Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Life Sciences
Uneven genetic data limits biodiversity assessments in protected areas globally
Published: 2023-10-26
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Policy, Genetics, Life Sciences
Increasing the extent of protected areas (PA) through 30x30 and other area-based conservation initiatives can help to achieve global biodiversity conservation goals across all biodiversity levels. However, intraspecific genetic variation, the foundational level of biodiversity, is rarely explicitly considered in PA design or quality performance assessments. Repurposing existing genetic data could [...]
Neglected biodiversity and ecological functioning – fish community structure associated with Antipatharia (black corals) on shallow reef ecosystems
Published: 2023-10-26
Subjects: Life Sciences
Addressing anthropogenic threats compromising the persistence of tropical marine ecosystems requires an understanding of the fundamental ecological functions these organisms fulfil. Habitat provision is a major function of corals in tropical marine ecosystems, although most research in this area has concentrated on scleractinians (hard corals). Here, we provide one of the first empirical studies [...]
Integration of multimodal cues does not alter mean but reduces among-study variance in avian responses to predators: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Published: 2023-10-26
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
Despite a wealth of studies documenting prey responses to perceived predation risk, researchers have only recently begun to consider how prey integrate information from multiple cues in their assessment of risk. We conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies that experimentally manipulated perceived predation risk in birds and evaluate support for three alternative models of cue [...]
When the microbiome shapes the host: immune evolution implications for infectious disease
Published: 2023-10-23
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Life Sciences, Evolution, Immunity, Immunology and Infectious Disease, Immunology of Infectious Disease, Life Sciences, Molecular Genetics, Pathogenic Microbiology
The microbiome includes both “mutualist” and “pathogen” microbes, regulated by the same innate immune architecture. A major question has therefore been: how do hosts prevent pathogenic infections while maintaining beneficial microbes? One idea suggests hosts can selectively activate innate immunity upon pathogenic infection, but not mutualist colonisation. Another idea posits that hosts can [...]
IUCN Red List of Ecosystem assessment: Tropical glacier ecosystem of the Cordillera de Mérida
Published: 2023-10-23
Subjects: Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment, Life Sciences
This document uses the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems guidelines to diagnose the collapse of the Tropical glacier ecosystems of the Cordillera de Mérida in Venezuela. Tropical glaciers are rapidly disappearing, particularly in isolated mountain peaks and lower elevations. These glaciers are fundamental substrates for unique cryogenic ecosystems in tropical environments where the ice, melting [...]
Treating gaps and biases in biodiversity data as a missing data problem
Published: 2023-10-22
Subjects: Life Sciences
Big biodiversity datasets have great potential for monitoring and research because of their large taxonomic, geographic and temporal scope. Such datasets have become especially important for assessing the temporal change of species’ populations and distributions. Gaps in the available data, however, often hinder drawing large-scale inferences about species’ trends. Here, we conceptualise [...]
Mobilising central bank digital currency to bend the curve of biodiversity loss
Published: 2023-10-21
Subjects: Arts and Humanities, Business, Life Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences
Humanity is at a critical juncture. Despite our efforts to set targets and goals, biodiversity and climate are both changing rapidly, pushing us towards a biosphere our species has not known. To solve this problem one view is that we need transformational change of the economic paradigm, but that might be more an ideal than pragmatic. A new idea could be to take inspiration from recent [...]
How structural variants shape avian phenotypes: lessons from model systems
Published: 2023-10-21
Subjects: Life Sciences
Despite receiving significant recent attention, the relevance of Structural Variation (SV) in driving phenotypic diversity remains understudied. Advances in long-read sequencing, bioinformatics and pangenomic approaches, enhance SV detection. We review the role of SVs in shaping phenotypes in avian model systems, and identify general patterns in SV type, length, and their associated traits. [...]
Integrating ecological feedbacks across scales and levels of organization
Published: 2023-10-19
Subjects: Life Sciences
In ecosystems, species interact in various ways with other species, and with their local environment. In addition, ecosystems are coupled in space by diverse types of flows. From these links connecting different ecological entities can emerge circular pathways of indirect effects: feedback loops. This contributes to creating a nested set of ecological feedbacks operating at different [...]
Darwinian Pond System as a Model for the Establishment of Life on the Archaian Earth
Published: 2023-10-18
Subjects: Life Sciences
The main doubt that exists about the appearance and subsequent development of life on earth, regardless of whether its origin is due to panspermia or abiogenesis processes, is related to the necessary conditions so that, once implanted or synthesized, life can be established and prosper. Following the idea proposed by Darwin in 1873 that the origin of life took place in "warm shallow pools" [...]
Anisogamy does not always promote the evolution of mating competition traits in males
Published: 2023-10-18
Subjects: Life Sciences
Anisogamy has evolved in most sexually reproducing multicellular organisms allowing the definition of the male and female sexes, producing small and large gametes. Anisogamy, as the initial sexual dimorphism, is a good starting point to understand the evolution of further sexual dimorphisms. For instance, it is generally accepted that anisogamy sets the stage for more intense mating competition [...]
Fifteen years of elasmobranchs trade unveiled by DNA tools: Lessons for enhanced monitoring and conservation actions
Published: 2023-10-18
Subjects: Biodiversity, Life Sciences
The trade of elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) in Brazil threatens the country's rich endemic biodiversity. The present study explored the use of DNA-based tools to monitor the Brazilian elasmobranch trade, focusing on their role in identifying processed products and supporting conservation efforts. A systematic search of literature was conducted and included 35 peer-reviewed papers published [...]
Multinational evaluation of genetic diversity indicators for the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Monitoring framework
Published: 2023-10-16
Subjects: Biodiversity, Genetics and Genomics, Life Sciences
In December 2022, the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, in which 196 Parties, for the first time, committed to report on the status of genetic diversity for all species. To facilitate this reporting, three genetic diversity indicators were developed, two of which focus on the processes contributing to genetic [...]
Towards causal relationships for modelling species distribution
Published: 2023-10-14
Subjects: Biodiversity, Bioinformatics, Life Sciences, Natural Resources and Conservation, Statistical Models
1. Understanding the processes underlying the distribution of species through space and time is fundamental in several research fields spanning from ecology to spatial epidemiology. Correlative species distribution models (SDMs) involve popular statistical tools to infer species geographical distribution thanks to spatiotemporally explicit observations of species occurrences coupled with a set of [...]
Shedding light on nocturnal behavior: A cost-effective solution for remote, infrared video recording in the field
Published: 2023-10-14
Subjects: Life Sciences
For behavioral ecologists who study nocturnal animals, recording behavior at night is essential, but expensive. Infrared (IR) sensitive camcorders can easily cost over $1,000 USD, yet these pricey cameras rarely stand up to the elements in the field, and pose great financial risk if left unattended overnight. Here, I provide a field-tested method to record nocturnal behavior at a fraction of the [...]