Nikko Vent

Latitude: 23.08ºN    Longitude: 142.325ºE    Depth: 460 m bsl

Vent sites*: Naraku, Varnum (InterRidge Vents Database Ver. 3.3)

Nikko seamount hosts one of the world’s largest hydrothermal systems (Pala, 2009). The volcano is unusual because it is part of the active Mariana arc (N. Seamount Province) but is also where the Mariana Trough backarc basin extension axis intersects the arc in the north. Nikko has the morphology of a resurgent caldera (Resing et. al., 2009). The summit of Nikko has pools of molten sulfur (Embley et al., 2007; Nakamura et al., 2009). The associated hydrothermal plume is characterized by elevated concentrations of total dissolved Fe and Mn which indicates that these plumes issue from high T vents (Resing et. al, 2009).  Plumes are also rich in CO₂, ³He and H₂S (Resing et.al, 2009). The biological of community is dominated by decapod crustaceans such as Austinograea yunohana (Takeda et al., 2000) and some microbes such as Epsilonproteobacteria (Huber et al., 2010).

Table 1: Operations history for Nikko Vent

Ship/ Platform	Operation	Year	Dive Number	References
MGLN02MV R/V Melville/ ROV Jason-2	CTD tow-yo; CTD vertical cast; SeaBeam 2000 multibeam	2006April– May	J2-198 – J2-199	Submarine Ring of Fire, 2006Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: ROV JASON/MEDEA: Operations Summary (note: click “Files- operations summary”)
NT10-13 Natsushima Leg.2/ Hyper-dolphin	Not found	2010July – August	HPD#1163 HPD#1164 HPD#1168 HPD#1169 HPD#1165	NT10-13 leg2 cruise report
TN-153 R/V T.G. Thompson	EM 300 multibeam; CTD tow-yo	2003 February – March	Not found	Submarine Ring of Fire, 2003

Table 2: Vent activity and host rocks

Activity and host rocks		References
Activity	Active volcano,last erupted 1974	Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program
Host Rocks	Basalt and Dacite	Bloomer et al., 1989

Table 3: Plume Characteristics

Parameter		References
Temperature (ºC)	High T 61-112; >200	Resing et al., 2009; Lupton et al.,2008; Embley et al., 2007
pH	5.05-6.21	Huber et al., 2010
ΔpH	-0.160	Resing et al., 2009
Composition	Rich in CO2, ³He, H2S, S, Sulfates and total dissolved Fe and Mn	Lupton et al., 2008
CO2 (mM)	3.53-96.5	Resing et al., 2009
ΔCO2 (mM)	43	Lupton et al., 2008
H2 (mM)	0.0006-0.0396	Resing et al., 2009
Particulate Fe (nmol/kg)	502	Huber et al., 2010

* ΔpH, ΔCO₂ – Measured relative to the regional background.

Table 4: Vent Biology

General name	Phylum	Order	Family	Species	References
Bacteria	Proteobacteria	Epsilonproteobacteria		Thiofractor thiocaminus	Huber et al., 2010Makita et al., 2012
Crab	Arthropoda	Decapoda	Bythograeidae	Austinograea yunohana (Gandalfus yunohana)	*Takeda et al., 2000Yorisue et al., 2012
Barnacles	Arthropoda	Sessilia	Neoverrucidae	Neoverrcuca sp.	Yorisue et al., 2012
Crab	Arthropoda	Decapoda	Xanthidae		Yorisue et al., 2012
Crab	Arthropoda	Decapoda	Parapaguridae	Paragiopagurus ventilatus	Komai et al., 2010
Shrimp	Arthropoda	Decapoda	Alvinocaridae	Alvinocaris sp.	Yorisue et al., 2012
Shrimp	Arthropoda	Decapoda	Alvinocarididae	Opaepele sp.	Tsuchida et al. 2002Miyake et al., 2007
Tube Worms	Annelida	Polychaeta	Siboglinidae	Lamellibrachia satsuma  (trophosome)	Black et al, 1997Kojima et al., 2012Hashimoto et al. 1993
Tube Worms	Annelida	Polychaeta	Siboglinidae	Lamellibrachia satsuma (muscle)	Black et al, 1997Kojima et al. 2012 Yorisue et al., 2012
Scale Worms	Annelida	Polycheata	Polynoidae	BranchinotoglumaburkensisBranchinotoglumamarianus	*Pettibone, 1989Kojima et al., 2015
Mussels	Mollusca	Bivalvia	Mytilidae	Gigantidas sp.	Kyuno et al., 2009
Snails	Mollusca	Gastropoda	Phenacolepadidae	Shinkailepas sp.	Yorisue et al., 2012
Turrids	Mollusca	Gastropoda	Turridae	Oenopota ogasawarana	Yorisue et al., 2012
Tonguefish	Osteichthyes	Actinopterygii	Cynoglossidae	Symphurus thermophylus	Tunnicliffe et al., 2010Munroe et al., 2008

Images:

1. Small chimneys on the floor of Nikko caldera. The venting is so prolific that the smoke often impedes visibility on the sea floor.
2. There is so much sulfur being produced at Nikko that volcanic rocks are only rarely exposed. The sea floor in the summit crater is mostly covered by lush bushes of tubeworms in association with white crabs, flatfish, and shrimps. 
3. One fish seems to thrive around the hydrothermal vents of the Mariana volcanoes. At Daikoku and Nikko volcanoes tonguefish and crabs cover the sea floor in some areas. 
4. These are four tonguefish samples from Nikko volcano. The fish at Nikko are almost twice as big as their counterparts on Daikoku. The largest sample here is less than 11 cm (5 in) long.

Videos:

1. The Nikko volcano has numerous hydrothermal vents, an extraordinary biomass, and marine life.
2. The crater floor at Nikko has many sulfur chimneys, both active and inactive.
3. The south rim of the summit crater at Nikko is covered by an amazing density of tubeworms.
4. The south slope of the summit cone at Nikko was found to contain a large area with boiling pots of molten sulfur.
5. Closer examination of the area around the molten sulfur pots reveals that what appears to be solid ground is just a thin crust on a larger lake of molten sulfur!
6. When the Jason IIremotely operated vehicle tries to sample a rock, it sinks through the thin crust on a lake of molten sulfur!

References:

1. Black, M. B., Halanych, K. M., Mass, P. A. Y., Hoeh, W.R., Hashimoto, J., Desbruyères, D., Lutz, R. A., Vrijenhoek, R. C., 1997. Molecular systematic of vestimetiferan tubeworms from hydrothermal vents and cold-water seeps. Marine Biology 130, 141–149.
2. Bloomer, S. H., Stern, R. J., Fisk, E., Geschwind, C. H., 1989. Shoshonitic Volcanism in the Northern Mariana Arc. 1. Mineralogic and Major and Trace Element Characteristics. Journal of Geophysical Research 94 (B4), 4469-4496.
3. Embley, R. W., Baker, E. T., Butterfield, D. A., Chadwick, W. W. Jr., Lupton, J. E., Resing, J. A., de Ronde, C. E. J., Nakamura, K., Tunnicliffe, V., Dower, J. F., Merle, S. G., 2007. Exploring the submarine ring of fire: Mariana Arc- Western Pacific, Oceanography 20, 68–79.
4. Hashimoto J., Miura T., Fujikura K., Ossaka J., 1993. Discovery of vestimentiferan tube-worms in the euphotic zone. Zoological Science, 10, 1063–1067.
5. Huber, J. A., Cantin, H. V., Huse, S. M., Welch, D. B., Sogin, M. L., Butterfield, D. A., 2010. Isolated communities of Epsilonproteobacteria in hydrothermal vent fluids of the Mariana Arc seamounts: FEMS Microbiol Ecol. 73 (3), 538-549.
6. Kojima, S., Watanabe, H., 2015. Vent Fauna in the Mariana Trough. In: Ishibashi, J., Okino, K., Sunamura, M. (Eds.), Subseafloor Biosphere Linked to Hydrothermal Systems: TAIGA Concept. Springer Japan, 313-323.
7. Kojima S, Murakami S, Nemoto S, Watanabe H, Miyake H, Tsuchida S., 2012. Genetic diversity and population structure of a vestimentiferan annelid Lamellibrachia satsuma in Japanese and northern Mariana waters. Plankton Benthos Res 7, 146–150.
8. Komai, O., Kitajima, M., Nemoto, S., Miyake, H., 2010. New record of Paragiopagurus ventilates (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Parapaguridae) from hydrothermal vents on the Nikko Seamount, Mariana Trough, the first hermit crab using siboglinid tubes for housing. Marine Biodiversity Records 3, 1- 8.
9. Kyuno, A., Shintaku, M., Fujita, Y., Matsumoto, H., Utsumi, M., Watanabe, H., Fujiwara, Y., Miyazaki, J., 2009. Dispersal and Differentiation of Deep-Sea Mussels of the Genus Bathymodiolus (Mytilidae, Bathymodiolinae). Journal of Marine Biology 2009, 1-15.
10. Lupton, J., Lilley, M., Butterfield, D., Evans, L., Embley, R., Massoth, G., Christenson, B., Nakamura, K., Schmidt, M., 2008. Venting of a separate CO2-rich gas phase from submarine arc volcanoes: Examples from the Mariana and Tonga-Kermadec arcs. Journal of Geophysical Research 113 (B8), 1-21.
11. Makita, H., Nakagawa, S., Miyazaki, M., Nakamura, K., Inagaki, F., Takai, K., 2012. Thiofractor thiocaminus gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel hydrogen-oxidizing, sulfur-reducing epsilonproteobacterium isolated from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent chimney in the Nikko Seamount Weld of the northern Mariana Arc. Arch Microbiol 194, 785–794.
12. Miyake, H., Kitada, M., Tsuchida, S., Okuyama, Y., Nakamura, K., 2007. Ecological aspects of hydrothermal vent animals in captivity at atmospheric pressure. Marine Ecology. 28 (1), 1–241.
13. Munroe, T. A., Hashimoto, J., 2008. New Western Pacific Tonguefish (Pleuronectiformes: Cynoglossidae): The first Pleuronectiform discovered at active Hydrothermal Vents. Zootaxa 1839, 43–59.
14. Pala, C., 2009. The Pacific Ocean’s Acidification. Environmental Science and Technology 43, 6451–6452.
15. Pettibone, M. H., 1989. New species of scale-worms (Polychaeta: Polynoidae) from the hydrothermal rift-area of the Mariana Back-Arc Basin in the western central Pacific. Proc Biol Soc Wash 102, 137–153.
16. Resing, J. A., Baker, E. T., Lupton, J. E., Walker, S. L., Butterfield, D. A., Massoth, G. J., Nakamura, K., 2009. Chemistry of hydrothermal plumes above submarine volcanoes of the Mariana Arc. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems 10 (2), 1-23.
17. Takeda, M., Hashimoto, J., Ohta, S., 2000. A new species of the family Bythograeidae (Crustacea, Decapoda, Brachyura) from the hydrothermal vents along volcanic front of the Philippine Sea Plate. Bulletin of the National Science Museum,Tokyo, series A, Zoology 26 (4), 159–172.
18. Tunnicliffe, V., Koop, B. F., Tyler, J., So, S., 2010. Flatfish at seamount hydrothermal vents show strong genetic divergence between volcanic arcs. Marine Ecology 31, 158–167.
19. Yorisue, T., Inoue, K., Miyake, H., Kojima, S., 2012. Trophic structure of hydrothermal vent communities at Myojin Knoll and Nikko Seamount in the northwestern Pacific: Implications for photosynthesis-derived food supply. Plankton Benthos Res 7(2), 35–40.

Website References:

1. InterRidge Vents Database Ver. 3.3; http://vents-data.interridge.org/ventfield/nikko-volcano (accessed 11/24/2015)
2. Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program http://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=284132 (accessed 11/24/2015)
3. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: ROV JASON/MEDEA: Operations Summary; http://www.whoi.edu/main/jason/operations-summary (accessed 11/24/2015)
4. Submarine Ring of Fire 2006 http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/06fire/logs/may12/may12.html (accessed 11/24/2015)

Cruise Reports:

1. NT10-13 leg2 cruise report http://www.godac.jamstec.go.jp/catalog/data/doc_catalog/media/NT10-13_leg2_all.pdf (accessed 11/24/2015)
2. Submarine Ring of Fire 2006 http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/06fire/logs/summary/media/srof06_cruisereport_final.pdf (accessed 11/24/2015)
3. Submarine Ring of Fire 2003 http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/03fire/logs/summary/marianas_cruisereport.pdf (accessed 11/24/2015)