Methanotrophic bacterial symbionts fuel dense populations of deep-sea feather duster worms (Sabellida, Annelida) and extend the spatial influence of methane seepage
Shana K. Goffredi, Tilic Ekin, Sean W. Mullin, Katherine S. Dawson, Abigail G. Keller, Raymond W. Lee, Fabai Wu, Lisa A. Levin, Greg W. Rouse, Erik E. Cordes, Victoria J. Orphan
Abstract
C-labeled methane into animal biomass, which occurs via the engulfment of methanotrophic bacteria across the crown epidermal surface. These worms represent a new addition to the few animals known to intimately associate with methane-oxidizing bacteria and may further explain their enigmatic mass occurrence at 150-million year-old fossil seeps. High-resolution seafloor surveys document significant coverage by these symbioses, beyond typical obligate seep fauna. These findings uncover novel consumers of methane in the deep sea and, by expanding the known spatial extent of methane seeps, may have important implications for deep-sea conservation.