Papers by Edward A D Mitchell
Soil Biology & Biochemistry, Sep 1, 2017
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Microbial Ecology, May 30, 2021
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European Journal of Protistology
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Global Change Biology, 2020
Assessing the degree to which climate explains the spatial distributions of different taxonomic a... more Assessing the degree to which climate explains the spatial distributions of different taxonomic and functional groups is essential for anticipating the effects of climate change on ecosystems. Most effort so far has focused on above‐ground organisms, which offer only a partial view on the response of biodiversity to environmental gradients. Here including both above‐ and below‐ground organisms, we quantified the degree of topoclimatic control on the occurrence patterns of >1,500 taxa and phylotypes along a c. 3,000 m elevation gradient, by fitting species distribution models. Higher model performances for animals and plants than for soil microbes (fungi, bacteria and protists) suggest that the direct influence of topoclimate is stronger on above‐ground species than on below‐ground microorganisms. Accordingly, direct climate change effects are predicted to be stronger for above‐ground than for below‐ground taxa, whereas factors expressing local soil microclimate and geochemistry a...
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European Journal of Protistology, 2021
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Quaternary Science Reviews, 2021
Abstract Testate amoebae (TA) are a common and diverse group of protists and are especially abund... more Abstract Testate amoebae (TA) are a common and diverse group of protists and are especially abundant in peatlands. The structure of peatland TA communities is well correlated to surface moisture and water table depth (WTD). For that reason, TA are widely used as proxy indicators in ecological and palaeoecological studies. Peatlands are abundant across Asia, but the diversity and ecology of the TA that inhabit these systems are poorly documented. It is therefore unclear whether TA can be used as palaeohydrological indicators in the manner in which they commonly are in Europe and North-America. There is particular uncertainty as to the efficacy of this approach in the lower latitudes. We compiled existing and new data on testate amoebae from 1124 Sphagnum-dominated samples from 42 individual peatlands covering broad latitudinal (25°–66° N) and longitudinal (68°–129° E) ranges. Using a consensus taxonomic framework, we built a checklist of TA and developed TA-based hydrological transfer functions for Asian peatlands. The results showed that three models, weighted averaging (WA), weighted average partial least squares (WA-PLS), and maximum likelihood (ML), predicted similar WTD values for full samples, while the modern analogue technique (MAT) produced the strongest (R2boot = 0.58) relationship between observed and estimated water-table depths (WTDs). Removing outlier samples improved the R2 values of observed vs. estimated WTDs, with ML then demonstrating the strongest predictive power (R2boot = 0.68, RMSEPboot = 8.98 cm). The predictive capability of the developed WTD transfer function is comparable to equivalent models for Europe and North America and thus can be used for palaeohydrological reconstructions for boreal to subtropical peatlands in Asia.
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Quaternary, 2019
A 4 m core was extracted from the center of a peatland located in the Drugeon valley (France). Th... more A 4 m core was extracted from the center of a peatland located in the Drugeon valley (France). Thirteen radiocarbon dates were used to build a robust age model. Testate amoebae were used for reconstructing mire surface wetness. High-resolution pollen analysis of the sequence reconstructed 9 millennia of development of the peatland and its surrounding vegetation. During the early/middle Holocene (9500 to 5800 cal BP), warm conditions led to high evapotranspiration and low water levels. The vegetation history is characterized by the development of a Pinus and a mixed Quercus forest. From 5800 cal BP, testate amoebae show wetter conditions, indicating the onset of the cooler Neoglacial period. The cooling is also evidenced by the development of Abies and Fagus trees, replacing the oak forest. The first indicators of human impact appear at about 4800 cal BP, and indicators of farming activity remains very rare until ca. 2600 cal BP, at the beginning of the Iron Age. The development of t...
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European Journal of Protistology, 2019
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Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 2018
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PAGES news, 2010
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Current Biology, 2019
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Microbial Ecology, 2019
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European Journal of Protistology, 2018
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FEMS microbiology reviews, Jan 13, 2018
Protists include all eukaryotes except plants, fungi and animals. They are an essential, yet ofte... more Protists include all eukaryotes except plants, fungi and animals. They are an essential, yet often forgotten, component of the soil microbiome. Method developments have now furthered our understanding of the real taxonomic and functional diversity of soil protists. They occupy key roles in microbial foodwebs as consumers of bacteria, fungi and other small eukaryotes. As parasites of plants, animals and even of larger protists, they regulate populations and shape communities. Pathogenic forms play a major role in public health issues as human parasites, or act as agricultural pests. Predatory soil protists release nutrients enhancing plant growth. Soil protists are of key importance for our understanding of eukaryotic evolution and microbial biogeography. Soil protists are also useful in applied research as bioindicators of soil quality, as models in ecotoxicology and as potential biofertilizers and biocontrol agents. In this review, we provide an overview of the enormous morphologic...
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Scientific reports, Jan 8, 2018
Criminal investigations of suspected murder cases require estimating the post-mortem interval (PM... more Criminal investigations of suspected murder cases require estimating the post-mortem interval (PMI, or time after death) which is challenging for long PMIs. Here we present the case of human remains found in a Swiss forest. We have used a multidisciplinary approach involving the analysis of bones and soil samples collected beneath the remains of the head, upper and lower body and "control" samples taken a few meters away. We analysed soil chemical characteristics, mites and nematodes (by microscopy) and micro-eukaryotes (by Illumina high throughput sequencing). The PMI estimate on hair 14C-data via bomb peak radiocarbon dating gave a time range of 1 to 3 years before the discovery of the remains. Cluster analyses for soil chemical constituents, nematodes, mites and micro-eukaryotes revealed two clusters 1) head and upper body and 2) lower body and controls. From mite evidence, we conclude that the body was probably brought to the site after death. However, chemical analyse...
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Nature Ecology & Evolution, 2017
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Journal of Biogeography, 2015
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Advances in Global Change Research, 2001
A brief overview of an attempt to link the effect of elevated CO2 and nitrogen deposition on litt... more A brief overview of an attempt to link the effect of elevated CO2 and nitrogen deposition on litter quality and decomposition in a Sphagnum peat bog is given. Litter of three common species (Eriophorum vaginatum, Polytrichum strictum and Sphagnum fallax) was collected from field plots after two years of pre-reatment in two parallel experiments: a) Elevated atmospheric CO2 experiment, b)
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Papers by Edward A D Mitchell