title: Glaciers and ice sheets as a biome.
abstract: The tundra is the coldest biome described in typical geography and biology textbooks. Within the cryosphere, there are large expanses of ice in the Antarctic, Arctic and alpine regions that are not regarded as being part of any biome. During the summer, there is significant melt on the surface of glaciers, ice caps and ice shelves, at which point microbial communities become active and play an important role in the cycling of carbon and other elements within the cryosphere. In this review, we suggest that it is time to recognise the cryosphere as one of the biomes of Earth. The cryospheric biome encompasses extreme environments and is typified by truncated food webs dominated by viruses, bacteria, protozoa and algae with distinct biogeographical structures.
authors: Bristol Glaciology Centre, School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol, UK, BS8 1SS. a.m.anesio@bristol.ac.uk
authors: Alexandre M
authors: AM
authors: Anesio
authors: Johanna
authors: J
authors: Laybourn-Parry
mesh_terms: D000864:Antarctic Regions; D001110:Arctic Regions; D044822:Biodiversity; D005843:Geography; D046448:Ice Cover; D014871:Water Microbiology