Rapid microbial community evolution in initial Carex litter decomposition stages in Bayinbuluk alpine wetland during the freeze–thaw period

Abstract

Litter decomposition plays an important role in the nutrient cycle of terrestrial ecosystems. The alpine wetland has a high litter accumulation rate and a slow degradation rate, which is extremely sensitive to changeable freeze–thaw patterns against the background of global climate change. Freeze-thaw process is a common natural phenomenon in middle-high latitudes and high altitudes. Hydrothermal changes caused by freezing and thawing process affect the survival and physiological characteristics of microorganisms, and then affect the decomposition process of litters. The alpine wetland could be an ideal example for wetland in high altitude to study the mechanism of microbial community structure and function during litter composition during freeze–thaw process. Moreover, seldom has research in the whole process in the fields. The bacterial and fungal communities were analyzed in three different Carex litter decomposition stages—fresh, four-, and six-month—during the freeze–thaw period using 16/18S rDNA pyrosequencing. Phyllosphere microflora had identified rapid changes in the structure and function. Bacteria were mainly influenced by environmental factors (air temperature, soil moisture), and were significantly related to the degradation of litter lignin and the change of C/N ratio. Fungi were affected by both litter quality and environmental factors, and were significantly related to the degradation of cellulose and the change of C/N ratio. Moreover, phyllosphere organisms, including bacteria (Cryobacterium and Paracoccus members) and fungi (Mrakia, Mrakiella, and Naganishia), were replaced by communities with specific metabolic capabilities to adapt to each particular decomposition stage. Ilumatobacter and the fungal genera, Mycosphaerella and Athelia were characteristic of four-month-old litter samples, whereas Brevundimonas, Paracoccus and Nigrospora were characteristic of six-month-old litter samples. Our results suggest that the bacterial community structures of Carex and forest litter during initial decomposition stages may be similar but that their fungal community structures may differ substantially.