Over time, several scientific studies have discovered that microbes in tree bark feast on hydrogen, methane and carbon monoxide.
For a long time, people have known that trees capture carbon dioxide as they grow. But it took several studies, some of them in Australia, to show that microbes in tree bark eat those other gases as well. The discovery came after years of research by different scientists into the sources of methane.
In its March 2026 issue, Science News published an article about how microbes in tree bark munch on hydrogen, methane and carbon monoxide to help keep our planet healthier.
Among scientists who studied this phenomenon are biogeochemist Luke Jeffrey of Southern Cross University in Lismore, Australia; Pok Man Leung, an ecophysiologist at Monash University in Clayton, Australia; and Chris Greening, a microbiologist, also at Monash. They helped to identify the microbes living in the bark of broad-leaved paper bark trees and seven other common tree species in Australia.
According to the Science News article written by Douglas Fox, the team found that the amount of methane coming out of the tree bark was about 35 percent less than what came into it from below ground. “Microbes in the bark were eating the methane, oxidizing it for energy as it seeped out,” Fox wrote.
They also discovered that the microbes not only ate methane, but, even more commonly, they ate hydrogen gas for energy. Plenty of microbes also oxidized carbon dioxide. They also feasted on carbon monoxide. Not only do they eat those gases, but they also suck them from the air around them.
Of the eight tree species in Australia they studied, each species had differing mixes of microbes in their bark. Some ate more of the gases than others. With this knowledge, scientists can help select which tree species are best suited to reduce the effects of climate change.
Thanks to the hard work of many scientists, including the ones from Australia, we now know that microbes in certain kinds of tree bark play an important role in getting rid of gases that can cause damage to our planet. Who knew that those little microbes were playing such an important role in helping to keep us safer?
