Lichens Bite the Dust – A Bioweathering Scenario in the Atacama Desert
Patrick Jung,
Karen Baumann,
Dina Emrich,
Armin Springer,
Vincent J.M.N.L. Felde,
Stefan Dultz,
Christel Baum,
Marcus Frank,
Burkhard Büdel,
Peter Leinweber
Affiliations
Patrick Jung
Applied Logistics and Polymer Sciences, University of Applied Sciences Kaiserslautern, Carl-Schurz-Straße 10-16, 66953 Pirmasens, Germany; Corresponding author
Karen Baumann
Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Science, Soil Science, University of Rostock, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 6, 18051 Rostock, Germany
Dina Emrich
University of Freiburg, Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Chair of Applied Vegetation Ecology, Tennenbacher Str. 4, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Armin Springer
Medical Biology and Electron Microscopy Centre, University Medicine Rostock, Strempelstraße 14, 18057 Rostock, Germany; Department Life, Light and Matter, University of Rostock, 18051 Rostock, Germany
Vincent J.M.N.L. Felde
Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Organic Agricultural Sciences, University of Kassel, Nordbahnhofstr. 1a, 37213 Witzenhausen, Germany
Stefan Dultz
Institute of Soil Science, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Herrenhäuser Str. 2, 30419 Hannover, Germany
Christel Baum
Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Science, Soil Science, University of Rostock, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 6, 18051 Rostock, Germany
Marcus Frank
Medical Biology and Electron Microscopy Centre, University Medicine Rostock, Strempelstraße 14, 18057 Rostock, Germany; Department Life, Light and Matter, University of Rostock, 18051 Rostock, Germany
Burkhard Büdel
Plant Ecology and Systematics, University of Kaiserslautern, Erwin-Schrödinger-Straße, 67663 Kaiserslautern, Germany
Peter Leinweber
Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Science, Soil Science, University of Rostock, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 6, 18051 Rostock, Germany
Summary: Bioweathering mediated by microorganisms plays a significant role in biogeochemical cycles on global scales over geological timescales. Single processes induced by specific taxa have been described but could rarely be demonstrated for complex communities that dominate whole landscapes. The recently discovered grit crust of the coastal Atacama Desert, which is a transitional community between a cryptogamic ground cover and a rock-bound lithic assemblage, offers the unique chance to elucidate various bioweathering processes that occur simultaneously. Here, we present a bioweathering scenario of this biocenosis including processes such as penetration of the lithomatrix, microbial responses to wet-dry cycles, alkalinolysis, enzyme activity, and mineral re-localization. Frequently occurring fog, for example, led to a volume increase of microorganisms and the lithomatrix. This, together with pH shifts and dust accumulation, consequently results in biophysical breakdown and the formation of a terrestrial protopedon, an initial stage of pedogenesis fueled by the grit crust.
