Ecosystem Consequences of Microbial Diversity and Community Structure

摘要: Biodiversity has become a major theme in ecological research and environmental policy (Schulze and Mooney 1993). This concern has arisen because people value diversity both for its own sake and because diversity may control important ecosystem services (food, fiber, animal production, tourism). While the first rationale for concern over biodiversity should apply to microbes, they lack charisma. I therefore doubt that arguments about microbial biodiversity for its own sake will carry much weight for most people, and our concerns with …