Muskoxen homogenise soil microbial communities and affect the abundance of methanogens and methanotrophs

• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153877
• Publication Date: 2022-02-23T16:06:26Z
• Authors: Marie Rønne Agger...; Tue Kjærgaard Nie...; Jesper Bruun Mosb...; Niels Martin Schmidt; Lars Hestbjerg Ha...
• Keywords: 16S amplicon sequencing; Microbial diversity; Environmental microbiology; Bacteria; Microbiota; Muskox (); Ruminants; 15. Life on land; Soil; Arctic ecology; 13. Climate action; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; Methane emission; Animals; Methane; Muskox (Ovibos moschatus); Soil Microbiology

Grazing herbivores may affect soil microbial communities indirectly by impacting structure and vegetation composition. In high arctic environments, this impact is poorly elucidated, while having potentially wide-reaching effects on the ecosystem. This study examines how a key herbivore, muskox Ovibos moschatus, affects community in fen. Environmental DNA was extracted from samples taken grazed control plots exclosures established 5 years prior. We sequenced amplicons of 16S rRNA gene to provide insight into communities. found that plots, exhibited evenness displayed highly similar overall diversity. where muskoxen had been excluded, diversity significantly reduced, more uneven intra-sample populations lower ecological richness evenness. observed composition soils were affected presence muskoxen, as seen elevated relative abundances Bacteroides Firmicutes, two major phyla faeces. Furthermore, an increase abundance bacteria involved degradation recalcitrant carbohydrates cycling nitrogen soil. Ungrazed increased anaerobic oxidation methane, whereas some methanogens abundant soils. corroborates previous finding methane emissions are higher fens under grazing. Our results show large stimulates has homogenizing influence inter-species dynamics The findings study, thus, improve our understanding effect herbivore grazing ecosystems derived cycling.