Soil bacteria that don't make the cut

Abstract

Forest-to-pasture conversion in the Amazon rainforest has resulted in a substantial reduction in the biodiversity of plants and animals, but little is known about how this process affects soil microbial biodiversity. Using bar-coded pyrosequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes, Rodrigues et al. determined the composition of bacterial communities in forest and pasture soil samples, covering a large geographical site. Interestingly, they found that although local diversity increased after conversion, the pasture communities showed reduced diversity across geographical space. This biotic homogenization was caused by an overall loss of endemic forest soil bacteria, particularly members of the phylum Acidobacteria. Considering the fact that soil bacteria are integral to ecosystem function, these findings emphasize the need to consider the impact of land use change on microbial biodiversity.