Nutrient Enrichment and Connectivity Jointly Shape Bacterioplankton Diversity

Abstract

It is increasingly important to understand the response of freshwater communities and ecosystems to fertilizers given their widespread usage and the propensity for these fertilizers to runoff into rivers and lakes. Dispersal, an important ecological factor mediated by landscape connectivity, could potentially counteract the impacts of anthropogenic stressors through the reintroduction of communities unperturbed by local stressors. However, this potential has not yet been studied in the context of nutrient stressed natural communities. Here, we investigate the impacts of nutrient enrichment and connectivity on freshwater bacterioplankton communities. We subjected mesocosms stocked with native bacterioplankton communities to different combinations of nutrient enrichment and connectivity (volumes of water transferred between mesocosms). We show that nutrient enrichment strongly structures the bacterioplankton community, favoring nutrient tolerant taxa and depressing taxonomic diversity. Connectivity, however, interacts with nutrient enrichment to restore functional diversity in communities subjected to the highest levels of nutrient stress. Despite the ameliorating effects of dispersal, nutrient enrichment leaves a consistent signature in communities, driving a shift from more heterotrophic to more phototrophic communities. Taken together, our results demonstrate that while nutrient enrichment significantly impacts freshwater bacterioplankton communities, connectivity can help restore functional diversity to a certain extent.