Abstract The deep sea is characterized by a wide range of landscapes, including complex features where topography and currents interact to form highly heterogeneous habitats. In addition to a complex topography, hydrothermal vent environments are characterized by strong environmental gradients that structure the spatial distribution of biological communities. The role of vent fluid temperature and chemical composition on species distribution is now well understood, but investigations on the effects of the complex sulfide edifice topography are scarce. Here, we used a novel approach combining 3D photogrammetric reconstruction, in situ environmental measurements and modeling to characterize assemblage distribution on the active edifice Eiffel Tower (Lucky Strike, Mid-Atlantic Ridge). Through the analysis of a high-resolution 3D model of the edifice, we show that assemblage distribution along with hydrothermal activity vary with their position on the edifice. Although physical terrain variables had a minor effect on assemblage distribution, the distance from fluid exits explained the distribution of most assemblages. However, these particular variables did not significantly explain the distribution of medium-sized Bathymodiolus azoricus mussels, the dominant assemblage on the edifice. Similarly, proximity to fluid exits only partially accounted for the distribution of microbial mats throughout the edifice. By modeling the current-driven dispersion of hydrothermal plumes around the edifice, we demonstrated that differences in mussel sizes may be due to differences in exposure time to currents bringing plume material. For the first time, we provide evidence that hydrothermal plumes can affect faunal assemblages meters away from fluid exits and that this relatively long-distance effect of vent plumes can fully account for microbial mat distribution throughout the edifice. Our findings extend the area of influence of hydrothermal plumes on vent communities considerably beyond previous estimations and suggest that the interactions between bottom currents, topography and smoker locations should be further investigated and considered as important structuring factors at vents. This novel approach, allowing to cover large areas of the seafloor, is particularly well suited for deep environments where topography and currents interact to form complex oceanographic patterns (e.g. canyons, seamounts). Its application to larger areas and various ecosystems can significantly enhance our understanding of benthic communities’ distribution at large.

中文翻译：

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活动热液建筑物上的电流和地形驱动组合分布

摘要 深海的特点是景观范围广泛，包括地形和洋流相互作​​用形成高度异质栖息地的复杂特征。除了复杂的地形外，热液喷口环境的特点是强烈的环境梯度构成了生物群落的空间分布。排放流体温度和化学成分对物种分布的作用现已得到很好的理解，但对复杂硫化物结构地形影响的研究却很少。在这里，我们使用了一种结合 3D 摄影测量重建、原位环境测量和建模的新方法来描述活动的埃菲尔铁塔（Lucky Strike，Mid-Atlantic Ridge）上的组合分布。通过对建筑物的高分辨率 3D 模型的分析，我们表明组合分布以及热液活动随它们在建筑物上的位置而变化。尽管物理地形变量对组合分布的影响很小，但与流体出口的距离解释了大多数组合的分布。然而，这些特殊的变量并没有显着解释中等大小的深海贻贝的分布，这是建筑物上的主要组合。类似地，靠近流体出口仅部分解释了微生物垫在整个建筑物中的分布。通过对建筑物周围热液羽流的电流驱动扩散进行建模，我们证明了贻贝大小的差异可能是由于暴露于带来羽流物质的电流的暴露时间不同。首次，我们提供的证据表明，热液羽流可以影响距流体出口数米远的动物群，而且这种相对长距离的喷口羽流效应可以完全解释整个建筑中微生物垫的分布。我们的研究结果将热液羽流对喷口群落的影响范围扩大到大大超出了先前的估计，并表明应进一步研究底部流、地形和吸烟者位置之间的相互作用，并将其视为重要的喷口结构因素。这种允许覆盖大面积海底的新颖方法特别适用于地形和洋流相互作​​用形成复杂海洋模式（例如峡谷、海山）的深层环境。