Diversity is the question, not the answer

1 Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, United States
2 Program in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, United States
3 DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, United States
DOI
10.7287/peerj.preprints.2287v1
Published
Accepted
Subject Areas
Ecology, Environmental Sciences, Genomics, Microbiology
Keywords
biodiversity, alpha diversity, microbial ecology, microbiome, metagenomics, 16S rRNA gene sequencing, microbial communities, community dynamics, ecological theory, perspectives
Copyright
© 2016 Shade
Licence
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ Preprints) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited.
Cite this article
Shade A. 2016. Diversity is the question, not the answer. PeerJ Preprints 4:e2287v1

Abstract

Local (within-sample/alpha) diversity is often implicated as a cause of success or failure of a microbial community. However, the relationships between diversity and emergent properties of a community, such as its stability, productivity, or invasibility, are much more nuanced. In the submitted manuscript, I argue that diversity without context provides limited insights into the mechanisms underpinning community patterns. I provide examples from traditional and microbial ecology to discuss common complications and assumptions about within-sample diversity that may prevent us from digging deeper into the more specific mechanisms underpinning community outcomes. I suggest that measurement of diversity should serve as a starting point for further inquiry of ecological mechanisms rather than an “answer” to community outcomes.

Author Comment

This perspectives piece has already undergone peer review at a journal, which suggested a few revisions. This piece was revised according to those helpful reviewer comments, and it was re-submitted to that journal for reconsideration. This is the first version submitted to PeerJ Preprints.