Microbial Diversity and Ecosystem Function

The nature and scale of ecosystem functions, such as carbon-fixation and nutrient cycling in a freshwater pond, appear to be governed by complex reciprocal interactions involving physical, chemical and microbiological factors. Moreover, these interactions continuously create new microbial niches that are quickly filled from the resident pool of rare and 'cryptic' (and probably cosmopolitan) microbial species. This could mean that microbial activity and diversity are both a part of, and inseparable from, pond ecosystem function, and that concepts such as 'redundancy' of microbial species, and the 'value' of conserving biodiversity at the microbial level have little meaning.