The Mullineaux Lab
Dispersal and Colonization of Hydrothermal Vent Species
Recovering a settlement block from a clump of Riftia pachyptila
after a five-month deployment
Deep-sea hydrothermal vents are patchy and transient, so the species living there (which typically have low mobility as adults) rely on larval dispersal to maintain regional populations and colonize newly opened vent habitat. We are studying the mechanisms of dispersal in order to find out how far larvae can disperse, how quickly they colonize new sites, and what oceanographic and topographic features act as dispersal barriers. This information allows us to predict (and then test) how species' life histories and behaviors interact with oceanographic and geological settings to affect biodiversity and biogeography of vent communities. At present, we are involved in a multidisciplinary field study of larval dispersal at vents along the East Pacific Rise funded by the National Science Foundation and associated with the RIDGE 2000 program. We also collaborate with theoretical ecologists to investigate metapopulation dynamics of vent species through modeling. Several members of the lab are conducting associated projects on ecology of vent systems. See also our online guide to the identification of EPR vent larvae.