The influence of penguin activity on soil diatom assemblages on King George Island, Antarctica with the description of a new Luticola species

PeerJ

article

Natalia Kochman-Kędziora¹  Teresa Noga²  Maria Olech³  Bart Van de Vijver⁵ 

[1] Department of Ecology and Environmental Protection, University of Rzeszów;Department of Soil Studies, Environmental Chemistry and Hydrology, University of Rzeszów;Department of Polar Research and Documentation, Jagiellonian University Cracow;Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences;Research Department;Department of Biology, ECOSPHERE, University of Antwerp

关键词: Antarctic Region;    South Shetlands;    King George Island;    Bacillariophyta;    Soil diatoms;    Diversity;    Luticola kaweckae;    New species;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.13624

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

Background Ice-free areas in the Antarctic region are strongly limited. The presence of marine mammals and birds in those areas influence soil properties and vegetation composition. Studies on the terrestrial diatom flora in soils influenced by sea birds in the Maritime Antarctic region are scarce. Methods Samples were collected from two transects on the western shore of the Admiralty Bay region. Light and scanning electron microscopic observations and statistical analyses were conducted to consider the impact of penguin rookeries on soil diatom assemblages. Results The disturbance associated with the presence of penguin rookeries clearly influences the soil diatom diversity. Assemblages from areas with the highest nutrient input were characterized by a much lower diversity with only few species dominating the flora. One of recorded taxa could not be assigned to any of the known species. Therefore, based on the combination of morphological features analyzed using light and scanning electron microscopes and comparison with similar taxa in the Antarctic region and worldwide, the species is described hereby as new to science–Luticola kaweckae sp.nov. The new species is characteristic for soil habitats with strong penguin influence.

【 授权许可】

CC BY