In situ fluxes and zonation of microbial activity in surface sediments of the Håkon Mosby Mud Volcano

From the Håkon Mosby Mud Volcano (HMMV) on the southwest Barents Sea shelf, gas and fluids are expelled by active mud volcanism. We studied the mass transfer phenomena and microbial conversions in the surface layers using in situ microsensor measurements and on retrieved cores. The HMMV consists of three concentric habitats: a central area with gray mud, a surrounding area covered by white mats of big sulfide oxidizing filamentous bacteria (Beggiatoa), and a peripheral area colonized by symbiontic tube worms (Pogonophora). A fourth habitat comprised gray microbial mats near gas seeps. The differences between these four methane-fueled habitats are best explained by different transport rates of sulfate into the sediments and porewater upflow rates. The upflow velocities were estimated by two independent methods at 3–6 m yr21 in the central area and 0.3–1 m yr21 in Beggiatoa mats. In the central area no sulfide was found, indicating that the rapidly rising sulfate-free fluids caused sulfate limitation that inhibited anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM). Under Beggiatoa mats a steep sulfide peak was found at 2 to 3 cm below the seafloor (bsf), most likely due to AOM. All sulfide was oxidized anaerobically, possibly through nitrate reduction by Beggiatoa. The Beggiatoa mats were dominated by a single filamentous morphotype with a diameter of 10 mm and abundant sulfur inclusions. A high diversity of sulfide oxidizer morphotypes was observed in a grayish microbial mat near gas vents, where aerobic sulfide oxidation was important. The sediments colonized by Pogonophora were influenced by bioventilation, allowing sulfate penetration and AOM to 70 cm bsf. The HMMV is a unique and diverse ecosystem, the structure and functioning of which is mainly controlled by pore-water flow. Interest in anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) and its linkage to sulfate reduction was strongly stimulated by the recent discovery of the microorganisms involved (Boetius et al. 2000; Michaelis et al. 2002; Orphan et al. 2002). Evidence was presented that consortia of methanotrophic archaea and sulfate-reducing bacteria are responsible for the process. These microorganisms were found in high abundance in methane-rich sediments above gas hydrates and various types of cold seeps. The microbial conversion of methane and sulfate to CO2 and sulfide in surface sediments is usually accompanied by sulfide oxidation (SO) by free-living and symbiotic bacteria. 1 Corresponding author ([email protected]). Limnol. Oceanogr., 51(3), 2006, 1315–1331 E 2006, by the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, Inc.