Articles | Volume 22, issue 8
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2005-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2005-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
24 Apr 2025
Research article |
| 24 Apr 2025
| 24 Apr 2025
Microbial communities inhabiting 600-year-old sediments in the Inka-Coya Lake located in the Atacama Desert
Departamento de Ciencias Farmacéuticas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, Chile
Juan Castro-Severyn
Laboratorio de Microbiología Aplicada y Extremófilos, Departamento de Ingeniería Química, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, Chile
Centro de Investigación Tecnológica del Agua en el Desierto – CEITSAZA, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, Chile
Francisco Remonsellez
Laboratorio de Microbiología Aplicada y Extremófilos, Departamento de Ingeniería Química, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, Chile
Centro de Investigación Tecnológica del Agua en el Desierto – CEITSAZA, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, Chile
Antonio Maldonado
Centro de Estudios Avanzados en Zonas Áridas, CEAZA, La Serena, Chile
Millennium Nucleus AndesPeat, Arica, Chile
Departamento de Biología Marina, Universidad Católica del Norte, Larrondo 1281, Coquimbo, Chile
Inger Heine-Fuster
Laboratorio de Ecología Acuática, Departamento de Recursos Ambientales, Universidad de Tarapacá, Arica, Chile
Hector Pizarro
Departamento de Ciencias Geológicas, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, Chile
Adriana Aránguiz-Acuña
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Millennium Nucleus AndesPeat, Arica, Chile
Laboratorio de Ecología Acuática, Departamento de Recursos Ambientales, Universidad de Tarapacá, Arica, Chile
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Adriana Aránguiz-Acuña, Daniel Pérez, Catalina Aranda, Antonio Maldonado, Joseline Tapia, Héctor Pizarro, Pablo Pérez-Portilla, and Oliver Meseguer-Ruiz
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-3159, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-3159, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Biogeosciences (BG).
Short summary
Short summary
Two mountain remote lakes, Casiri Hembra and Casiri Macho Lakes (Andes Altiplano > 4,800 m a.s.l.) were sampled, and sediment cores from 900- and 3,000-years antiquity were obtained. Drier and wetter periods, and, volcanic activity of the surrounding complex were recorded. The aquatic invertebrate communities have turned over following nutrients dynamics. High sedimentation rates in Casiri Lakes suggest the relevance of atmospheric deposition.
Carolina Franco, Antonio Maldonado, Christian Ohlendorf, A. Catalina Gebhardt, María Eugenia de Porras, Amalia Nuevo-Delaunay, César Méndez, and Bernd Zolitschka
Clim. Past, 20, 817–839, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-817-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-817-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We present a continuous record of lake sediments spanning the Holocene from central west Patagonia. By examining various indicators like elemental composition and grain size data, we found that, around ~5500 years ago, the way sediments settled in the lake changed. On a regional scale, our results suggest that rainfall, influenced by changes in the Southern Hemisphere Westerly Winds, played a key role in shaping the environment of the region for the past ~10 000 years.
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Short summary
Inka-Coya Lake is located in the Atacama Desert, and this pioneer study characterized the gradient of microbial life along the deep lacustrine sediments that stratified for over 600 years, since the pre-mining period. Our results indicate there are great taxonomic novelty and strong relationships with geochemical composition especially in Cu, Fe, Ni, and V. We propose a clustering of taxa and function in three zones with characteristic taxonomic and functional potential.
Inka-Coya Lake is located in the Atacama Desert, and this pioneer study characterized the...
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