New student: Selma has joined the team!

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by

Mari Heggernes Eilertsen

This year we have a new master student joining us – Selma Berg Eriksen – who will be doing a master project on the fauna of the Jøtul vent field.

Selmas project explores the recently discovered Jøtul hydrothermal vent field, located 3000 meters below the surface on the Knipovich Ridge between Greenland and Svalbard.

A hydrothermal vent chimney with shimmering fluids and white bacterial mats.
Hydrothermal vent chimney at Jøtul vent field. Image: Centre for Deep Sea Research, University of Bergen.

Hydrothermal vents along the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge can host very different animal communities, and we still do not know exactly which species live at Jøtul. Selma will build a species inventory using both traditional morphological identification and DNA-based methods, and compare the faunal composition of Jøtul with other sites along the AMOR.

Worm forest with associated fauna at Jøtul vent field. Image: Centre for Deep Sea Research, University of Bergen.

This will provide important baseline knowledge about the biodiversity at Jøtul and help us better understand how vent systems in the Arctic are connected to each other.

Researchers sitting on a bench in the snow in colorful knitted sweaters.
CBE Arctic Team. From left: Selma, Kristoffer, Brenda, David, Mari, Tone and Christian.

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