Nature
Wednesday 11 May 2016, London

Patterns of biodiversity in the deep ocean are fundamentally different from those that govern species richness in shallower waters or on land, according to a paper published by Marine Biodiversity Hub researchers in the journal Nature. The study analyses the global distribution of thousands of species of brittle and basket stars — close relatives of the starfish — and provides a baseline for conservation efforts across the global sea floor, which faces increasing pressures from deep-sea fishing, pollution and mining.

The authors found that deep-sea (below 2000 metres) species richness peaks at higher latitudes than on the continental shelf and upper continental slope (0-2000 m). Although diversity at shallower depths is explained by water temperature and light availability, deep-sea diversity is not correlated with temperature, but instead with high levels of chemical energy export (which reflects food availability). They also found that proximity to the continental margin, where a continent meets the ocean floor, is a significant predictor of diversity in the deep sea.

Resources

• Nature article - Woolley et al, Deep-sea diversity patterns are shaped by energy availability
• Marine Hub partner Museum Victoria media release and images
• Marine Hub research project - National maps of biodiversity and connectivity
• Researcher profile Skipton Woolley

Images
Global abyssal diversity: Red and orange areas represent the highest level of species diversity. Museum Victoria
Brittlestar (Macrophiothrix spongicola) from southern Australia Image:  Julian Finn, Museum Victoria