02188nas a2200217   4500008004100000245015900041210006900200260001600269300001100285490000700296520142400303653002601727653002301753653002701776653002201803653002301825100001601848700001801864700001801882856007001900       2015                        eng d00aWoody plant encroachment, and its removal, impact bacterial and fungal communities across stream and terrestrial habitats in a tallgrass prairie ecosystem0 aWoody plant encroachment and its removal impact bacterial and fu  cDec-10-2015  afiv1090 v913 aWoody plant encroachment has become a global threat to grasslands and has caused declines in aboveground richness and changes in ecosystem function; yet we have a limited understanding on the effects of these phenomena on belowground microbial communities. We completed riparian woody plant removals at Konza Prairie Biological Station, Kansas and collected soils spanning land–water interfaces in removal and woody vegetation impacted areas. We measured stream sediments and soils for edaphic variables (C and N pools, soil water content, pH) and bacterial (16S rRNA genes) and fungal (ITS2 rRNA gene repeat) communities using Illumina MiSeq metabarcoding. Bacterial richness and diversity decreased with distance from streams. Fungal richness decreased with distance from the stream in wooded areas, but was similar across landscape position while Planctomycetes and Basidiomycota relative abundance was lower in removal areas. Cyanobacteria, Ascomycota, Chytridiomycota and Glomeromycota relative abundance was greater in removal areas. Ordination analyses indicated that bacterial community composition shifted more across land–water interfaces than fungi yet both were marginally influenced by treatment. This study highlights the impacts of woody encroachment restoration on grassland bacterial and fungal communities which likely subsequently affects belowground processes and plant health in this ecosystem.10abacterial communities10afungal communities10aland–water interface10atallgrass prairie10awoody encroachment1 aVeach, A.M.1 aDodds, W., K.1 aJumpponen, A.  uhttp://femsec.oxfordjournals.org/lookup/doi/10.1093/femsec/fiv109