Microbial interactions lead to rapid micro-scale successions on model marine particles

Manoshi S Datta, Elzbieta Sliwerska, Jeff Gore, Martin F Polz, Otto X Cordero

Abstract

Here, we track the taxon and trait dynamics of bacteria attached to model marine particles and demonstrate that particle-attached communities undergo rapid, reproducible successions driven by ecological interactions. These results suggest that primary successions may shape particle-attached bacterial communities in the ocean and that rapid community-wide metabolic shifts could limit rates of marine particle degradation.