Microbial Communities and Metabolisms at Hydrocarbon Seeps

Abstract

Hydrocarbon seeps are common features of all oceans and are located mainly along the continental margins (Fig. 1). Seeps are locally restricted, yet highly productive hotspots of biodiversity that experience very different environmental conditions and energy regimes than the surrounding deep-sea sediments. Hydrocarbon seep ecosystems are mostly fueled by methane. Occasionally, seeps are found that emit the short-chain hydrocarbons ethane, propane or butane, and even oil and asphalt seeps have been described. Seep ecosystems therefore comprise ecological niches and microbial clades that are distinct from those found in deep-sea sediments, which are not fuelled by methane and other hydrocarbons. This chapter provides an overview of the communities thriving at marine hydrocarbon seeps and the microbial metabolisms that create these oases of life (with references to other chapters in this book). It highlights the current knowledge of the diversity and biogeography of seep microbial communities and presents possible mechanisms governing their community assembly. Open image in new window Fig. 1 Map of seafloor regions with investigated marine hydrocarbon seepage (orange dots). The map shows a selection of well-known seep areas. The total number of seeps worldwide is unknown, but estimated to be at least several ten thousand. The map was created using GeoMapApp