The Saltpan Microbiome is Structured by Sediment Depth and Minimally Influenced by Variable Hydration.

Saltpans are a class of ephemeral wetland characterized by alternating periods of inundation, rising salinity, and desiccation. We obtained soil cores from a saltpan on the Mississippi Gulf coast in both the inundated and desiccated state. The microbiomes of surface and 30 cm deep sediment were determined using Illumina sequencing of the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene.