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Review
. 2023 Apr 28;11(5):1153.
doi: 10.3390/microorganisms11051153.

Glacial Water: A Dynamic Microbial Medium

Gilda Varliero  1   2 , Pedro H Lebre  1 , Beat Frey  2 , Andrew G Fountain  3 , Alexandre M Anesio  4 , Don A Cowan  1
Affiliations
Review

Glacial Water: A Dynamic Microbial Medium

Gilda Varliero et al. Microorganisms. .

Abstract

Microbial communities and nutrient dynamics in glaciers and ice sheets continuously change as the hydrological conditions within and on the ice change. Glaciers and ice sheets can be considered bioreactors as microbiomes transform nutrients that enter these icy systems and alter the meltwater chemistry. Global warming is increasing meltwater discharge, affecting nutrient and cell export, and altering proglacial systems. In this review, we integrate the current understanding of glacial hydrology, microbial activity, and nutrient and carbon dynamics to highlight their interdependence and variability on daily and seasonal time scales, as well as their impact on proglacial environments.

Keywords: glacial microorganisms; glacier; meltwater; proglacial environment; water residence time.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Scheme of hydrological, nutrient, and microbial metabolism shifts during ablation and accumulation season. Width and height of the colored shapes represent the occurrence and the intensity of each specific process. X-axis represents time (accumulation and ablation seasons), whereas the y-axis represents different glacial realms (supraglacial, englacial, and subglacial environments). Water release from weathering crust, cryoconite holes, and especially firn aquifers is not linear as it also goes through daily and irregular cycles. The proposed trends of hydrological [1,36,55,64], nutrient [13,65,66,67], and microbial metabolism [11,17,18,68] shifts are broadly based on published peer-reviewed studies.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Water fluxes during the ablation season and main hotspots for microbial metabolisms. Subglacial lakes (not represented in this figure) can also represent hotspots for microbial activity.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Land-terminating glaciers (A), marine-terminating glaciers (B), and main consequences of ice retreat of proglacial systems (C).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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