scholarly journals Local versus site-level effects of algae on coral microbial communities

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. 210035
Author(s):  
Amy A. Briggs ◽  
Anya L. Brown ◽  
Craig W. Osenberg
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
French Polynesia ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Antagonistic Effects ◽  
Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽  
Macroalgal Cover ◽  
Coral Microbiome ◽  
Turf Algae

Microbes influence ecological processes, including the dynamics and health of macro-organisms and their interactions with other species. In coral reefs, microbes mediate negative effects of algae on corals when corals are in contact with algae. However, it is unknown whether these effects extend to larger spatial scales, such as at sites with high algal densities. We investigated how local algal contact and site-level macroalgal cover influenced coral microbial communities in a field study at two islands in French Polynesia, Mo'orea and Mangareva. At 5 sites at each island, we sampled prokaryotic microbial communities (microbiomes) associated with corals, macroalgae, turf algae and water, with coral samples taken from individuals that were isolated from or in contact with turf or macroalgae. Algal contact and macroalgal cover had antagonistic effects on coral microbiome alpha and beta diversity. Additionally, coral microbiomes shifted and became more similar to macroalgal microbiomes at sites with high macroalgal cover and with algal contact, although the microbial taxa that changed varied by island. Our results indicate that coral microbiomes can be affected by algae outside of the coral's immediate vicinity, and local- and site-level effects of algae can obscure each other's effects when both scales are not considered.

scholarly journals Patterns of diversity on the Paleozoic shelf: implications for controls on clade history

1992 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 266-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. John Sepkoski ◽  
Arnold I. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Beta Diversity ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Alpha Diversity ◽  
Physical Geography ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Dominant Factor ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽  
Global Diversity ◽  
Local Ecology

Global diversity often is treated as a barometer of evolutionary success of clades without reference to their occurrence in ecological or biogeographical space. But global diversity is a composite of various spatial scales: alpha diversity, the number of taxa co-occurring in local communities; beta diversity, the distinction in taxonomic composition among local communities; and gamma diversity, the distinction, or degree of endemism, among geographic provinces, It has been argued by some workers that global diversity correlates strongly with alpha (and beta) diversity but by others that provinciality is the principal control of global patterns. The distinction is important, implicating either ecological processes (“adaptation”) or physical geography (“contingency”) as the major factor in expansion of clades.We have examined the ecological half of this problem with a data base comprising 505 fossil assemblages sampled from Paleozoic strata of Laurentian North America. On the basis of associated sedimentary characteristics, each assemblage has been assigned to one of six environmental categories, ranging from onshore peritidal situations to offshore basinal conditions. For each taxonomic order and class, average numbers of genera in each category have been determined for each of 18 time units. These average alpha diversities have been contoured on time-environment diagrams and compared to patterns of global diversity.Three major generalizations are derived from these diagrams:1. Major groups tend to be environmentally conservative, maintaining their life zones of maximum and minimum alpha diversity over vast stretches of time.2. Onshore-offshore shifts are most common during early expansion or late contraction of groups, when their global diversity is rapidly waxing or (more slowly) waning.3. Maxima and minima in global diversity within the groups through time, with few exceptions, are reflected in alpha diversity as fluctuations within the environments of maximum richness and/or as variations in the range of environments occupied.The last observation indicates a tight link between local ecology and global diversity, although the direction of causation is not unambiguous: alpha diversity could be reflecting only the global pool from which species can be recruited into local communities. However, in view of the onshore-offshore shifts during early and late histories of clades we conclude that local ecology is the dominant factor in controlling global diversity, and provinciality is secondary.

scholarly journals How sample heterogeneity can obscure the signal of microbial interactions

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
David W. Armitage ◽  
Stuart E. Jones
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Community ◽  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Dynamic Models ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Microbial Interactions ◽  
Vital Rates ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Correlation Networks ◽  
Community Data

ABSTRACTMicrobial community data are commonly subjected to computational tools such as correlation networks, null models, and dynamic models, with the goal of identifying the ecological processes structuring microbial communities. Researchers applying these methods assume that the signs and magnitudes of species interactions and vital rates can be reliably parsed from observational data on species’ (relative) abundances. However, we contend that this assumption is violated when sample units contain any underlying spatial structure. Here, we show how three phenomena — Simpson’s paradox, context-dependence, and nonlinear averaging — can lead to erroneous conclusions about population parameters and species interactions when samples contain heterogeneous mixtures of populations or communities. At the root of this issue is the fundamental mismatch between the spatial scales of species interactions (micrometres) and those of typical microbial community samples (millimetres to centimetres). These issues can be overcome by measuring and accounting for spatial heterogeneity at very small scales, which will lead to more reliable inference of the ecological mechanisms structuring natural microbial communities.

scholarly journals A Remote Sensing Approach to Understanding Patterns of Secondary Succession in Tropical Forest

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 2148
Author(s):  
Eric Chraibi ◽  
Haley Arnold ◽  
Sandra Luque ◽  
Amy Deacon ◽  
Anne E. Magurran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Secondary Succession ◽  
Field Data ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Primary Forest ◽  
Anthropogenic Pressures ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Forest Diversity ◽  
Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽  
Landscape Level

Biodiversity monitoring and understanding ecological processes on a global scale is a major challenge for biodiversity conservation. Field assessments commonly used to assess patterns of biodiversity and habitat condition are costly, challenging, and restricted to small spatial scales. As ecosystems face increasing anthropogenic pressures, it is important that we find ways to assess patterns of biodiversity more efficiently. Remote sensing has the potential to support understanding of landscape-level ecological processes. In this study, we considered cacao agroforests at different stages of secondary succession, and primary forest in the Northern Range of Trinidad, West Indies. We assessed changes in tree biodiversity over succession using both field data, and data derived from remote sensing. We then evaluated the strengths and limitations of each method, exploring the potential for expanding field data by using remote sensing techniques to investigate landscape-level patterns of forest condition and regeneration. Remote sensing and field data provided different insights into tree species compositional changes, and patterns of alpha- and beta-diversity. The results highlight the potential of remote sensing for detecting patterns of compositional change in forests, and for expanding on field data in order to better understand landscape-level patterns of forest diversity.

scholarly journals Multicellular and unicellular responses of microbial biofilms to stress

2020 ◽  
Vol 401 (12) ◽  
pp. 1365-1374
Author(s):  
Daniel K.H. Rode ◽  
Praveen K. Singh ◽  
Knut Drescher
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Internal Stresses ◽  
Microbial Life ◽  
Microbial Biofilms ◽  
Applied Stresses

AbstractBiofilms are a ubiquitous mode of microbial life and display an increased tolerance to different stresses. Inside biofilms, cells may experience both externally applied stresses and internal stresses that emerge as a result of growth in spatially structured communities. In this review, we discuss the spatial scales of different stresses in the context of biofilms, and if cells in biofilms respond to these stresses as a collection of individual cells, or if there are multicellular properties associated with the response. Understanding the organizational level of stress responses in microbial communities can help to clarify multicellular functions of biofilms.

scholarly journals Effects of season on ecological processes in extensive earthen tilapia ponds in Southeastern Brazil

2015 ◽  
Vol 75 (4 suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 97-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. G. P. Favaro ◽  
L. H. Sipaúba-Tavares ◽  
A. Milstein
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
Stocking Density ◽  
Grazing Pressure ◽  
Southeastern Brazil ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Pond Ecosystem ◽  
Disposal Option ◽  
Flow Through ◽  
Dry Seasons

Abstract In Southeastern Brazil tilapia culture is conducted in extensive and semi-intensive flow-through earthen ponds, being water availability and flow management different in the rainy and dry seasons. In this region lettuce wastes are a potential cheap input for tilapia culture. This study examined the ecological processes developing during the rainy and dry seasons in three extensive flow-through earthen tilapia ponds fertilized with lettuce wastes. Water quality, plankton and sediment parameters were sampled monthly during a year. Factor analysis was used to identify the ecological processes occurring within the ponds and to construct a conceptual graphic model of the pond ecosystem functioning during the rainy and dry seasons. Processes related to nitrogen cycling presented differences between both seasons while processes related to phosphorus cycling did not. Ecological differences among ponds were due to effects of wind protection by surrounding vegetation, organic loading entering, tilapia density and its grazing pressure on zooplankton. Differences in tilapia growth among ponds were related to stocking density and ecological process affecting tilapia food availability and intraspecific competition. Lettuce wastes addition into the ponds did not produce negative effects, thus this practice may be considered a disposal option and a low-cost input source for tilapia, at least at the amounts applied in this study.

scholarly journals Diversity Indices of Plant Communities and Their Rhizosphere Microbiomes: An Attempt to Find the Connection

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 2339
Author(s):  
Aleksei O. Zverev ◽  
Arina A. Kichko ◽  
Aleksandr G. Pinaev ◽  
Nikolay A. Provorov ◽  
Evgeny E. Andronov
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Beta Diversity ◽  
Mutual Influence ◽  
Plant Root ◽  
Alpha Diversity ◽  
Diversity Indices ◽  
Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽  
Highly Correlated

The rhizosphere community represents an “ecological interface” between plant and soil, providing the plant with a number of advantages. Despite close connection and mutual influence in this system, the knowledge about the connection of plant and rhizosphere diversity is still controversial. One of the most valuable factors of this uncertainty is a rough estimation of plant diversity. NGS sequencing can make the estimations of the plant community more precise than classical geobotanical methods. We investigate fallow and crop sites, which are similar in terms of environmental conditions and soil legacy, yet at the same time are significantly different in terms of plant diversity. We explored amplicons of both the plant root mass (ITS1 DNA) and the microbial communities (16S rDNA); determined alpha- and beta-diversity indices and their correlation, and performed differential abundance analysis. In the analysis, there is no correlation between the alpha-diversity indices of plants and the rhizosphere microbial communities. The beta-diversity between rhizosphere microbial communities and plant communities is highly correlated (R = 0.866, p = 0.01). ITS1 sequencing is effective for the description of plant root communities. There is a connection between rhizosphere communities and the composition of plants, but on the alpha-diversity level we found no correlation. In the future, the connection of alpha-diversities should be explored using ITS1 sequencing, even in more similar plant communities—for example, in different synusia.

Landscape Heterogeneity and Dynamics

2019 ◽  
pp. 42-126
Author(s):  
Kimberly A. With
Keyword(s):  
Landscape Ecology ◽  
Spatial Heterogeneity ◽  
Landscape Structure ◽  
Landscape Heterogeneity ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Anthropogenic Disturbances ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Disturbance Dynamics ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Over Time

Heterogeneity is a defining characteristic of landscapes and therefore central to the study of landscape ecology. Landscape ecology investigates what factors give rise to heterogeneity, how that heterogeneity is maintained or altered by natural and anthropogenic disturbances, and how heterogeneity ultimately influences ecological processes and flows across the landscape. Because heterogeneity is expressed across a wide range of spatial scales, the landscape perspective can be applied to address these sorts of questions at any level of ecological organization, and in aquatic and marine systems as well as terrestrial ones. Disturbances—both natural and anthropogenic—are a ubiquitous feature of any landscape, contributing to its structure and dynamics. Although the focus in landscape ecology is typically on spatial heterogeneity, disturbance dynamics produce changes in landscape structure over time as well as in space. Heterogeneity and disturbance dynamics are thus inextricably linked and are therefore covered together in this chapter.

scholarly journals Unimodal Relationships of Understory Alpha and Beta Diversity along Chronosequence in Coppiced and Unmanaged Beech Forests

Diversity ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sándor Bartha ◽  
Roberto Canullo ◽  
Stefano Chelli ◽  
Giandiego Campetella
Keyword(s):  
Beta Diversity ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Forest Succession ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Alpha Diversity ◽  
Structural Diversity ◽  
Diversity Indices ◽  
Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽  
Coppice Management

Patterns of diversity across spatial scales in forest successions are being overlooked, despite their importance for developing sustainable management practices. Here, we tested the recently proposed U-shaped biodiversity model of forest succession. A chronosequence of 11 stands spanning from 5 to 400 years since the last disturbance was used. Understory species presence was recorded along 200 m long transects of 20 × 20 cm quadrates. Alpha diversity (species richness, Shannon and Simpson diversity indices) and three types of beta diversity indices were assessed at multiple scales. Beta diversity was expressed by a) spatial compositional variability (number and diversity of species combinations), b) pairwise spatial turnover (between plots Sorensen, Jaccard, and Bray–Curtis dissimilarity), and c) spatial variability coefficients (CV% of alpha diversity measures). Our results supported the U-shaped model for both alpha and beta diversity. The strongest differences appeared between active and abandoned coppices. The maximum beta diversity emerged at characteristic scales of 2 m in young coppices and 10 m in later successional stages. We conclude that traditional coppice management maintains high structural diversity and heterogeneity in the understory. The similarly high beta diversities in active coppices and old-growth forests suggest the presence of microhabitats for specialist species of high conservation value.

scholarly journals An Overview of Bioinformatics Tools for DNA Meta-Barcoding Analysis of Microbial Communities of Bioaerosols: Digest for Microbiologists

Life ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 185
Author(s):  
Hamza Mbareche ◽  
Nathan Dumont-Leblond ◽  
Guillaume J. Bilodeau ◽  
Caroline Duchaine
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Microbial Ecology ◽  
Statistical Tests ◽  
Repeated Measurements ◽  
Microbial Composition ◽  
Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽  
Bioinformatic Tools ◽  
Bioinformatics Tools ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Guided Tour

High-throughput DNA sequencing (HTS) has changed our understanding of the microbial composition present in a wide range of environments. Applying HTS methods to air samples from different environments allows the identification and quantification (relative abundance) of the microorganisms present and gives a better understanding of human exposure to indoor and outdoor bioaerosols. To make full use of the avalanche of information made available by these sequences, repeated measurements must be taken, community composition described, error estimates made, correlations of microbiota with covariates (variables) must be examined, and increasingly sophisticated statistical tests must be conducted, all by using bioinformatics tools. Knowing which analysis to conduct and which tools to apply remains confusing for bioaerosol scientists, as a litany of tools and data resources are now available for characterizing microbial communities. The goal of this review paper is to offer a guided tour through the bioinformatics tools that are useful in studying the microbial ecology of bioaerosols. This work explains microbial ecology features like alpha and beta diversity, multivariate analyses, differential abundances, taxonomic analyses, visualization tools and statistical tests using bioinformatics tools for bioaerosol scientists new to the field. It illustrates and promotes the use of selected bioinformatic tools in the study of bioaerosols and serves as a good source for learning the “dos and don’ts” involved in conducting a precise microbial ecology study.

Benthic community composition influences within-habitat variation in macroalgal browsing on the Great Barrier Reef

2010 ◽  
Vol 61 (9) ◽  
pp. 999 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Cvitanovic ◽  
A. S. Hoey
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Great Barrier Reef ◽  
Benthic Community ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Structural Complexity ◽  
Barrier Reef ◽  
Removal Rates ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Habitat Variation ◽  
Benthic Composition

The removal of macroalgae by herbivores is fundamental to the long-term persistence of coral reefs. Variation in macroalgal browsing has been documented across a range of spatial scales on coral reefs; however, few studies have examined the factors that influence within-habitat rates of herbivory. The aim of the present study was to quantify herbivory on two species of Sargassum across three bays on an inshore island in the central Great Barrier Reef (GBR), and to determine whether these removal rates were related to the benthic composition or herbivorous fish communities. Removal rates of Sargassum differed significantly among bays, with removal rates in the southern bay (66.9–83.0% per 3 h) being approximately double that of the two other bays (29.2–38.5% per 3 h). The removal rates displayed a direct relationship with the benthic community structure, in particular the cover of macroalgae and live plate corals. Although it is difficult to determine whether these relationships are related to the availability of food resources or the structural complexity of the substratum, they highlight the potential influence of benthic composition on ecological processes. Quantifying and understanding the drivers of herbivory across a range of spatial scales is essential to the future management of coral reefs.

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