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Understanding Species and Reproductive Barriers

A species is a group of organisms that interbreed and produce fertile offspring. Typically, individuals of the same species appear similar and share common characteristics due to their highly similar genomes. However, not all organisms that look alike are members of the same species. Various mechanisms keep most species discrete. While some mechanisms prevent reproductive behavior and fertilization (pre-zygotic isolation), others prevent the production of fertile offspring after mating has...
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The phylogenetic species concept (PSC) is a framework used to delineate species based on evolutionary relationships, emphasizing shared ancestry and diagnosable genetic traits. Unlike morphological or biological species concepts, the PSC is particularly advantageous for microbial taxonomy, where traditional reproductive or phenotypic criteria often fall short due to the prevalence of asexual reproduction, minimal morphological differentiation, and widespread horizontal gene transfer among...

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Updated: Jul 5, 2026

Monitoring Spatial Segregation in Surface Colonizing Microbial Populations
07:40

Monitoring Spatial Segregation in Surface Colonizing Microbial Populations

Published on: October 29, 2016

Dispersal limitations matter for microbial morphospecies.

Richard J Telford1, Vigdis Vandvik, H J B Birks

  • 1Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research, Allégaten 55, N-5007 Bergen, Norway. richard.telford@bjerknes.uib.no

Science (New York, N.Y.)
|May 20, 2006
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Many microbial species seem to be everywhere, but this study finds regional differences. Microbial communities are structured similarly to larger organisms, challenging the "everything is everywhere" theory.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Microbiology
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • Macroorganisms typically have restricted geographical ranges.
  • Microbial species are often considered cosmopolitan, with ubiquitous distributions.
  • The "everything is everywhere, but, the environment selects" theory explains microbial cosmopolitanism via vast population sizes and dispersal.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the distribution patterns of microbial morphospecies.
  • To test the "everything is everywhere" theory against observed regional genetic variability.
  • To determine if microbial communities are structured by metacommunity processes.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of regional genetic variability within microbial morphospecies.
  • Comparison of observed distribution patterns with predictions from ubiquitous dispersal models.
  • Detection of metacommunity processes in microbial populations.

Main Results:

  • Evidence of considerable regional genetic variability was detected within microbial morphospecies.
  • Contrary to ubiquitous dispersal expectations, regional-scale metacommunity processes were identified in microbial populations.
  • Observed patterns challenge the "everything is everywhere" theory for microbial species.

Conclusions:

  • Microbial species distributions are not solely explained by ubiquitous dispersal.
  • Metacommunity processes significantly influence microbial community structure, similar to macroorganisms.
  • The ecological and evolutionary structuring of microbial and macrobial worlds may be analogous.