Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, Greece
Caves with hot springs and speleothem deposits are infrequent environments of high scientific interest due to their unique environmental conditions. The selected site is a small open cave with a hot spring and stalactites in the Aedipsos area (NW Euboea Island, Greece), which was studied through an...
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MDPI AG
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/12/1909 |
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| author | Christos Kanellopoulos Vasiliki Lamprinou Artemis Politi Panagiotis Voudouris Ioannis Iliopoulos Maria Kokkaliari Leonidas Moforis Athena Economou-Amilli |
| author_facet | Christos Kanellopoulos Vasiliki Lamprinou Artemis Politi Panagiotis Voudouris Ioannis Iliopoulos Maria Kokkaliari Leonidas Moforis Athena Economou-Amilli |
| author_sort | Christos Kanellopoulos |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Caves with hot springs and speleothem deposits are infrequent environments of high scientific interest due to their unique environmental conditions. The selected site is a small open cave with a hot spring and stalactites in the Aedipsos area (NW Euboea Island, Greece), which was studied through an interdisciplinary approach. The mineralogical composition of the speleothems was determined by optical microscopy, XRD, and SEM-EDS microanalysis, and identification of the Cyanobacteria species was made based on morphological characteristics. The main mineral phase in the studied samples is calcite, with several trace elements (i.e., up to 0.48 wt.% Na<sub>2</sub>O, up to 0.73 wt.% MgO, up to 4.19 wt.% SO<sub>3</sub>, up to 0.16 wt.% SrO and up to 2.21 wt.% Yb<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>) in the mineral-chemistry composition. The dominant facies are lamination and shrubs, which are the most common among the facies of the thermogenic travertines of the area. Based on the studied stalactites, twenty-nine different Cyanobacteria species were identified, belonging to the following orders: Synechococcales (28%), Oscillatoriales (27%), Chroococcales (21%) and Nostocales (21%), and Spirulinales (3%). Among them, thermophilic species (<i>Spirulina subtilissima</i>) and limestone substrate species (<i>Chroococcus lithophilus</i>, <i>Leptolyngbya perforans,</i> and <i>Leptolyngbya ercegovicii</i>) were identified. The identified Cyanobacteria were found to participate in biomineralization processes. The most characteristic biomineralization activity is made by the endolithic Cyanobacteria destroying calcite crystals in the outer layer. In a few cases, calcified cyanobacterial sheaths were detected. The presence of filamentous Cyanobacteria, along with extracellular polymeric substance (EPS), creates a dense net resulting in the retention of calcium carbonate crystals. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T16:14:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a2fdd1bc8f1f44589a571bd6d970d573 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1312 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T16:14:07Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
| spelling | doaj.art-a2fdd1bc8f1f44589a571bd6d970d5732023-11-24T15:56:25ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122022-12-011012190910.3390/jmse10121909Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, GreeceChristos Kanellopoulos0Vasiliki Lamprinou1Artemis Politi2Panagiotis Voudouris3Ioannis Iliopoulos4Maria Kokkaliari5Leonidas Moforis6Athena Economou-Amilli7Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, Ano Ilissia, 15784 Athens, GreeceFaculty of Biology, Department of Ecology and Systematics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, Ano Ilissia, 15784 Athens, GreeceFaculty of Biology, Department of Ecology and Systematics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, Ano Ilissia, 15784 Athens, GreeceFaculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, Ano Ilissia, 15784 Athens, GreeceDepartment of Geology, University of Patras, 26500 Rio, GreeceDepartment of Geology, University of Patras, 26500 Rio, GreeceFaculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, Ano Ilissia, 15784 Athens, GreeceFaculty of Biology, Department of Ecology and Systematics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, Ano Ilissia, 15784 Athens, GreeceCaves with hot springs and speleothem deposits are infrequent environments of high scientific interest due to their unique environmental conditions. The selected site is a small open cave with a hot spring and stalactites in the Aedipsos area (NW Euboea Island, Greece), which was studied through an interdisciplinary approach. The mineralogical composition of the speleothems was determined by optical microscopy, XRD, and SEM-EDS microanalysis, and identification of the Cyanobacteria species was made based on morphological characteristics. The main mineral phase in the studied samples is calcite, with several trace elements (i.e., up to 0.48 wt.% Na<sub>2</sub>O, up to 0.73 wt.% MgO, up to 4.19 wt.% SO<sub>3</sub>, up to 0.16 wt.% SrO and up to 2.21 wt.% Yb<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>) in the mineral-chemistry composition. The dominant facies are lamination and shrubs, which are the most common among the facies of the thermogenic travertines of the area. Based on the studied stalactites, twenty-nine different Cyanobacteria species were identified, belonging to the following orders: Synechococcales (28%), Oscillatoriales (27%), Chroococcales (21%) and Nostocales (21%), and Spirulinales (3%). Among them, thermophilic species (<i>Spirulina subtilissima</i>) and limestone substrate species (<i>Chroococcus lithophilus</i>, <i>Leptolyngbya perforans,</i> and <i>Leptolyngbya ercegovicii</i>) were identified. The identified Cyanobacteria were found to participate in biomineralization processes. The most characteristic biomineralization activity is made by the endolithic Cyanobacteria destroying calcite crystals in the outer layer. In a few cases, calcified cyanobacterial sheaths were detected. The presence of filamentous Cyanobacteria, along with extracellular polymeric substance (EPS), creates a dense net resulting in the retention of calcium carbonate crystals.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/12/1909stalactitespeleothembiomineralizationfaciesmineralogyhot spring |
| spellingShingle | Christos Kanellopoulos Vasiliki Lamprinou Artemis Politi Panagiotis Voudouris Ioannis Iliopoulos Maria Kokkaliari Leonidas Moforis Athena Economou-Amilli Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, Greece Journal of Marine Science and Engineering stalactite speleothem biomineralization facies mineralogy hot spring |
| title | Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, Greece |
| title_full | Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, Greece |
| title_fullStr | Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, Greece |
| title_full_unstemmed | Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, Greece |
| title_short | Speleothems and Biomineralization Processes in Hot Spring Environment: The Case of Aedipsos (Edipsos), Euboea (Evia) Island, Greece |
| title_sort | speleothems and biomineralization processes in hot spring environment the case of aedipsos edipsos euboea evia island greece |
| topic | stalactite speleothem biomineralization facies mineralogy hot spring |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/12/1909 |
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