediment Trap Samples
- Phytopigment Flux from Sediment Trap Samples
Deep-Sea Benthic Life
- Viral Abundance
- Prokaryotic Abundance
- Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization and Catalyzed Reporter Deposition for Benthic Prokaryote Assemblage Structure
- Prokaryotic Abundance by Real-Time PCR
- Abundance of Heterotrophic Benthic Protists
- Abundance of Benthic Foraminifera
- Abundance of Metazoan Meiofauna
- Macrofaunal Abundance
- Megafauna Abundance
Deep-Sea Benthic Diversity
- Extraction and Purification of DNA from Marine Sediments Suitable for the Analysis of Prokaryotic Diversity
- Archaeal Diversity Analysis Using 16S rDNA T-RFLP (Terminal-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphisms)
- Benthic Bacterial Diversity Based on Cloning and Sequencing of 16S rRNA Genes
- Benthic Bacterial Diversity Analysis Based on ARISA (Automated Ribosomal Intergenic Spacer Analysis)
- Meiofaunal Diversity
- Macrofaunal and Megafaunal Diversity
- Parameters for the Measurement of Marine Benthic Structural and Functional Diversity
Deep-Sea Benthic Functioning
- Deep-Sea Experiments and Manipulations
- Effect of Pressure on Enzymatic Activities, Viral Production, and Prokaryotic Heterotrophic Production
- Organic Carbon Remineralization Rates in Marine Surface Sediments Derived from Shipboard Pore-Water Oxygen Microprofiles
- Degradation and Turnover of Organic Matter in Marine Sediments
- Extracellular DNA Extraction from Marine Sediments
- Degradation of Extracellular DNA in Marine Sediments
- Viral Production in Marine Sediments
- Determination of Living/Dead and Active/Dormant Bacterial Fractions in Marine Sediments
- Prokaryotic Biomass in Marine Sediments
- Benthic Prokaryotic Heterotrophic Production Using the Leucine Incorporation Method
- Prokaryotic Chemoautotrophic Production in Marine Sediments
- Meiofaunal Biomass and Secondary Production
- Macrofaunal and Megafaunal Biomass and Biochemical Composition
- Protistan Grazing on Benthic Prokaryotes
- Meiobenthos Predation on Prokaryotes
- Analysis of Benthic Food Webs and Benthic Trophodynamics
Suggested Readings for the Study of Deep-Sea Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning
- Suggested Readings
- Index