Where can chemosynthetic communities be found?
Since then, chemosynthetic bacterial communities have been found in hot springs on land and on the seafloor around hydrothermal vents, cold seeps, whale carcasses, and sunken ships. No one had ever thought to look for them, but these communities were there all along.
What are chemosynthetic communities?
Chemosynthesis is a process very similar to photosynthesis, but chemical energy is used instead of light energy to make food from the carbon in carbon dioxide. We discovered that there were large amounts of bacteria—groups large enough to see with the naked eye—serving as a food source for many organisms.
What is a chemosynthetic food web?
The bacteria are chemosynthetic. They oxidize hydrogen sulfide, add carbon dioxide and oxygen to produce sugar (food), sulfur, and water. The food that chemosynthetic bacteria produce serves as the base of the hydrothermal vent food web.
What kind of ecosystems have food webs based on chemosynthesis?
For example, microbes living in hydrothermal vent communities are able to use inorganic chemical compounds through a process known as chemosynthesis to create energy. These chemosynthetic microbes are the foundation of the food web in hydrothermal vent communities.
What is an example of chemosynthesis?
Example of Chemosynthesis The yellow sulfur granules are visible in the cytoplasm of bacteria that perform the reaction. Another example of chemosynthesis was discovered in 2013 when bacteria were found living in basalt below the sediment of the ocean floor. These bacteria were not associated with a hydrothermal vent.
Why are the creatures found at hydrothermal vents so different from creatures found at the surface?
Organisms that live around hydrothermal vents don’t rely on sunlight and photosynthesis. Instead, bacteria and archaea use a process called chemosynthesis to convert minerals and other chemicals in the water into energy.
What two major compounds do chemosynthetic organisms get their energy from in these types of communities?
During chemosynthesis, bacteria living on the sea floor or within animals use energy stored in the chemical bonds of hydrogen sulfide and methane to make glucose from water and carbon dioxide (dissolved in sea water). Pure sulfur and sulfur compounds are produced as by-products.
Does chemosynthesis require oxygen?
Chemosynthesis may be coupled to both aerobic and anaerobic respiration. Aerobic chemosynthesis depends on oxygen, which ultimately originates from photosynthetic processes occurring in the photic zone.
Where are deep sea hydrothermal vents found?
mid-ocean ridges
Deep hydrothermal vents are located in areas with high tectonic activity, including the edges of tectonic plates, undersea mountain ranges and seamounts, and mid-ocean ridges.
In what environment might chemosynthetic pathways have led to the origins of life on Earth?
Earth Life May Have Originated at Deep-Sea Vents | Space.
Which of the following is a source of energy used in chemosynthesis?
Chemosynthesis is the conversion of carbon (usually carbon dioxide or methane) into organic matter using inorganic molecules (hydrogen or hydrogen sulfide) or methane as an energy source. Most energy is initially derived from sunlight via plant photosynthesis.
Where do chemosynthetic organisms get their energy?
During chemosynthesis, bacteria use the energy derived from the chemical oxidation of inorganic compounds to produce organic molecules and water. This process occurs in the absence of light.