Spatial Complexity of Soils and Microbial Communities in Headwater Wetlands
Previous studies have documented changes in the structure of wetlands impacted by human activities, with focuses on hydrological connectivity, vegetative community composition, and soil properties. While the spatial distribution of microbial communities is generally thought of as random variability, these communities can both be altered by and drive changes in these structural properties, but these links and feedbacks are not well understood. In this project we have been looking at the relationship between soil properties and microbial communities, as measured by phospholipid fatty acid analysis (e.g., PLFA biomass, fungal-to-bacterial ratios and microbial composition), across a broad range of soil conditions found in headwater wetlands of Pennsylvania.
Our Research Team
Collaborators
- Denice H. Wardrop, Penn State, Wetland Ecologist
- Kusum J. Naithani, U of Ark, Landscape Ecologist
- MaryAnn Bruns, Penn State, Soil Microbial Ecologists
- R. Michael Miller, Argonne National Laboratory
- Erica Smithwick, Penn State, Landscape Ecologists
Students
- Brett Dietz, Penn State (2006 - 2012)
Project Products
Moon, J.B., D.H. Wardrop, E.A. Smithwick, K.J. Naithani. 2019. Fine-scale spatial homogenization of microbial habitats: a multivariate index of headwater wetland complex condition. Ecological Applications 29(1), e01816.
Moon J. B., D.H. Wardrop, M.A.V. Bruns, R.M. Miller & K.J. Naithani. 2016. Land-use and land-cover effects on soil microbial community abundance and composition in headwater riparian wetlands. Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 97:215-233.
Moon, J.B. & D.H. Wardrop. 2013. Linking landscapes to wetland condition: A case study of eight headwater complexes in Pennsylvania. In: Brooks, R.P. & D.H. Wardrop (Eds). Mid-Atlantic Freshwater Wetlands: Advances in Wetlands Science, Management, Policy, and Practice, Springer. Pgs. 61-108.