Climate-induced changes in thinning snowpack can greatly impact soil freeze-thaw patterns and water supply. These effects may influence the soil microbial diversity and the key ecological functions mediated by microorganisms, thereby altering the cycling of nutrient in the ecosystem. A snow-exclusion experiment to explore the effects of snow removal on soil microbial diversity and functionality in forest. Control (natural snowfall), SR (complete snow removal) and SR-SR (complete snow removal, with snow returned for water supplementation at the end of winter) were represented three experimental treatments. The results showed that: snow removal resulted in more severe soil frost in winter. Soil nitrogen availability was higher in the snow removal plots compared to control plots in freeze-thaw period. Fungal diversity was not affected by snow removal, neither the α diversity of bacteria. However, snow removal did alter the bacterial community structure. These changes of the above did not persist into the growing season. SR-SR significantly reduced soil multifunctionality during freeze-thaw period, whereas SR did not. However, SR and SR-SR resulted in significantly higher soil multifunctionality than was observed in control during early growing season. Additionally, a widespread increase in the abundance of nitrogen cycling genes was observed in the SR and SR-SR plots during the freeze-thaw period and the early growing season, respectively. Snow removal significantly affected soil multifunctionality, which can be explained by changes in the microbial biomass, bacterial community structure and network complexity. Furthermore, snow removal significantly altered soil water content, temperature, and dissolved carbon, nitrogen. dbRDA and random forest analysis showed that soil water content, temperature, and total nitrogen as drivers of soil microbial community structure and multifunctionality. This study highlights that snow removal altered soil nitrogen availability, microbial community diversity, and multifunctionality during freeze-thaw period. However, these changes did not result in cross-seasonal legacy effects.

中文翻译：

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寒温带森林土壤微生物多样性和功能对除雪的响应


气候引起的积雪变薄的变化会极大地影响土壤冻融模式和供水。这些影响可能会影响土壤微生物多样性和微生物介导的关键生态功能，从而改变生态系统中养分的循环。一项旨在探讨除雪对森林土壤微生物多样性和功能的影响的除雪实验。对照（自然降雪）、SR（完全除雪）和SR-SR（完全除雪，冬末回雪补水）代表三个实验处理。结果表明：除雪导致冬季土壤霜冻更加严重。与冻融期对照地块相比，除雪地块土壤氮素利用率较高。真菌多样性和细菌的α多样性均未受到除雪的影响。然而，除雪确实改变了细菌群落结构。上述这些变化并没有持续到生长季节。 SR-SR显着降低了冻融期间土壤的多功能性，而SR则没有。然而，在早期生长季节，SR 和 SR-SR 导致土壤多功能性显着高于对照组。此外，在冻融期和生长季节早期，SR 和 SR-SR 图中分别观察到氮循环基因丰度普遍增加。除雪显着影响土壤多功能性，这可以通过微生物生物量、细菌群落结构和网络复杂性的变化来解释。此外，除雪显着改变了土壤含水量、温度和溶解碳、氮。 dbRDA 和随机森林分析表明，土壤含水量、温度和总氮是土壤微生物群落结构和多功能性的驱动因素。这项研究强调，除雪改变了冻融期间土壤氮的有效性、微生物群落的多样性和多功能性。然而，这些变化并没有产生跨季节的遗留效应。