Hostname: page-component-7f64f4797f-d7bbv Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-11-04T11:45:00.777Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Factors determining nematode distributions at Cape Hallett and Gondwana station, Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 January 2013

Mélianie R. Raymond ,
David A. Wharton  and
Craig J. Marshall
Mélianie R. Raymond
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand
David A. Wharton*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand
Craig J. Marshall
Affiliation:
Department of Biochemistry and Genetics Otago, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand
*
*corresponding author: david.wharton@otago.ac.nz
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The distribution of nematodes at Cape Hallett and Gondwana station was found to be patchy but consistent, broad-scale habitat preferences were identified. These had been previously noted in McMurdo Dry Valleys soils and on Ross Island, indicating that habitat preferences are consistent across large scales and may play a role in determining range limits. Soil geochemistry, especially salinity, has a strong impact on distribution patterns. The distinct distribution patterns of the four species indicate different niches. Panagrolaimus davidi Timm is the only nematode that can survive within penguin rookeries, where salinity is high but bacterial food is plentiful. Scottnema lindsayae Timm was found across the greatest range of habitats, including the driest sites and largest salinity range. Plectus sp. was found in the wettest sites, with high organic content and low salinity. Eudorylaimus antarcticus Steiner (Yeates) was found at low densities and with other nematodes indicating a dependence on prey availability, an example of a biotic interaction structuring even these simplest ecosystems. Field-identifiable features could be used to identify probable nematode habitats, providing useful information for sampling and the selection of conservation areas.

Keywords

abioticAntarctic soilsbiotichabitat preferenceLatitudinal Gradient Project

Information

Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 25 , Issue 3 , June 2013 , pp. 347 - 357
Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2013 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Adams, B.J., Bardgett, R.D., Ayres, E., Wall, D.H., Aislabie, J., Bamforth, S., Bargagli, R., Cary, C., Cavacini, P., Connell, L., Convey, P., Fell, J.W., Frati, F., Hogg, I.D., Newsham, K.K., O'Donnell, A., Russell, N., Seppelt, R.D.Stevens, M.I. 2006. Diversity and distribution of Victoria Land biota. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 38, 3003–3018.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andrassy, I. 1998. Nematodes in the sixth continent. Journal of Nematode Morphology and Systematics, 1, 107–186.Google Scholar
Andrassy, I. 2008. Eudorylaimus species (Nematoda: Dorylaimida) of continental Antarctica. Journal of Nematode Morphology and Systematics, 11, 49–66.Google Scholar
Bargagli, R., Corsolini, S., Focardi, S., Fossi, M.C., Martella, L.Sanchez-Hernandez, J.C. 1997. Preliminary results of the impact of human activity at Terra Nova Bay Station using “Trematomus bernacchii” as a biomonitor. In Di Prisco, G., Focardi, S. &Luporini, P.,eds. Proceedings of the third meeting on Antarctic biology. Santa Margherita Ligure, 13–15 December 1996. Camerino: Camerino University Press, 201–208.Google Scholar
Barrett, J.E., Virginia, R.A.Wall, D.H. 2002. Trends in resin and KCl-extractable soil nitrogen across landscape gradients in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Ecosystems, 5, 289–299.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barrett, J.E., Virginia, R.A., Wall, D.H.Adams, B.J. 2008. Decline in a dominant invertebrate species contributes to altered carbon cycling in a low diversity soil ecosystem. Global Change Biology, 14, 1734–1744.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barrett, J.E., Virginia, R.A., Wall, D.H., Parsons, A.N., Powers, L.E.Burkins, M.B. 2004. Variation in biogeochemistry and soil biodiversity across spatial scales in a polar desert ecosystem. Ecology, 85, 3105–3118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barrett, J.E., Virginia, R.A., Wall, D.H., Cary, S.C., Adams, B.J., Hacker, A.L.Aislabie, J.M. 2006. Co-variation in soil biodiversity and biogeochemistry in northern and southern Victoria Land, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 18, 535–548.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bruni, V., Maugeri, T.L.Monticelli, L. 1997. Faecal pollution indicators in the Terra Nova Bay (Ross Sea, Antarctica). Marine Pollution Bulletin, 34, 908–912.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chown, S.L.Convey, P. 2007. Spatial and temporal variability across life's hierarchies in the terrestrial Antarctic. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, B362, 2307–2331.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Christner, B.C., Kvitko, B.H.Reeve, J.N. 2003. Molecular identification of bacteria and eukarya inhabiting an Antarctic cryoconite hole. Extremophiles, 7, 177–183.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Courtright, E.M., Wall, D.H.Virginia, R.A. 2001. Determining habitat suitability for soil invertebrates in an extreme environment: the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 13, 9–17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Forge, T.A.MacGuidwin, A.E. 1992. Effects of water potential and temperature on survival of the nematode Meloidogyne hapla in frozen soil. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 70, 1553–1560.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Freckman, D.W.Virginia, R.A. 1991. Nematodes in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of southern Victoria Land. Antarctic Journal of the United States, 26(5), 233–234.Google Scholar
Freckman, D.W.Virginia, R.A. 1997. Low-diversity Antarctic soil nematode communities - distribution and response to disturbance. Ecology, 78, 363–369.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Freckman, D.W.Virginia, R.A. 1998. Soil biodiversity and community structure in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series, 72, 323–336.Google Scholar
Hogg, I.D., Cary, S.C., Convey, P., Newsham, K.K., O'Donnell, A.G., Adams, B.J., Aislabie, J., Frati, F., Stevens, M.I.Wall, D.H. 2006. Biotic interactions in Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems: are they a factor? Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 38, 3035–3040.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hooper, D.J. 1986. Extraction of free-living stages from soil. In Southey, J.F.,ed. Laboratory methods for work with plant and soil nematodes. London: HMSO, 5–30.Google Scholar
Howard-Williams, C., Hawes, I.Gordon, S. 2010. The environmental basis of ecosystem variability in Antarctica: research in the Latitudinal Gradient Project. Antarctic Science, 22, 591–602.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Howard-Williams, C., Peterson, D., Lyons, W.B., Cattaneo-Vietti, R.Gordon, S. 2006. Measuring ecosystem response in a rapidly changing environment: the Latitudinal Gradient Project. Antarctic Science, 18, 465–471.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lister, A., Block, W.Usher, M.B. 1988. Arthropod predation in an Antarctic terrestrial community. Journal of Animal Ecology, 57, 957–970.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munn, E.A.Munn, P.D. 2002. Feeding and digestion. In Lee, D.L.,ed. The biology of nematodes. London: Taylor & Francis, 211–232.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nkem, J.N., Virginia, R.A., Barrett, J.E., Wall, D.H.Li, G. 2006a. Salt tolerance and survival thresholds for two species of Antarctic soil nematodes. Polar Biology, 29, 643–651.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nkem, J.N., Wall, D.H., Virginia, R.A., Barrett, J.E., Broos, E.J., Porazinska, D.L.Adams, B.J. 2006b. Wind dispersal of soil invertebrates in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 29, 346–352.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Poage, M.A., Barrettt, J.E., Virginia, R.A.Wall, D.H. 2008. The influence of soil geochemistry on nematode distribution, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research, 40, 119–128.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Porazinska, D.L., Wall, D.H.Virginia, R.A. 2002. Invertebrates in ornithogenic soils on Ross Island, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 25, 569–574.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Porazinska, D.L., Fountain, A.G., Nylen, T.H., Tranter, M., Virginia, R.A.Wall, D.H. 2004. The biodiversity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite holes from McMurdo Dry Valley glaciers, Antarctica. Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research in Microbiology, 36, 84–91.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sinclair, B.J.Sjursen, H. 2001. Terrestrial invertebrate abundance across a habitat transect in Keble Valley, Ross Island, Antarctica. Pedobiologia, 45, 134–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sinclair, B.J., Scott, M.B., Klok, C.J., Terblanche, J.S., Marshall, D.J., Reyers, B.Chown, S.L. 2006. Determinants of terrestrial arthropod community composition at Cape Hallett, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 18, 303–312.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sohlenius, B.Boström, S. 2006. Patch-dynamics and population structure of nematodes and tardigrades on Antarctic nunataks. European Journal of Soil Biology, 42, S321–S325.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sohlenius, B., Boström, S.Jonssön, K.I. 2004. Occurrence of nematodes, tardigrades and rotifers on ice-free areas in East Antarctica. Pedobiologia, 48, 395–408.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stevens, M.I.Hogg, I.D. 2003. Long-term isolation and recent range expansion from glacial refugia revealed for the endemic springtail Gomphiocephalus hodgsoni from Victoria Land, Antarctica. Molecular Ecology, 12, 2357–2369.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Timm, R.W. 1971. Antarctic soil and freshwater nematodes from the McMurdo Sound region. Proceedings of the Helminthological Society of Washington, 38, 42–52.Google Scholar
Treonis, A.M., Wall, D.H.Virginia, R.A. 1999. Invertebrate biodiversity in Antarctic Dry Valley soils and sediments. Ecosystems, 2, 482–492.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wall, D.H. 2006. Global change tipping points: above- and belowground interactions in a low diversity ecosystem. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, B362, 2291–2306.Google Scholar
Wharton, D.A.Brown, I.M. 1989. A survey of terrestrial nematodes from the McMurdo Sound region, Antarctica. New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 16, 467–470.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wharton, D.A.To, N.B. 1996. Osmotic stress effects on the freezing tolerance of the Antarctic nematode Panagrolaimus davidi. Journal of Comparative Physiology, B166, 344–349.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yeates, G.W., Scott, M.B., Chown, S.L.Sinclair, B.J. 2009. Changes in soil nematode populations indicate an annual life cycle at Cape Hallett, Antarctica. Pedobiologia, 52, 375–386.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yeates, G.W., Bongers, T., De Goede, R.G.M., Freckman, D.W.Georgieva, S.S. 1993. Feeding-habits in soil nematode families and genera - an outline for soil ecologists. Journal of Nematology, 25, 315–331.Google ScholarPubMed
Supplementary material: File

Wharton Supplementary Material

Appendix

Download Wharton Supplementary Material(File)
File 203.8 KB