title: Deep-sea whale fall fauna from the Atlantic resembles that of the Pacific Ocean.
abstract: Whale carcasses create remarkable habitats in the deep-sea by producing concentrated sources of organic matter for a food-deprived biota as well as places of evolutionary novelty and biodiversity. Although many of the faunal patterns on whale falls have already been described, the biogeography of these communities is still poorly known especially from basins other than the NE Pacific Ocean. The present work describes the community composition of the deepest natural whale carcass described to date found at 4204 m depth on Southwest Atlantic Ocean with manned submersible Shinkai 6500. This is the first record of a natural whale fall in the deep Atlantic Ocean. The skeleton belonged to an Antarctic Minke whale composed of only nine caudal vertebrae, whose degradation state suggests it was on the bottom for 5-10 years. The fauna consisted mainly of galatheid crabs, a new species of the snail Rubyspira and polychaete worms, including a new Osedax species. Most of the 41 species found in the carcass are new to science, with several genera shared with NE Pacific whale falls and vent and seep ecosystems. This similarity suggests the whale-fall fauna is widespread and has dispersed in a stepping stone fashion, deeply influencing its evolutionary history.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Oceanográfico, Universidade de São Paulo, Praça do Oceanográfico, 191, CEP 05508-120, São Paulo-SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Paulo Y G
authors.initials: PY
authors.lastname: Sumida
authors.affiliation: Instituto Oceanográfico, Universidade de São Paulo, Praça do Oceanográfico, 191, CEP 05508-120, São Paulo-SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Joan M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Alfaro-Lucas
authors.affiliation: Instituto Oceanográfico, Universidade de São Paulo, Praça do Oceanográfico, 191, CEP 05508-120, São Paulo-SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mauricio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shimabukuro
authors.affiliation: Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), 2-15 Natsushima-cho, Yokosuka, Kanagawa 237-0061, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kitazato
authors.affiliation: Centro de Ciências Tecnológicas da Terra e do Mar (CTTMAR), Universidade do Vale do Itajaí, Rua Uruguai, 458, P.O. Box 360, CEP 88302-202, Itajaí-SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Jose A A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecologia Marinha, Universidade Federal Fluminense, P.O. Box 100.644, CEP 24001-970, Niterói-RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Abilio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Soares-Gomes
authors.affiliation: Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), 2-15 Natsushima-cho, Yokosuka, Kanagawa 237-0061, Japan.
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Toyofuku
authors.affiliation: Centro de Ciências Tecnológicas da Terra e do Mar (CTTMAR), Universidade do Vale do Itajaí, Rua Uruguai, 458, P.O. Box 360, CEP 88302-202, Itajaí-SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Andre O S
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Lima
authors.affiliation: College of Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Kameino 1866, Fujisawa, Kanagawa 252-0880, Japan.
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ara
authors.affiliation: Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), 2-15 Natsushima-cho, Yokosuka, Kanagawa 237-0061, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis*; D000818:Animals; D059001:Aquatic Organisms / Q000145:classification / Q000502:physiology; D001267:Atlantic Ocean; D044822:Biodiversity; D001842:Bone and Bones; D001938:Brazil; D017753:Ecosystem; D008460:Meat / Q000032:analysis*; D050636:Minke Whale / Q000502:physiology*; D010140:Pacific Ocean; D013045:Species Specificity