ABSTRACT
Historically, phosphorus (P) runoff from the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) has caused signifi cant alterations in both vegetation type and density that have been shown to correlate with changes in the composition and activities of native soil microbial communities (Castro et al. 2004; 2005; Chauhan and Ogram 2006a;b). This chapter highlights fi ndings from studies of methanogenic consortia conducted along the P gradient in Water Conservation Area 2A (WCA2A) of the northern Florida Everglades. Phosphorus runoff from the EAA into WCA2A produced a gradient in P-concentrations in soil and water, providing an excellent system for studying the
1 School of the Environment, Environmental Biotechnology Lab, 1515 S. MLK Blvd., Suite 305B, Building FSHSRC, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL-32307, USA
Email: ashishpathak72@gmail.com 2 Soil and Water Science Department, University of Florida, PO Box 110290, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA. Email: aogram@ufl .edu * Corresponding author: ashvini.chauhan@famu.edu
response of the Everglades marshland microbial communities to nutrient enrichment. The study sites include three stations along the gradient, including the eutrophic regions (station F1), contrasted with the transition region (station F4) and the oligotrophic region (station U3).
