Microbial life in soil is highly heterogeneous in space and time. Microbial activity hotspots are localized in the rhizosphere, detritusphere, biopores, hyphosphere, and aggregate surfaces. Although these hotspots occupy only a fraction of the soil volume and may persist for limited periods, they dominate carbon and nutrient transformations and thereby exert a major influence on soil functioning.
This session aims to bring together studies focused on microbial life and biogeochemical processes in soil hotspots across spatial and temporal scales. We invite contributions addressing: (i) the formation, persistence, and turnover of microbial hotspots and the biotic and abiotic factors controlling them; (ii) microbial activity, interactions, community composition, and functional traits within hotspots; (iii) the contribution of hotspots to cycles of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and other elements and to soil organic matter dynamics; (iv) responses of microbial hotspots to environmental change and disturbances; and (v) new experimental, imaging, molecular, isotopic, and modelling approaches for identifying hotspots, quantifying their activity, and linking microscale processes to soil- and ecosystem-scale functions.