Bacterial dynamics in supraglacial habitats of the Greenland ice sheet

Current research into bacterial dynamics on the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is biased toward cryoconite holes, despite this habitat covering less than 8% of the ablation (melt) zone surface. In contrast, the expansive surface ice, which supports wide-spread Streptophyte micro-algal blooms thought to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers in Microbiology
Main Authors: Nicholes, Miranda Jane, Williamson, Christopher James, Tranter, Martyn, Holland, Alexandra, Poniecka, Ewa, Yallop, Marian Louise, Anesio, Alexandre
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2019
Subjects:
Bacterial abundance
Bacterial production
Glacier algae
Greenland
Ice sheet
glacier
Ice Sheet
Online Access:https://pure.au.dk/portal/da/publications/bacterial-dynamics-in-supraglacial-habitats-of-the-greenland-ice-sheet(d80ceec8-d8e3-4616-8dd8-6060f939c011).html
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2019.01366
https://pure.au.dk/ws/files/209943426/fmicb_10_01366.pdf
http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85068960179&partnerID=8YFLogxK
Description
Summary:Current research into bacterial dynamics on the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is biased toward cryoconite holes, despite this habitat covering less than 8% of the ablation (melt) zone surface. In contrast, the expansive surface ice, which supports wide-spread Streptophyte micro-algal blooms thought to enhance surface melt, has been relatively neglected. This study aims to understand variability in bacterial abundance and production across an ablation season on the GrIS, in relation to micro-algal bloom dynamics. Bacterial abundance reached 3.3 ± 0.3 × 10 5 cells ml −1 in surface ice and was significantly linearly related to algal abundances during the middle and late ablation periods (R 2 = 0.62, p < 0.05; R 2 = 0.78, p < 0.001). Bacterial production (BP) of 0.03–0.6 μg C L −1 h −1 was observed in surface ice and increased in concert with glacier algal abundances, indicating that heterotrophic bacteria consume algal-derived dissolved organic carbon. However, BP remained at least 28 times lower than net primary production, indicating inefficient carbon cycling by heterotrophic bacteria and net accumulation of carbon in surface ice throughout the ablation season. Across the supraglacial environment, cryoconite sediment BP was at least four times greater than surface ice, confirming that cryoconite holes are the true “hot spots” of heterotrophic bacterial activity.

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