The correlation of bacterial concentration to chemical composition among diffuse hydrothermal vents on Loihi seamount
Hydrothermal vent plumes are rich in minerals leached from the surrounding rock as the entrained seawater passes from the vent (Tivey 2007). This study will determine which of these minerals has the greatest impact upon bacterial colonies surrounding the hydrothermal vents of Pele’s Pit, situated at the summit of the Loihi seamount. Four variables that affect microbiology; iron concentration, manganese concentration, pH level, and dissolved oxygen, will be measured and plotted against bacterial concentration in order to determine which particular aspect of hydrothermal vent fluid impacts bacterial concentration. The latter two variables will be obtained from a CTD (conductivity-temperature-depth) sensor, while the iron and manganese data will be the research of Ben Metz and Brian Min, respectively. It is hypothesized that bacterial abundance will have the greatest correlation with iron concentration on the basis that many chemoautotrophic bacteria are specialized in producing energy from oxidizing iron (Emerson 2009). The same statement could be said about manganese, however Malahoff et al. (2006) measured iron concentrations which dominated manganese concentrations at Pele’s Pit in 2001. It follows, that bacteria will oxidize whatever is in greater abundance. This research will provide a better understanding of the role bacteria play in the natural world: such as providing a base for an ecosystem devoid of sunlight and other common sources of energy; or the sequestration of greenhouse gases in deep ocean sediments.