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Exploring Soil Microbial Community Responses to Land Management and Precipitation in Subtropical Grasslands
Location: 58
Mentor: Dr. Alma Gonzalez
Soil microbial communities play key roles in ecosystem processes, including carbon storage, decomposition, and nutrient cycling. However, our understanding of how agricultural management practices and climate change influence microbial community composition in subtropical humid grassland ecosystems remains limited. In this study, we assess how land management and precipitation treatments influence soil microbial communities in subtropical grassland systems. Soil samples were collected from a factorial experiment, that included five precipitation variabilities, two grazing intensities and two pasture types. Soil samples were analyzed using 16S and ITS amplicon sequencing to assess microbial community composition. Our results showed distinct differences in microbial community composition between pasture types. These findings suggest that pasture type, more than precipitation, plays a dominant role in structuring microbial communities. These research findings provide important considerations for refining future agricultural management practices under ongoing climate change.
