Ecohydrological study of microbial and benthic macroinvertebrate communities in desert springs

Despite the ecological significance of desert springs, little is known about relationships between spring hydrogeochemistry and community ecology over multiple trophic levels. In our study, we surveyed microbial communities (bacteria and archaea) using 16S rRNA gene amplicons and benthic macroinvertebrate (BMI) communities using microscopy in Sierra Nevada desert springs. Our goal was to determine whether subtle geochemical differences imparted by Paleozoic roof pendant weathering affects spring ecosystems. Only microbial data is included in this submission.