Publication
Small-scale distribution of microbes and biogeochemistry in the Great Barrier Reef
Publisher:
PeerJ
Date:
21-10-2020
DOI:
10.7717/PEERJ.10049
Abstract: Microbial communities distribute heterogeneously at small-scales (mm-cm) due to physical, chemical and biological processes. To understand microbial processes and functions it is necessary to appreciate microbes and matter at small scales, however, few studies have determined microbial, viral, and biogeochemical distribution over space and time at these scales. In this study, the small-scale spatial and temporal distribution of microbes (bacteria and chlorophyll a ), viruses, dissolved inorganic nutrients and dissolved organic carbon were determined at five locations (spatial) along the Great Barrier Reef (Australia), and over 4 consecutive days (temporal) at a coastal location. Our results show that: (1) the parameters show high small-scale heterogeneity (2) none of the parameters measured explained the bacterial abundance distributions at these scales spatially or temporally (3) chemical (ammonium, nitrate/nitrite, phosphate, dissolved organic carbon, and total dissolved nitrogen) and biological (chl a , and bacterial and viral abundances) measurements did not reveal significant relationships at the small scale and (4) statistically significant differences were found between sites/days for all parameter measured but without a clear pattern.