Microbial community variation in cryoconite granules on Qaanaaq Glacier, NW Greenland.
Cryoconite granules are aggregations of microorganisms with mineral particles that form on glacier surfaces. To understand the processes by which the granules develop, this study focused on the altitudinal distribution of the granules and photosynthetic microorganisms on the glacier, bacterial community variation with granules size and environmental factors affecting the growth of the granules. Size-sorted cryoconite granules collected from five different sites on Qaanaaq Glacier were analyzed. C and N contents were significantly higher in large (diameter greater than 250 μm) granules than in smaller (diameter 30-249 μm) granules. Bacterial community structures, based on 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, were different between the smaller and larger granules. The filamentous cyanobacterium Phormidesmis priestleyi was the dominant bacterial species in larger granules. Multivariate analysis suggests that the abundance of mineral particles on the glacier surface is the main factor controlling growth of these cyanobacteria. These results show that the supply of mineral particles on the glacier enhances granule development, that P. priestleyi is likely the key species for primary production and the formation of the granules and that the bacterial community in the granules changes over the course of the granule development.
Transdisciplinary Research Integration Center, Minatoku, Tokyo 105-0001, Japan National Institute of Polar Research, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan juetake@nipr.ac.jp.
Jun
J
Uetake
Graduate School of Science, Chiba University, Inageku, Chiba 263-8522, Japan.
Sota
S
Tanaka
Transdisciplinary Research Integration Center, Minatoku, Tokyo 105-0001, Japan National Institute of Polar Research, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan Center for Life Science Research, University of Yamanashi, Yamanashi, Japan.
Takahiro
T
Segawa
Graduate School of Science, Chiba University, Inageku, Chiba 263-8522, Japan.
Nozomu
N
Takeuchi
National Institute of Polar Research, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan.
Naoko
N
Nagatsuka
National Institute of Polar Research, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan.
Hideaki
H
Motoyama
Climate Research Department, Meteorological Research Institute, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0052, Japan.
Teruo
T
Aoki
D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D000458:Cyanobacteria / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006116:Greenland; D046448:Ice Cover / Q000737:chemistry / Q000382:microbiology; D008903:Minerals; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics
D008903:Minerals; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
Greenland Ice Sheet; Phormidesmis priestleyi; albedo; bacterial diversity; cryoconite granule; glacier ecosystem