The potential and drivers of microbial methane removal in the water column of seasonally stratified coastal ecosystems

The potential and drivers of microbial methane removal in the water column of seasonally stratified coastal ecosystems and the importance of the methanotrophic community composition for ecosystem functioning are not well explored. Here, we combined depth profiles of oxygen and methane with 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, metagenomics, and methane oxidation rates at discrete depths in a stratified coastal marine system (Lake Grevelingen, The Netherlands).