Distinct Soil Microbial Communities in habitats of differing soil water balance on the Tibetan Plateau.

ABSTRACT: Global change may be a severe threat to natural and agricultural systems, partly through its effects in altering soil biota and processes, due to changes in water balance. We studied the potential influence of changing soil water balance on soil biota by comparing existing sites along a natural water balance gradient in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. In this study, the community structure of bacteria, archaea and eukaryotes differed between the different soil water conditions. Soil moisture was the strongest predictor of bacterial and eukaryotic community structure, whereas C/N ratio was the key factor predicting variation in the archaeal community. Bacterial and eukaryotic diversity was quite stable among different soil water availability, but archaeal diversity was dramatically different b

SUBMITTER: Li Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5388882 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature