Abstract
Nostoc commune is a widespread colonial cyanobacterium living on bare soils that alternate between frost and thaw, drought and inundation and very low and high temperatures. We collected N. commune from alternating wet and dry limestone pavements in Sweden and tested its photosynthesis and respiration at 20°C after exposure to variations in temperature (−269 to 105°C), pH (2–10) and NaCl (0.02–50 g NaCl kg−1). We found that dry field samples and rewetted specimens tolerated exposure beyond that experienced in natural environmental conditions: −269 to 70°C, pH 3–10 and 0–20 g NaCl kg−1, with only a modest reduction of respiration, photosynthesis and active carbon uptake at 20°C. 14CO2 uptake from air declined markedly below zero and above 55°C, but remained positive. Specimens maintained a high metabolism with daily exposure to 6 h of rehydration and 18 h of desiccation at −18 and 20°C, but died at 40°C. The field temperature never exceeded the critical 40°C threshold during the wet periods, but it frequently exceeded this temperature during dry periods when N. commune is already dry and unaffected. We conclude that N. commune has an excellent tolerance to low temperatures, long-term desiccation and recurring cycles of desiccation and rewetting. These traits explain why it is the pioneer species in extremely harsh, nutrient-poor and alternating wet and dry environments.
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Acknowledgments
We thank Ayoe Lüchau for technical assistance, Claus Lindskov Møller for help with statistics and graphs, and Jesper Christensen for analysing field temperatures. The manuscript benefitted from constructive referee comments. This work was supported by grants from the Carlsberg foundation to KSJ and TSJ and from the Lundbeck Foundation to TSJ. We thank Colin Stedmon for improving the English of the text.
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Communicated by Allan Green.
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Sand-Jensen, K., Jespersen, T.S. Tolerance of the widespread cyanobacterium Nostoc commune to extreme temperature variations (−269 to 105°C), pH and salt stress. Oecologia 169, 331–339 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-011-2200-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-011-2200-0