High-Latitude Seafloor Ecology

We study how microbes living at methane-emitting seafloor sites, known as cold seeps, shape carbon cycling and energy flow in high-latitude marine ecosystems. These environments release methane and other reduced compounds from the seabed, creating strong chemical gradients that sustain dense and active microbial communities. Even in the absence of large symbiotic animals that dominate many seep systems elsewhere, these sites can be remarkably productive. Through field expeditions, we locate active seeps, collect sediments, and analyze microbial DNA and geochemistry to understand how microbes use methane, iron, and sulfur to build biomass and fuel seafloor food webs.

Contact information

Research group leader

Research group description

High-latitude marine ecosystems are affected especially strongly by climate change because warming, sea-ice loss, and shifts in oxygen and circulation occur faster and more intensely there than at lower latitudes. Small changes in temperature or chemistry can therefore trigger large responses in microbial activity, greenhouse gas cycling, and seafloor ecosystem structure. A central goal of our research is to use these seep systems as natural laboratories to observe how ecosystems respond to environmental stress, how microbes regulate climate-relevant carbon cycling, and how methane emissions are dampened or intensified as conditions change. These same settings also reveal microbial metabolisms with relevance for future energy solutions, including biologically based hydrogen production that could complement existing technologies. Together, our work connects seafloor ecology with climate dynamics and energy research, showing how microbial processes in extreme marine environments can inform global environmental and energy challenges.

PI

Univ. Lecturer Juan Galarza

PhD students

Edgar Garcia

MSc. Students

Petri Saarinen