Cover of Nature Microbiology. (Courtesy Mike Wilkins/ Nature Microbiology)

Within a forest’s soil, a microbiome of bacteria, viruses and fungi process carbon and nitrogen, paving the way for future plants and trees to grow. However, fire changes the microbes within the soil. Recently, JGI collaborators worked to understand which microbes in the soil persist after a wildfire — and why they thrive.

Their results appear in Nature Microbiology.

The study builds on the pyrophilous fungi the JGI has previously sequenced, and provides a powerful snapshot of what soils across different burn severities look like a year after a fire. By connecting microbial genes with functions useful for forest recovery, this study sheds light on how microbes contribute as a forest recovers after a wildfire.

Learn more on the JGI website.