Effects of extreme flooding on soil characteristics soil enzyme activity and microbial structure in Sheng j in Lake

Under the context of global climate change, the probability of extreme flood events has substantially increased. However, our understanding of post-flood dynamics in wetland ecosystems, particularly regarding soil biogeochemistry and microbial communities, remains limited. To address this gap, we examined soil properties, enzyme activities, and bacterial communities in four dominant vegetation communities in the riparian zone of Shengjin Lake, both prior to and following an extreme flooding event. Our findings reveal a significant reduction in soil fertility. Notably, key soil enzymatic activities were substantially enhanced after the flooding event. While the flooding did not alter the dominant bacterial phyla across the different vegetation communities, it significantly reduced the structural divergence among soil bacterial assemblages. These results underscore the profound impact of extreme flooding on plant-microbe interactions and provide critical insights into the ecological consequences of such events in wetland ecosystems.