10.5061/DRYAD.WDBRV15JQ
Goffredi, Shana
0000-0002-9110-9591
Occidental College
Methanotrophic bacterial symbionts fuel dense populations of deep-sea
feather duster worms (Sabellida, Annelida) and extend the spatial
influence of methane seepage
Dryad
dataset
2020
2020-01-09T00:00:00Z
2020-01-09T00:00:00Z
en
1412558686 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Deep-sea methane seeps are dynamic sources of greenhouse gas production
and unique habitats supporting ocean biodiversity and productivity. Here,
we demonstrate new animal-bacterial symbioses fueled by methane, between
two undescribed species of annelid (a serpulid Laminatubus and sabellid
Bispira) and distinct methane-oxidizing Methylococcales bacteria. Worm
tissue delta 13C of -44 to -58 per mil suggested methane-fueled nutrition
for both species and shipboard experiments revealed active assimilation of
13C-labelled CH4 into animal biomass, occurring via engulfment of
methanotrophic bacteria across the host epidermal surface. These worms
represent a new addition to the few animals known to intimately associate
with methane-oxidizing bacteria, and further explain their enigmatic mass
occurrence at 150-million-year-old fossil seeps. High-resolution seafloor
surveys document significant coverage by these symbioses, beyond typical
obligate seep fauna. These findings uncover novel consumers of methane in
the deep-sea, and by expanding the known spatial extent of methane seeps,
may have important implications for deep-sea conservation.