Location
University of Nevada Las Vegas, Student Union Ball Room
Start Date
6-8-2009 9:30 AM
End Date
6-8-2009 12:00 PM
Description
Located in the discharge zone of the Death Valley Flow System, Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge is a spring-fed desert oasis and biodiversity hotspot about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. These critical wetlands are potentially threatened by groundwater pumping, exotic species invasions, and climate change. Although a major component of the lower food web, very little is known about the microbial makeup of this ecosystem. As a first step towards understanding the microbial and biogeochemical aspects of this system, a detailed molecular-based characterization of microbial communities, baseline chemistry, and physical characteristics of various springs of Ash Meadows will be conducted over the summer of 2009. Specifically, springs will be compared using DNA extraction followed by PCR amplification of the 16s rRNA gene, DNA fingerprinting, cultivation, and flow cytometric cell counting.
Keywords
Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge; Death Valley Flow System; Genetic analysis; Groundwater; Microbial communities; Nevada; Wetlands
Disciplines
Desert Ecology | Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology | Fresh Water Studies
Language
English
Included in
Desert Ecology Commons, Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Commons, Fresh Water Studies Commons
Baseline microbial characterizations of an imperiled aquatic diversity hotspot: Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge
University of Nevada Las Vegas, Student Union Ball Room
Located in the discharge zone of the Death Valley Flow System, Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge is a spring-fed desert oasis and biodiversity hotspot about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. These critical wetlands are potentially threatened by groundwater pumping, exotic species invasions, and climate change. Although a major component of the lower food web, very little is known about the microbial makeup of this ecosystem. As a first step towards understanding the microbial and biogeochemical aspects of this system, a detailed molecular-based characterization of microbial communities, baseline chemistry, and physical characteristics of various springs of Ash Meadows will be conducted over the summer of 2009. Specifically, springs will be compared using DNA extraction followed by PCR amplification of the 16s rRNA gene, DNA fingerprinting, cultivation, and flow cytometric cell counting.
Comments
Abstract & poster