- Title
- Microbial diversity of speleothems in two southeast Australian limestone cave arches
- Creator
- Vardeh, David P.; Woodhouse, Jason N.; Neilan, Brett A.
- Relation
- Journal of Cave and Karst Studies Vol. 80, Issue 3, p. 121-132
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.4311/2017MB0119
- Publisher
- The National Speleological Society
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2018
- Description
- Peculiar cave structures, nicknamed lobsters, and shaped by drip water, wind, aeolian particles and microbial biofilms, are described from cave entrance arches at Jenolan and Wombeyan caves in southeast Australia. Subaerial biofilms on rock surfaces support complex microbial assemblages adapted to temperature, desiccation, and low irradiance stress. The community composition of active and inactive speleothems was elucidated by next generation sequencing. Active biofilms showed high abundances of cyanobacterial taxa, morphologically and phylogenetically belonging to the genera Chroococcidiopsis and Gloeocapsa, representing an endolithic lifestyle in desiccated and low light conditions. Significant differences were found between caves and between actively accreting and inactive and weathered structures. Functional taxa putatively occupying the same niches were found on active structures in both locations. A temporal succession is proposed, with dominance shifting from Chroococcales to Actinomycetales and highly desicca-tion-resistant and oligotrophic Rubrobacterales with decreasing water availability.
- Subject
- microbial communities; cyanobacteria; speleothems; Jenolan caves; Wombeyan caves
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1411130
- Identifier
- uon:36295
- Identifier
- ISSN:1090-6924
- Language
- eng
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