How Large Is the Seamount Biome?

Seamounts, Ridges, and Reef Habitats of American Samoa

“…In the current global census of seamounts, only 200 have been sampled, and in no systematic fashion [7], but future studies based on this current study hold promise for exploring a possible relationship between seamount shape and habitat. Topographic/ bathymetric position index (TPI/BPI) is important in a vertical sense (e.g., species richness along a vertical biodiversity gradient, as discussed in Refs.…”

“…Seamounts, guyots, and knolls, with the fluid flow, nutrient supply, and modification to local circulation patterns they provide, are all extremely important habitats (e.g., corals, invertebrates, benthic fish, sea turtles, and sharks) and may include some of the richest biological "hotspots" in the oceans [6][7][8]. In the American Samoa region, the most well known and spectacular example thus far is Vailulu'u seamount at the eastern end of the Samoan archipelago, particularly with the hydrothermal vents discovered at its summit and rapidly growing Nafanua volcanic cone within the summit crater/caldera [9][10][11].…”

Benthic megafaunal community structure of cobalt-rich manganese crusts on Necker Ridge

“…Rowden et al, 2010), patterns of community structure are beginning to emerge that indicate seamounts and similar features like ridges are not homogeneous habitats (e.g. Baco, 2007;Etnoyer et al, 2010;McClain et al, 2010;Rowden et al, 2010;Schlacher et al, 2014;Long and Baco, 2014). Seamounts typically have rough and heterogeneous topography, which can create irregular current patterns and uneven distributions of sediments, resulting in extensive areas of hard substrates as well as soft substrate habitats.…”

Microbial Ecology of the Dark Ocean above, at, and below the Seafloor

“…1). Recent estimates suggest that seamounts make up a combined area of nearly 30 ϫ 10 6 km 2 , a massive biome larger than the global sedimentary continental shelf biome (148). The eruptive rates of the oceanic crust correlate to some degree with the spreading rate of the plates along midocean ridges, although slower-spreading ridges are also driven by tectonic forces (185,367).…”