Microbial Biodiversity of the Hawaiian Anchialine Ecosystem

Auburn University, Auburn AL

Investigators

Abstract

Microbial Biodiversity of the Hawaiian Anchialine Ecosystem Anchialine environments are coastal land-locked bodies of brackish water exhibiting tidal fluctuations due to their simultaneous subterranean connections to the ocean and groundwater aquifers. Home to often regionally endemic organisms, this ecosystem type is increasingly becoming endangered due to anthropogenic pressures. This is especially true in the Hawaiian Islands, which has the only natural anchialine environments in the US but where >90% have already been lost or degraded. Thus, the opportunity to document the biodiversity contained within Hawaii's anchialine ecosystem is rapidly dwindling. While microbes are essential to the function of this ecosystem, they have so far been poorly characterized. To rectify this, this project will utilize high-throughput DNA sequencing and environmental data to identify factors influencing Hawaii's anchialine microbial community composition across space and time as well as quantify how perturbation alters community structure and function. Furthermore, a Hawaiian Anchialine Microbial (HAM) repository will be established to maintain access to these microbial communities given their potential for containing taxa of basic research and/or applied scientific value. Overall, this project will broaden the basic biological knowledge for one of Hawaii's least studied and potentially most endangered ecosystems. Additionally, undergraduates and a graduate student from underrepresented groups will be trained and mentored over the work's duration. Federal and State of Hawaii governmental agencies have also identified information to be developed by the proposed work as having significant value in the future implementation of anchialine environment management strategies in the Hawaiian Islands. Lastly, Hawaiian anchialine environments and their biota will be utilized as a tool for educating K-12 students, teachers, and the general public in Hawaii and Alabama on a range of scientific topics