TY - JOUR
T1 - Dispersal Limitation Governs Bacterial Community Assembly in the Northern Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia purpurea) at the Continental Scale
AU - Cagle, Grace A.
AU - McGrew, Alicia
AU - Baiser, Benjamin
AU - Record, Sydne
AU - Gotelli, Nicholas J.
AU - Gravel, Dominique
AU - Bittleston, Leonora S.
AU - Young, Erica B.
AU - Gray, Sarah M.
AU - Freedman, Zachary B.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s). Global Ecology and Biogeography published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
PY - 2024/12
Y1 - 2024/12
N2 - Aim: Ecological theory suggests that dispersal limitation and selection by climatic factors influence bacterial community assembly at a continental scale, yet the conditions governing the relative importance of each process remains unclear. The carnivorous pitcher plant Sarracenia purpurea provides a model aquatic microecosystem to assess bacterial communities across the host plant's north–south range in North America. This study determined the relative influences of dispersal limitation and environmental selection on the assembly of bacterial communities inhabiting S. purpurea pitchers at the continental scale. Location: Eastern United States and Canada. Time Period: 2016. Major Taxa Studied: Bacteria inhabiting S. purpurea pitchers. Methods: Pitcher morphology, fluid, inquilines and prey were measured, and pitcher fluid underwent DNA sequencing for bacterial community analysis. Null modelling of β-diversity provided estimates for the contributions of selection and dispersal limitation to community assembly, complemented by an examination of spatial clustering of individuals. Phylogenetic and ecological associations of co-occurrence network module bacteria was determined by assessing the phylogenetic diversity and habitat preferences of member taxa. Results: Dispersal limitation was evident from between-site variation and spatial aggregation of individual bacterial taxa in the S. purpurea pitcher system. Selection pressure was weak across the geographic range, yet network module analysis indicated environmental selection within subgroups. A group of aquatic bacteria held traits under selection in warmer, wetter climates, and midge abundance was associated with selection for traits held by a group of saprotrophs. Processes that increased pitcher fluid volume weakened selection in one module, possibly by supporting greater bacterial dispersal. Conclusion: Dispersal limitation governed bacterial community assembly in S. purpurea pitchers at a continental scale (74% of between-site comparisons) and was significantly greater than selection across the range. Network modules showed evidence for selection, demonstrating that multiple processes acted concurrently in bacterial community assembly at the continental scale.
AB - Aim: Ecological theory suggests that dispersal limitation and selection by climatic factors influence bacterial community assembly at a continental scale, yet the conditions governing the relative importance of each process remains unclear. The carnivorous pitcher plant Sarracenia purpurea provides a model aquatic microecosystem to assess bacterial communities across the host plant's north–south range in North America. This study determined the relative influences of dispersal limitation and environmental selection on the assembly of bacterial communities inhabiting S. purpurea pitchers at the continental scale. Location: Eastern United States and Canada. Time Period: 2016. Major Taxa Studied: Bacteria inhabiting S. purpurea pitchers. Methods: Pitcher morphology, fluid, inquilines and prey were measured, and pitcher fluid underwent DNA sequencing for bacterial community analysis. Null modelling of β-diversity provided estimates for the contributions of selection and dispersal limitation to community assembly, complemented by an examination of spatial clustering of individuals. Phylogenetic and ecological associations of co-occurrence network module bacteria was determined by assessing the phylogenetic diversity and habitat preferences of member taxa. Results: Dispersal limitation was evident from between-site variation and spatial aggregation of individual bacterial taxa in the S. purpurea pitcher system. Selection pressure was weak across the geographic range, yet network module analysis indicated environmental selection within subgroups. A group of aquatic bacteria held traits under selection in warmer, wetter climates, and midge abundance was associated with selection for traits held by a group of saprotrophs. Processes that increased pitcher fluid volume weakened selection in one module, possibly by supporting greater bacterial dispersal. Conclusion: Dispersal limitation governed bacterial community assembly in S. purpurea pitchers at a continental scale (74% of between-site comparisons) and was significantly greater than selection across the range. Network modules showed evidence for selection, demonstrating that multiple processes acted concurrently in bacterial community assembly at the continental scale.
KW - Sarracenia purpurea
KW - bacteria
KW - community assembly
KW - continental scale
KW - dispersal limitation
KW - metacommunity
KW - microbial community
KW - pitcher plant
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85205597956&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/geb.13922
DO - 10.1111/geb.13922
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85205597956
SN - 1466-822X
VL - 33
JO - Global Ecology and Biogeography
JF - Global Ecology and Biogeography
IS - 12
M1 - e13922
ER -