Bacterial community composition and extracellular enzyme activity in temperate streambed sediment during drying and rewetting.

ABSTRACT: Droughts are among the most important disturbance events for stream ecosystems; they not only affect stream hydrology but also the stream biota. Although desiccation of streams is common in Mediterranean regions, phases of dryness in headwaters have been observed more often and for longer periods in extended temperate regions, including Central Europe, reflecting global climate change and enhanced water withdrawal. The effects of desiccation and rewetting on the bacterial community composition and extracellular enzyme activity, a key process in the carbon flow of streams and rivers, were investigated in a typical Central European stream, the Breitenbach (Hesse, Germany). Wet streambed sediment is an important habitat in streams. It was sampled and exposed in the laboratory to different dry

SUBMITTER: Pohlon E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3873959 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature