Escherichia coli is a widely studied human pathogen, but a growing body of work has supported the idea that E coli can survive and thrive outside of the gut.  In temperate soils, E coli has vbeen found to leach from both soils treated with slury and un-treated controls.  These soil persisente e coli had been shown to have the ability to grow in low temperatures, and that having an functional stress response system is crucial for soil survival.  In addition to this, these strains have displayed a wide range of metabolic capabilities and phenotypes.