Microbial Dormancy Supports Multi-Species Coexistence Under Resource Fluctuations
Journal
Ecology Letters
Journal Volume
27
Journal Issue
9
ISSN
1461-023X
1461-0248
Date Issued
2024-10-02
Author(s)
DOI
10.1111/ele.14507
Abstract
The ability for microbes to enter dormant states is adaptive under resource fluctuations and has been linked to the maintenance of diversity. Nevertheless, the mechanism by which microbial dormancy gives rise to the density-dependent feedbacks required for stable coexistence under resource fluctuations is not well understood. Via analysis of consumer-resource models, we show that the stable coexistence of dormancy and non-dormancy strategists is a consequence of the former benefiting more from resource fluctuations while simultaneously reducing overall resource variability, which sets up the requisite negative frequency dependence. Moreover, we find that dormants can coexist alongside gleaner and opportunist strategies in a competitive-exclusion-defying case of three species coexistence on a single resource. This multi-species coexistence is typically characterised by non-simple assembly rules that cannot be predicted from pairwise competition outcomes. The diversity maintained via this three-way trade-off represents a novel phenomenon that is ripe for further theoretical and empirical inquiry.
Publisher
Wiley
Description
Article number e14507
Type
letter