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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Macroecology
  • Biodiversity Science

Background:

  • Unicellular organisms were thought to be ubiquitous with high local species richness, potentially lacking effects on ecosystem function.
  • High dispersal and abundance were hypothesized to explain the widespread distribution of unicellular taxa.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To statistically test if unicellular taxa display higher relative local species richness than multicellular taxa.
  • To determine if unicellular taxa have less steep species:area and species:individuals relationships.
  • To assess if geographic distance influences unicellular species composition less than multicellular species composition.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative statistical analysis of own and published datasets for uni- and multicellular organisms.
  • Examination of species:area and species:individuals relationships slopes.
  • Analysis of species composition similarity in relation to geographic distance.

Main Results:

  • Unicellular organisms showed higher local species richness than metazoans, particularly with conservative global richness estimates.
  • Microalgae and protozoans had lower slopes in species richness vs. sample size relationships compared to macrozoobenthos.
  • Species similarity decreased with distance for diatoms and ciliates, indicating limited dispersal, but less so than for polychaetes and corals.

Conclusions:

  • Unicellular and multicellular eukaryotes display distinct species richness patterns.
  • Unicellular taxa are not strictly ubiquitous, possessing dispersal limitations.
  • The impact of local unicellular species richness on ecosystem function requires re-examination, as macroecological patterns may differ.