Sea animal colonies enhance carbonyl sulfide emissions from coastal Antarctic tundra

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

Documents

  • Fulltext

    Final published version, 1.35 MB, PDF document

The Antarctic tundra, dominated by non-vascular photoautotrophs (NVP) like mosses and lichens, serves as an important habitat for sea animals. These animals contribute organic matter and oceanic sulfur to land, potentially influencing sulfur transformations. Here, we measured carbonyl sulfide (OCS) fluxes from the Antarctic tundra and linked them to soil biochemical properties. Results revealed that the NVP-dominated upland tundra acted as an OCS sink (−0.97 ± 0.57 pmol m−2 s−1), driven by NVP and OCS-metabolizing enzymes from soil microbes (e.g., Acidobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, and Chloroflexi). In contrast, tundra within sea animal colonies exhibited OCS emissions up to 1.35 ± 0.38 pmol m−2 s−1, resulting from the introduction of organosulfur compounds that stimulated concurrent OCS production. Furthermore, sea animal colonization likely influenced OCS-metabolizing microbial communities and further promoted OCS production. Overall, this study highlighted the role of sea animal activities in shaping the soil-atmospheric exchange of OCS through interacting with soil chemical properties and microbial compositions.

Original languageEnglish
Article number326
JournalCommunications Earth and Environment
Volume4
Issue number1
Number of pages11
ISSN2662-4435
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, Springer Nature Limited.

ID: 367899300