Horizontal distribution patterns in Arctic deep-sea macrobenthic communities

Horizontal distribution patterns of macrobenthos were studied based on the material collected at the deep-sea long-term observatory HAUSGARTEN in Fram Strait, west of Spitsbergen (79°N), during the R.V. Polarstern expedition ARK XIX/3c in July–August 2003. Macrofauna was obtained with a giant box corer at water depths of about 2500–2600 m. Samples were arranged using a hierarchical approach to analyze benthic fauna distribution at different scales. Three stations were distributed along the 26 km transect. Three cores (0.25 m2) were taken at each station. Five subcores (156.25 cm2) were taken from each core. Both qualitative and quantitative methods of statistical analysis showed that all samples belong to one benthic community dominated by three species, Tetractinomorpha gen.sp. A, Myriochele heeri, and Galathowenia fragilis. Total biomasses varied from 2.31 to 6.41 g ww m−2 and densities ranged from 1976 to 3254 ind. m−2. Multivariate analysis showed the division of all samples into two distinct groups (species assemblages) on the core and subcore levels. These assemblages occupied an area several kilometers across, and differed from each other. The second level of heterogeneity occurs between cores and subcores of assemblage B and reflects variations in the abundance of sponge species Tetractinomorpha gen. sp. A. The size of these small patches appears to be about 150 cm2. The hierarchical organization of benthic macrofauna on the continental slope off Spitsbergen includes at least three levels: communities, which replace each other along the depth gradient, species assemblages, which make up the orthogonal inner mosaics in each vertical zone, and patches of certain species, which form the lowest level of the hierarchy.