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Spatial genetic structure in a crustacean herbivore highlights the need for local considerations in Baltic Sea biodiversity management.

ABSTRACT: Incorporating species' eco-evolutionary responses to human-caused disturbances remains a challenge in marine management efforts. A prerequisite is knowledge of geographic structure and scale of genetic diversity and connectivity-the so-called seascape genetic patterns. The Baltic Sea is an excellent model system for studies linking seascape genetics with effects of anthropogenic stress. However, seascape genetic patterns in this area are only described for a few species and are completely unknown for invertebrate herbivores, which constitute a critical part of the ecosystem. This information is crucial for sustainable management, particularly under future scenarios of rapid environmental change. Here, we investigate the population genetic structure among 31 locations throughout the Baltic Sea, of which 45% were located in marine protected areas, in one of the most important herbivores of this region, the isopod crustacean Idotea balthica, using an array of 33,774 genome-wide SNP markers derived from 2b-RAD sequencing. In addition, we generate a biophysical connectivity matrix for I. balthica from a combination of oceanographic current models and estimated life history traits. We find population structure on scales of hundreds of kilometers across the Baltic Sea, where genomic patterns in most cases closely match biophysical connectivity, indicating passive transport with oceanographic currents as an important mean of dispersal in this species. We also find a reduced genetic diversity in terms of heterozygosity along the main salinity gradient of the Baltic Sea, suggesting periods of low population size. Our results provide crucial information for the management of a key ecosystem species under expected changes in temperature and salinity following global climate change in a marine coastal area.

SUBMITTER: De Wit P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7232771 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Spatial genetic structure in a crustacean herbivore highlights the need for local considerations in Baltic Sea biodiversity management.

De Wit Pierre P Jonsson Per R PR Pereyra Ricardo T RT Panova Marina M André Carl C Johannesson Kerstin K

Evolutionary applications 20200205 5

Incorporating species' eco-evolutionary responses to human-caused disturbances remains a challenge in marine management efforts. A prerequisite is knowledge of geographic structure and scale of genetic diversity and connectivity-the so-called seascape genetic patterns. The Baltic Sea is an excellent model system for studies linking seascape genetics with effects of anthropogenic stress. However, seascape genetic patterns in this area are only described for a few species and are completely unknow ...[more]

PMID: 32431747

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Project description:Microplastics in aquatic environments provide novel habitats for surface-colonizing microorganisms. Given the continuing debate on whether substrate-specific properties or environmental factors prevail in shaping biofilm assemblages on microplastics, we examined the influence of substrate vs. spatial factors in the development of bacterial assemblages on polyethylene (PE), polystyrene (PS), wood, and seston and in the free-living fraction. Further, the selective colonization of microplastics by potential pathogens was investigated because among the bacterial species found in microplastic-associated biofilms are potentially pathogenic Vibrio spp. Due to their persistence and great dispersal potential, microplastics could act as vectors for these potential pathogens and for biofilm assemblages in general. Incubation experiments with these substrates were conducted for 7 days during a summer cruise along the eastern Baltic Sea coastline in waters covering a salinity gradient of 4.5-9 PSU. Bacterial assemblages were analyzed using 16S rRNA-gene amplicon sequencing, distance-based redundancy analyses, and the linear discriminant analysis effect size method to identify taxa that were significantly more abundant on the plastics. The results showed that the sample type was the most important factor structuring bacterial assemblages overall. Surface properties were less significant in differentiating attached biofilms on PE, PS, and wood; instead, environmental factors, mainly salinity, prevailed. A potential role for inorganic-nutrient limitations in surface-specific attachment was identified as well. Alphaproteobacteria (Sphingomonadaceae, Devosiaceae, and Rhodobacteraceae) and Gammaproteobacteria (Alteromonadaceae and Pseudomonas) were distinctive for the PE- and PS-associated biofilms. Vibrio was more abundant on the PE and PS biofilms than on seston, but its abundances were highest on wood and positively correlated with salinity. These results corroborate earlier findings that microplastics constitute a habitat for biofilm-forming microorganisms distinct from seston, but less from wood. In contrast to earlier reports of low Vibrio numbers on microplastics, these results also suggest that vibrios are early colonizers of surfaces in general. Spatial as well as temporal dynamics should therefore be considered when assessing the potential of microplastics to serve as vectors for bacterial assemblages and putative pathogens, as these parameters are major drivers of biofilm diversity.

Dataset Information

Spatial genetic structure in a crustacean herbivore highlights the need for local considerations in Baltic Sea biodiversity management.

Publications

Spatial genetic structure in a crustacean herbivore highlights the need for local considerations in Baltic Sea biodiversity management.

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