Ecological Role of an Offshore Industry Artificial Structure
Ecological Role of an Offshore Industry Artificial Structure
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DOI：
10.3389/fmars.2019.00675
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发表时间：
2019-11
影响因子：
3.7
通讯作者：
A. Gates;T. Horton;Amanda Serpell-Stevens;C. Chandler;L. Grange;K. Robert;A. Bevan;Daniel O. B. Jones
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
A. Gates;T. Horton;Amanda Serpell-Stevens;C. Chandler;L. Grange;K. Robert;A. Bevan;Daniel O. B. Jones
全球所有主要盆地的石油和天然气基础设施的退役引起了人们对其作为大陆架和斜坡生境坚硬底层的重要性的关注。需要进行观察性研究，以增进对近海基础设施支持的动物群组合的了解，并更好地预测清除的效果。在这里，我们介绍了对东北大西洋一个油田退役的一个小型石油和天然气工业结构进行目测和实物抽样的结果。对附近类似结构的观察和环境基线调查拍摄的周围海床照片支持了这一点。该结构支持相当高的生物量和无脊椎动物(10公斤和39种大型动物和17种大型动物)和鱼类(20公斤生物量和4种)的多样性。结构上存在的无脊椎动物巨型动物物种是在周围海床上观察到的硬质底层动物的一个子集。结构中没有Porifera。头两年的生物演替情况如下。水生Obelia sp.的稀疏菌落Stet是早期的殖民者，后来发展成厚厚的水生草坪(Obelia sp.斯泰特。和海鞘属(Halecium sp.)Stet.)支持以鞍形牡蛎(Pododesmus squama(Gmelin，1791)和Heteronomia sp.)为主的多样化无脊椎动物群落(2654个个体，湿质量-1)。Stet.))和介壳虫(Hormothoe spp.)水生草皮的覆盖率随着结构的不同而变化很大，大多数生长在暴露在最强洋流的部分。该结构周围存在的具有重要商业价值的鱼类物种包括大西洋鳕鱼(Gadus Morhua)、大西洋鳕鱼(Pollachius Virens)和康康鱼(Liphus Piscatorius)。对这类人工结构的研究提供了急需的数据，以了解它们在海底生境生态中的作用，并为从勘探到退役的工业所有阶段的环境决策提供信息。我们表明，退役的三维结构的生态作用是提高了在该地区发现的表观无脊椎动物亚群的生物量。这支持了各种相关的大型动物有机体，为活动的无脊椎动物和鱼类提供了食物来源，因为该地区的背景硬底物可能会因钻探的影响而丧失。
Decommissioning of oil and gas infrastructure in all major basins globally has focused attention on its importance as hard substratum on continental shelf and slope habitats. Observational studies are needed to improve understanding of faunal assemblages supported by offshore infrastructure and better predict the effect of removal. Here we present results from visual inspection and physical sampling of a small oil and gas industry structure decommissioned from an oil field in the North East Atlantic. This is supported by observations of similar structures nearby and by photographs of the surrounding seabed from environmental baseline surveys. The structure supported a reasonably high biomass and diversity of invertebrates (>10 kg and > 39 macrofaunal and 17 megafaunal species) and fishes (>20 kg biomass and > 4 species). The invertebrate megafaunal species present on the structure were a sub-set of the hard substratum fauna observed on surrounding seabed. Porifera were absent from the structure. Biological succession in the first two years occurred as follows. Sparse colonies of the hydroid Obelia sp. stet were early colonisers then subsequent development of thick hydroid turf (Obelia sp. stet. and Halecium sp. stet.) supported a diverse invertebrate assemblage (2654 individuals kg wet mass-1) dominated by saddle oysters (Pododesmus squama (Gmelin, 1791) and Heteranomia sp. stet.)) and scale worms (Hormothoe spp.). Percentage cover of hydroid turf varied significantly over the structure, with most growth on sections exposed to strongest currents. Commercially important fish species present around the structure included Gadus morhua (Atlantic cod), Pollachius virens (saithe) and Lophius piscatorius (monkfish). Studies of artificial structures such as this provide much needed data to understand their role in the ecology of seafloor habitats and inform environmental decision making on all stages of industry from exploration to decommissioning. We show that the ecological role of the decommissioned three-dimensional structures was to enhance the biomass of a sub-set of epifaunal invertebrates found in the area. This supported diverse associated macrofaunal organisms, providing a food source for motile invertebrates and fishes in an area where background hard substratum can be lost through the impacts of drilling.