Water regime history drives responses of soil Namib Desert microbial communities to wetting events

Research on the Namib Sand Sea reveals that long-term soil water regime history significantly influences microbial community responses to wetting events, overshadowing the effects of wetting frequency and intensity. The study, conducted over 36 days with 168 soil microcosms subjected to simulated fog, light rain, and heavy rainfall, found that while wetting events altered microbial structures, these changes were primarily driven by historical soil conditions rather than the immediate water input. Bacterial and fungal communities showed greater sensitivity to the intensity of water pulses than their frequency, contrasting with enzyme activities, which remained largely unaffected by wetting events and were predominantly shaped by soil origin. This study underscores the resilience and dynamism of microbial communities in hyperarid desert ecosystems, highlighting the complex interplay between environmental factors and microbial adaptation.

Frossard, A., Ramond, J.-B., Seely, M., & Cowan, D. A. (2015). Water regime history drives responses of soil Namib Desert microbial communities to wetting events. Scientific Reports, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/srep12263