Search

In recent years, an extended body of literature has focused on the importance of temporal dynamics in shaping the structure of plant and pollinator communities and their interactions. This improvement from a previously static perspective to community analysis has allowed us to understand many of the ecological processes that shape these communities. However, a focus on temporal dynamics has led to a decreased attention to the spatial dynamics. Here, we use a dataset collected across two contrasting habitat types in N and SW Spain, mountain grasslands and the understory of sparse pine forests. We collected data across five sites in each area, and weekly throughout the full flowering season at each area for two consecutive years. Our results show that spatial differences in species composition and species individual roles led to significant changes in interaction composition. We find that interaction turnover was much larger across space than time, demonstrating that the spatial context leads to a significant rewiring of interactions. Our study shows significant spatial and temporal dynamics that we are currently far from understanding and that explain why predicting interactions is still a failed subject in ecology.

The use of manure as a fertilizer is a common agricultural practice that can improve soil physicochemical and biological properties. However, antibiotics and their metabolites are often present, leading to the adaptation of soil bacterial communities to their presence. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of the extensively used, broad-spectrum antibiotic oxytetracycline on soil microbial community adaptation using a pollution-induced community tolerance assay. Manure-amended soil was spiked with oxytetracycline (0, 2, 20, 60, 150, and 500 mg kg−1) three times every ten days in the selection phase. The detection phase was conducted in Biolog EcoPlates with a second oxytetracycline exposure (0, 5, 20, 40, 60, and 100 mg L−1). All treatments demonstrated decreased metabolic activity after exposure to ≥ 5 mg L−1 oxytetracycline during the detection phase. Meanwhile, a significant increase in tolerance was observed following exposure to ≥ 20 mg oxytetracycline per kg soil during the selection phase. Therefore, the pollution-induced community tolerance approach with Biolog EcoPlates was a useful system for the detection of antibiotic selection pressures on soil bacterial communities. It is important to properly manage animal waste before their application to the soil to reduce the occurrence of antibiotic-resistance in the environment.