Diversity and feeding strategies of soil microfauna along elevation gradients in Himalayan cold deserts.

ABSTRACT: High-elevation cold deserts in Tibet and Himalaya are one of the most extreme environments. One consequence is that the diversity of macrofauna in this environment is often limited, and soil microorganisms have a more influential role in governing key surface and subsurface bioprocesses. High-elevation soil microfauna represent important components of cold ecosystems and dominant consumers of microbial communities. Still little is known about their diversity and distribution on the edge of their reproductive and metabolic abilities. In this study, we disentangle the impact of elevation and soil chemistry on diversity and distribution of rotifers, nematodes and tardigrades and their most frequent feeding strategies (microbial filter-feeders, bacterivores, fungivores, root-fungal feeders, om

SUBMITTER: Devetter M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5683576 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature