Most ciliated protozoa in extreme environments are cryptic in the ‘seed bank’

Aquatic Microbial Ecology

Genoveva F. Esteban¹  Andréa Galotti¹  Francisco Guerrero¹  Francisco Jiménez-Gómez¹  Bland J. Finlay¹ 

关键词: Ciliates;    Cryptic biodiversity;    Hypersaline;    Saltpans;   

DOI  :  10.3354/ame01699

学科分类：生物科学（综合）

来源: Inter-Research

【 摘 要 】

ABSTRACT: This study focuses on the species richness of ciliated protozoa in inland saltpans. A low number of ciliates were found thriving under extreme high salinity; however, a diverse assemblage of ciliate species was revealed by gradually diluting the salt concentration, meaning that most ciliate species in these environments are hidden in the seed bank awaiting favourable growth conditions. In some saltpan samples, up to 100% of the ciliate species found were retrieved from the seed bank. Our results highlight the importance of ciliate seed banks as repositories of microbial diversity in the natural environment, enabling ecosystems to react to environmental change. The ability of microbial communities to respond to a changing environment depends on a large local diversity of rare and encysted species.

【 授权许可】

Unknown