Sequencing of environmental samples has great potential for biodiversity research, but its application is limited by the lack of reliable DNA barcode databases for species identifications. Such a database has been created for epiphytic lichens of Europe, allowing us to compare the results of environmental sequencing with standard taxonomic surveys. The species undetected by taxonomic surveys (what we term the ghost component) amount to about half of the species actually present in hectare plots of Central European forests. Some of these, which currently occur only as diaspores or weakly developed thalli, are likely to be favoured in the course of global change. The ghost component usually represents a larger fraction in managed forests than in old-growth unmanaged forests. The total species composition of different plots is much more similar than suggested by taxonomic surveys alone. On a regional scale, this supports the well-known statement that “everything is everywhere, but, the environment selects”.

中文翻译：

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幽灵物种是温带森林附生地衣的重要组成部分


环境样本测序在生物多样性研究中具有巨大潜力，但由于缺乏可靠的 DNA 条形码数据库进行物种鉴定，其应用受到限制。已经为欧洲的附生地衣创建了这样一个数据库，使我们能够将环境测序的结果与标准分类学调查的结果进行比较。分类学调查未发现的物种（我们称之为幽灵成分）约占中欧森林公顷地块实际存在的物种的一半。其中一些目前仅以散孢子或发育较弱的菌体形式出现，在全球变化过程中可能受到青睐。在托管林中，幽灵组件通常比在原始非托管林中所占的比例更大。不同样地的总物种组成比单独的分类学调查所暗示的要相似得多。在区域范围内，这支持了众所周知的说法，即“一切都无处不在，但是，环境会选择”。