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Grazing exclusion regulates bacterial community in highly degraded semiarid soils from Brazilian Caatinga biome
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  • Arthur Pereira,
  • Lara Lima ,
  • Walderly Bezerra,
  • Mirella Pereira,
  • Leonardo Normando,
  • Lucas Mendes,
  • Jose Oliveira,
  • Ademir Araujo,
  • Vania Melo
Arthur Pereira
Federal University of Ceara

Corresponding Author:arthur.prudencio@usp.br

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Lara Lima
Federal University of Ceará Walter Cantídio Teaching Hospital
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Walderly Bezerra
Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
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Mirella Pereira
Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
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Leonardo Normando
Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
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Lucas Mendes
University of Sao Paulo
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Jose Oliveira
Federal University of Ceará
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Ademir Araujo
UFPI
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Vania Melo
Federal University of Ceara Sciences Centre
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Abstract

Grazing exclusion (GE) has been applied as a suitable strategy to soil conservation worldwide, mainly in semiarid soils. However, it is unclear how GE management reduces the negative effects of overgrazing on the microbial community. In this study, we assessed the bacterial community in three different soil management belonged to a semiarid region from the Brazilian Caatinga biome, as follows: Native Caatinga (NC), Grazing exclusion (GE), and a highly degraded area by Overgrazing (OG). The bacterial community was assessed through the sequencing of the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene. We also analyzed soil chemical and physical properties and correlated with bacterial community composition, and α- and β- diversities. Our results demonstrated that GE increases the content of soil C, N, and bacterial diversity. However, the changes in bacterial diversity were significant in a specific site (nº 1), suggesting that GE strategy could be a context-dependent and a complex approach to Caatinga soils. Moreover, overgrazing might restrain the potential of bacterial diversity to sustain ecosystem functions, since non-beneficial elements (e.g., Na+ and Al3+) increased in OG, which presented a negative correlation with the bacterial community. Our study provides novel evidence that high-intensity disturbance by overgrazing could not only reduce soil fertility, but it may also restrain bacterial composition, with implications on environmental functioning. Thus, the Caatinga soil microbiome may be unable to maintain ecosystem services such as plant and animals’ development under overgrazing management.
30 May 2020Submitted to Land Degradation & Development
01 Jun 2020Submission Checks Completed
01 Jun 2020Assigned to Editor
02 Jun 2020Reviewer(s) Assigned
18 Aug 2020Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
22 Aug 2020Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
22 Dec 20201st Revision Received
23 Dec 2020Submission Checks Completed
23 Dec 2020Assigned to Editor
31 Dec 2020Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
02 Jan 2021Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
13 Jan 20212nd Revision Received
15 Jan 2021Submission Checks Completed
15 Jan 2021Assigned to Editor
16 Jan 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
16 Jan 2021Editorial Decision: Accept
15 Apr 2021Published in Land Degradation & Development volume 32 issue 6 on pages 2210-2225. 10.1002/ldr.3893