Single-celled organisms are the engines of the global biogeochemical cycles, driving nearly half of all photosynthesis globally and nearly all decomposition, moving elements among the biosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and lithosphere.At Ecoss we study how soil microbes are affected by heat waves in Arizona, by the extreme cold of Antarctica, and the constant temperature of hot springs in the western U.S. and China.
Overview Fire, a natural ecological disturbance, has been suppressed in U.S. forests for much of the past century. This has prevented damage to property and protected timber resources, but has caused many forests to develop in an unnatural manner, resulting in dense stands of small trees that are now poised Read more…
Heat waves in Arizona: Do microbial symbionts buffer the effects of heat waves?
We study soil microbial communities in Antarctica, microbes in hot spring ecosystems in Tengchong, China, methane production at Axel Heiberg Island near Greenland as an analog for life on other planets, and the distribution of soil microbial communities across the arid Southwest.