Hydrothermal Vents are located on the deep sea floor and are formed when tectonic plates are moving apart from each other. After the separation of these plates, cold ocean water permeates through the sea floor. The cold water “undergoes a series of chemical reactions with subsurface rocks at various temperatures to create hot hydrothermal fluid that eventually vents at the seafloor.”[1] Along with the hydrothermal fluid that is produced, these vents also release deadly toxins, which ironically are essential for life near these vents. One of the most important gases that the vent produces is hydrogen sulfide. While hydrogen sulfide is usually a harmful gas, the microbes and organisms on the deep sea floor near these vents, thrive on it. When the hydrothermal vent produces hydrogen sulfide, it reacts with the oxygen in the water. This reaction releases energy, which the microbes use to then create organic compounds.
The larger organisms near these vents then use the organic compounds in different ways depending on their anatomies. Tubeworms, for example, use the plume from the hydrothermal vent to take up sulfide and oxygen. The worms take in the nutrients through their tips. These nutrients are then relayed through their bloodstream to the microbes located in the worm’s tissue. These microbes then convert the nutrients into organic compounds which the worms then use as energy to make food for themselves. Another organism found on the deep sea floor near hydrothermal vents is the Yeti crab. The crab was first discovered in an expedition in the southeast Pacific Ocean lead by MBARI scientist Bob Vrijenhoek. The group of scientists observed that the Yeti crab chose to reside under and behind rocks much like their distant relatives, hermit crabs. These crabs, like the tube worms, have found ways to “incorporate the sulfur-loving bacteria within their bodies, so that they too can obtain nutrition from the chemicals flowing up out of the sea floor.”[2]
To learn more about hydrothermal vents and listen to Bill Nye talk about the discovery of such vents, click this link.
[1] Humphris, Susan E. & McCollom, Thomas. The Cauldron Beneath the Seafloor. Oceanus, The Mid Ocean Ridge, Part 2. Vol. 41. No 2. 1998. pp 19
[2] Fulton-Bennett, Kim. Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institution. March 2006. Discovery of the “Yeti Crab”. April 2010. http://www.mbari.org/news/homepage/2006/yeti-crab.html
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