Molecular Ecology最新文献

{"title":"Genetic Novelty and Short-Term Evolutionary Dynamics in Drosophila yakuba mayottensis","authors":"Brandon A. Turner,&nbsp;James E. Titus-McQuillan,&nbsp;Amir Yassin,&nbsp;Rebekah L. Rogers","doi":"10.1111/mec.70618","DOIUrl":"10.1111/mec.70618","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Understanding how genetic novelty arises and contributes to population divergence is central to evolutionary biology. On short evolutionary timescales, the relative roles of new mutations and standing variation remain underexplored among structural variation. Here, we compare the contributions of chromosomal rearrangements, tandem duplications and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to early genomic differentiation in a recently colonized island population, <i>Drosophila yakuba mayottensis</i>, from the island of Mayotte. By comparing the relative impacts of these mutation classes, along with the involvement of transposable elements (TEs), we assess whether certain mutations are more likely to contribute to rapid divergence. We show that TEs are disproportionately involved in the formation of novel structural variants shortly after colonization, particularly through direct insertions. Our results suggest that TE-associated rearrangements may bypass the clocklike pace of SNP accumulation and divergence, where the contributions of coding SNPs, tandem duplications and TE-facilitated ectopic recombination are constrained to standing variation on short timescales. Although TEs can drive the rapid emergence of novel variants, their full contribution to adaptation likely depends on evolutionary context and time since colonization. Together, our findings reveal time-dependent mutational dynamics and highlight the importance of structural variation, particularly TE-associated rearrangements, in shaping early genomic divergence following habitat shifts.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 21","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-11-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13731828/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149316506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Dating the Colonisation and Source of Adaptive Genetic Variation in the Iago Sparrow (Passer iagoensis)","authors":"José Cerca,&nbsp;Ângela M. Ribeiro,&nbsp;Michael Matschiner,&nbsp;Rosa Alicia Jiménez,&nbsp;Hugo Pereira,&nbsp;Zheng Oong,&nbsp;Gabriel David,&nbsp;Per Unneberg,&nbsp;Yan Wong,&nbsp;Gabriele Maria Sgarlata,&nbsp;Pim Edelaar,&nbsp;Tomáš Albrecht,&nbsp;Glenn-Peter Saetre,&nbsp;Pedro Cardia,&nbsp;Augusto Faustino,&nbsp;Evandro P. Lopes,&nbsp;Rauri C. K. Bowie,&nbsp;Mark Ravinet,&nbsp;Martim Melo","doi":"10.1111/mec.70587","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.70587","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Ancestral adaptive variation is thought to play an important role in facilitating adaptation to insular environments. However, to properly evaluate its role, we need to determine the age of genetic variation. In this study, we investigate the Iago sparrow (<i>Passer iagoensis</i>), a generalist endemic to the Cabo Verde archipelago, to understand how genetic diversity is maintained in an island lineage where populations are likely ephemeral and adaptation to environmental extremes is ongoing. Using whole-genome sequencing and phenotypic data, we inferred the species' evolutionary history, population structure, and signatures of selection. Our results show that the Iago sparrow diverged from its closest mainland relative approximately 4.26 million years ago, although the colonisation likely occurred only around 2 million years ago. Population structure analyses reveal three distinct lineages, corresponding to geographic divisions within the archipelago, with the Rombos islets population exhibiting significant phenotypic divergence, particularly in bill morphology. Genome scans and phenotypic measurements identified signatures of divergent selection in genes associated with bill size (<i>HMG20B</i>) and bill shape (<i>ALX1</i>), suggesting adaptive evolution in response to local environmental conditions. Our ancestral recombination graph analysis provided temporal estimates for adaptive variation associated with these genes, suggesting that adaptive haplotypes observed in the Rombos population arose after colonisation of the archipelago. This contrasts with patterns described in Darwin's finches, where ancestral variation likely originated prior to colonisation. Our findings highlight the interplay of genetic drift, gene flow, and selection in shaping island species' genetic diversity. The Iago sparrow, a generalist thriving across diverse habitats, provides insights into the mechanisms that maintain genetic diversity in island lineages despite small population sizes and pronounced environmental heterogeneity.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 21","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-11-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.70587","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149311202","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Brain Transcriptomic Changes Associated With the Socially Regulated Behavioural Specialisation of Ant Queens","authors":"Hugo E. Le Lay,&nbsp;Maximilian F. Bolder,&nbsp;Thomas J. Colgan,&nbsp;Romain Libbrecht","doi":"10.1111/mec.70614","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.70614","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Insect societies are characterised by a reproductive division of labour between queens that monopolise egg production and workers that perform all non-reproductive tasks. The queen specialisation in egg laying is typically considered to be constitutive and independent of environmental conditions, but this common assumption was recently challenged by the finding that the presence of workers both induces and maintains the queen specialisation in several species of ants. However, the molecular changes that translate worker presence into queen behavioural specialisation remain unknown. To investigate the transcriptomic basis of the socially regulated specialisation of ant queens, we produced 93 individual brain transcriptomes from queens of the black garden ant <i>Lasius niger</i> that were experimentally maintained in different social environments. Our transcriptomic analyses revealed that 123 genes were differentially expressed between the brains of queens maintained with and without workers. These genes were enriched for processes related to brain energy metabolism and neuronal plasticity and signalling. By investigating the response of selected genes of interest to further manipulations of the social environment, we identified four candidate genes that fully mirrored the queen behavioural changes. Specifically, their expression changes in response to worker presence were reversible and they did not respond to mere cues of the worker presence. These candidate genes included the transcription factor <i>Krüppel-homologue 1</i> and other genes in the juvenile hormone and insulin signalling pathways, both known to regulate multiple aspects of division of labour in social insects. By producing a robust, well-replicated and well-controlled investigation of the transcriptomic basis of the behavioural specialisation of ant queens, this study provides a better understanding of the emergence and maintenance of reproductive division of labour in insect societies.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 21","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.70614","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149310894","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Relationships Among MHC Diversity, Parasites and Secondary Sexual Colouration","authors":"Allegra E. Love,&nbsp;Jackie Lighten,&nbsp;Cock van Oosterhout,&nbsp;Alexander S. T. Papadopulos,&nbsp;Stanley D. King,&nbsp;Ian G. Paterson,&nbsp;Lari C. Delaire,&nbsp;Lyndsey Baillie,&nbsp;Ian R. Bradbury,&nbsp;Janay A. Fox,&nbsp;Felipe Perez-Jvostov,&nbsp;Felipe Dargent,&nbsp;Marilyn Scott,&nbsp;Gregor F. Fussmann,&nbsp;Andrew P. Hendry,&nbsp;Paul Bentzen,&nbsp;Kiyoko M. Gotanda","doi":"10.1111/mec.70619","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.70619","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Sexual selection via honest (costly) signals of fitness can generate patterns in immunogenetic diversity at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). MHC diversity explains variation in immunocompetence—and therefore fitness—thus impacting the ability to generate honest signals. Differences in guppy (<i>Poecilia reticulata</i>) colour patterns can be driven by opposing selection pressures of predation and female mate choice, but the effect of parasitism has received less attention. By studying 21 wild guppy populations in Trinidad, we sought to quantify covariation among parasitic <i>Gyrodactylus</i> spp. infections, male sexual ornamentation (orange and black colouration) and genetic variation at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) at both individual and population levels. We found population level support for a correlation between MHC diversity and <i>Gyrodactylus</i> prevalence, including an overall association between MHC supertype composition and prevalence. At the individual level, supertype (functional) diversity again emerged as a more informative measure than allelic richness alone. Predation was associated with <i>Gyrodactylus</i> prevalence and orange, but not black, colouration. Notably, some of these relationships differed between the individual and population levels. Further, much of this variation was explained by processes acting at a broader geographic scale within river drainages, which comprise divergent guppy lineages. These findings suggest that evolutionary history and processes such as genetic drift and gene flow contribute substantially to these relationships, but that ecological variation (i.e., predation) interacts with these processes. Our findings indicate that multi-trait relationships between colour, immunogenetic diversity and infection are best examined within their broader evolutionary and ecological contexts.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 21","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.70619","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149310925","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Asymmetric Migration Shapes Genetic Structure of the Invasive Avian Vampire Fly (Philornis downsi) Across the Galápagos Islands","authors":"Abbie C. Hay,&nbsp;Sonia Kleindorfer,&nbsp;Lauren K. Common,&nbsp;Sally Potter,&nbsp;Jennifer A. H. Koop,&nbsp;George E. Heimpel,&nbsp;Sarah A. Knutie,&nbsp;Birgit Fessl,&nbsp;Lorraine Pérez-Beauchamp,&nbsp;Rachael Y. Dudaniec","doi":"10.1111/mec.70606","DOIUrl":"10.1111/mec.70606","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Biological invasions on islands provide a natural framework to study how dispersal and connectivity influence evolutionary and ecological processes. The avian nest parasitic fly, <i>Philornis downsi—</i>first recorded in Darwin's finch nests in 1997—causes high mortality in endemic land birds, yet its inter-island and sex-specific patterns of dispersal and genetic structure remain poorly understood. We use low-coverage whole genome sequencing to investigate genome-wide patterns of genetic diversity, directional migration and effective population size in <i>P. downsi</i> across five major Galápagos Islands and its native range in mainland Ecuador. We find evidence for a genetic bottleneck in the Galápagos, isolation by distance, and evidence that the island closest to the Ecuadorian mainland, San Cristóbal, is genetically divergent from the other four islands sampled, despite retaining the highest genetic diversity. No evidence was found for sex-biased dispersal; however, sex-biased genetic structure was detected using only markers from inferred autosomal scaffolds. We found asymmetric gene flow with higher migration rates from San Cristóbal westward to the other islands, matching the direction of both southeast trade winds and major cargo shipping routes. Our results suggest both natural and human-mediated colonisation of <i>P. downsi</i> from the mainland through San Cristóbal to the other islands, followed by high inter-island dispersal among closely situated sink islands. Our findings are critical for prioritising islands for control strategies that will reduce <i>P. downsi</i> impacts on vulnerable endemic birds and underscore the value of understanding directional migration patterns for managing invasive species in metapopulations.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 21","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.70606","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149293478","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Linking Population Genomics and Movement Ecology for Shark Conservation","authors":"J. Sofia Alves,&nbsp;Marisa Vedor,&nbsp;Nuno Queiroz,&nbsp;Sophie Arnaud-Haond,&nbsp;João Pedro Marques,&nbsp;José Melo-Ferreira","doi":"10.1111/mec.70611","DOIUrl":"10.1111/mec.70611","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Climate change and overexploitation are increasingly threatening sharks, with pelagic species among the most affected. The complex ecology and life histories of these species, however, pose major challenges for conservation planning. Here, we examine how integrating genomics and movement ecology can better inform the conservation of highly migratory sharks. The growing availability of reference genomes and expanding population genomic datasets in sharks, coupled with advances in biologging, creates unprecedented opportunities to integrate these approaches and link long-term, population-level evolutionary processes with short-term individual, behavioural patterns. This mini review explores research applications that integrate both fields to overcome their individual limitations and strengthen the evidence and conclusions used to inform conservation. Then we discuss, based on previous studies, how this framework can address specific conservation objectives and lead to decision-ready outcomes, including the delineation of management units, the design of spatial and stock-specific fisheries management measures, and the assessment of species' vulnerability to climate change. We conclude by highlighting that the translation of this knowledge into practice requires engagement with the scientific and management bodies responsible for evaluating the evidence, advising decision-makers, and implementing shark conservation measures.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 21","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.70611","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149293568","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Genomic Complexity of Invasion: Cryptic Lineages, Founder Effects and Sex Determination in Armoured Catfish","authors":"Wynne V. Radcliffe,&nbsp;Daemin Kim,&nbsp;Kiedon Bryant,&nbsp;Christopher L. Riggins,&nbsp;Thomas Heard,&nbsp;Monica E. McGarrity,&nbsp;Daniel J. Daugherty,&nbsp;Joshuah S. Perkin,&nbsp;Rachel L. Moran","doi":"10.1111/mec.70609","DOIUrl":"10.1111/mec.70609","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Genetic biocontrol approaches offer promising tools for managing invasive species. However, their success depends on species identity, demographic history and the genomic architecture of sex determination, which remain poorly resolved for many non-model taxa. We integrated high-quality genome assembly, whole-genome resequencing and population genomics to evaluate biocontrol feasibility in invasive suckermouth armoured catfish (Loricariidae) in Texas. Mitochondrial phylogenies and genome-wide SNPs revealed cryptic diversity, with distinct lineages from at least two genera (<i>Hypostomus</i> and <i>Pterygoplichthys</i>) exhibiting strong drainage-level genetic differentiation. Effective population size estimates were exceptionally low, consistent with founder effects and moderate inbreeding. Genome-wide association analyses detected no large-effect loci for sex in either genus, despite high statistical power in <i>Hypostomus</i>, suggesting that sex determination is polygenic and/or environmentally influenced. These results identify key biological constraints for sex-ratio-based biocontrol and underscore the importance of genomic assessments prior to management interventions. More broadly, our study highlights how integrating genomic resources, demographic inference and evolutionary context can guide invasive species control strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 20","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13714160/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149284259","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Genomic Signatures of Endemic Pathogen Exposure in a Declining Amphibian","authors":"Alexander S. Wendt,&nbsp;Lee Berger,&nbsp;Lee F. Skerratt,&nbsp;Laura A. Brannelly","doi":"10.1111/mec.70603","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.70603","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Endemic wildlife diseases can impose strong selection on threatened populations, yet whether persistence is associated with adaptive genomic responses remains poorly understood. We tested whether long-term exposure to <i>Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis</i> (<i>Bd</i>) following population declines has left detectable selection signatures in the genome of the alpine tree frog, <i>Litoria verreauxii alpina</i>. Because prior work suggests limited immunity to <i>Bd</i> within the species, we did not expect persistence to be explained primarily by repeated shifts at canonical immune genes. Instead, we expected pathogen-associated differentiation, if present, to be diffuse and weakly shared across contrasts, potentially involving regulatory, signalling or reproduction pathways consistent with tolerance, compensatory recruitment or demographic turnover. Using genome-wide SNP data, we compared <i>Bd</i>-naïve and <i>Bd</i>-endemic populations and two 11-year temporal resampling contrasts. Candidate SNPs were annotated to identify genomic context, nearby genes, putative functions and overlap with previously reported <i>Bd</i>-associated transcriptomic responses. Using an empirical 99th-percentile XtX threshold, scans identified high-differentiation candidate SNPs in all contrasts. Most occurred in noncoding and putatively regulatory regions, with relatively few canonical immune genes. Candidate-associated genes were more often linked to signalling, transcriptional regulation and cell-cycle processes. A descriptive comparison with previous work in the species identified 64 candidate-associated genes matching <i>Bd</i>-associated transcriptomic annotations, supporting several immune-adjacent, regulatory, cellular and reproduction candidates. Persistence under endemic <i>Bd</i> might reflect pathogen-associated selection, compensatory recruitment and demographic change following recurrent adult mortality rather than uniform adaptive rescue through immune resistance.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 20","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.70603","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149258945","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Interspecific Gene Flow and Potential Hybrid Breakdown in South Atlantic Sea Turtles","authors":"M. D. Oliveira,&nbsp;R. J. Pereira,&nbsp;L. S. Arantes,&nbsp;C. J. Mazzoni,&nbsp;F. R. Santos","doi":"10.1111/mec.70607","DOIUrl":"10.1111/mec.70607","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Interspecific hybridisation can play an important evolutionary role, generating new taxa or outbreeding depression, which can also lead to behavioural reproductive isolation through reinforcement. Still, there are few studies investigating how divergence time relates to hybridisation rates and its impact on introgression. Sea turtles are known to hybridise, despite their long divergence times and behavioural, ecological and morphological differences. Several genetic studies have attempted to determine the extent of hybridisation between four of the seven extant sea turtle species (<i>Caretta caretta</i>, <i>Eretmochelys imbricata</i>, <i>Lepidochelys olivacea</i> and <i>Chelonia mydas</i>) in the South Atlantic coast of Brazil, an area known to include nesting and feeding sites for all these species. In this work, we combined new and published genomic data of all four sea turtle species and their hybrids in a detailed population genomics study. Although hybridisation does occur in Brazilian nesting sites between three of the four species, it appears to be limited to first-generation hybrids and few backcrosses, which points to some postzygotic barriers between species and hybrid breakdown. Moreover, our evidence suggests a moderately high level of relatedness among hybrids, indicating a reduced number of independent hybridisation events. Despite this fact, we found evidence of backcrosses involving different species, and an F2 progeny between <i>Ca. caretta</i> x <i>E. imbricata</i> F1 hybrids, which suggests hybrid male fertility. Limited interspecific gene flow appears to be part of the long history of divergence of sea turtles, as low levels of deep time introgression were inferred. In summary, this work contributes important evidence regarding the rate and success of hybridisation at large scales of divergence, and how this seemingly equates to low rates of introgression, pointing to temporal limits to gene flow.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 20","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.70607","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149242333","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temporal Community Assembly of Bacteria and Protists in Different Habitats of a Mountain Lake","authors":"Ulrike Obertegger,&nbsp;Leonardo Cerasino,&nbsp;Simone Larger,&nbsp;Massimo Pindo","doi":"10.1111/mec.70600","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.70600","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Whether microbial community assembly is primarily deterministic (selection-driven) or stochastic (dispersal-driven) remains a central debate in microbial ecology. We investigated community assembly of bacteria and protists and their driving ecological processes in mountain Lake Tovel using a 5-year 16S and 18S rRNA metabarcoding dataset. The frequencies of assembly mechanisms and their processes depend on the considered temporal scale. We assessed the influence of temporal scale (years, seasons, temporal distances from 1 to 48 months across all years) and year-pooling (a common strategy in the assessment of assembly patterns) on the inference of community assembly in the upper euphotic (0–3 m), lower euphotic (3–25 m) and deep hypolimnetic (30–35 m) layers. Focusing on single years, bacteria showed more often different assembly mechanisms (both deterministic and stochastic) across layers and years than protists. Year-pooling hid the inter-year differences and preserved the signal of the most frequent single-year process. A lagged effect of water temperature on bacterial community assembly was found, while an immediate effect on protist assembly. Bacterial and protists' niche width was generally independent of year-pooling and increased with depth. Our study showed that different temporal scales and depth layers should be considered to gain a comprehensive overview on community assembly.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"35 20","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149258419","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}