Sulfide fluxes in a microbial mat from the Ebro Delta, Spain

Authors

  • Joan Mir Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain
  • Maira Martínez-Alonso Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain
  • Pierre Caumette Laboratoire d’Écologie Moléculaire-UPRES 159, IBEAS-Campus Universitaire, Pau, France
  • Ricardo Guerrero Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
  • Isabel Esteve Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain

Keywords:

sulfide oxidation, sulfate reduction, microbial mats

Abstract

The sulfur cycle of Ebro Delta microbial mats was studied in order to determine sulfide production and sulfide consumption. Vertical distribution of two major functional groups involved in the sulfur cycle, anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria and dissimilatory sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB), was also studied. The former reached up to 2.2 ×108 cfu cm-3 sediment in the purple layer, and the latter reached about 1.8×105 SRB cm-3 sediment in the black layer. From the changes in sulfide concentrations under light-dark cycles it can be inferred that the rate of H2S production was 6.2 μmol H2S cm-3 day-1 at 2.6 mm, and 7.6 μmol H2S cm-3 day-1 at 6 mm. Furthermore, sulfide consumption was also assessed, determining rates of 0.04, 0.13 and 0.005 mmol l-1 of sulfide oxidized at depths of 2.6, 3 and 6 mm, respectively.

Author Biographies

Joan Mir, Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain

Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain

Maira Martínez-Alonso, Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain

Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain

Pierre Caumette, Laboratoire d’Écologie Moléculaire-UPRES 159, IBEAS-Campus Universitaire, Pau, France

Laboratoire d’Écologie Moléculaire-UPRES 159, IBEAS-Campus Universitaire, Pau, France

Ricardo Guerrero, Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

Isabel Esteve, Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain

Department of Genetics and Microbiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain

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Published

2010-09-21

Issue

Section

Research Articles