Second-generation environmental sequencing unmasks marine metazoan biodiversity

Vera G. Fonseca, Gary R. Carvalho, Way Sung, Harriet F. Johnson, Deborah M. Power, Simon P. Neill, Margaret Packer, Mark L. Blaxter, P. John D. Lambshead, W. Kelley Thomas and Simon Creer ()
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Vera G. Fonseca: Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Environment Centre Wales, Bangor University
Gary R. Carvalho: Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Environment Centre Wales, Bangor University
Way Sung: Hubbard Center for Genome Studies, University of New Hampshire
Harriet F. Johnson: Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Environment Centre Wales, Bangor University
Deborah M. Power: CCMAR-CIMAR Associate Laboratory, Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Gambelas
Simon P. Neill: School of Ocean Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge
Margaret Packer: The Natural History Museum
Mark L. Blaxter: Ashworth Laboratories, Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh
P. John D. Lambshead: National Oceanography Centre, School of Ocean and Earth Science, European Way
W. Kelley Thomas: Hubbard Center for Genome Studies, University of New Hampshire
Simon Creer: Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Environment Centre Wales, Bangor University

Nature Communications, 2010, vol. 1, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract Biodiversity is of crucial importance for ecosystem functioning, sustainability and resilience, but the magnitude and organization of marine diversity at a range of spatial and taxonomic scales are undefined. In this paper, we use second-generation sequencing to unmask putatively diverse marine metazoan biodiversity in a Scottish temperate benthic ecosystem. We show that remarkable differences in diversity occurred at microgeographical scales and refute currently accepted ecological and taxonomic paradigms of meiofaunal identity, rank abundance and concomitant understanding of trophic dynamics. Richness estimates from the current benchmarked Operational Clustering of Taxonomic Units from Parallel UltraSequencing analyses are broadly aligned with those derived from morphological assessments. However, the slope of taxon rarefaction curves for many phyla remains incomplete, suggesting that the true alpha diversity is likely to exceed current perceptions. The approaches provide a rapid, objective and cost-effective taxonomic framework for exploring links between ecosystem structure and function of all hitherto intractable, but ecologically important, communities.

Date: 2010
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms1095

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