New Nature paper has revealed how soil microbes are impacted by extreme weather events, offering new insights into the risks posed by climate change.
Based on a media release by the University of Manchester
As extreme weather events, such as heatwaves, droughts, floods, and freezes become more common due to global heating, understanding how soil microbes – critical for healthy ecosystems – respond is crucial.
These microbes play a key role in natural processes like carbon cycling, which helps determine how much carbon is stored in the soil and how much is released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide, a major driver of global heating.
A network of scientists across Europe, including researchers from the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), collected soil samples from 30 grasslands in 10 countries. They experimentally exposed the samples to simulated extreme weather events under controlled laboratory conditions to find out how the microbes would respond.
Each sample site represents the diversity of biogeographic regions present in Europe: alpine (Austria), subarctic (Sweden), Arctic (Iceland), Atlantic (Oxford and Lancaster, UK), boreal (Estonia), continental (Germany), Mediterranean (Spain and GR, Greece) and steppe climate (Russia).
Crucial insights to safeguard vulnerable regions
The team found that microbial communities in soils from different parts of Europe each reacted in unique ways to the extreme events. For example, soils from cooler, wetter climates were particularly vulnerable to heatwaves and droughts, while soils from dry regions were more affected by floods.
However, the scientists also found encouraging patterns and signs of consistency. In particular, microbes that can “pause” their activity and go dormant—essentially waiting out tough conditions—in any weather condition. Understanding the microbes’ ‘survival strategy’ is an important step towards improved prediction and mitigation of future impacts of extreme weather events.
Co-author Nico Eisenhauer, group leader at iDiv and professor at Leipzig University said: “Soil microbes are the functional backbones of terrestrial ecosystems. They do not only determine carbon and nutrient dynamics, they also determine plant, animal, and human health. However, these microbes are increasingly challenged by global change.”
First author Chris Knight from The University of Manchester added: “But our research highlights just how complex and varied the effects of climate change can be. The fact that local conditions play such a huge role in how vulnerable soils are means that a “one-size-fits-all” approach won’t work when it comes to protecting soil ecosystems, suggesting tailored strategies will be key.”
The research offers a key first step in predicting how microbial communities respond to climate extremes, helping inform conservation efforts and climate policies around the world.
Franciska de Vries, who conducted the research while at The University of Manchester, now a Professor of Earth Surface Science at the University of Amsterdam, added: “This study is one of the largest of its kind. By working across multiple countries and ecosystems, we have been able to provide key insights that could guide future research and environmental management strategies ensuring the health of our ecosystems in the face of increasing climate challenges.”
Original publication
(Researchers with iDiv affiliation and alumnae bolded)
Knight, Christopher G., Nicolitch, Océane, Griffiths, Rob I., Goodall, Tim, Jones, Briony, Weser, Carolin, Langridge, Holly, Davison, John, Dellavalle, Ariane, Eisenhauer, Nico, Gongalsky, Konstantin B., Hector, Andrew, Jardine, Emma, Kardol, Paul, Maestre, Fernando T., Schädler, Martin, Semchenko, Marina, Stevens, Carly, Tsiafouli, Maria Α, Vilhelmsson, Oddur, Wanek, Wolfgang and de Vries, Franciska T. (2024): Soil microbiomes show consistent and predictable responses to extreme events, Nature. DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-08185-3
Contact
Prof Dr Nico Eisenhauer
Head of the research group Experimental Interaction Ecology
German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
Leipzig University
Phone: +49 341 97 33167
Email: nico.eisenhauer@idiv.de
Kati Kietzmann
Media and Communications
German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
Phone: +49 341 97 39222
Email: kati.kietzmann@idiv.de
Please note: Use of the pictures provided by iDiv is permitted for reports related to this media release only, and under the condition that credit is given to the picture originator.