Japan Geoscience Union Meeting 2016

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International Session (Oral)

Symbol B (Biogeosciences) » B-CG Complex & General

[B-CG04] Earth and Planetary Science Frontiers for Life and Global Environment

Sun. May 22, 2016 1:45 PM - 3:15 PM 201A (2F)

Convener:*Yohey Suzuki(Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo), Yoshinori Takano(Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC)), Shingo Kato(Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology), Katsunori Yanagawa(Graduate School of Social and Cultural Studies, Kyushu University), Tadashi Yokoyama(Department of Earth and Space Science, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University), Chair:Yoshinori Takano(Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC)), Katsunori Yanagawa(Graduate School of Social and Cultural Studies, Kyushu University)

1:45 PM - 2:00 PM

[BCG04-01] Benthic Habitat Mapping in the Iheya North Hydrothermal Field

★Invited papers

*Blair Thornton1, Adrian Bodenmann1, Oscar Pizarro2, Stefan B Williams2, Ryota Nakajima3, Ken Takai4 (1.Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, 2.Australian Centre for Field Robotics, The University of Sydney, 3.Research and Development Centre for Submarine Resources, JAMSTEC, 4.Department of Subsurface Geobiological Analysis and Research, JAMSTEC)

Keywords:3d visual reconstruction, Habitat mapping, Hydrothermal vent

Deep-sea hydrothermal systems can support large and diverse populations of vent-associated organisms. In this paper, we describe a practical method to rapidly assess the distribution and diversity of megabenthos over wide areas based on a two-phase multi-resolution visual mapping technique. The technique is applied to two areas in the Iheya North Field of the Okinawa trough, in regions that were drilled to varying extents during the IODP 331 expedition. A total area of more than 30,000m2 was mapped in a single dive with a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and more than 80,000 organisms were identified from six different species. The results give insight into the effects that drilling activity has had on the distribution of megabenthos in this area. The method described forms a practical way to quantitatively assess the distribution of megabenthos over statistically meaningful spatial scales in a way that is repeatable and is suitable for comparison between sites or for monitoring sites over time.