Ecosystem function and services provided by the deep sea

作者：Andrew R. Thurber, Andrew K. Sweetman, Bhavani E. Narayanaswamy, Daniel O. B. Jones, Jeroen Ingels, Roberta L. Hansman · 发表于：Biogeosciences · 年份：2014 · DOI：10.5194/bg-11-3941-2014 · 被引用次数：420 · 研究领域：Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena、Marine Biology and Ecology Research、Marine and coastal ecosystems

Abstract. The deep sea is often viewed as a vast, dark, remote, and inhospitable environment, yet the deep ocean and seafloor are crucial to our lives through the services that they provide. Our understanding of how the deep sea functions remains limited, but when treated synoptically, a diversity of supporting, provisioning, regulating and cultural services becomes apparent. The biological pump transports carbon from the atmosphere into deep-ocean water masses that are separated over prolonged periods, reducing the impact of anthropogenic carbon release. Microbial oxidation of methane keeps another potent greenhouse gas out of the atmosphere while trapping carbon in authigenic carbonates. Nutrient regeneration by all faunal size classes provides the elements necessary for fueling surface productivity and fisheries, and microbial processes detoxify a diversity of compounds. Each of these processes occur on a very small scale, yet considering the vast area over which they occur they become important for the global functioning of the ocean. The deep sea also provides a wealth of resources, including fish stocks, enormous bioprospecting potential, and elements and energy reserves that are currently being extracted and will be increasingly important in the near future. Society benefits from the intrigue and mystery, the strange life forms, and the great unknown that has acted as a muse for inspiration and imagination since near the beginning of civilization. While many functions ...