Yeast Biodiversity in Vineyard Environments Is Increased by Human Intervention

One hundred and five grape samples were collected during two consecutive years from 33 locations on seven oceanic islands of the Azores Archipelago. Grape samples were obtained from vineyards that were either abandoned or under regular cultivation involving common viticultural interventions, to evaluate the impact of regular human intervention on grape yeast biota diversity in vineyards. A total of 3150 yeast isolates were obtained and 23 yeast species were identified. The predominant species were Hanseniaspora uvarum, Pichia terricola, Starmerella bacillaris and Issatchenkia hanoiensis. The species Barnettozyma californica, Candida azymoides and Pichia cecembensis were reported in grapes or wine-associated environments for the first time. A higher biodiversity was found in active vineyards where regular human intervention takes place (Shannon index: 1.89 and 1.53 in the first and second years, respectively) when compared to the abandoned ones (Shannon index: 0.76 and 0.31). This finding goes against the assumptions that human intervention can destroy biodiversity and lead to homogeneity in the environment. Biodiversity indices were considerably lower in the year with the heaviest rainfall. This study is the first to report on the grape yeast communities from several abandoned vineyards that have undergone no human intervention.