Microbial diversity on icelandic glaciers and ice caps

摘要: Algae are important primary colonizers of snow and glacial ice, but hitherto little is known about their ecology on Iceland’s glaciers ice caps. Due do the close proximity active volcanoes delivering large amounts ash dust, they special ecosystems. This study provides first investigation presence diversity microbial communities all major Icelandic caps over a three year period. Using high-throughput sequencing small subunit ribosomal RNA genes (16S 18S), we assessed community structure complemented these analyses with comprehensive suite physical-, geo- biochemical characterizations aqueous solid components contained in samples. Our data reveal that limited number algal taxa (Chloromonas polyptera, Raphidonema sempervirens two uncultured Chlamydomonadaceae) support rich comprising other micro-eukaryotes, bacteria archaea. Proteobacteria Bacteroidetes were dominant bacterial phyla. Archaea also detected sites where algae dominated mainly belong to Nitrososphaerales, which as ammonia oxidizers. Multivariate indicated no relationships between nutrient structure. However, geochemical simulations suggest not because equilibrium nutrient-rich fast dissolving volcanic ash. Increasing secondary carotenoid contents last stages melt seasons have previously been associated decrease surface albedo, turn could potentially an impact rates glaciers.