OXIDATION OF MANGANESE BY MICROORGANISMS IN MANGANESE DEPOSITS OF NEWFOUNDLAND SOIL

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Abstract
Manganese pans, found in coarse-textured soil material underlying acid peat deposits in the humid regions of Newfoundland, were examined for the presence of microorganisms capable of oxidizing and precipitating manganese in agar media and from solution. Microorganisms of the genera Sphaerotilus (Leptothrix), Pedomicrobium, Metallogenium, Kusnezovia, Caulococcus, and Siderococcus, which are known manganese oxidizers, were not detected. Microorganisms resembling Hyphomicrobium, which have been found to take part in manganese oxidation, were present but showed no tendency to oxidize manganese in pure cultures. Commonly found was a fungus, a Cephalosporium sp., which grew at pH 4.5 and produced black deposits on agar medium containing only manganous sulfate. The X-ray pattern of these deposits showed variation in chemical composition. They were either identical with that of Mn3O4 (hausmannite) or similar to delta MnO2 (birnessite). The fungus lived heterotrophically; no signs of autotrophy were detected. After 22 mo of circulating large quantities of aerated peat leachate (pH 4.5) with added MnSO4 through simulated pipelines, black deposits containing hausmannite were observed. Cephalosporium spp. could be isolated from these deposits. An evaluation of the analytical data has led to the conclusion that further investigations are necessary before it can be established whether Cephalosporium is involved in the formation of the manganese pans.

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