142051 - Bacterial epibiont communities of panmictic Antarctic krill_OA.pdf (663.95 kB)
Bacterial epibiont communities of panmictic Antarctic krill are spatially structured
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-20, 19:49 authored by Laurence ClarkeLaurence Clarke, Suter, L, King, R, Bissett, A, Sophie BestleySophie Bestley, Deagle, BEAntarctic krill (Euphausia superba) are amongst the most abundant animals on Earth, with a circumpolar distribution in the Southern Ocean. Genetic and genomic studies have failed to detect any population structure for the species, suggesting a single panmictic population. However, the hyper‐abundance of krill slows the rate of genetic differentiation, masking potential underlying structure. Here we use high‐throughput sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes to show that krill bacterial epibiont communities exhibit spatial structuring, driven mainly by distance rather than environmental factors, especially for strongly krill‐associated bacteria. Estimating the ecological processes driving bacterial community turnover indicated this was driven by bacterial dispersal limitation increasing with geographic distance. Furthermore, divergent epibiont communities generated from a single krill swarm split between aquarium tanks under near identical conditions suggests physical isolation in itself can cause krill‐associated bacterial communities to diverge. Our findings show that Antarctic krill‐associated bacterial communities are geographically structured, in direct contrast with the lack of structure observed for krill genetic and genomic data.
Funding
Australian Research Council
History
Publication title
Molecular EcologyVolume
30Issue
4Pagination
1042-1052ISSN
0962-1083Department/School
Institute for Marine and Antarctic StudiesPublisher
Blackwell Publishing LtdPlace of publication
9600 Garsington Rd, Oxford, England, Oxon, Ox4 2DgRights statement
Copyright 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.Repository Status
- Open