Repository logo

Infoscience

  • English
  • French
Log In
Logo EPFL, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne

Infoscience

  • English
  • French
Log In
  1. Home
  2. Academic and Research Output
  3. Journal articles
  4. Experimental evidence on the impact of climate-induced hydrological and thermal variations on glacier-fed stream biofilms
 
research article

Experimental evidence on the impact of climate-induced hydrological and thermal variations on glacier-fed stream biofilms

Touchette, David  
•
Mateu, Martina Gonzalez  
•
Michoud, Grégoire  
Show more
January 1, 2025
FEMS Microbiology Ecology

Climate change is predicted to alter the hydrological and thermal regimes of high-mountain streams, particularly glacier-fed streams. However, relatively little is known about how these environmental changes impact the microbial communities in glacier-fed streams. Here, we operated streamside flume mesocosms in the Swiss Alps, where benthic biofilms were grown under treatments simulating climate change. Treatments comprised four flow (natural, intermittent, stochastic, and constant) and two temperature (ambient streamwater and warming of +2°C) regimes. We monitored microbial biomass, diversity, community composition, and metabolic diversity in biofilms over 3 months. We found that community composition was largely influenced by successional dynamics independent of the treatments. While stochastic and constant flow regimes did not significantly affect community composition, droughts altered their composition in the intermittent regime, favouring drought-adapted bacteria and decreasing algal biomass. Concomitantly, warming decreased algal biomass and the abundance of some typical glacier-fed stream bacteria and eukaryotes, and stimulated heterotrophic metabolism overall. Our study provides experimental evidence towards potential and hitherto poorly considered impacts of climate change on benthic biofilms in glacier-fed streams.

  • Details
  • Metrics
Type
research article
DOI
10.1093/femsec/fiae163
Scopus ID

2-s2.0-85214560184

PubMed ID

39674808

Author(s)
Touchette, David  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Mateu, Martina Gonzalez  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Michoud, Grégoire  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Deluigi, Nicola  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Marasco, Ramona

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology

Daffonchio, Daniele

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology

Peter, Hannes  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Battin, Tom  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Date Issued

2025-01-01

Published in
FEMS Microbiology Ecology
Volume

101

Issue

1

Article Number

fiae163

Subjects

biofilm

•

climate change

•

drought

•

glacier-fed stream

•

succession

•

warming

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
RIVER  
Available on Infoscience
January 25, 2025
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/244356
Logo EPFL, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne
  • Contact
  • infoscience@epfl.ch

  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Instagram
  • Follow us on LinkedIn
  • Follow us on X
  • Follow us on Youtube
AccessibilityLegal noticePrivacy policyCookie settingsEnd User AgreementGet helpFeedback

Infoscience is a service managed and provided by the Library and IT Services of EPFL. © EPFL, tous droits réservés