• Biodiversity, environmental drivers, and sustainability of the global deep-sea sponge microbiome 

      Busch, Kathrin; Slaby, Beate M.; Bach, Wolfgang; Boetius, Antje; Clefsen, Ina; Colaço, Ana; Creemers, Marie; Cristobo, Javier; Federwisch, Luisa; Franke, Andre; Gavriilidou, Asimenia; Hethke, Andrea; Kenchington, Ellen; Mienis, Furu; Mills, Sadie; Riesgo, Ana; Ríos, Pilar; Roberts, Emyr Martyn; Sipkema, Detmer; Pita, Lucía; Schupp, Peter J.; Xavier, Joana R.; Rapp, Hans Tore; Hentschel, Ute (Journal article; Peer reviewed, 2022)
      In the deep ocean symbioses between microbes and invertebrates are emerging as key drivers of ecosystem health and services. We present a large-scale analysis of microbial diversity in deep-sea sponges (Porifera) from ...
    • Drivers of Megabenthic Community Structure in One of the World’s Deepest Silled-Fjords, Sognefjord (Western Norway) 

      Meyer, Heidi Kristina; Roberts, Emyr Martyn; Mienis, Furu; Rapp, Hans Tore (Journal article; Peer reviewed, 2020-06-09)
      The Sognefjord is the longest (205 km) and deepest (1308 m) fjord in Norway, and the second-longest in the world. Coast-fjord exchange in Sognefjord is limited by a seaward sill at 170 m water depth, which causes a clear ...
    • The important role of sponges in carbon and nitrogen cycling in a deep-sea biological hotspot 

      Hanz, Ulrike; Riekenberg, Philip; de Kluijver, Anna; van der Meer, Marcel; Middelburg, Jack J.; de Goeij, Jasper M.; Bart, Martijn C.; Wurz, Erik; Colaço, Ana; Duineveld, Gerard C. A.; Reichart, Gert-Jan; Rapp, Hans Tore; Mienis, Furu (Journal article; Peer reviewed, 2022)
      Deep-sea sponge grounds are hotspots of biodiversity, harbouring thriving ecosystems in the otherwise barren deep sea. It remains unknown how these sponge grounds survive in this food-limited environment. Here, we unravel ...
    • Long distance dispersal and oceanographic fronts shape the connectivity of the keystone sponge Phakellia ventilabrum in the deep northeast Atlantic 

      Taboada, Sergi; Whiting, Connie; Wang, Shuangqiang; Ríos, Pilar; Davies, Andrew J.; Mienis, Furu; Kenchington, Ellen; Cárdenas, Paco A.; Cranston, Alex; Koutsouveli, Vasiliki; Cristobo, Javier; Rapp v/dødsbo, Hans Tore; Drewery, Jim; Baldó, Francisco; Morrow, Christine; Picton, Bernard; Xavier, Joana R.; Arias, Maria Belén; Leiva, Carlos; Riesgo, Ana (Journal article; Peer reviewed, 2023)
      Little is known about dispersal in deep-sea ecosystems, especially for sponges, which are abundant ecosystem engineers. Understanding patterns of gene flow in deep-sea sponges is essential, especially in areas where rising ...
    • Long-term Observations Reveal Environmental Conditions and Food Supply Mechanisms at an Arctic Deep-Sea Sponge Ground 

      Hanz, Ulrike; Roberts, Emyr Martyn; Duineveld, Gerard; Davies, Andrew; van Haren, Hans; Rapp, Hans Tore; Reichart, Gert-Jan; Mienis, Furu (Journal article; Peer reviewed, 2021)
      Deep-sea sponge grounds are hotspots of benthic biomass and diversity. To date, very limited data exist on the range of environmental conditions in areas containing deep-sea sponge grounds and which factors are driving ...
    • On giant shoulders: how a seamount affects the microbialcommunity composition of seawater and sponges 

      Busch, Kathrin; Hanz, Ulrike; Mienis, Furu; Mueller, Benjamin; Franke, Andre; Roberts, Emyr Martyn Tomas; Rapp, Hans Tore; Hentschel, Ute (Journal article; Peer reviewed, 2020)
      Seamounts represent ideal systems to study the influence and interdependency of environmental gradients at a single geographic location. These topographic features represent a prominent habitat for various forms of life, ...
    • Seasonal Variability in Near-bed Environmental Conditions in the Vazella pourtalesii Glass Sponge Grounds of the Scotian Shelf 

      Hanz, Ulrike; Beazley, Lindsay; Kenchington, Ellen; Duineveld, Gerard; Rapp, Hans Tore; Mienis, Furu (Journal article; Peer reviewed, 2021)
      The Scotian Shelf harbors unique aggregations of the glass sponge Vazella pourtalesii that provides an important habitat for benthic and pelagic fauna. Recent studies have shown that these sponge grounds have persisted in ...