Table I]. Fouling Organisms on Rocks From 6,000-Foot Depth 
Organisms Remarks 
Six or more different species of 
encrusting and erect forms; one 
Bryozoa : 
Rave encrusting form covered about 
1] square inch of rock surface 
Foraminifera Many different species 
Glass sponges Several different deep-sea species 
; Numerous large and small; 
Serpulid worm tubes g ihe 
the longest was over 4 inches 
Brittle stars One found in a pholad hole 
Chiton One 1/2 inch long 
Several rocks had deep holes bored by pholads (Figure 5); neither live pholads 
nor their empty shells were found in the holes, so it is not known whether these rock 
borers are active at this depth. There was a thick deposit (as much as 1/4 inch) of 
manganese oxide on the rock specimens. There is a report of finding and isolating 
36 pure bacterial species from inside surface-sterilized manganese nodules. It is 
thought that bacteria play a major role in the formation of nodules.? 
Sediment Samples. Marine bacteria are one of the major biological agents in 
the deterioration and fouling of various materials submerged in the ocean. To deter- 
mine the type and activity of bacteria in the deep ocean, sediment samples were 
obtained and analyzed in the laboratory using standard microbiological methods. 
Sediment samples were also obtained to determine the type of marine animals found 
in the sediment. The following samplers were used: 
1. A gravity core sampler which takes cores up to 4 feet long. 
2. NCEL's scoop-type sampler which collects about 225 cubic inches of 
sediment from a soft bottom. 
3. A ZoBell bacteriological sampler which was modified in order to collect a 
mixture of seawater and sediment at the seawater-sediment interface. Samples were 
collected in a sterile unit and were not contaminated with bacteria from surface 
water during descent and ascent. 
