Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40007481›Full record

ArticleEcology letters2025

Residence Time Structures Microbial Communities Through Niche Partitioning.

Emmi A Mueller, Jay T Lennon

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Ecology letters, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Metabolic inequality in microbial communities.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Emmi A MuellerDepartment of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7805-8785
Jay T LennonDepartment of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3126-6111

Funding

Biological and Physical Sciences Division 80NSSC20K0618Division of Biological Infrastructure 2022049Division of Environmental Biology 1934554Life Sciences Division, Army Research Office W911NF141041Life Sciences Division, Army Research Office W911NF2210014Life Sciences Division, Army Research Office W911NF2310054NASANational Science Foundation
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Much of life on Earth is at the mercy of currents and flow. Residence time (τ) estimates how long organisms and resources remain in a system based on the ratio of volume (V) to flow rate (Q). Short τ should promote immigration but limit species establishment, while long τ should favour species that survive on limited resources. Theory suggests these opposing forces shape the abundance, diversity and function of flowing systems. We experimentally tested how residence time affects a lake microbial community by exposing chemostats to a τ gradient spanning seven orders of magnitude. Microbial abundance, richness and evenness increased non-linearly with τ, while functions like productivity and resource consumption declined. Taxa formed distinct clusters of short- and long-τ specialists consistent with niche partitioning. Our findings demonstrate that residence time drives biodiversity and community function in flowing habitats that are commonly found in environmental, engineered and host-associated ecosystems.

Indexed as

BiodiversityEcosystemLakesMicrobiotaBacteriachemostatcommunity assemblyconsumer‐resourceimmigrationniche partitioning

Identifiers

PMID40007481
PMCPMC11862987

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.