Patterns in microbiological aquatic communities
Fenchel, T. (1987). Patterns in microbiological aquatic communities, in: Gee, J.H.R. et al. (Ed.) Organization of communities past and present: The 27th Symposium of the British Ecological Society, Aberystwyth 1986. pp. 281-294
In: Gee, J.H.R.; Giller, P.S. (Ed.) (1987). Organization of communities past and present: The 27th Symposium of the British Ecological Society, Aberystwyth 1986. [S.n.]: [s.l.]. , more
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| Keywords |
Composition > Community composition
Environments > Aquatic environment
Literature reviews
Microorganisms
Reviews
Marine/Coastal; Brackish water; Fresh water |
| Abstract |
Microbial communities differ from those formed by larger organisms mainly with respect to the characteristic scales of time and space; these are determined by the rates of growth, by the motility of the organisms and by some physical properties of the environment. From the viewpoint of community ecology these properties are useful. Simply observing microbial communities may add new perspectives to our ideas on community structure and function in general. Most important, however, is the fact that microbes lend themselves well to experimentation; the ecological niches of single species can be determined precisely in many cases. In addition, artificial or natural communities with different degrees of complexity can be manipulated and studied over a period of time which represents a large number of generations of the component organisms. |
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