The fundamental niches of bacteria can be defined along many environmental axes, including temperature tolerance and resources consumed, while interactions with other organisms can constrain (e.g. competition) or enlarge (e.g. cross-feeding) realized niches. Organisms are often categorized as generalists or specialists, corresponding to broad or narrow niche requirements, which can then be linked to their functional role in an ecosystem. We show how these terms are applied to bacteria, make predictions about how the type and extent of generalism displayed by an organism relates to its functional potential and discuss the value of collecting different types of generalist bacteria. We believe that new approaches that take advantage of both high-throughput sequencing and environmental manipulation can allow us to understand the many types of generalism found within both cultivated and yet-to-be-cultivated bacteria.

中文翻译：

---

细菌泛滥的许多方法

细菌的基本生态位可以沿着许多环境轴来定义，包括温度耐受性和消耗的资源，而与其他生物的相互作用可以限制（例如竞争）或扩大（例如交叉喂养）已实现的生态位。生物通常被归类为通才或专家，这与广泛或狭窄的利基需求相对应，然后可以将其与生态系统中的功能角色联系起来。我们将展示这些术语如何应用于细菌，对生物体显示的通病类型和程度如何与其功能潜能相关做出预测，并讨论收集不同类型的通病细菌的价值。