MBARI Expedition #458

Expedition goal: The main goal of this expedition is to expand ongoing research into the respiration rates (oxygen consumption) of deep-sea animals using the Midwater Respirometry System (MRS). The MRS will be deployed at a “shallow” (approximately 1,500 meters depth) and a “deep” (approximately 3,000 meters depth) mooring during the duration of the eight-day cruise. The group is also accompanied by MBARI partners from the Monterey Bay Aquarium, who are interested in observing and collecting select deep-sea organisms.

Expedition dates: March 8- 14, 2019

Ship: R/V Western Flyer

Research technology:  ROV Doc Ricketts, Midwater Respirometer System

Expedition chief scientist: Bruce Robison

The Midwater Ecology Group is heading out to continue studying the midwater respiration rates of deep-sea animals. This long-term project aims to investigate deep-sea animals response to changes in the environment (i.e., oxygen or temperature). To date, the Midwater Ecology Group has successfully documented the vertical expansion of the oxygen-minimum zone by 60-to 80-meters in relation to ocean warming. This expansion has fragmented the midwater community by shifting the distributions of many midwater animals. Long-term studies like this are necessary for first detecting shifts in communities and then predicting how communities will respond in the future to further changes in the environment.