Lake Bacterial Communities in North Patagonian Andes: The Effect of the Nothofagus pumilio Treeline.

ABSTRACT: One of the most noticeable environmental discontinuities in mountains is the transition that exists in vegetation below and above the treeline. In the North Patagonian Andean lakes (between 900 and 1950 m a.s.l.), we analyzed the bacterial community composition of lakes in relation to surrounding vegetation (erected trees, krummholz belt, and bare rocks), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and total dissolved nutrients (nitrogen, TDN and phosphorus, TDP). We observed a decrease in DOC, TDP, and TDN concentrations with altitude, reflecting shifts in the source inputs entering the lakes by runoff. Cluster analysis based on bacterial community composition showed a segregation of the lakes below treeline, from those located above. This first cluster was characterized by the cyanobacteria Cyanobiu

SUBMITTER: Bastidas Navarro M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11461596 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature