Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/D000483/1
Polychaetes at deep-sea whale falls: molecular and morphological evidence for phylogeny, population structure and evolutionary novelty
Grant Award
- Principal Investigator:
- Dr A Glover, The Natural History Museum, Zoology
- Grant held at:
- The Natural History Museum, Zoology
- Science Area:
- Marine
- Overall Classification:
- Marine
- ENRIs:
- Biodiversity
- Science Topics:
- Systematics & Taxonomy
- Population Genetics/Evolution
- Abstract:
- The deep sea is the largest and least explored environment on the planet, covering some 60% of the Earth's surface. Despite its size, it is only during the latter half of the 20th century that researchers began to discover the wealth of biological diversity and evolutionary novelty that it holds. An example of this is the unusual communities of animals that develop on the remains of dead whales ('whale falls') that have sunk to the deep sea floor. This project will focus in particular on polychaetes, segmented worms that are extraordinarily abundant and biodiverse in the deep sea, and will be one of the first to examine both deep-sea whale falls (at 1000-2000m) and shallow-water ones together. Whales are the giants of the ocean, and can reach over 100 tonnes body weight. On death, the majority of whales sink to the seafloor, and represent an enormous energy source in an otherwise food-poor environment, where sunlight and photosynthesis is absent. Previous investigations have shown how the flesh of dead whales is rapidly consumed by mobile, scavenging organisms; our research will focus on the animals that colonise the remaining skeletal material, and in particular on species of polychaete that utilize the bone matrix and whale oils (lipids) as food. We will concentrate on three species, to answer a variety of questions regarding the ecology and evolutionary biology of whale falls. The first species is a remarkable tube-building worm known as Osedax that we recently discovered growing on whale bones at 125m depth off western Sweden. Interestingly, they appear to be closely related to a species that was recently described from a much deeper whale fall off California, USA. We will use morphological techniques (electron microscopy and computer analysis) to describe this new species, and place it in its evolutionary context. The second species, Bathykurila guaymasensis, we believe to be widespread not just at whale falls, but at other habitats such as hydrothermal vents and cold seeps. For this animal, we will use DNA sequencing techniques, and morphological description, to answer questions regarding its ability to disperse between sites, and its evolutionary relationships with other whale, vent and seep dwelling polychaetes. The third species, Glyphanostomum sp. n., is a new species that appears to feed off the organic debris produced not just by whale falls, but by other food-rich habitats such as wood and kelp debris at the seafloor. We will also use DNA sequencing techniques to examine the degree of genetic divergence between specimens collected at these different habitats. This project will combine state of the art collection techniques (Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) operated by ocean-going vessels) combined with a variety of modern analysis methods such as electron microscopy and DNA sequencing to investigate an extraordinary and hitherto unknown group of animals in the deep sea.
- NERC Reference:
- NE/D000483/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- New Investigators Pre FEC
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- New Investigators
This grant award has a total value of £50,743
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| Total - T&S | Total - Staff | Total - Other Costs | Total - Indirect Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| £4,359 | £24,127 | £11,159 | £11,099 |
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