Latest News

ECOMAR/MAR-ECO Science Meeting

9th January 2012

The University of Abderdeen hosted the ECOMAR Annual Science Meeting between the 9th and 13th Januray 2012. The meeting led to productive discussions on the interpretation of data collected during the ECOMAR project. A number of poblication are anticipated as a direct result of the meeting.

World Conference on Marine Biodiversity 2011

26th September 2011

There were a number of ECOMAR presentations given at the World Conference on Marine Biodiversity in 2011. The conference was jointly hosted by the University of Aberdeen and University of St. Andrews. More details on the conference can be found here.

National Science and Engineering Week

18th May 2011

Mark Shields, Thomas Linley, Jessica Craig and Deborah Crockard were involved in the Discovery Day at the Maritime Museum in Aberdeen. Almost 400 people visited the Maritime Museum on the 19th of March and were welcomed by a fantastic range of events and exhibitions aimed at all the family. Oceanlab staff gave an insight into life in the deep and highlighted some of the technology used to study our deep oceans. The event was a great success and provided an excellent opportunity for Discovery Day visitors to interact with scientists and learn more about our current understanding of our deep oceans.

Association of Science Education visit Oceanlab

15th March 2011

On the 24th February 2011 Oceanlab hosted a visit from the Association of Science Education. The event was attended by both primary and secondary school teachers with the aim of helping teachers develop teaching resources for incorporating marine science into the school curriculum. The event was lead by Mark Shields and Thomas Linley.

ECOMAR - Press Release

7th July 2010

Scientists have just returned from a voyage with samples of rare animals and more than 10 possible new species in a trip which they say has revolutionised their thinking about deep-sea life in the Atlantic Ocean.

Basket Star - Euryalid Ophiuroid-Gorgonocephalus sp. from Sea Mount on Mid Atlantic Ridge - Courtesy of David Shale.

Scale worm, polynoid polychaete- Courtesy of David Shale

One group of creatures they observed – and captured – during their six weeks in the Atlantic aboard the RRS James Cook is believed to be close to the missing evolutionary link between backboned and invertebrate animals.

Using the latest technology they also saw species in abundance that until now had been considered rare.

Researchers were also surprised to discover such diversity in habitat and marine life in locations just a few miles apart.

Scientists were completing the last leg of MAR-ECO – an international research programme, part of the Census of Marine Life, which is enhancing our understanding of the occurrence, distribution and ecology of animals along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between Iceland and the Azores.

The University of Aberdeen is leading the UK contribution to the project which involves scientists from 16 nations. Key collaborators in the UK include Newcastle University and the National Oceanography Centre.

During more than 300 hours of diving – using Isis the UK’s deepest diving remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to depths of between 700m right down to 3,600m – researchers surveyed flat plains, cliff faces and slopes of the giant mountain range that divides the Atlantic Ocean into two halves, east and west.

The research was focused in two areas – beneath the cold waters north of the Gulf Stream and the warmer waters to the south.

Professor Monty Priede, Director of the University of Aberdeen’s Oceanlab, said: “We were surprised at how different the animals were on either side of the ridge which is just tens of miles apart.

“In the west the cliffs faced east and in the east the cliffs faced west. The terrain looked the same, mirror images of each other, but that is where the similarity ended. It seemed like we were in a scene from Alice Through the Looking Glass.

“In the north-east, sea urchins were dominant on the flat plains and the cliffs were colourful and rich with sponges, corals and other life.

“In the north-west, the cliffs were dull grey bare rock with much less life. The north-west plains were the home of deep-sea enteropneust acorn worms. Only a few specimens, from the Pacific Ocean, were previously known to science.

“These worms are members of a little-known group of animals close to the missing link in evolution between backboned and invertebrate animals.

“The creatures were observed feeding and leaving characteristic spiral traces on the sea floor.

“They have no eyes, no obvious sense organs or brain but there is a head end, tail end and the primitive body plan of back-boned animals is established. One was observed showing rudimentary swimming behaviour.

“By the end of the expedition three different species were discovered each with a different colour, pink, purple and white with distinctly different shapes.”

Pink enteropneust - Courtesy of David Shale

Purple enteropneust - Courtesy of David Shale

White enteropneust - Courtesy of David Shale

Using the remotely operated vehicle, high quality complete specimens of all three different-coloured species were captured and will be sent to specialists for further investigations.

Sea cucumbers, or holothurians, normally seen crawling incredibly slowly over the flat abyssal plains of the ocean floor, were found on steep slopes, small ledges and rock faces of the underwater mountain range.

Researchers were also surprised to see that they were very able and fast moving swimmers and unique video sequences were recorded of swimming holothurians.

Holothurian, Amperima sp - Courtesy of David Shale

Holothurian, Amperima sp2 - Courtesy of David Shale

Professor Priede said: “This expedition has revolutionised our thinking about deep-sea life in the Atlantic Ocean. It shows that we cannot just study what lives around the edges of the ocean and ignore the vast array of animals living on the slopes and valleys in the middle of the Ocean.

“Using new technology and precise navigation we can access these regions and discover things we never suspected existed.”

Dr Andrey Gebruk, Shirshov Institute, Moscow, said: “We were surprised how species, elsewhere considered rare, were found in abundance on the Mid Atlantic Ridge and we were finding new species up to the last minute of the last dive in the voyage.”

Holothurian, Deima validum validum - Courtesy of David Shale

Dr Daniel Jones, National Oceanography Centre Southampton, surveyed over 50,000 square metres of sea floor in high definition detail and said: “We successfully completed one of the most detailed video surveys of the deep sea ever attempted. The Isis ROV with its cutting-edge technology gives us the potential to understand more and more of the mysterious deep sea environment.”

Newcastle University’s Dr Ben Wigham has been working on the project for the past four years studying the biology of animals living on the ridge. “We are interested in how these animals are feeding in areas of the deep-sea where food is often scarce” he said. “The differences we see in the diversity of species and numbers of individuals may well be related to how they are able to process and share out a rather common but meagre food supply, we certainly see indications that there are differences between the north and south regions of the ridge.”

Bathypelagic ctenophore from benthic boundary layer - Courtesy of David Shale

Deepsea jellyfish that forages near the sea floor - Courtesy of David Shale

This voyage was part of the UK contribution to the Census of Marine Life (http://www.coml.org/) programme MARECO (http://www.mar-eco.no/). This was the last in a series of four annual voyages undertaken since 2007 investigating all aspects of life over the Mid Atlantic Ridge.

ECOMAR is funded by the UK Natural Environment Research Council.

The ROV Isis can work at depths of 6000 metres — full ocean depth. The vehicle is maintained by the National Oceanography Centre Southampton on behalf of UK science and scientists.

RRS James Cook Cruise Report now available

Click here to view report

Upcoming ECOMAR cruise to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge

14th May 2010

On the 26th May 2010 ECOMAR scientists will set sail on the RRS James Cook from St. John’s in Canada for the Mid-Atlantic Ridge on Cruise JC048. For the first time during the ECOMAR project the ROV ISIS will be deployed carrying a range of video, photographic and sampling systems providing further insight into life of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. In addition, ECOMAR scientists will deploy a variety of sampling equipment including the photographic acoustic lander, ICDeep camera and the amphipod trap. Daily updates, including photographs of deep-sea life, will be provided via the cruise blog and twitter pages. The cruise will end on the 3rd of July when the RRS James Cook docks in Vigo, Spain.

Royal Society of Edinburgh Science Masterclass

A RSE masterclass entitled ‘Fish that glow in the dark’ was given to a group of S1 and S2 students on 8th May 2010. During the masterclass, the students learnt about the deep sea environment as well as bioluminescence and other deep sea adaptations. The students then designed, built and named their own deep sea creatures. The students included va rious adaptive traits in their designs, such predator tickling hair, to ensure the survival of their creature in the ocean. The masterclass was lead by Prof. Monty Priede, Dr. Nikki King and NERC funded PhD student Jessica Craig, as part of the ECOMAR public outreach program.
For further information on running your own ‘Creatures of the deep’ activity or for other ideas and lesson plans for different age ranges, please visit the ECOMAR Public Outreach and Education web page.

RRS Discovery cruise 2008 completed

20th August 2008

The D331 Trials cruise came into St John's, Newfoundland on the 15th August 2008. Phil Bagley (PI), Nikki King, and Andy Dale from SAMS were the only three scientists on board, as well as NMF technical support staff and the crew and officers. The ship left Portland in southeast England on the 23rd July in order to service the long term marine oceanographic moorings and to retrieve the long term DOBO (Deep Ocean Benthic Observatory) lander and Roughsnap photographic system.

The Roughsnap photographic system was successfully recovered, as were three out of the four moorings, but unfortunately the DOBO lander would not leave the seabed. Attempts were made to dislodge DOBO from the seabed but none were successful. Further attempts will be made in 2009 and 2010.

To read the D331 cruise report please see the Cruises page under D331T.

RRS Discovery 2008 cruise resceduled

4th July 2008

After a meeting with the NERC ship operators a shortened cruise to the Mid Atlantic Ridge this summer has been scheduled.

The Discovery will sail on 25 th July from the UK and will arrive in St Johns Newfoundland 17 th August. The cruise will service all the moorings with sediment traps and other instrumentation. The long term landers will also be serviced.

There will be an additional cruise in 2010, and long term the moorings will stay out for an extra year to cover this extension. This gives an additional 12 months of physical oceanography data.

Dr Phil Bagley and Dr Nikki King will be sailing on this summer's cruise, along with the NMF team of moorings technicians and Dr Andy Dale from the Scottish Association for Marine Science.

RRS Discovery 2008 cruise cancelled

26th June 2008

Owing to technical problems with the RRS Discovery the proposed 2008 ECOMAR-MARECO cruise to the Mid-Atlantic ridge has been cancelled. Work is being rescheduled. The cruise was scheduled from the 5th July 2008 until the 16th August 2008.

RRS James Cook Cruise Report now available.

27th September 2007

Click here to view the report.

‘New continent’ and species discovered in Atlantic study

18th August 2007

A scientist from the University of Aberdeen is leading a team of international researchers whose work will continue our understanding of life in the deepest oceans, and contribute to the global Census of Marine Life. Exploring life in the North Atlantic Ocean at various depths of 800 to 3,500 metres, a team of 31 scientists are returning from a five-week scientific expedition which has surfaced a wealth of new information and insights, stunning images and marine life specimens, with one species thought to be new to science. The international team will be arriving in Scotland tomorrow (Saturday, August 18) following the expedition along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) between Iceland and the Azores on board the £40 million Royal Research Ship James Cook.

Histioteuthis sp. (pelagic squid)

Professor Monty Priede, Director of the University's highly-acclaimed Oceanlab, along with colleague Dr Nicola King, and students Jessica Craig, Claudia Alt and James Hawkins, are part of the science team on board the ship. Professor Priede said: "It is like surveying a new continent half way between America and Europe. We can recognise the creatures, but familiar ones are absent and unusual ones are common. We are finding species that are rare or unknown elsewhere in the world."

One of the world's most advanced research vessels, the RRS James Cook, will be docking at Fairlie Pier by Largs tomorrow (Saturday, August 18), bringing samples of rare animals and a vast archive of pictures and videos, which will help us to understand more about life in the oceans. The RRS James Cook is the latest addition to the Natural Environment Research Council's fleet of oceanographic research ships. The team of scientists mapped over 1,500 square miles, exploring the deep sea creatures living in the depths of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. They used the latest technology to learn more about what is living in this remote and relatively unexplored deep-sea environment using remotely operated vehicles equipped with digital cameras.

Chauliodous sloani (Sloane's viperfish)

With a suite of eight deep sea cameras they were able to capture images of life on the peaks and valleys of very rugged terrain. Colourful sponges and corals encrust rocky cliffs, whereas areas of soft sediment are populated by starfish, brittle-stars, sea cucumbers and burrowing worms. Fishes, crabs and shrimps forage over the ridge exploiting whatever they can find. Trawls, traps and corers have brought back thousands of specimens for study back in the laboratory.

Professor Priede said: "We are trying to imagine what the north Atlantic would be like without the ridge that literally cuts it in half, as we think it has a major effect on ocean currents, productivity and biodiversity of the North Atlantic Ocean.

"The RRS James Cook ship is an absolutely fantastic facility and is allowing marine researchers to explore new environments, find new animals and study global changes in the world's oceans."

The aim of the voyage is to contribute to the wider MAR-ECO project studying biodiversity along mid-ocean ridges (www.mar-eco.no) and to the global Census research programme. Census ofMarine Life is a 10-year global scientific initiative to assess and explain the diversity, distribution and abundance of life in the oceans. The team already think they may have discovered a new species of Ostracod (or seed shrimp) that was found swarming in large numbers on the western side of the ridge. Specimens are on their way to experts in Southampton where world-renowned expert, Professor Martin Angel, will ultimately determine whether this is a new species, describe it and
allocate a name.

One specimen of the potentially new species of Ostracod sampled on the ECOMAR cruise.

Dr Steven Wilson, Director of Science & Innovation for the Natural Environment Research Council, said: "The Mid- Atlantic Ridge is still relatively unexplored so this voyage will have played a vital role in expanding our knowledge of the biodiversity of the region."

Water currents and tides over the ridge were studied intensively and daily measurements were made of productivity in surface waters. The team left behind automatic equipment on the sea floor at six observing stations that will continue measurements and photography over the next two years. Further voyages are planned in 2008 and 2009 that will include retrieval of the gear. Oceanlab was responsible for assisting with the expedition management and deployed three deep ocean lander vehicles recording luminescent displays from animals living in the darkness on one of the peaks of the mid ocean ridge.

The expedition is run under ECOMAR, an affiliated project of EuroCoML. It is a £2million consortium project funded by the UK Natural Environment Research Council, led by the University of Aberdeen with participation from: National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, University of St Andrews, Scottish Association for Marine Science, Plymouth Marine Laboratory, University of Durham and University of Newcastle. It provides a contribution to the wider MAR-ECO project coordinated by Odd Aksel Bergstad of Norway and the Census of Marine Life, a global project involving over 2,000 scientists.

Notes to Editors:

Professor Monty Priede, Director of Oceanlab at the University of Aberdeen, is available for media interviews. Reporters and/or photographers are invited to photograph the ship / interview Professor Priede after the ship docks at Fairlie pier by Largs tomorrow (Saturday, August 18) around 9.00am. For images taken during the expedition and/or film footage, please contact Angela Ferguson, Communications Office, University of Aberdeen, on: (01224) 272960 .

The RRS James Cook is managed by NERC's National Marine Facilities Division, based at the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton. The ship is operated by professional mariners who provide a working platform and practical assistance to the scientists. The ship is the most advanced multi-purpose research ship in the world and will return this weekend with samples of rare animals and a vast archive of pictures and videos, which will continue our understanding of life in the oceans. The ship has been designed as a world-class multidisciplinary science platform that allows for investigations using sophisticated and precisely targeted instruments, such as deep sea remotely operated vehicles. The Natural Environment Research Council funds world-class science, in universities and its own research centres, that increases knowledge and understanding of the natural world. NERC is tackling the 21st century's major environmental issues such as climate change, biodiversity and natural hazards. It leads in providing independent research and training in the environmental sciences.

For further information visit:

www.oceanlab.abdn.ac.uk/research/ecomar.php
www.oceanlab.abdn.ac.uk/blog/
http://www.mar-eco.no
http://www.eurocoml.org/
http://www.coml.org/
www.nerc.ac.uk

Issued by the Communications Team, Office of External Affairs, University of Aberdeen,
King's College, Aberdeen. Tel: (01224) 273174

PhD studentship opportunity at Newcastle University

The application deadline has now passed for this PhD.

22nd March 2007

Macro-consumer food web structure of mid-ocean ridge systems:

The fate of chemosynthetic and photosynthetic energy input at contrasting sites in the North Atlantic and Southern Oceans

Supervisors: Dr. Ben Wigham and Prof. Nicholas Polunin

Based in the School of Marine Science and Technology at Newcastle University, this project forms part of 2 larger NERC programmes focussed on the deep-water ecosystems of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (ECOMAR) and the Scotia Arc and Bransfield Strait (ChEsSo). As such you will be working within a wider, multi-disciplinary research community providing increased opportunities for collaboration and support. This project will specifically study the structure of deep-sea macro-consumer food webs at two contrasting localities. The specific aims of this project include; 1) a comparison of the isotopic and lipid signatures of selected macro-consumers (fish and invertebrates), examining the effects of distance from hydrothermal source and overlying productivity regimes, and 2) an assessment of ultimate food sources to whole food webs as indicated by linearity or otherwise of ä 15 N vs, ä 13 C data. This project will involve fieldwork in both the North Atlantic and Southern Ocean/Antarctica and you should be prepared to spend long periods (>4 weeks) at sea. You will also be required to be in a position to pass an ENG1 medical and a Sea Survival course to undertake this project.

For further information contact Dr. Ben Wigham.

Successful Scottish ECOMAR meeting

1^st February 2007

By Nicola King, Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen

RRS James Cook (Image: www.nerc.ac.uk)

RV G.O. Sars

The kick-off meeting for the UK MAR-ECO initiative, ECOMAR, had a Scottish flavour when it was held at the coordinating institution, Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen, on the 29th – 31st January 2007.

Several MAR-ECO scientists from Norway and Russia opened the meeting by discussing their results from the 2004 G.O. Sars cruise. The MAR-ECO talks were followed up with outlines of research aims and plans from all the UK ECOMAR scientists. The attendees settled on cruise and equipment requirements for the main disciplines (oceanography, circulation and remote sensing, pelagic fauna and biomass and benthic fauna and biomass) for the James Cook cruise (JC011) which will go ahead in summer 2007.

Within the next month a draft cruise plan will be produced and station positions and work timetables will be finalised. The 2007 cruise looks to be highly successful and will incorporate a wide range of disciplines enabling a picture of the processes on the ridge to be developed.

Participants in attendance were:

Monty Priede
Nicola King
Jessica Craig
Alan Jamieson
Phil Bagley
Odd Aksel Bergstad
Tone Falkenhaug
Henrik Soiland
Andrey Gebruk
Peter Boyle
Mark Inall
Andy Dale
Peter Miller
Gavin Tilstone
Andrew Brierley
Graham Shimmield
David Billett
Jane Read
Richard Sanders
Ben Wigham
Rus Hoelzel
Colin Day
John Short
Lucy Parnall

Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen (MAR-ECO)
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen (MAR-ECO)
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen
Institute of Marine Research, Norway (MAR-ECO)
Institute of Marine Research, Norway (MAR-ECO)
Institute of Marine Research, Norway (MAR-ECO)
P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology (MAR-ECO)
University of Aberdeen (MAR-ECO)
SAMS, Oban
SAMS, Oban
Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Gatty Marine Laboratory, University of St. Andrews
SAMS, Oban
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
Dove Marine Laboratory, University of Newcastle
University of Durham
UKORS (NOC)
UKORS (NOC)
Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

ECOMAR planning meeting

An ECOMAR planning meeting is taking place between 29th January and 31st January 2007 at Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen to confirm the cruise sampling strategies, participants and mooring placements. Members of the MAR-ECO steering group will also be attendance to present results from the MAR-ECO cruises and to advise on sampling regimes and areas, and data management. The current attendees are:

Monty Priede
Nicola King
Phil Bagley
Alan Jamieson
Jessica Craig

Odd Aksel Bergstad
Tone Falkenhaug
Henrik Soiland
Andrey Gebruk
Olav Rune Godø
Peter Boyle

Mark Inall
Andy Dale
Peter Miller
Gavin Tilstone
Andrew Brierley
Graham Shimmield
David Billett
Alan Hughes
Jane Read
Richard Sanders
Ben Wigham
Rus Hoelzel
Colin Day
UKORS REP
Lucy Parnall

Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen (MAR-ECO)
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen (MAR-ECO)
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen
Oceanlab, University of Aberdeen

Institute of Marine Research, Norway (MAR-ECO)
Institute of Marine Research, Norway (MAR-ECO)
Institute of Marine Research, Norway (MAR-ECO)
P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology (MAR-ECO)
Institute of Marine Research, Norway (MAR-ECO)
University of Aberdeen (MAR-ECO)

SAMS, Oban
SAMS, Oban
Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Gatty Marine Laboratory, University of St. Andrews
SAMS, Oban
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
Dove Marine Laboratory, University of Newcastle
University of Durham
UKORS (NOC)
UKORS (NOC)
Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

Ecosystems of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at the Sub-Polar Front and Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone