A primer to metabarcoding surveys of Antarctic terrestrial biodiversity

AbstractIce-free regions of Antarctica are concentrated along the coastal margins but are scarce throughout the continental interior. Environmental changes, including the introduction of non-indigenous species, increasingly threaten these unique habitats. At the same time, the unique biotic communities subsisting in isolation across the continent are difficult to survey due to logistical constraints, sampling challenges and problems related to the identification of small and cryptic taxa. Baseline biodiversity data from remote Antarctic habitats are still missing for many parts of the continent but are critical to the detection of community changes over time, including newly introduced species. Here we review the potential of standardized (non-specialist) sampling in the field (e.g. from soil, vegetation or water) combined with high-throughput sequencing (HTS) of bulk DNA as a possible solution to overcome some of these problems. In particular, HTS metabarcoding approaches benefit from being able to process many samples in parallel, while workflow and data structure can stay highly uniform. Such approaches have quickly gained recognition and we show that HTS metabarcoding surveys are likely to play an important role in continent-wide biomonitoring of all Antarctic terrestrial habitats.

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Terrestrial ecosystems of the Antarctic Peninsula and their responses to climate change and anthropogenic impacts

Ukrainian Antarctic Journal ◽

10.33275/1727-7485.2.2020.656 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 84-97

Author(s):

R. Bargagli ◽

Keyword(s):

Antarctic Peninsula ◽

Native Species ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Anthropogenic Impacts ◽

Extreme Temperature ◽

Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽

Indigenous Species ◽

Non Indigenous Species ◽

Food Web Complexity ◽

The Antarctic

Antarctica and the Southern Ocean are unique natural laboratories where organisms adapted to extreme environmental conditions have evolved in isolation for millions of years. These unique biotic communities on Earth are facing complex climatic and environmental changes. Terrestrial ecosystems in the Antarctic Peninsula Region (APR) have experienced the highest rate of climate warming and, being the most impacted by human activities, are facing the greatest risk of detrimental changes. This review provides an overview of the most recent findings on how biotic communities in terrestrial ecosystems of the Antarctic Peninsula Region (APR) are responding and will likely respond to further environmental changes and direct anthropogenic impacts. Knowledge gained from studies on relatively simple terrestrial ecosystems could be very useful in predicting what may happen in much more complex ecosystems in regions with less extreme temperature changes. The rapid warming of the APR has led to the retreat of glaciers, the loss of snow and permafrost and the increase of ice-free areas, with a consequent enhancement of soil-forming processes, biotic communities, and food web complexity. However, most human activity is concentrated in APR coastal ice-free areas and poses many threats to terrestrial ecosystems such as environmental pollution or disturbances to soilcommunities and wildlife. People who work or visit APR may inadvertently introduce alien organisms and/or spread native species to spatially isolated ice-free areas. The number of introduced non-indigenous species and xenobiotic compounds in the APR is likely to be greater than currently documented, and several biosecurity and monitoring activities are therefore suggested to Antarctic national scientific programs and tourism operators to minimize the risk of irreversible loss of integrity by the unique terrestrial ecosystems of APR.

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Are there Invasive Planktonic Microbes?

Journal of Marine Science Research and Oceanography ◽

10.33140/jmsro.02.02.05 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

Keyword(s):

Natural Population ◽

Human Activities ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Common Species ◽

Species Level ◽

Indigenous Species ◽

Introduced Populations ◽

Interannual Fluctuations ◽

Non Indigenous Species ◽

Gymnodinium Catenatum

The translocation of species by human activities is a problem that increases with the globalization. However, the examples of non-indigenous or exotic planktonic microbes can be questioned as they predominantly have cosmopolitan distributions and natural mechanisms for wide dispersion. In reality, the categorization of any species as non-indigenous requires solving two difficult issues: knowledge of where the ‘natural’ population is, and demonstration of a substantial geographic discontinuity between the supposed source and the introduced populations. With regard to planktonic microorganisms, a non-indigenous taxon could have been previously unnoticed during routine microscopical analyses due to: A) difficult identification at the species level in routine observations such as for the diatoms (Pseudo-nitzschia, Skeletonema, Thalassiosira, Pleurosigma), unarmoured dinoflagellates (Karenia, Karlodinium) and Raphidophytes, and B) species with strong interannual fluctuations of abundance, only detected during bloom periods when they are misinterpreted as newcomers (i.e., Coscinodiscus wailesii or Trieres chinensis, junior synonyms of C. cylindricus and T. regia, respectively, or Gymnodinium catenatum). Rather than attempting to add to the lists of non-indigenous species with planktonic microbes, the monitoring surveys should also pay attention in the less common species with important fluctuations of abundance, independent of tentative labels as exotic or indigenous, because they are potentially useful as bio-indicators of environmental changes.

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Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in terrestrial habitats of Antarctica

Antarctic Science ◽

10.1017/s0954102005002944 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 17 (4) ◽

pp. 523-531 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

DIANA H. WALL

Keyword(s):

Global Change ◽

Ecosystem Functioning ◽

Ecosystem Processes ◽

Global Changes ◽

Biodiversity And Ecosystem Functioning ◽

Soil Ecosystems ◽

Terrestrial Habitats ◽

Terrestrial Biodiversity ◽

The Impact ◽

Continental Interior

Are we failing to acknowledge the impact of global changes (e.g. UVB, invasive species, climate, land use, atmosphere) on the terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem processes of Antarctica? Antarctica is considered a pristine environment and has low terrestrial species diversity and trophic complexity, and yet while scientifically possible, we still do not know the number of species, where they are, or how their influence on ecosystem processes (e.g. nutrient cycling, carbon flux, decomposition, feedbacks to climate, hydrology) will be affected by multiple global changes. Increased recognition of human dependence on services provided by biodiversity and ecosystem functioning combined with documented impacts of global change already occurring on Antarctic soil ecosystems, increases the urgency to expand investigations regionally in Antarctica. We cannot measure the effects of global change or sustainably manage Antarctica's future if we underestimate the contribution of soil communities. Evidence indicates habitats of rocky moraines, soils and cyroconite holes of glaciers in the continental interior may host not only microbes, but also a complexity of algae and invertebrates. Scientists of many disciplines, together, need to assess the benefits humans derive from Antarctic terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem processes, how these will be affected by global change, and link their findings to the rest of the world.

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Montane Meadows as a Microcosm for Predicting Global Change

The UW National Parks Service Research Station Annual Reports ◽

10.13001/uwnpsrc.2005.3615 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 29 ◽

pp. 70-73

Author(s):

D. Debinski

Keyword(s):

Environmental Changes ◽

Global Climate ◽

Warning System ◽

Distribution Patterns ◽

Atmospheric Composition ◽

Ecological Changes ◽

Climate Shifts ◽

Terrestrial Habitats ◽

Montane Meadows ◽

Changes Over Time

The last decade has witnessed intensifying, abrupt global climate change. Despite this impact, we know little about when, what, and how changes occur. Most climate research is limited to studies of the abiotic environment, focusing on atmospheric composition and carbon fluxes. These studies fail to provide adequate indicators of climate changes and their impact on habitats and species. Recent and intensifying ecological changes have generated interest in (Root et al. 2003, Thomas et al. 2004), and the need for tools that can help to prepare for global climate shifts. Changes in ecological (biotic) communities are excellent indicators of climate shifts, providing models to predict changes over time. Montane meadows, defined here as persistently nonÂforested habitats in mountain ecosystems, make up a small percentage of terrestrial habitats, but they are likely to exhibit changes much more rapidly than most other areas. These meadows are arrayed along a hydrological gradient (from hydric to mesic to xeric) and inhabited by short-lived plants and highly mobile animal species that can exhibit quick changes in distribution patterns relative to environmental changes. Thus, they can provide an early warning system for other ecosystems across the globe. Currently, the extent and range of climatic changes that will occur in montane meadows are unknown.

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Meta-analysis on the ecological impacts of widely spread non-indigenous species in the Baltic Sea

The Science of The Total Environment ◽

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147375 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 147375

Author(s):

Henn Ojaveer ◽

Jonne Kotta ◽

Okko Outinen ◽

Heli Einberg ◽

Anastasija Zaiko ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Baltic Sea ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Ecological Impacts ◽

Indigenous Species ◽

The Baltic Sea ◽

The Baltic ◽

Non Indigenous Species

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Ecological status assessment and non-indigenous species in industrial and fishing harbours of the Gulf of Gabès (central Mediterranean Sea)

Environmental Science and Pollution Research ◽

10.1007/s11356-021-14729-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Nawfel Mosbahi ◽

Jean-Philippe Pezy ◽

Lassad Neifar ◽

Jean-Claude Dauvin

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Ecological Status ◽

Indigenous Species ◽

Central Mediterranean ◽

Gulf Of Gabes ◽

Gulf Of Gabès ◽

Central Mediterranean Sea ◽

Ecological Status Assessment ◽

Status Assessment ◽

Non Indigenous Species

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First Record of the Alien Species Procambarus virginalis Lyko, 2017 in Fresh Waters of Sardinia and Insight into Its Genetic Variability

Life ◽

10.3390/life11070606 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 606

Author(s):

Daria Sanna ◽

Ilenia Azzena ◽

Fabio Scarpa ◽

Piero Cossu ◽

Angela Pira ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genetic Variability ◽

Alien Species ◽

Procambarus Clarkii ◽

Mitochondrial Gene ◽

First Record ◽

Indigenous Species ◽

Fresh Waters ◽

Mediterranean Island ◽

Marbled Crayfish ◽

Non Indigenous Species

In the fresh waters of Sardinia (Italy), the non-indigenous crayfish species Procambarus clarkii has been reported from 2005, but, starting from 2019, there have been several reports of a new non-indigenous crayfish in southern and central areas of this Mediterranean island, and its morphology suggests that this species may be the marbled crayfish Procambarus virginalis. Forty-seven individuals of this putative species were analyzed, using the mitochondrial gene Cytochrome c Oxidase subunit I as molecular marker to identify this crayfish and investigate the level of genetic variability within the recently established population. Phylogenetic and phylogeographic analyses were carried out on a dataset including sequences from the Sardinian individuals and from all congenerics available in GenBank. Results showed that the new Sardinian crayfish belong to the species P. virginalis. All the sequences belonging to P. virginalis from European countries are identical, with only few exceptions found among Sardinian individuals. In conclusion, this paper highlights the occurrence of a new further alien species in the Sardinian fresh waters, which are already characterized by the high presence of non-indigenous species.

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