@article {4814, title = {Antarctic lake phytoplankton and bacteria from near-surface waters exhibit high sensitivity to climate-driven disturbance}, journal = {Environmental Microbiology}, year = {2022}, month = {07/2022}, abstract = {

The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs), Antarctica, represent a cold, desert ecosystem poised on the threshold of melting and freezing water. The MDVs have experienced dramatic signs of climatic change, most notably a warm austral summer in 2001\–2002 that caused widespread flooding, partial ice cover loss and lake level rise. To understand the impact of these climatic disturbances on lake microbial communities, we simulated lake level rise and ice-cover loss by transplanting dialysis-bagged communities from selected depths to other locations in the water column or to an open water perimeter moat. Bacteria and eukaryote communities residing in the surface waters (5 m) exhibited shifts in community composition when exposed to either disturbance, while microbial communities from below the surface were largely unaffected by the transplant. We also observed an accumulation of labile dissolved organic carbon in the transplanted surface communities. In addition, there were taxa-specific sensitivities: cryptophytes and Actinobacteria were highly sensitive particularly to the moat transplant, while chlorophytes and several bacterial taxa increased in relative abundance or were unaffected. Our results reveal that future climate-driven disturbances will likely undermine the stability and productivity of MDV lake phytoplankton and bacterial communities in the surface waters of this extreme environment.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1111/1462-2920.16113}, url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1462-2920.16113}, author = {Sherwell, Shasten S. and Kalra, Isha and Li, Wei and Diane M. McKnight and John C. Priscu and Rachael M. Morgan-Kiss} } @article {4156, title = {Aeolian material transport and its role in landscape connectivity in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica}, journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface}, volume = {123}, year = {2018}, month = {12/2018}, pages = {3323 - 3337}, abstract = {

Arid regions, particularly polar and alpine desert environments, have diminished landscape connectivity compared to temperate regions due to limited and/or seasonal hydrological processes. For these environments, aeolian processes play a particularly important role in landscape evolution and biotic community vitality through nutrient and solute additions. The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) are the largest ice-free area in Antarctica and are potentially a major source of aeolian material for the continent. From this region, samples were collected at five heights (~5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 cm) above the surface seasonally for 2013 through 2015 from Alatna Valley, Victoria Valley, Miers Valley, and Taylor Valley (Taylor Glacier, East Lake Bonney, F6 (Lake Fryxell), and Explorer\’s Cove). Despite significant geological separation and varying glacial histories, low-elevation and coastal sites had similar major ion chemistries, as did high-elevation and inland locations. This locational clustering of compositions was also evident in scanning electron microscopy images and principal component analyses, particularly for samples collected at ~100 cm above the surface. Compared to published soil literature, aeolian material in Taylor Valley demonstrates a primarily down-valley transport of material toward the coast. Soluble N:P ratios in the aeolian material reflect relative nutrient enrichments seen in MDV soils and lakes, where younger, coastal soils are relatively N depleted, while older, up-valley soils are relatively P depleted. The aeolian transport of materials, including water-soluble nutrients, is an important vector of connectivity within the MDV and provides a mechanism to help \“homogenize\” the geochemistry of both soil and aquatic ecosystems.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1029/2017JF004589}, url = {https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2017JF004589}, author = {Melisa A. Diaz and Byron Adams and Kathleen A. Welch and Sue Welch and Opiyo, Stephen O. and Khan, Alia L. and Diane M. McKnight and Craig S Cary and W. Berry Lyons} } @article {3306, title = {Antarctic streams as a potential source of iron for the Southern Ocean: Figure 1.}, journal = {Geology}, volume = {43}, year = {2015}, month = {11/2016}, pages = {1003 - 1006}, chapter = {1003}, abstract = {

Due to iron\’s role in oceanic primary production, there has been great interest in quantifying the importance of Fe in regions where concentrations are very low and macronutrients, nitrate and phosphate, are available. Measurements of filterable (i.e., \<0.4 μm) Fe concentrations in streams from Taylor Valley, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, suggest that coastal-zone stream Fe input to the Southern Ocean could potentially play an important role in primary production in nearshore regions. Filterable Fe (fFe) data from streams in the McMurdo Dry Valleys were used to represent glacier meltwater that flows through ice-free landscape with the potential of transporting Fe to the Antarctic coastal zone. Estimates of potential fFe flux to the Antarctic Peninsula region using our mean fFe concentration of 10.6 \µg L\–1\ combined with an estimate of ice-free area for the Antarctic Peninsula result in an fFe flux of 1.2 \× 107\ g yr\–1. Although small compared to iceberg and aeolian Fe fluxes, future stream input to the Southern Ocean could increase due to glacier retreat and\ 

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, issn = {0091-7613}, doi = {10.1130/G36989.1}, url = {http://geology.gsapubs.org/lookup/doi/10.1130/G36989.1http://geology.geoscienceworld.org/lookup/doi/10.1130/G36989.1}, author = {W. Berry Lyons and Dailey, Kelsey R. and Kathleen A. Welch and Deuerling, Kelly M. and Sue Welch and Diane M. McKnight} } @inbook {1168, title = {Antarctic McMurdo Dry Valley stream ecosystems as analog to fluvial systems on Mars}, booktitle = {Life in Antarctic Deserts and other Cold Dry Environments}, year = {2010}, pages = {139 - 159}, publisher = {Cambridge University Press}, organization = {Cambridge University Press}, address = {Cambridge}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, isbn = {9780521889193}, doi = {10.1017/CBO9780511712258.005}, author = {Michael N. Gooseff and Diane M. McKnight and Carr, M. H. and Baeseman, J.}, editor = {Peter T. Doran and W. Berry Lyons and Diane M. McKnight} } @article {1256, title = {Antarctic Climate Cooling and Response of Diatoms in Glacial Meltwater Streams}, journal = {Geophysical Research Letters}, volume = {33}, year = {2006}, month = {04/2006}, pages = {L07406}, type = {Journal}, abstract = {

To understand biotic responses to an Antarctic cooling trend, we analyzed diatom samples from glacial meltwater streams in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, the largest ice-free area in Antarctica. Diatoms are abundant in these streams, and 24 of 40 species have only been found in the Antarctic. The percentage of these Antarctic diatom species increased with decreasing annual stream flow and increasing harshness of the stream habitat. The species diversity of assemblages reached a maximum when the Antarctic species accounted for 40\–60\% of relative diatom abundance. Decreased solar radiation and air-temperatures reduce annual stream flow, raising the dominance of these Antarctic species to levels above 60\%. Thus, cooling favors the Antarctic species, and lowers diatom species diversity in this region.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM, Biggie}, doi = {10.1029/2006GL025903}, author = {Rhea M.M. Esposito and Horn, S and Diane M. McKnight and Cox, M and Grant, M and Sarah A. Spaulding and Peter T. Doran and Cozzetto, K} } @article {1377, title = {Antarctic climate cooling and terrestrial ecosystem response}, journal = {Nature}, volume = {415}, year = {2002}, month = {01/2002}, pages = {517-520}, type = {Journal}, keywords = {LTER-MCM, Climate Response}, doi = {10.1038/nature710}, author = {Peter T. Doran and John C. Priscu and W. Berry Lyons and John E. Walsh and Andrew G Fountain and Diane M. McKnight and Daryl L. Moorhead and Ross A. Virginia and Diana H. Wall and Gary D. Clow and Christian H. Fritsen and Christopher P. McKay and Andrew N. Parsons} } @mastersthesis {1424, title = {Active layer dynamics and hyporheic zone storage in three streams in the McMurdo Dy Valleys, Antarctica}, volume = {M.S.}, year = {2000}, school = {University of Colorado}, type = {masters}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {LTER}, author = {Peter A. Conovitz} } @article {1481, title = {Analysis of transient storage subject to unsteady flow: diel flow variation in an Antarctic stream}, journal = {Journal of the North American Benthological Society}, volume = {17}, year = {1998}, month = {06/1998}, pages = {143-154}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, url = {http://www.jstor.org/stable/1467958}, author = {Robert L. Runkel and Diane M. McKnight and Edmund D. Andrews} } @article {1611, title = {Aquatic fulvic acids in algal-rich antarctic ponds}, journal = {Limnology and Oceanography}, volume = {39}, year = {1994}, month = {07/1994}, pages = {1972-1979}, keywords = {LTER-MCM, Biggie}, author = {Diane M. McKnight and Edmund D. Andrews and Sarah A. Spaulding and George R. Aiken} }