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Bielčik M, Schlägel UE, Schäfer M, Aguilar-Trigueros CA, Lakovic M, Sosa-Hernández MA, Hammer EC, Jeltsch F, Rillig MC. Aligning spatial ecological theory with the study of clonal organisms: the case of fungal coexistence. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2024. [PMID: 39073180 DOI: 10.1111/brv.13119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2023] [Revised: 06/28/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/30/2024]
Abstract
Established ecological theory has focused on unitary organisms, and thus its concepts have matured into a form that often hinders rather than facilitates the ecological study of modular organisms. Here, we use the example of filamentous fungi to develop concepts that enable integration of non-unitary (modular) organisms into the established community ecology theory, with particular focus on its spatial aspects. In doing so, we provide a link between fungal community ecology and modern coexistence theory (MCT). We first show how community processes and predictions made by MCT can be used to define meaningful scales in fungal ecology. This leads to the novel concept of the unit of community interactions (UCI), a promising conceptual tool for applying MCT to communities of modular organisms with indeterminate clonal growth and hierarchical individuality. We outline plausible coexistence mechanisms structuring fungal communities, and show at what spatial scales and in what habitats they are most likely to act. We end by describing challenges and opportunities for empirical and theoretical research in fungal competitive coexistence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miloš Bielčik
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Altensteinstr. 6, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Altensteinstr.34, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Microbial Biogeochemistry, Research Area Landscape Functioning, Leibniz Center for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), Eberswalder Str.84, Müncheberg, 15374, Germany
| | - Ulrike E Schlägel
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Am Mühlenberg 3, House 60, Potsdam-Golm, 14476, Germany
| | - Merlin Schäfer
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Am Mühlenberg 3, House 60, Potsdam-Golm, 14476, Germany
- Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, Alte Messe 6, Leipzig, 04103, Germany
| | - Carlos A Aguilar-Trigueros
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Altensteinstr. 6, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Altensteinstr.34, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Hawkesbury Campus, Building R2, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, New South Wales, 2751, Australia
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, P.O. Box 35, Seminaarinkatu 15, Jyväskylä, 40014, Finland
| | - Milica Lakovic
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Altensteinstr. 6, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Altensteinstr.34, Berlin, 14195, Germany
| | - Moisés A Sosa-Hernández
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Altensteinstr. 6, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Altensteinstr.34, Berlin, 14195, Germany
| | - Edith C Hammer
- Department of Biology, Microbial Ecology, Lund University, Ekologihuset, Sölvegatan 37, Lund, 22362, Sweden
| | - Florian Jeltsch
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Altensteinstr.34, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Am Mühlenberg 3, House 60, Potsdam-Golm, 14476, Germany
| | - Matthias C Rillig
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Altensteinstr. 6, Berlin, 14195, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Altensteinstr.34, Berlin, 14195, Germany
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O'Leary J, Journeaux KL, Houthuijs K, Engel J, Sommer U, Viant MR, Eastwood DC, Müller C, Boddy L. Space and patchiness affects diversity-function relationships in fungal decay communities. THE ISME JOURNAL 2021; 15:720-731. [PMID: 33067587 PMCID: PMC8027639 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-020-00808-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2020] [Revised: 10/01/2020] [Accepted: 10/05/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
The space in which organisms live determines health and physicality, shaping the way in which they interact with their peers. Space, therefore, is critically important for species diversity and the function performed by individuals within mixed communities. The biotic and abiotic factors defined by the space that organisms occupy are ecologically significant and the difficulty in quantifying space-defined parameters within complex systems limits the study of ecological processes. Here, we overcome this problem using a tractable system whereby spatial heterogeneity in interacting fungal wood decay communities demonstrates that scale and patchiness of territory directly influence coexistence dynamics. Spatial arrangement in 2- and 3-dimensions resulted in measurable metabolic differences that provide evidence of a clear biological response to changing landscape architecture. This is of vital importance to microbial systems in all ecosystems globally, as our results demonstrate that community function is driven by the effects of spatial dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jade O'Leary
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, UK
| | - Katie L Journeaux
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, UK
| | - Kas Houthuijs
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Jasper Engel
- NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility-Metabolomics Node (NBAF-B), School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Ulf Sommer
- NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility-Metabolomics Node (NBAF-B), School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Mark R Viant
- NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility-Metabolomics Node (NBAF-B), School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | | | - Carsten Müller
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, UK
| | - Lynne Boddy
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, UK.
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Bielčik M, Aguilar-Trigueros CA, Lakovic M, Jeltsch F, Rillig MC. The role of active movement in fungal ecology and community assembly. MOVEMENT ECOLOGY 2019; 7:36. [PMID: 31832199 PMCID: PMC6864958 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-019-0180-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2019] [Accepted: 10/15/2019] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Movement ecology aims to provide common terminology and an integrative framework of movement research across all groups of organisms. Yet such work has focused on unitary organisms so far, and thus the important group of filamentous fungi has not been considered in this context. With the exception of spore dispersal, movement in filamentous fungi has not been integrated into the movement ecology field. At the same time, the field of fungal ecology has been advancing research on topics like informed growth, mycelial translocations, or fungal highways using its own terminology and frameworks, overlooking the theoretical developments within movement ecology. We provide a conceptual and terminological framework for interdisciplinary collaboration between these two disciplines, and show how both can benefit from closer links: We show how placing the knowledge from fungal biology and ecology into the framework of movement ecology can inspire both theoretical and empirical developments, eventually leading towards a better understanding of fungal ecology and community assembly. Conversely, by a greater focus on movement specificities of filamentous fungi, movement ecology stands to benefit from the challenge to evolve its concepts and terminology towards even greater universality. We show how our concept can be applied for other modular organisms (such as clonal plants and slime molds), and how this can lead towards comparative studies with the relationship between organismal movement and ecosystems in the focus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miloš Bielčik
- Institut für Biologie, Plant Ecology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Carlos A. Aguilar-Trigueros
- Institut für Biologie, Plant Ecology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Milica Lakovic
- Institut für Biologie, Plant Ecology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Florian Jeltsch
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), 14195 Berlin, Germany
- Department of Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation, University of Potsdam, Am Mühlenberg 3, 14476 Potsdam-Golm, Germany
| | - Matthias C. Rillig
- Institut für Biologie, Plant Ecology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), 14195 Berlin, Germany
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