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Characterization of Aquatic Biofilms with Flow Cytometry
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Fine-scale spatial patterns in bacterial community composition and function within freshwater ponds.

Gavin Lear1, Julia Bellamy2, Bradley S Case2

  • 1School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.

The ISME Journal
|March 1, 2014
PubMed
Summary

Bacterial communities in alpine ponds show distinct patterns even at small distances. Spatial variation, not environmental factors, drives these differences, suggesting dispersal limitations over just 20 meters.

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Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Ecology
  • Biogeography

Background:

  • Non-host-associated bacterial communities' small-scale biogeographic patterns are poorly understood.
  • Freshwater bacterial studies typically examine larger spatial scales than this research.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate bacterial community composition and function at fine spatial scales within alpine ponds.
  • To determine the influence of spatial versus environmental factors on bacterial distribution.

Main Methods:

  • Grid-based sampling of 100+ locations within three alpine ponds.
  • Automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis (ARISA) for bacterial community composition.
  • Biolog Ecoplates for bacterial community function (carbon substrate utilization).

Main Results:

  • Bacterial communities differed significantly between samples over 20 meters apart.
  • Spatial variation explained more variability (24-38% composition, 17-39% function) than environmental factors (17-32% composition, 15-20% function).
  • Spatial patterns were clear for community composition but not function, indicating functional redundancy.

Conclusions:

  • Distinct bacterial communities exist at surprisingly small spatial scales.
  • Dispersal limitation may affect bacterial populations separated by >20 meters in lentic environments.
  • Observed bacterial community variation may include functionally redundant populations.