Abstract
Loss of plant biodiversity can result in reduced abundance and diversity of associated species with implications for ecosystem functioning. In ecosystems low in plant species diversity, such as Neotropical mangrove forests, it is thought that genetic diversity within the dominant plant species could play an important role in shaping associated communities. Here, we used a manipulative field experiment to study the effects of maternal genotypic identity and genetic diversity of the red mangrove Rhizophora mangle on the composition and richness of associated soil bacterial communities. Using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T‐RFLP) community fingerprinting, we found that bacterial community composition differed among R. mangle maternal genotypes but not with genetic diversity. Bacterial taxa richness, total soil nitrogen, and total soil carbon were not significantly affected by maternal genotypic identity or genetic diversity of R. mangle. Our findings show that genotype selection in reforestation projects could influence soil bacterial community composition. Further research is needed to determine what impact these bacterial community differences might have on ecosystem processes, such as carbon and nitrogen cycling.
Highlights
The world is currently experiencing losses in biodiversity at an accelerated rate (IPBES, 2019), and much research has focussed on understanding the impacts of this loss on ecosystem functioning (Duffy et al, 2017; Hooper et al, 2005; Loreau et al, 2001)
Using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) community fingerprinting, we found that bacterial community composition differed among R. mangle maternal genotypes but not with genetic diversity
While much of the research examining plant diversity–ecosystem functioning relationships has focussed on loss of plant species or functional groups (Balvanera et al, 2006; Hooper et al, 2005; Wardle, 2016), other studies have found that loss of genetic diversity within a dominant or foundation plant species can have similar consequences for associated species and ecosystem functioning (Crutsinger et al, 2006; Hughes et al, 2008)
Summary
The world is currently experiencing losses in biodiversity at an accelerated rate (IPBES, 2019), and much research has focussed on understanding the impacts of this loss on ecosystem functioning (Duffy et al, 2017; Hooper et al, 2005; Loreau et al, 2001). While we are not aware of any studies that have tested effects of intraspecific genetic diversity in mangrove ecosystems, maternal genotype has been found to influence both resistance to mortality from infestation by the parasitic beetle, Coccotrypes rhizophorae (Devlin, 2004), and seedling survival in different positions in the intertidal zone (Proffitt & Travis, 2010) in the red mangrove, Rhizophora mangle These results demonstrate how genotypic identity or reduction in genetic diversity could impact the ability of mangrove plant populations to deal with pressures such as herbivory or sea level rise. Mean water levels in the Indian River Lagoon are typically higher in late autumn (Smith, 1986) when the site can be inundated for several weeks at a time, but the soil surface is generally exposed at low tide for the rest of the year
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