Researchers set out for underwater Monterey Bay volcano
Kurtis Alexander
Santa Cruz Sentinel
07/23/2010
Less than 100 miles from Santa Cruz, the Davidson Seamount remains one of the least understood and most enigmatic places off the California coast.
The underwater volcano, rising from a depth of 11,000 feet below the ocean surface, is host to an exotic world of ancient corals, colorful sponges, red crabs and rare marine creatures, many yet to be classified by science. While technology has recently helped researchers win a glimpse of this deep-sea life, little is known about the larger mammals and birds that ply the surrounding waters.
"There may be a separate, offshore population of sperm whales here," said Andrew DeVogelaere, director of research for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. "We've done work at great depths with our remotely operated vehicles, but there's a lot less information about what exactly lives near the surface."
On Thursday, a team of marine scientists boarded the 225-foot MacArthur II, a Cold War-era Navy vessel-turned-research ship during an uncommon stop in Monterey Bay. The ship's mission over the next several days will be to visit the waters above the Davidson Seamount and learn more about the animals there.
"What works for hunting Soviet subs also works for studying marine life," said Capt. John Crofts, noting the MacArthur II's near-silent engine and ability to weather rough seas, which made it a military asset when it was built in 1985.
The ship's 16-person crew, made up of engineers, cooks and deckhands and under the direction of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, arrived from recent expeditions off Washington state and in the Bering Sea. Thirteen researchers from the Monterey Bay area joined the crew for the trip to the seamount.
"Often, seamounts are large congregations of mammals," DeVogelaere said. "The deep water current hits the side of the seamount and shoots to the surface, bringing up nutrient-rich water."
The expedition's chief scientist Kelly Newton, a research specialist at UC Santa Cruz, had prepared observation points where five people will be stationed to comb the ocean for signs of life.
A number of whale species are likely to be spotted, she said, from the 60-foot-long sperm whale to the elusive beaked whale, known for diving as deep as 6,000 feet below the surface and holding its breath for an hour. Killer whales and white-sided dolphins also are possibilities, as is the Laysan albatross.
"If anything, we're going to have an index of species diversity," said Newton, noting how little is presently known about what lives above the seamount.
The Davidson Seamount rises 7,480 feet above the ocean floor, leaving its summit submerged by 4,100 feet. The biodiversity that researchers have begun to observe at the 26-mile-long dormant volcano prompted its addition and protection in the Monterey Bay Sanctuary just last year.
Only a dozen or so research expeditions have been carried out at the seamount. Much of what's been learned comes from unmanned submarines able to penetrate the ear-shattering and sunless depths around the volcano.
