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Microbial ecology

The social dimension of microbial niches

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 7, pages 649–650 (2023)Cite this article

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For a long time, the ecological niche concept was less popular for microbes than for other organisms. A new proxy for the ecological niche breadth of a microorganism, based on the variability of the communities with which it associates, enables investigation of the correlates of being a social generalist or social specialist.

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Fig. 1: Community composition similarity as a quantitative ecological feature of the microbial social niche.

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  1. Equipe Adaptations et Interactions Microbiennes dans l’Environnement, Génétique Moléculaire, Génomique, Microbiologie, UMR 7156 Université de Strasbourg-CNRS, Strasbourg, France

    Emilie E. L. Muller

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  1. Emilie E. L. Muller
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Correspondence to Emilie E. L. Muller.

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Muller, E.E.L. The social dimension of microbial niches. Nat Ecol Evol 7, 649–650 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-023-02020-0

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