Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Deep Sea Biofilms, Historic Shipwreck Preservation And The Deepwater Horizon Spill, Rachel L. Mugge, Melissa L. Brock, Jennifer L. Salerno, Melanie Damour, Robert A. Church, Jason Lee, Leila J. Hamdan

Faculty Publications

Exposure to oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill may have lasting impacts on preservation of historic shipwrecks in the Gulf of Mexico. Submerged steel structures, including shipwrecks, serve as artificial reefs and become hotspots of biodiversity in the deep-sea. Marine biofilms on submerged structures support settlement of micro- and macrobiota and may enhance and protect against corrosion. Disruptions in the local environment, including oil spills, may impact the role that biofilms play in reef preservation. To determine how the Deepwater Horizon spill potentially impacted shipwreck biofilms and the functional roles of the biofilm microbiome, experiments containing carbon steels disks (CSDs) …