Thaumarchaeal ecotype distributions across the equatorial Pacific Ocean and their potential roles in nitrification and sinking flux attenuation

Thaumarchaea are among the most abundant microbial groups in the ocean, but controls on their abundance and the distribution and metabolic potential of different subpopulations are poorly constrained. Here, two ecotypes of ammonia‐oxidizing thaumarchaea were quantified using ammonia monooxygenase ( amoA ) genes across the equatorial Pacific Ocean. The shallow, or water column “A” (WCA), ecotype was the most abundant ecotype at the depths of...