Salinity matters the most: How environmental factors shape the diversity and structure of cyanobacterial mat communities in high altitude arid ecosystems.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Microbial mats are complex communities of benthic microorganisms that occur at the soil-water interphase in lakes' shores, streams, and ponds. In the cold, mountainous desert of Eastern Pamir (Tajikistan), where scarce water bodies are influenced by extreme environmental conditions, photosynthetic cyanobacteria form diverse mats. The mats are characterized by different morphology and thickness. Their habitats exhibit a wide range of conditions; from oligosaline to hypersaline, oligotrophic to hypertrophic, and from cold ponds to hot springs. The aim of the present study was to reveal the taxonomic composition and structure of these mats and to examine which environmental factors influence them.

Methods

Fifty-one mats were collected from small water bodies around

SUBMITTER: Sandzewicz M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10136773 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature