Comparison of Microbial Community Biodiversity between Pristine and Disturbed Sediments in Timpanogos Cave, National Monument

Authors

Andre Bennin, Brigham Young University
Dr. Keith A. Crandall, Brigham Young University

Keywords

microbial community biodiversity, pristine sediments, disturbed sediments, Timpanogos Cave

College

Life Sciences

Department

Microbiology and Molecular Biology

Abstract

Cave microbiology has been of great interest to microbial ecologists in recent years because it has enabled them to assess microbial diversity within an isolated system. An excellent example of subterranean microbial life is found in Lechuguilla Cave Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico,where the interactions of microbial communities in cave deep subsurface environments have been studied. With respect to the Timpanogos Cave system in American Fork Utah, our study relates to a system that is highly visited (60% of the cave system) contrary to the Lechuguilla cave system where public access is only allowed into 2% of the cave system and tours are kept to a minimum of 10-20 groups per year. Approximately 80,000 people each year introduce mud, hair, lint, and debris into the Timpanogos cave system. The accumulation of these foreign materials is a threat to the natural cave environment. They can change the appearance of cave formations, add alternate energy sources allowing non-native species to invade the cave ecosystem, add impurities to the cave water, and can change the cave’s chemistry. This accumulation of foreign materials threatens the preservation and conservation of the Timpanogos Cave System as a National Monument.

Recommended Citation

Bennin, Andre and Crandall, Dr. Keith A. (2013) "Comparison of Microbial Community Biodiversity between Pristine and Disturbed Sediments in Timpanogos Cave, National Monument," Journal of Undergraduate Research: Vol. 2013: Iss. 1, Article 1214.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jur/vol2013/iss1/1214