Yeasts from Antarctica

SUMMARY: The yeast flora of moss from Granite Harbour and of soils from Wright Dry Valley in the McMurdo Sound region of Antarctica was examined. There were 75,000 yeasts/g. on the moss; species recovered were Cryptococcus laurentii, C. albidus and Rhodotorula minuta. Yeasts were isolated from 8 of the 12 soil samples in numbers up to 5000/g. Strains of Candida, scottii, whose maximum growth temperature was c. 15°, were the predominant soil yeasts.