Local and geographical factors jointly drive elevational patterns in three microbial groups across subarctic ponds

Teittinen, Anette; Wang, Jianjun; Strömgård, Simon; Soininen, Janne

doi:10.1111/geb.12607

Cited by 40 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…These communities were typically species‐poor and dominated by one or a few acid‐tolerant species belonging to the genus Frustulia and Pinnularia . This outcome agrees with our earlier study in which taxonomically impoverished diatom communities occurred in acidic ponds along the same elevational gradient (Teittinen et al., ). Thus, low pH may act as an abiotic filter excluding species intolerant of acidic conditions, resulting in species‐poor communities dominated by a few acid‐tolerant species.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Cell size and acid tolerance constrain pond diatom distributions in the subarctic

2018

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Niche characteristics and traits affect species distributions. However, their effects on the distribution of microorganisms remain understudied, especially in subarctic regions. Our aim was to determine the effects of species niche characteristics and traits on benthic diatom (Bacillariophyceae) elevational distributions, and to identify the key drivers of trait diversity across climate‐sensitive subarctic ponds. We sampled 102 ponds along an elevational gradient of 10 to 1,038 m a.s.l. in subarctic Finland and Norway. We calculated the niche characteristics by Outlying Mean Index analysis using an independent data set collected from 141 lakes in northern Fennoscandia. We ran generalised linear models to identify traits most strongly affecting the distribution of individual species, and used a functional dispersion metric to explore trait diversity at community level. Benthic diatom distributions correlated positively with niche breadth, implying that generalists were more widely distributed than specialists, but negatively with niche position, suggesting that marginal species had narrow distributions. Cell size and acid tolerance were the key traits affecting diatom distributions: small size and strong acid tolerance were associated with a wider distribution. Local abiotic variables were more important than elevation in shaping trait diversity, which increased with pH and decreased with conductivity. Several acidic wetland ponds located at low elevations exhibited functionally clustered communities, reflecting stressful conditions that comprised a filter that selected acid‐tolerant species. Our results suggest that benthic diatom distributions across subarctic ponds are jointly driven by species cell size and tolerance towards water chemistry variables, especially acidity. Although elevation summarises the effects of several environmental factors, local abiotic variables were more strongly associated with trait diversity than were elevation effects. Our findings provide new insights into the key mechanisms associated with aquatic microbial distributions in highly sensitive climatic regions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Cell size and acid tolerance constrain pond diatom distributions in the subarctic

2018

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“…For LCBD, significant U‐shaped patterns indicate that the both ends of the environmental gradient may be occupied with specialized species (Legendre & De Cáceres, ). This observation is consistent with the one reported for diatom community along the same elevational gradient (Teittinen et al, ). The congruence of these distinct microbial groups suggests that the U‐shaped pattern may be a general feature of the microbial beta diversity pattern across environmental gradients.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…The hierarchical factors that affect microbial diversity in freshwaters comprise the following: (a) local‐scale abiotic factors including pH, nutrients and conductivity, along with biotic factors of competition, facilitation and grazing; (b) intermediate‐scale variables, that is, catchment variables that include terrestrial productivity, bedrock and soil type; and (c) the drivers that operate on large scales such as climate, dispersal and historical factors (Frissell, Liss, Warren, & Hurley, ). Some studies suggest that freshwater microbial diversity is determined mostly by local‐scale environmental factors such as pH and nutrient concentration (Van der Gucht et al, ; Wang et al, ), whereas other studies suggest large‐scale climatic or catchment properties are also essential (Teittinen, Wang, Strömgård, & Soininen, ). However, how the relative importance of these hierarchical environmental factors in shaping biodiversity may vary with taxonomic scales remains understudied.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Elevational patterns and hierarchical determinants of biodiversity across microbial taxonomic scales

et al. 2019

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Microbial biogeography is gaining increasing attention due to recent molecular methodological advance. However, the diversity patterns and their environmental determinants across taxonomic scales are still poorly studied. By sampling along an extensive elevational gradient in subarctic ponds of Finland and Norway, we examined the diversity patterns of aquatic bacteria and fungi from whole community to individual taxa across taxonomic coverage and taxonomic resolutions. We further quantified cross‐phylum congruence in multiple biodiversity metrics and evaluated the relative importance of climate, catchment and local pond variables as the hierarchical drivers of biodiversity across taxonomic scales. Bacterial community showed significantly decreasing elevational patterns in species richness and evenness, and U‐shaped patterns in local contribution to beta diversity (LCBD). Conversely, no significant species richness and evenness patterns were found for fungal community. Elevational patterns in species richness and LCBD, but not in evenness, were congruent across bacterial phyla. When narrowing down the taxonomic scope towards higher resolutions, bacterial diversity showed weaker and more complex elevational patterns. Taxonomic downscaling also indicated a notable change in the relative importance of biodiversity determinants with stronger local environmental filtering, but decreased importance of climatic variables. This suggested that niche conservatism of temperature preference was phylogenetically deeper than that of water chemistry variables. Our results provide novel perspectives for microbial biogeography and highlight the importance of taxonomic scale dependency and hierarchical drivers when modelling biodiversity and species distribution responses to future climatic scenarios.

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“…In subarctic ponds in Norway and Finland, diatom and cyanobacteria richness followed a unimodal trend with increased elevation, non‐cyanobacteria richness decreased, while heterotrophic bacterial diversity was more directly related to elevation and terrestrial productivity (Teittinen et al. ). A meta‐analysis on freshwater bacteria of lakes found pH to be a very influential environmental variable and latitude a weak, but significant, variable in influencing bacterial community composition (Newton et al.…”

Section: Biotic Characteristics Across Biome Gradients: What Is a Frementioning

confidence: 99%

The freshwater biome gradient framework: predicting macroscale properties based on latitude, altitude, and precipitation

et al. 2019

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Understanding global ecological patterns and processes, from biogeochemical to biogeographical, requires broad‐scale macrosystems context for comparing and contrasting ecosystems. Climate gradients (precipitation and temperature) and other continental‐scale patterns shape freshwater environments due to their influences on terrestrial environments and their direct and indirect effects on the abiotic and biotic characteristics of lakes, streams, and wetlands. We combined literature review, analyses of open access data, and logical argument to assess abiotic and biotic characters of freshwater systems across gradients of latitude and elevation that drive precipitation, temperature, and other variability. We explored the predictive value of analyzing patterns in freshwater ecosystems at the global macrosystems scale. We found many patterns based on climate, particularly those dependent upon hydrologic characteristics and linked to characteristics of terrestrial biomes. For example, continental waters of dry areas will generally be widely dispersed and have higher probability of drying and network disconnection, greater temperatures, greater inorganic turbidity, greater salinity, and lower riparian canopy cover relative to areas with high precipitation. These factors will influence local community composition and ecosystem rates. Enough studies are now available at the continental or global scale to start to characterize patterns under a coherent conceptual framework, though considerable gaps exist in the tropics and less developed regions. We present illustrative global‐scale trends of abiotic, biotic, and anthropogenic impacts in freshwater ecosystems across gradients of precipitation and temperature to further understanding of broad‐scale trends and to aid prediction in the face of global change. We view freshwater systems as occurring across arrays of multiple gradients (including latitude, altitude, and precipitation) rather than areas with specific boundaries. While terrestrial biomes capture some variability along these gradients that influence freshwaters, other features such as, slope, geology, and historical glaciation also influence freshwaters. Our conceptual framework is not so much a single hypothesis as a way to logically characterize patterns in freshwaters at scales relevant to (1) evolutionary processes that give rise to freshwater biodiversity, (2) regulatory units that influence freshwater ecosystems, and (3) the current scope of anthropogenic impacts on freshwaters and the vital ecosystem services they provide.

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Local and geographical factors jointly drive elevational patterns in three microbial groups across subarctic ponds

Cited by 40 publications

References 61 publications

Cell size and acid tolerance constrain pond diatom distributions in the subarctic

Cell size and acid tolerance constrain pond diatom distributions in the subarctic

Elevational patterns and hierarchical determinants of biodiversity across microbial taxonomic scales

The freshwater biome gradient framework: predicting macroscale properties based on latitude, altitude, and precipitation

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