Microbial activity and diversity in the rhizosphere soil of the invasive species Zizania latifolia in the wetland of Wuchang Lake, China

Information about the consequences of invasive species overgrowing freshwater wetlands is limited. According to remote sensing data, the invasive species Zizania latifolia spreads at an annual rate of 1.78 km2 in the freshwater wetland of Wuchang Lake, China, resulting in wetland loss and degradation due to the overgrowth. This species not only increases soil organic matter, total carbon, total nitrogen, total sulfate, available nitrogen and the C/N ratio in the rhizosphere soil, but also results in increased urease, sucrose and catalase activity, as well as fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis. In this study, we have analysed microbial diversity in rhizosphere soils among different habitat types of Z. latifolia. Microbial communities in different habitats invaded by Z. latifolia differed considerably at the genus level, although all soil samples were predominated by the phyla Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria and Chloroflexi. The dominant bacterial taxa in the rhizosphere soil from the floating blanket included Acidimicrobiales, Thiomonas, Alicyclobacillus, Acetobacteraceae and Acidocella, whereas those in rhizosphere soils from the lake sludge were Acidobacteria, Anaerolineaceae, Bacteroidetes and Nitrospirae. The bacterial community in the rhizosphere soil differed significantly from that in the non-rhizosphere soil. Z. latifolia potentially creates suitable habitats and provides substrate for a unique set of microbes, further facilitating the succession of this species.