Acid mine drainages are characterized by their low pH and the presence of dissolved toxic metallic species. Microorganisms survive in different microhabitats within the ecosystem, namely water, sediments, and biofilms. In this report, we surveyed the microbial diversity within all domains of life in the different microhabitats at Los Rueldos abandoned mercury underground mine (NW Spain), and predicted bacterial function based on community composition. Sediment samples contained higher proportions of soil bacteria (AD3, Acidobacteria), as well as Crenarchaeota and Methanomassiliicoccaceae archaea. Oxic and hypoxic biofilm samples were enriched in bacterial iron oxidizers from the genus Leptospirillum, order Acidithiobacillales, class Betaproteobacteria, and archaea from the class Thermoplasmata. Water samples were enriched in Cyanobacteria and Thermoplasmata archaea at a 3–98% of the sunlight influence, whilst Betaproteobacteria, Thermoplasmata archaea, and Micrarchaea dominated in acid water collected in total darkness. Stalactites hanging from the Fe-rich mine ceiling were dominated by the neutrophilic iron oxidizer Gallionella and other lineages that were absent in the rest of the microhabitats (e.g., Chlorobi, Chloroflexi). Eukaryotes were detected in biofilms and open-air water samples, and belonged mainly to clades SAR (Alveolata and Stramenopiles), and Opisthokonta (Fungi). Oxic and hypoxic biofilms displayed higher proportions of ciliates (Gonostomum, Oxytricha), whereas water samples were enriched in fungi (Paramicrosporidium and unknown microbial Helotiales). Predicted function through bacterial community composition suggested adaptive evolutive convergence of function in heterogeneous communities. Our study showcases a broad description of the microbial diversity across different microhabitats in the same environment and expands the knowledge on the diversity of microbial eukaryotes in AMD habitats.

The aim of this study was to investigate the potential of indigenous arsenic-tolerant bacteria to enhance arsenic phytoremediation by the autochthonous pseudometallophyte The first goal was to perform an initial analysis of the entire rhizosphere and endophytic bacterial communities of the above-named accumulator plant, including the cultivable bacterial species.'s microbiome was dominated by taxa related to ,, and , especially the and genera. A total of 54 cultivable rhizobacteria and 41 root endophytes, mainly affiliated with the phyla, ,, and , were isolated and characterized with respect to several potentially useful features for metal plant accumulation, such as the ability to promote plant growth, metal chelation, and/or mitigation of heavy-metal stress. Seven bacterial isolates were further selected and tested for accumulation of arsenic in plants; four of them were finally assayed in field-scale bioaugmentation experiments. The exposure to arsenic caused an increase in the total nonprotein thiol compound content in roots, suggesting a detoxification mechanism through phytochelatin complexation. In the contaminated field, the siderophore and indole-3-acetic acid producers of the endophytic bacterial consortium enhanced arsenic accumulation in the leaves and roots of , whereas the rhizosphere isolate strain 91R mainly promoted plant growth. Field experimentation showed that additional factors, such as soil arsenic content and pH, influenced arsenic uptake in the plant, attesting to the relevance of field conditions in the success of phytoextraction strategies. Microorganisms and plants have developed several ways of dealing with arsenic, allowing them to resist and metabolize this metalloid. These properties form the basis of phytoremediation treatments and the understanding that the interactions of plants with soil bacteria are crucial for the optimization of arsenic uptake. To address this in our work, we initially performed a microbiome analysis of the autochthonous plants growing in arsenic-contaminated soils, including endosphere and rhizosphere bacterial communities. We then proceeded to isolate and characterize the cultivable bacteria that were potentially better suited to enhance phytoextraction efficiency. Eventually, we went to the field application stage. Our results corroborated the idea that recovery of pseudometallophyte-associated bacteria adapted to a large historically contaminated site and their use in bioaugmentation technologies are affordable experimental approaches and potentially very useful for implementing effective phytoremediation strategies with plants and their indigenous bacteria.

No abstract

The effect of coastal upwelling on the recruitment and connectivity of coastal marine populations has rarely been characterized to a level of detail to be included into sound fishery management strategies. The gooseneck barnacle (Pollicipes pollicipes) fishery at the Cantabrian Coast (Northern Spain) is located at the fringes of the NW Spanish Upwelling system. This fishery is being co-managed through a fine-scale, interspersed set of protected rocks where each rock receives a distinct level of protection. Such interspersion is potentially beneficial, but the extent to which such spacing is consistent with mean larval dispersal distances is as yet unknown. We have simulated the spread of gooseneck barnacle larvae in the Central Cantabrian Coast using a high-resolution time-series of current profiles measured at a nearshore location. During a year of high upwelling activity (2009), theoretical recruitment success was 94% with peak recruitment predicted 56 km west of the emission point. However, for a year of low upwelling activity (2011) theoretical recruitment success dropped to 15.4% and peak recruitment was expected 13 km east of the emission point. This is consistent with a positive correlation between catch rates and the Integrated Upwelling Index, using a 4-year lag to allow recruits to reach commercial size. Furthermore, a net long-term westward larval transport was estimated by means of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences for five populations in the Cantabrian Sea. Our results call into question the role of long distance dispersal, driven by the mesoscale processes in the area, in gooseneck barnacle populations and point to the prevalent role of small-scale, asymmetric connectivity more consistent with the typical scale of the co-management process in this fishery.

We developed a new type of generalized depletion model adapted to the rapid life cycle of Octopus vulgaris and the data collection framework put in place in its co-managed small-scale fishery (SSF) in Asturias, northwest Spain. The model uses weekly data from 19 seasons to estimate annual recruitment and female spawners emigration out of the vulnerable stock to attend to their broods. The matched annual spawners-recruitment (SR) magnitudes are then used as observations in a non-Bayesian hierarchical inference framework. The Shepherd SR model was selected among three alternatives. The stock has a high degree of density-dependence, leading to overcompensation. The estimated SR model has an unstable equilibrium point, driving the stock to deterministic cyclic fluctuations under small disturbances. Under those conditions the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) is not applicable, lending further credence to Sidney Holt’s opposition to the MSY as a basis for the elaboration of fishery management objectives, with potentially wide relevance to the management of SSF and cephalopod fisheries. We argue that harvest rates based on mean latent productivity, a concept that includes the MSY as a special case, are more adequate and sustainable for fluctuating stocks.