Methanogenic activities in alpine soils

The influence of cattle grazing on methane fluxes and engaged microbial communities in alpine forest soils

Recent dynamics and uncertainties in global methane budgets necessitate a dissemination of current knowledge on the controls of sources and sinks of atmospheric methane. Forest soils are considered to be efficient methane sinks; however, as they are microbially mediated they are sensitive to anthropogenic influences and tend to switch from being sinks to being methane sources. With regard to global changes in land use, the present study aimed at (i) investigating the influence of grazing on flux rates of methane in forest soils, (ii) deducing possible (a)biotic factors regulating these fluxes, and (iii) gaining an insight into the complex interactions between methane-cycling microorganisms and ecosystem functioning. Here we show that extensive grazing significantly mitigated the soil's sink strength for atmospheric methane through alterations of both microbial activity and community composition. In situ flux measurements revealed that all native, non-grazed areas were net methane consumers, while the adjacent, grazed areas were net methane producers. Whereas neither parent material nor soil properties including moisture and organic matter showed any correlation to the ascertained fluxes, significantly higher archaeal abundances at the grazed study sites indicated that small inputs of methanogens associated with cattle grazing may be sufficient to sustainably increase methane emissions.

Methane-cycling microorganisms in soils of a high-alpine altitudinal gradient

Methanogens and methanotrophs play unique roles as producers and consumers of the greenhouse gas methane (CH4) in soils, respectively. Here, we aimed to reveal whether and to which extent methane-cyclers occur in high-alpine soils, and to assess their spatial distribution along an altitudinal gradient (2700-3500 m) in the Austrian Alps at sites located within the alpine (2700-2900 m), the alpine-nival (3000-3100 m) and the nival belts (3200-3500 m). Methanococcales and Methanocella spp. were most abundant among all quantified methanogenic guilds, whereas Methanosarcinales were not detected in the studied soil. The detected methanogens seem to be capable of persisting despite a highly oxic low-temperature environment. Methanogenic and methanotrophic activities and abundances of methanotrophs, Methanococcales and Methanocella spp. declined with altitude. Methanogenic and methanotrophic abundances were best explained by mean annual soil temperature and dissolved organic carbon, respectively. Alpine belt soils harbored significantly more methane-cyclers than those of the nival belt, indicating some influence of plant cover. Our results show that methanogens are capable of persisting in high-alpine cold soils and might help to understand future changes of these environments caused by climate warming.

Eukaryotic microorganisms in cold environments: examples from Pyrenean glaciers

Little is known about the viability of eukaryotic microorganisms preserved in icy regions. Here we report on the diversity of microbial eukaryotes in ice samples derived from four Pyrenean glaciers. The species composition of eukaryotic communities in these glaciers is unknown mostly because of the presence of a multi-year ice cap, and it is not clear whether they harbor the same populations. The recent deglaciation of these areas is allowing an easy access to glacial layers that correspond to the “Little Ice Age” although some isolated deposits are attributed to previous glacial cycles. In this study, we use molecular 18S rRNA-based approaches to characterize some of the microbial eukaryotic populations associated with Pyrenean glaciers. Firstly, we performed a chemical and microscopical characterization of ice samples. Secondly, molecular analyses revealed interesting protist genetic diversity in glaciers. In order to understand the microbial composition of the ice samples the eukaryotic communities resident in the glacial samples were examined by amplifying community DNA and constructing clone libraries with 18S rRNA primers. After removal of potential chimeric sequences and dereplication of identical sequences, phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that several different protists could be identified. Protist diversity was more phylum rich in Aneto and Monte Perdido glaciers. The dominant taxonomic groups across all samples (>1% of all sequences) were Viridiplantae and Rhizaria. Significant variations in relative abundances of protist phyla between higher and lower glaciers were observed. At the genus level, significant differences were also recorded for the dominant genera Chloromonas, Raphidonema, Heteromita, Koliella, and Bodomorpha. In addition, protist community structure showed significant differences between glaciers. The relative abundances of protist groups at different taxonomic levels correlated with the altitude and area of glaciers and with pH of ice, but little or no relationships to other chemical characteristics were found.