Quasi-steady uptake and bacterial community assembly in a mathematical model of soil-phosphorus mobility

I. R. Moyles, J. G. Donohue, A. C. Fowler

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We mathematically model the uptake of phosphorus by a soil community consisting of a plant and two bacterial groups: copiotrophs and oligotrophs. Four equilibrium states emerge, one for each of the species monopolising the resource and dominating the community and one with coexistence of all species. We show that the dynamics are controlled by the ratio of chemical adsorption to bacterial death permitting either oscillatory states or quasi-steady uptake. We show how a steady state can emerge which has soil and plant nutrient content unresponsive to increased fertilization. However, the additional fertilization supports the copiotrophs leading to community reassembly. Our results demonstrate the importance of time-series measurements in nutrient uptake experiments.

Original languageEnglish
Article number110530
Pages (from-to)110530
JournalJournal of Theoretical Biology
Volume509
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 21 Jan 2021

Keywords

  • Carbon: phosphorus coupling
  • Mathematical ecology
  • Microbial dynamics
  • Microbial succession
  • Nutrient cycling
  • Plant-soil (below-ground) interactions
  • Scarce nutrients

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Quasi-steady uptake and bacterial community assembly in a mathematical model of soil-phosphorus mobility'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this