Ant colonies promote the diversity of soil microbial communities.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Delgado-Baquerizo M
PROVIDER: S-EPMC6461995 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Ant colonies promote the diversity of soil microbial communities.
Delgado-Baquerizo Manuel M Eldridge David J DJ Hamonts Kelly K Singh Brajesh K BK
The ISME journal 20190103 4
Little is known about the role of ant colonies in regulating the distribution and diversity of soil microbial communities across large spatial scales. Here, we conducted a survey across >1000 km in eastern Australia and found that, compared with surrounding bare soils, ant colonies promoted the richness (number of phylotypes) and relative abundance of rare taxa of fungi and bacteria. Ant nests were also an important reservoir for plant pathogens. Our study also provides a portfolio of microbial ...[more]
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