Hypolithic communities shape soils and organic matter reservoirs in the ice-free landscapes of East Antarctica.

ABSTRACT: The soils of East Antarctica have no rhizosphere with the bulk of organo-mineral interactions confined to the thin microbial and cryptogamic crusts that occur in open or cryptic niches and are collectively known as biological soil crust (BSC). Here we demonstrate that cryptic hypolithic varieties of BSC in the Larsemann Hills of East Antarctica contribute to the buildup of soil organic matter and produce several types of continuous organogenous horizons within the topsoil with documented clusters of at least 100 m². Such hypolithic horizons accumulate 0.06-4.69% of organic carbon (TOC) with isotopic signatures (δ¹³C_org) within the range of -30.2 - -24.0‰, and contain from 0 to 0.38% total nitrogen (TN). The properties of hypolithic organic matter alternate

SUBMITTER: Mergelov N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7314805 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature