Die Große Meteorbank (Nordost-Atlantik) - Trittstein oder Abstellgleis? Quantitative Unteruchungen zur Verbreitung, der Diversität und dem Ursprung der benthonischen Kuppenfauna

由于其地形、大小和在海洋中的位置，与周围的深海相比，海底山被认为蕴藏着更高的生物量和“自然”和“遗传资源”的多样性。因此，海底山的经济价值日益增加。尽管如此，经过过去几十年对海底山的零星研究，最近的调查表明，这种对海底山作用的概括可能是不合理的。目前尚不清楚为什么一些海山呈现出物种丰富度增加、特有物种数量增加和生物量增加的现象，而另一些海山则没有。过去，位于大西洋东北部的大流星海山曾多次成为定性生物学研究的主要对象。虽然所获得的数据还不足以对高原动物的分类群分布、生物地理和起源作出合理的说明，但为今后的研究提供了基础。拟议的巡航旨在获取相应的数据。计划测试以下三个假设：1。2.由于海山的高度隔离性，它栖息着一种特有物种占很大比例的本地底栖动物；2 .迁徙和生活在高原上的大型和大型底栖动物的代表可能来自邻近的地理区域和较浅的区域，而高原的小底栖动物主要来自周围的深海；由于大流星海山的生产力相对于周围的深海相对较高，因此海山高原的物种密度高于深海。

Because of their topography, size and location in the oceans, seamounts are considered as harbouring an enhanced biomass and diversity of “natural” and “genetic resources” compared with the surrounding deep sea. Thus, seamounts are of increasing economical interest. Nonetheless, after rather spot-like studies on seamounts in the past decades, recent investigations indicate, that such generalization of seamounts’ roles may not be justified. It remains quite unclear, why some seamounts present increasing species richness, high number of endemic species, and increased biomass production, while others do not. In the past, the Great Meteor Seamount, located in the northeast Atlantic, has several times been the object of mainly qualitative biological research. Although being insufficient for sound statements regarding taxa distribution, biogeography, and origin of the plateau fauna, the obtained datasets provide a basement for ongoing investigation. The proposed cruise aims a corresponding data capture. It is planned to test the following three hypotheses:1. Because of the strong isolation of the seamount it inhabits an autochthonous bottom fauna with a high portion of endemic species;2. Whereas those representatives of macro- and megabenthos that immigrate and live on the plateau may recruit from adjacent geographical regions and rather shallow areas, the meiobenthos of the plateau mainly originates from the surrounding deep sea;3. Due to the relatively high productivity of the Great Meteor Seamount compared with the surrounding deep sea, the seamount’s plateau shows a higher species density than the latter.