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SOIL MICROBES

Traits track taxonomy

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 3, pages 1001–1002 (2019)Cite this article

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A novel technique based on isotope analysis shows that, compared to ecosystem type, evolutionary history explains more variation in bacterial growth traits along an elevation gradient. This knowledge could help move microbial ecologists toward improved predictive models of soil processes.

Bacteria and Archaea account for the vast majority of genetic diversity of life on Earth1. Studying such an enormous trove of microbes — and the specific roles they play — has been a major challenge for microbial ecologists. In this issue of Nature Ecology & Evolution, Morrissey et al.2 tackle diverse microbial communities with a powerful new isotope technique in soils of the southwestern United States. The approach reveals that evolutionary history explains much of the variation in microbial growth traits.

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Fig. 1: Using a new technique with isotope labels, Morrissey et al.2 show that evolutionary history explains more variation in traits of soil bacteria than soil conditions in ecosystems across an elevation gradient.

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  1. Departments of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA

    Steven D. Allison

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  1. Steven D. Allison
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Correspondence to Steven D. Allison.

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The author declares no competing interests.

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Allison, S.D. Traits track taxonomy. Nat Ecol Evol 3, 1001–1002 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-019-0937-8

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