Abstract
Seamounts shape the topography of all ocean basins and can be hotspots of biological activity in the deep sea. The Census of Marine Life on Seamounts (CenSeam) was a field program that examined seamounts as part of the global Census of Marine Life (CoML) initiative from 2005 to 2010. CenSeam progressed seamount science by collating historical data, collecting new data, undertaking regional and global analyses of seamount biodiversity, mapping species and habitat distributions, challenging established paradigms of seamount ecology, developing new hypotheses, and documenting the impacts of human activities on seamounts. However, because of the large number of seamounts globally, much about the structure, function and connectivity of seamount ecosystems remains unexplored and unknown. Continual, and potentially increasing, threats to seamount resources from fishing and seabed mining are creating a pressing demand for research to inform conservation and management strategies. To meet this need, intensive science effort in the following areas will be needed: 1) Improved physical and biological data; of particular importance is information on seamount location, physical characteristics (e.g. habitat heterogeneity and complexity), more complete and intensive biodiversity inventories, and increased understanding of seamount connectivity and faunal dispersal; 2) New human impact data; these shall encompass better studies on the effects of human activities on seamount ecosystems, as well as monitoring long-term changes in seamount assemblages following impacts (e.g. recovery); 3) Global data repositories; there is a pressing need for more comprehensive fisheries catch and effort data, especially on the high seas, and compilation or maintenance of geological and biodiversity databases that underpin regional and global analyses; 4) Application of support tools in a data-poor environment; conservation and management will have to increasingly rely on predictive modelling techniques, critical evaluation of environmental surrogates as faunal “proxies”, and ecological risk assessment.
Highlights
Seamounts are prominent components of the seascapes of all ocean basins [1]
Research on seamounts has recently been focused in a field programme as part of the Census of Marine Life (CoML)– The Census of Marine Life on Seamounts (‘‘CenSeam’’) [5,6]
CenSeam brought together scientists working in the fields of seamount ecology, taxonomy, conservation, fisheries, geology, physical oceanography, and informatics
Summary
Seamounts are prominent components of the seascapes of all ocean basins [1]. These raised topographical features and the ecosystems which they support, have historically been viewed as unique, diverse and productive systems embedded in a more homogeneous deep-sea environment [e.g., 2–4]. A growing number of studies suggest seamounts are generally not ecologically isolated or island-like systems, and they can, and often do, have assemblages of similar species composition to those found in adjacent deep-sea habitats on the continental slope or banks e.g. Water column stratification, and oceanic flow conditions interact on a seamount to provide a number of local dynamic responses that can regulate the spatial scale of faunal distributions. This assumes that nearby vent sites remain active and act as sources of recruits to the mined areas [75]
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