Abstract
Walker Glacier near the northern coast of Ellesmere Island in the Canadian High Arctic (terrestrial margin of the ‘Last Ice Area’) is undergoing rapid ice attrition in response to climate change. We applied culture and molecular methods to investigate fungal diversity at the terminus of this glacier. Analysis of the mycoflora composition showed that the Walker Glacier isolates separated into two clusters: the surface of the glacier ice and the glacier foreland. The recently exposed sediments of the foreland had a lower fungal diversity and different species from those on the ice, with the exception of five species that occurred in both habitats. This loss of glacial ice in the Arctic is therefore resulting in the loss of habitats for cold-dwelling fungal species. Fungal diversity is a potentially rich biological resource of glacial ecosystems, with unique taxa. The rapid loss of these glacial habitats underscores the urgency for genomic surveys of fungal diversity in the High Arctic, and the need for further isolation of strains as well as cryopreservation of environmental micro-biome samples for future research and conservation.
Highlights
Glaciers currently occupy approximately 10% of the Earth’s surface [1], but they are retreating and shrinking throughout the world [2] as a consequence of global climate change [3,4]
To examine further the fungal taxa inhabiting glacier termini that are likely to be affected coastal LIA region, and two of the four new species were found at the Walker Glacier site by global warming, we extended this work to the full communities by fungal culturing and
To examine further the fungal taxa inhabiting glacier termini that are likely to be molecular identification methods, to evaluate the diversity of mycoflora on Walker Glacier affected by global warming, we extended this work to the full communities by fungal and its glacier foreland
Summary
Glaciers currently occupy approximately 10% of the Earth’s surface [1], but they are retreating and shrinking throughout the world [2] as a consequence of global climate change [3,4]. Glaciers in the Alps have lost about 50% of their surface area during the past 150 years [5]. Glaciers provide habitats for microbial communities in the cryosphere, and they supply water to streams, rivers, wetlands, and coastal oceans [8]. Glacial ice communities may differ from those found in glacier foreland habitats [9]. Rocks and sediments with less available nutrients are released and uncovered from the ice [6,10]. These substrates provide a habitat for bacteria and fungi that can grow under cold oligotrophic soil conditions [11,12]
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