THE EFFECTS OF BIOTURBATION AND DISRUPTION ON THE RECONSTRUCTION AND RECONSTITUTION OF THE PHOTOSYNTHETIC CYANOBACTERIAL LAYER OF ALGAL MAT COMMUNITIES

An algal mat is a composite of benthic microbial communities principally composed of cyanobacteria, that construct microfilaments or microcolonies that are interwoven in a matrix of bacteria and archaea along with other organic and inorganic materials. The mats are structurally organized into stratified layers composed of different functional groups of microbes. These groups are dependent upon the environmental parameters and products created by other functional groups allowing the mat to become a micro-ecosystem. The photosynthetic cyanobacterial top layer has been shown to be pivotal to the development of the new mats and the reconstitution of damaged areas of mat since they are able to fix both nitrogen and inorganic carbon. This study was conducted in Triangle Pond, a shallow hypersaline inland lake, on the island of San Salvador, The Bahamas during the University of Akron's Field Research on Bahamian Lakes— Exploring Records of Anthropogenic and Climate Change Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU). Microbial mat communities in this region are subject to disruptions and disturbances caused by bioturbation and other natural perturbations (e.g., hurricanes), afterwhich the mat must reform through reconstruction and reconstituting the distinct lamination. Therefore, this research aimed to determine how the top cyanobacterial layer of the algal community reforms following such perturbations. Samples of mats were collected, treated to reflect natural perturbations (e.g., dessication, mixing, and bioturbation), and incubated in a growth chamber for 14 days. The top layers were harvested for analysis using Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME), Polymerse Chain Reaction (PCR) and 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and scanning-electron microscopy (SEM). Analysis of the samples showed the presence of organisms from the microbial marine metagenomes including ABPR01012244.1, AACY020419639.1, AACY020551178.1 AACY023318740.1, and AACY024069779.1. Little difference in community composition in treated and untreated samples could be determined. Preliminary results from images taken using SEM and ESEM revealed an interwoven mix of microbes, organic, and inorganic matter, with notable observable differences in composition between desiccated and hurricane deposit treatments.