26 Mag. 2014 - Edward Mitchell

Testate amoebae in peatlands and lakes:
diversity, functional role and multiple uses as bioindicators of present and past ecosystem changes  

Presenta: Edward Mitchell ( Laboratory of Soil Biology, University of Neuchâtel )

Testate amoebae are a common group of shelled protozoa in terrestrial and aquatic habitats. They feed on bacteria as well as protists and micro-eukaryotes and thus play an important role in microbial food webs. They are abundant and diverse and their true diversity and biogeography is now being revealed by molecular taxonomy. Preserved shells in peat and lake sediments inform on past environmental changes while living communities can be used to monitor on-going changes in ecosystems including effects of restoration, climate change and other impacts.

In this talk I will give an overview of these relatively poorly known organisms and of some current research topics related to their use as bioindicators.

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