Deep Sea Ecosystems

What is the main source of nutrients in the deep sea?

• Sunlight

• Marine snow

• Cetacean carcasses

• Debris from the ocean floor

What is a whale fall?

• A whale that falls from the surface waters to the deep sea

• An event where a whale carcass sinks to the sea floor

• A type of ecosystem found in the deep sea

• A process of decomposition of a whale carcass

What is the estimated nutrient value provided by a decomposing 40-ton whale carcass?

• Equivalent to 2,000 years worth of marine snow

• Equivalent to 50 square meters of marine snow

• Equivalent to 2,000 years worth of debris from the ocean floor

• Equivalent to 50 square meters of debris from the ocean floor

What is the first stage of ecological succession in a whale-fall ecosystem?

• Mobile-scavenger stage

• Enrichment-opportunist stage

• Sulfophilic stage

• Reef stage

Which organisms are the primary scavengers in the mobile-scavenger stage?

• Hagfish and sharks

• Worms and crustaceans

• Mussels and clams

• Polychaete worms

What is the second stage of ecological succession in a whale-fall ecosystem?

• Mobile-scavenger stage

• Enrichment-opportunist stage

• Sulfophilic stage

• Reef stage

What type of organisms colonize the bones during the enrichment-opportunist stage?

• Worms, crustaceans, and molluscs

• Hagfish and sharks

• Mussels and clams

• Polychaete worms

What is the longest stage of a whale-fall ecosystem?

• Mobile-scavenger stage

• Enrichment-opportunist stage

• Sulfophilic stage

• Reef stage

What type of bacteria break down lipids trapped in the whale bones during the sulfophilic stage?

• Chemosynthetic bacteria

• Marine snow bacteria

• Detritivore bacteria

• Decomposing bacteria

What is the fourth stage of ecological succession in a whale-fall ecosystem?

• Mobile-scavenger stage

• Enrichment-opportunist stage

• Sulfophilic stage

• Reef stage