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  1. ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; et al ( , Journal of Mammalogy)
    Abstract

    Biologists have long pondered the extreme limits of life on Earth, including the maximum elevation at which species can live and reproduce. Here we review evidence of a self-sustaining population of mice at an elevation that exceeds that of all previously reported for mammals. Five expeditions over 10 years to Volcán Llullaillaco on the Argentina/Chile border observed and collected mice at elevations ranging from 5,070 m at the mountain’s base to the summit at 6,739 m (22,110 feet). Previously unreported evidence includes observations and photographs of live animals and mummified remains, environmental DNA, and a soil microbial community reflecting animal activity that are evaluated in combination with previously reported video recordings and capture of live mice. All of the evidence identifies the mouse as the leaf-eared mouse Phyllotis vaccarum, and it robustly places the population within a haplotype group containing individuals from the Chilean Atacama Desert and nearby regions of Argentina. A critical review of the literature affirms that this population is not only an elevational record for mammals but for all terrestrial vertebrates to date, and we further find that many extreme elevations previously reported for mammals are based on scant or dubious evidence.

     
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  2. ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; et al ( , Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems)
    Abstract

    High elevation lakes are extreme ecosystems and serve as sentinels of various global changes.

    An expedition to Volcán Llullaillaco in 1996 discovered an unstudied high‐elevation lake (6,170 m a.s.l.) that probably was formed as a result of the past eruptive events or climatic processes such as glacial retreat in the lake basin.

    This article describes an initial physical characterization of the lake and its microbial communities derived from two sampling expeditions in 2013 and 2016.

    The microbial community in the lake, with an area between 1.2 and 1.4 ha and a depth of 6.8 m, was dominated by Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria and Haloarchaea. In addition, 26 bacterial isolates were identified within the generaSubtercola,Xylophilus,Rhodanobacter,MesorhizobiumandPseudomonas.

    Lago Llullaillaco is one of the highest recorded lakes in the world, and this study highlights the unique microbial diversity of this aquatic ecosystem and the importance of its preservation to understand the complex biological processes under polyextreme conditions.

     
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  3. ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ( , Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research)
  4. ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ( , Mycology)