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Quantification Of Soil Microbial Biomass In The Mcmurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, Emily Ruth Reynebeau
Quantification Of Soil Microbial Biomass In The Mcmurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, Emily Ruth Reynebeau
Biology ETDs
Quantifying microbial biomass is important for understanding microbial contribution to
nutrient cycling and population flux. Widely accepted biomass estimation methods are
sufficient for well-studied and high biomass systems, though are often not sensitive enough
for systems with extremely low biomass. The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica are
characterized as an extremely harsh environment with severe restrictions on life, with
perhaps some of the lowest biomass in the world. We measured prokaryote biomass across
Taylor and Wright Valleys using four estimation metrics to determine the most appropriate
method for this ecosystem. The chloroform fumigation method was not sensitive enough
for the …
A Landscape On The Threshold Of Change: Patterns Of Soil Microbial Ecology Along Dynamic Geomorphic And Hydrologic Features In A Polar Desert, Kelli L. Feeser, David J. Van Horn, Heather N. Buelow, Daniel R. Colman, Theresa A. Mchugh, Jordan G. Okie, Egbert Schwartz, Cristina D. Takacs-Vesbach, Becky A. Ball, Andrew G. Fountain, Michael N. Gooseff, Joseph S. Levy, Maciej K. Obryk
A Landscape On The Threshold Of Change: Patterns Of Soil Microbial Ecology Along Dynamic Geomorphic And Hydrologic Features In A Polar Desert, Kelli L. Feeser, David J. Van Horn, Heather N. Buelow, Daniel R. Colman, Theresa A. Mchugh, Jordan G. Okie, Egbert Schwartz, Cristina D. Takacs-Vesbach, Becky A. Ball, Andrew G. Fountain, Michael N. Gooseff, Joseph S. Levy, Maciej K. Obryk
Biology ETDs
The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) of Antarctica are on the threshold of widespread landscape scale change due to increasing temperature and solar radiation and altered hydrology: buried ice is melting, the soil active layer is thickening, thermokarst features are developing along streams, water tracks are expanding, and lake levels are rising. These changes will impact the microbial communities found in each of the affected habitats. The purpose of this work is to first, understand the spatial distribution of soil bacteria in the MDV, specifically investigating the scale-dependent effects of environmental heterogeneity, and second, to perform surveys and coupled experiments to …