Habitat heterogeneity is a driving factor for speciation and ecosystem functioning and is well studied in macro-ecology. Yet our understanding of microbial adaptations, and governing processes is incomplete. The here presented thesis aims at giving us a better understanding of patterns in micro-heterogeneity, and microbial adaptations to such heterogeneity with particular focus on surface-dominated, aquatic habitats. The most prominent microbial adaptation to surface associated mode of life is biofilm formation. Biofilms rely heavily on type IV pili. These pili systems are well studied in Bacteria, but largely unknown in Archaea. Therefore, the first part of this thesis focuses on resolving genetic and structural feature of the type IV like aap-pilus of the thermo-acidophilic Sulfolobus acidocaldarius. We found the aap-pilus to be indispensible for biofilm formation, and to be unparalleled in variability of its quaternary structure and cross regulation with other filaments. The second part of this thesis investigates particle colonization in the water column, focusing on diatoms as a model system, allowing an in situ assessment of different stages of particle colonization, and potential particle-specificity of the associated bacterial community. Opposing reports from marine systems, we did not observe diatom-specificity in the associated bacterial community. Instead we found bacterial community subsets, one likely originating from sediment resuspension, and the other being controlled by biofilm-forming populations (e.g. Flexibacter), able to attach to newly formed particle surfaces and subsequently facilitate secondary colonization by other bacteria. Finally, the habitat heterogeneity in top-layers of lake sediments were investigated in experimental microcosms. Cell-specific oxygen consumption rates were determined, to assess microbial activity across different scales. Individual activity rates differed strongly across all investigated scales, likely due to spatially heterogeneous distribution of nutrients with differing quality. Vice versa, the influence of microbial activity on micro-habitat-heterogeneity was investigated. We correlated sediment redox-state with bacterial community composition and populations. Our results indicate that habitat heterogeneity is generally beneficial for microorganism, and greater heterogeneity results in greater bacterial diversity. However, this heterogeneity-diversity relationship is limited and microorganisms actively stabilize their immediate redox environment to a preferred, community-specific, stable state, if cell abundances exceed a minimum threshold.

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Les sols constituent le principal réservoir de carbone, avec près de deux fois plus de carbone que le pool atmosphérique. Afin de pouvoir prédire et anticiper le devenir du carbone dans le contexte actuel de changement climatique et de changement d'usage des terres, il apparaît nécessaire de mieux comprendre les processus qui régulent la décomposition des matières organiques dans les sols. Cette thèse se propose donc d'étudier deux types de régulateurs de la dynamique du carbone du sol : les propriétés de l'habitat microbien et celles des communautés microbiennes. En effet, puisque directement affectées par les changements climatiques d'une part, et les changements d'usage des terres et de pratiques culturales d'autre part, l'habitat microbien et les communautés microbiennes apparaissent comme des régulateurs clés de la dynamique du carbone du sol. Des dispositifs expérimentaux permettant de faire varier les propriétés de l'habitat microbien et celles des communautés microbiennes de façon indépendante ou simultanée ont été mis en place. Dans un premier temps, des microcosmes dont la structure du sol a été manipulée afin d'obtenir des gradients de déstructuration, ont été incubés. Dans un second temps ce sont des microcosmes mettant en jeu des gradients de diversité microbienne qui ont été incubés. Enfin, une incubation utilisant les différences naturelles de propriétés de l'habitat microbien et de communautés microbiennes a été mise en place pour tenter de hiérarchiser ces régulateurs de la décomposition des matières organiques du sol. Les résultats obtenus ont mis en évidence que l'activité microbienne de décomposition du carbone organique du sol semble plus contrôlée par les conditions environnementales (comme le pH, la texture et l'approvisionnement en substrat) que par la structure des communautés microbiennes ou leurs capacités métaboliques. En plus de cela, la fonction de minéralisation ne semble être affectée que dans le cas d'une très grande érosion de la biodiversité suggérant la présence d'un effet seuil, et que l'importance de la redondance fonctionnelle n'est pas toujours aussi grande que ce que le suggère de nombreuses études. D'autre part, dans des conditions d'aération suffisante, les mécanismes qui réguleraient la dynamique du carbone organique des sols se passeraient à des échelles très fines. / Soils represent the principal reservoir of carbon with two times as much carbon as is found in the atmospheric pool. In an effort to better predict and anticipate how soil carbon dynamics will be affected by environmental changes and by the evolution of cropping systems, it is necessary to better understand the processes that regulate soil organic matter decomposition. This study aims to investigate two regulatory mechanisms of the soil carbon dynamic: the properties of the microbial habitat and the ones of the microbial communities. Because they are directly affected by the climatic changes and by the rapid evolution of cropping systems these two mechanisms appear to have a key role in the regulation of soil carbon decomposition. Experimental designs were setup allowing the variations, independent or simultaneous, of the properties of microbial habitat and the ones of the microbial communities. First, to assess the relative importance of soil structure, microcosms with different gradient of disaggregation were incubated. Then, to assess the relative importance of diversity erosion, microcosms with microbial diversity gradient were incubated. Finally, using contrasted soils varying in their habitats and their microbial communities properties, we aimed to hierarchize these two carbon decomposition regulatory mechanisms.The obtained results indicate that microbial activity of soil organic carbon decomposition seems to be more controlled by environmental conditions (such as pH, texture and also substrate supply) than by the microbial community structure or metabolic profiles. Then we observed that organic carbon mineralisation was impacted only when the levels of diversity were very low suggesting the existence of a threshold, and that the functional redundancy is maybe not as great as numerous studies suggest. Moreover, our work showed that when conditions of aeration in the pore system are sufficient, mechanisms regulating the dynamic of soil organic carbon take place at fine spatial scales.