Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration
Abstract Marine fungal biodiversity remains vastly understudied, and even less is known of their biogeography and the processes responsible for driving these distributions in marine environments. We investigated the fungal communities associated with the seagrass Enhalus acoroides collected from Sin...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2019-10-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5631 |
| _version_ | 1818668240890494976 |
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| author | Benjamin J. Wainwright Geoffrey L. Zahn Joshua Zushi Nicole Li Ying Lee Jillian Lean Sim Ooi Jen Nie Lee Danwei Huang |
| author_facet | Benjamin J. Wainwright Geoffrey L. Zahn Joshua Zushi Nicole Li Ying Lee Jillian Lean Sim Ooi Jen Nie Lee Danwei Huang |
| author_sort | Benjamin J. Wainwright |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Marine fungal biodiversity remains vastly understudied, and even less is known of their biogeography and the processes responsible for driving these distributions in marine environments. We investigated the fungal communities associated with the seagrass Enhalus acoroides collected from Singapore and Peninsular Malaysia to test the hypothesis that fungal communities are homogeneous throughout the study area. Seagrass samples were separated into different structures (leaves, roots, and rhizomes), and a sediment sample was collected next to each plant. Amplicon sequencing of the fungal internal transcribed spacer 1 and subsequent analysis revealed significant differences in fungal communities collected from different locations and different structures. We show a significant pattern of distance decay, with samples collected close to each other having more similar fungal communities in comparison with those that are more distant, indicating dispersal limitations and/or differences in habitat type are contributing to the observed biogeographic patterns. These results add to our understanding of the seagrass ecosystem in an understudied region of the world that is also the global epicenter of seagrass diversity. This work has implications for seagrass management and conservation initiatives, and we recommend that fungal community composition be a consideration for any seagrass transplant or restoration programme. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-17T06:33:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c53fe29123734a74be5a4745c426b6c4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-17T06:33:11Z |
| publishDate | 2019-10-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-c53fe29123734a74be5a4745c426b6c42022-12-21T22:00:05ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582019-10-01919112881129710.1002/ece3.5631Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restorationBenjamin J. Wainwright0Geoffrey L. Zahn1Joshua Zushi2Nicole Li Ying Lee3Jillian Lean Sim Ooi4Jen Nie Lee5Danwei Huang6Department of Biological Sciences National University of Singapore Singapore City SingaporeBiology Department Utah Valley University Orem UT USABiology Department Utah Valley University Orem UT USADepartment of Biological Sciences National University of Singapore Singapore City SingaporeDepartment of Geography Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences University of Malaya Kuala Lumpur MalaysiaFaculty of Science and Marine Environment University Malaysia Terengganu Terengganu MalaysiaDepartment of Biological Sciences National University of Singapore Singapore City SingaporeAbstract Marine fungal biodiversity remains vastly understudied, and even less is known of their biogeography and the processes responsible for driving these distributions in marine environments. We investigated the fungal communities associated with the seagrass Enhalus acoroides collected from Singapore and Peninsular Malaysia to test the hypothesis that fungal communities are homogeneous throughout the study area. Seagrass samples were separated into different structures (leaves, roots, and rhizomes), and a sediment sample was collected next to each plant. Amplicon sequencing of the fungal internal transcribed spacer 1 and subsequent analysis revealed significant differences in fungal communities collected from different locations and different structures. We show a significant pattern of distance decay, with samples collected close to each other having more similar fungal communities in comparison with those that are more distant, indicating dispersal limitations and/or differences in habitat type are contributing to the observed biogeographic patterns. These results add to our understanding of the seagrass ecosystem in an understudied region of the world that is also the global epicenter of seagrass diversity. This work has implications for seagrass management and conservation initiatives, and we recommend that fungal community composition be a consideration for any seagrass transplant or restoration programme.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5631biodiversitybiogeographyconservationdispersalEnhalus acoroidesmarine fungi |
| spellingShingle | Benjamin J. Wainwright Geoffrey L. Zahn Joshua Zushi Nicole Li Ying Lee Jillian Lean Sim Ooi Jen Nie Lee Danwei Huang Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration Ecology and Evolution biodiversity biogeography conservation dispersal Enhalus acoroides marine fungi |
| title | Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration |
| title_full | Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration |
| title_fullStr | Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration |
| title_full_unstemmed | Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration |
| title_short | Seagrass‐associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration |
| title_sort | seagrass associated fungal communities show distance decay of similarity that has implications for seagrass management and restoration |
| topic | biodiversity biogeography conservation dispersal Enhalus acoroides marine fungi |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5631 |
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