Drivers of spatial and temporal variation in nectarivorous microbial communities
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Earlier ecologists such as C. Linnaeus (1781), Dawin (1859) and Humboldt (1845) began the monumental task of cataloging the temporal and geographic variation of earth's biodiversity. Concurrently early mycologists such as Augustin de Candolle (1820), Miles Joseph Berkely (1963), Bass Becking (1934) and Bisby (1943) questioned whether microbes exhibited geographic and temporal variations. As recently as 10 years ago, contemporary researchers were involved in heated debate about whether microbes exhibit biogeographical patterns. Molecular techniques have revealed that microbes unequivocally exhibit biogeographical patterns. My thesis offers insight into the processes shaping biogeographical patterns in one type of microbial community and examines the effects that anthropogenic changes are having on microbial community structure (Chapters 3 and 4). I use yeast that live in the nectar of flowers and on their pollinator vectors as a model system to examine microbial biogeography. We show that these nectarivorous microbes significantly affect nectar quality (Chapter 5), and previous research indicates that changes in nectar quality in turn affects pollinator behavior. In addition nectar yeast distribution and community structure is shaped by pollinator behavior, as these yeast are dependent on pollinators to be transferred among food sources (Chapter 3, 4). I found that in multiple cases, yeast abundance and community composition were most strongly influenced by pollinator behavior and not by any of the environmental factors tested (Chapter 2 and 3). However, pollinators were strongly influenced by environmental factors in particular the amount of treecover, floral density and habitat type (Chapter 2, 3 and 4). As a whole we used this thesis to explore many of the processes involved in microbial biogeography such as dispersal limitation, environmental conditions, habitat chemistry, and competition. We found that although all of these factors play a role in shaping the structure of yeast communities, dispersal limitation seemed to be the most important factor and yeast communities on pollinators were highly mutable (Chapter 4), most likely contributing to the magnitude of dispersal effects. In addition these studies examine the spatial and temporal scales that are most important in determining microbial species' abundance and distribution.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic; electronic resource; remote |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Publication date | 2013 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Associated with | Belisle, Melinda |
|---|---|
| Associated with | Stanford University, Department of Biology. |
| Primary advisor | Fukami, Tadashi, 1972- |
| Thesis advisor | Fukami, Tadashi, 1972- |
| Thesis advisor | Ehrlich, Paul R |
| Thesis advisor | Mooney, Harold A |
| Thesis advisor | Peay, Kabir |
| Advisor | Ehrlich, Paul R |
| Advisor | Mooney, Harold A |
| Advisor | Peay, Kabir |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Melinda Belisle. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Department of Biology. |
| Thesis | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2013. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2013 by Melinda Susanna Belisle
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