Prokaryotes constitute the majority of sedimentary biomass, where they cycle organic carbon and regulate organic matter transformation. The microbes inhabiting sediment are diverse, and the factors controlling microbial community composition are not fully understood. Here, we characterized the prokaryotic community using 16S rRNA gene sequencing in 24 stratigraphic layers within a 89 cm (dated to ~1900 years old) sediment core from an anchialine sinkhole in the Bahamas with a stratified water column and anoxic bottom water. The microbial community was dominated by members of the Alphaproteobacteria, Dehalococcoidia, Gammaproteobacteria, Bathyarchaeota, and Campylobacter classes. Most interestingly, subsurface microbial community structure could be correlated to previous evidence for timewise changes in the main source of organic matter that was supplied to the sediment accumulating during the last 2000 years, which itself was caused by regional terrestrial vegetation changes. The C:N r
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Study: Bahamas Were Settled Earlier Than Believed
Humans were present in Florida by 14,000 years ago, and until recently, it was believed the Bahamas – located only a few miles away – were not colonized until about 1,000 years ago. But new findings from a team including a Texas A&M University at Galveston researcher prove that the area was colonized earlier, and the new settlers dramatically changed the landscape.
Peter van Hengstum, associate professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Environment Science at Texas A&M-Galveston, and colleagues have had their findings published in
Researchers generated a new environmental record from the Blackwood Sinkhole, which is flooded with 120 feet of groundwater without dissolved oxygen. This is important because it has pristinely preserved organic material for the last 3,000 years. Using core samples and radiocarbon dating, the team examined charcoal deposits from human fires thousands of years ago, indicating that the first se
New research finds that people settled the Bahamas earlier than scientists thought.
Humans were present in Florida by 14,000 years ago, and until recently, it was believed the Bahamas located only a few miles away were not colonized until about 1,000 years ago. The new findings, however, prove that the area was colonized earlier, and the new settlers dramatically changed the landscape.
As reported in the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers generated a new environmental record from the Blackwood Sinkhole, which is flooded with 120 feet of groundwater without dissolved oxygen.
This is important because it has pristinely preserved organic material for the last 3,000 years. Using core samples and radiocarbon dating, the team examined charcoal deposits from human fires thousands of years ago, indicating that the first settlers arrived in the Bahamas sooner than previously thought.