Question

Hydrothermal vents deep in the ocean release extremely hot water, methane gas, and sulfur. Extreme bacteria thrive in this hostile environment. They form the base of a food web - that includes tube worms, mussels, and many other life forms. When a hydrothermal vent becomes inactive and cold, what will like occur? *

Answer 1

The collapse of the ecosystem reliant on the hydrothermal vent's energy occurs when the vent becomes inactive, leading to the disappearance or relocation of species like tube worms and vent mussels.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a hydrothermal vent becomes inactive and cold, the ecosystem that depends on the vent's heat and chemical energy is likely to collapse. The chemoautotrophic bacteria, which form the base of the food web by converting chemical energy into organic matter, will no longer have a source of energy. As a consequence, organisms like tube worms and vent mussels, which rely on these bacteria for survival, will either die or be forced to move to active vents to find a new energy source. The unique community of organisms adapted to the extreme conditions of hydrothermal vents will disperse, and the ecosystem will change significantly, possibly becoming similar to other areas of the deep ocean floor where such vents do not exist.

Answer 2

The organisms in that habitat including the extreme bacteria, will gradually decline

Step-by-step explanation:

According to the question, an extreme bacteria lives and thrives in an hydrothermal vent where extremely hot water, methane gas, and sulfur are released. The hydrothermal vent located deep in the ocean is the habitat of the bacteria, and considering the fact that it thrives there means it is better adapted to do well in such extreme environment using the sulfur and methane gas produced by the vent for its development.

If the hydrothermal vent becomes inactive i.e. no production of sulfur and methane, and cold, the extreme bacteria might not survive as the conditions required for its optimal functioning are no longer met. The bacteria also makes up the base of the food web in that habitat (constituting organisms like mussels, tube works), meaning that, it begins the feeding chain in that habitat. Hence, a decline in the number of the bacteria will result in a decline in the number of other organisms dependent on the bacteria as energy source (food).