Dr. Furu Mienis

‘Deep canyons are the ocean’s drains’

Research interests

My research fits at the interplay between sedimentology, ecology and physical oceanography. It focuses on understanding environmental conditions and dynamics that influence the functioning of often vulnerable ecosystems in the deep sea (e.g. cold-water coral reefs, sponge grounds, canyons). I mainly focus on the identification of transport and (food) particle supply mechanisms to the deep-sea. Using benthic observatories I measure vertical and lateral particle supply and transport in the benthic boundary layer near deep-sea ecosystems. Subsequently, the knowledge of recent conditions is applied to reconstruct environmental conditions in the past using sediment cores.

Current projects

Continental shelf seas represent a small fraction of the ocean’s surface area (<10%), but as they connect the land to the open ocean, they are disproportionally important in global carbon and nutrient cycles. The North Sea is a very productive coastal sea and a lot of carbon dioxide (CO₂) is taken up and buried through physical, biological, and sedimentological processes, however the long‐term fate of this carbon is largely unknown. In the NoSE project, a multidisciplinary consortium will determine the past, present, and future role of the North Sea in the uptake of carbon, by constraing the exchange of carbon and other essential nutrients between the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. More info at https://www.nioz.nl/en/research/projects/4622-1

BYPASS? - The unknown role of Submarine canyons – Pathways or sinks for Organic Carbon?

Especially in a fast changing world it is crucially important to understand transport, sequestration and remineralisation processes, as these underlay carbon fluxes between surface and deep ocean and hence potentially have both positive and negative feedbacks on climate change.  Multiple studies indicate that lateral transport actually plays a dominant role in organic matter fluxes from continental margins to the deep ocean. A large part of this lateral transport is likely funneled in submarine canyons, which provide effective connections between productive shelf waters and the nutrient-poor deep-sea. BYPASS? will determine the processes that influence particle transport, dispersal and retention in submarine canyons and assess the role of deep-sea fauna in remineralisation processes. These so far unquantified pathways will be constrained to provide crucial boundary conditions for Earth System Models, and hence better prediction of future climate change.

SponGES - Deep-sea Sponge Grounds Ecosystems of the North Atlantic: an integrated approach towards their preservation and sustainable exploitation

The objective of SponGES is to develop an integrated ecosystem-based approach to preserve and sustainably use vulnerable sponge ecosystems of the North Atlantic. The SponGES consortium, an international and interdisciplinary collaboration of research institutions, environmental non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations, will focus on one of the most diverse, ecologically and biologically important and vulnerable marine ecosystems of the deep-sea - sponge grounds – that to date have received very little research and conservation attention. North Atlantic deep-sea sponge grounds will be mapped and characterized, and a geographical information system on sponge grounds will be developed to determine drivers of past and present distribution. Diversity, biogeographic and connectivity patterns will be investigated through a genomic approach. Function of sponge ecosystems and the goods and services they provide, e.g. in habitat provision, bentho-pelagic coupling and biogeochemical cycling will be identified and quantified. SponGES will develop an adaptive ecosystem-based management plan that enables conservation and good governance of these marine resources on regional and international levels. More information about the project can be found at http://www.deepseasponges.org

CV

2015- 2020 Tenure track scientist Royal NIOZ

2012-2015 Postdoctoral Researcher Royal NIOZ

VENI-NWO - Cold-water coral ecosystems: carbon sinks in the deep sea and BOEM canyons project - Pathways to the abyss

Member of the executive organising committee of the 5th International Symposium on Deep-Sea Corals (ISDSC 5), which was held 1-6 April 2012, Amsterdam and guest editor Deep Sea Research II Special issue "Cold Corals" (Proceedings of ISDSC 5)

2010-2012 Post-doc at MARUM, Bremen University (research fellowship)

2008-2010: Post-doctoral researcher (NIOZ), Project MiCROSYSTEMS, Microbial Diversity and Functionality in Cold-Water Coral Reef Ecosystems

2003-2008: PhD-student (NIOZ/VU) MOUNDFORCE project, Environmental Constraints on Cold-water Coral Growth and Carbonate Mound Formation.

1998-2003: Study geology (M.Sc.) at the VU University (Vrije Universiteit) Amsterdam - with specialisation in sedimentology and environmental analysis.