Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert
The space-for-time substitution approach provides a valuable empirical assessment to infer temporal effects of disturbance from spatial gradients. Applied to predict the response of different ecosystems under current climate change scenarios, it remains poorly tested in microbial ecology studies, pa...
Published in: | Frontiers in Microbiology |
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767/full |
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crfrontiers:10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767 2024-09-15T17:44:42+00:00 Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert Monteiro, Maria R. Marshall, Alexis J. Hawes, Ian Lee, Charles K. McDonald, Ian R. Cary, Stephen Craig New Zealand Antarctic Research Institute Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment 2022 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767/full unknown Frontiers Media SA https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Frontiers in Microbiology volume 12 ISSN 1664-302X journal-article 2022 crfrontiers https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767 2024-08-27T04:05:25Z The space-for-time substitution approach provides a valuable empirical assessment to infer temporal effects of disturbance from spatial gradients. Applied to predict the response of different ecosystems under current climate change scenarios, it remains poorly tested in microbial ecology studies, partly due to the trophic complexity of the ecosystems typically studied. The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) of Antarctica represent a trophically simple polar desert projected to experience drastic changes in water availability under current climate change scenarios. We used this ideal model system to develop and validate a microbial space-for-time sampling approach, using the variation of geochemical profiles that follow alterations in water availability and reflect past changes in the system. Our framework measured soil electrical conductivity, pH, and water activity in situ to geochemically define 17 space-for-time transects from the shores of four dynamic and two static Dry Valley lakes. We identified microbial taxa that are consistently responsive to changes in wetness in the soils and reliably associated with long-term dry or wet edaphic conditions. Comparisons between transects defined at static (open-basin) and dynamic (closed-basin) lakes highlighted the capacity for geochemically defined space-for-time gradients to identify lasting deterministic impacts of historical changes in water presence on the structure and diversity of extant microbial communities. We highlight the potential for geochemically defined space-for-time transects to resolve legacy impacts of environmental change when used in conjunction with static and dynamic scenarios, and to inform future environmental scenarios through changes in the microbial community structure, composition, and diversity. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctica McMurdo Dry Valleys polar desert Frontiers (Publisher) Frontiers in Microbiology 12 |
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The space-for-time substitution approach provides a valuable empirical assessment to infer temporal effects of disturbance from spatial gradients. Applied to predict the response of different ecosystems under current climate change scenarios, it remains poorly tested in microbial ecology studies, partly due to the trophic complexity of the ecosystems typically studied. The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) of Antarctica represent a trophically simple polar desert projected to experience drastic changes in water availability under current climate change scenarios. We used this ideal model system to develop and validate a microbial space-for-time sampling approach, using the variation of geochemical profiles that follow alterations in water availability and reflect past changes in the system. Our framework measured soil electrical conductivity, pH, and water activity in situ to geochemically define 17 space-for-time transects from the shores of four dynamic and two static Dry Valley lakes. We identified microbial taxa that are consistently responsive to changes in wetness in the soils and reliably associated with long-term dry or wet edaphic conditions. Comparisons between transects defined at static (open-basin) and dynamic (closed-basin) lakes highlighted the capacity for geochemically defined space-for-time gradients to identify lasting deterministic impacts of historical changes in water presence on the structure and diversity of extant microbial communities. We highlight the potential for geochemically defined space-for-time transects to resolve legacy impacts of environmental change when used in conjunction with static and dynamic scenarios, and to inform future environmental scenarios through changes in the microbial community structure, composition, and diversity. |
author2 |
New Zealand Antarctic Research Institute Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Monteiro, Maria R. Marshall, Alexis J. Hawes, Ian Lee, Charles K. McDonald, Ian R. Cary, Stephen Craig |
spellingShingle |
Monteiro, Maria R. Marshall, Alexis J. Hawes, Ian Lee, Charles K. McDonald, Ian R. Cary, Stephen Craig Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert |
author_facet |
Monteiro, Maria R. Marshall, Alexis J. Hawes, Ian Lee, Charles K. McDonald, Ian R. Cary, Stephen Craig |
author_sort |
Monteiro, Maria R. |
title |
Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert |
title_short |
Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert |
title_full |
Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert |
title_fullStr |
Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert |
title_full_unstemmed |
Geochemically Defined Space-for-Time Transects Successfully Capture Microbial Dynamics Along Lacustrine Chronosequences in a Polar Desert |
title_sort |
geochemically defined space-for-time transects successfully capture microbial dynamics along lacustrine chronosequences in a polar desert |
publisher |
Frontiers Media SA |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767/full |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctica McMurdo Dry Valleys polar desert |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctica McMurdo Dry Valleys polar desert |
op_source |
Frontiers in Microbiology volume 12 ISSN 1664-302X |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.783767 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Microbiology |
container_volume |
12 |
_version_ |
1810492347335573504 |