Complementary Rhizosphere Microbial Strategies Drive Functional Specialization in Coastal Halophyte Succession: Differential Adaptation of and to Saline-Alkali Stress.

While rhizosphere microbiome functions in saline soils are well documented, complementary microbial strategies between pioneer and late-successional halophytes remain unexplored. Here, we used 16S rRNA sequencing and FAPROTAX functional prediction to compare the rhizosphere bacterial communities of two key halophytes- and -in a reclaimed coastal wetland. The results demonstrate that both plants significantly restructured microbial communities through convergent enrichment of stress-tolerant taxa (, , , and ) while suppressing sulfur-oxidizing bacteria ( and ). However, they exhibited distinct microbial specialization: uniquely enriched organic-matter-degrading taxa ( and ) and upregulated aromatic compound degradation (2.29%) and ureolysis (0.86%) according to FAPROTAX analysis, facilitating carbon mobilization in early successional stages. Notably, selectively recruited nitrogen-cycling , with increased nitrate respiration (3.51% in vs. 0.91% in ) function, reflecting its higher nitrogen demand. Environmental factors also diverged: 's microbiome correlated with potassium and sodium, whereas responded to phosphorus and chloride. These findings uncover distinct microbial recruitment strategies by halophytes to combat saline stress-- synergy through microbial carbon-nitrogen coupling-offering a template for consortia design in saline soil restoration.