Latitudinal gradients of species richness in the deep-sea benthos of the North Atlantic.

Abstract

Latitudinal species diversity gradients (LSDGs) in the Northern Hemisphere are the most well established biogeographic patterns on Earth. Despite long-standing interest in LSDGs as a central problem in ecology, their explanation remains uncertain. In terrestrial as well as coastal and pelagic marine ecosystems, these poleward declines in diversity typically have been represented and interpreted in terms of species richness, the number of coexisting species. Newly discovered LSDGs in the bathyal (500-4,000 m) benthos of the North Atlantic may help to resolve the underlying causes of these large-scale trends because the deep sea is such a physically distinct environment. However, a major problem in comparing surface and deep-sea LSDGs is that the latter have been measured differently, by using species diversity indices that are affected by both species richness and the evenness of relative abundance. Here, we demonstrate that deep-sea isopods, gastropods, and bivalves in the North Atlantic do exhibit poleward decreases in species richness, just as those found in other environments. A comprehensive systematic revision of the largest deep-sea gastropod family (Turridae) has provided a unique database on geographic distributions that is directly comparable to those used to document LSDGs in surface biotas. This taxon also shows a poleward decline in the number of species. Seasonal organic enrichment from sinking phytodetritus is the most plausible ecological explanation for deep-sea LSDGs and is the environmental factor most consistently associated with depressed diversity in a variety of bathyal habitats.