Data from: Decoupled responses of soil bacteria and their invertebrate consumer to warming, but not freeze-thaw cycles, in the Antarctic Dry Valleys

Altered temperature profiles resulting in increased warming and
freeze–thaw cycle (FTC) frequency pose great ecological challenges to
organisms in alpine and polar ecosystems. We performed a laboratory
microcosm experiment to investigate how temperature variability affects
soil bacterial cell numbers, and abundance and traits of soil microfauna
(the microbivorous nematode Scottnema lindsayae) from McMurdo Dry Valleys,
Antarctica. FTCs and constant freezing shifted nematode body size
distribution towards large individuals, driven by higher mortality among
smaller individuals. FTCs reduced both bacterial and nematode abundance,
but bacterial cell numbers also declined under warming, demonstrating
decoupled consumer–prey responses. We predict that higher occurrence of
FTCs in cold ecosystems will select for large body size within soil
microinvertebrates and overall reduce their abundance. In contrast, warm
temperatures without FTCs could lead to divergent responses in soil
bacteria and their microinvertebrate consumers, potentially affecting
energy and nutrient transfer rates in soil food webs of cold ecosystems.