Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
A global analysis reveals the dynamic relationship between sexual selection and population abundance in space and time
Published: 2023-09-17
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Evolution
Sexual selection leads to the evolution of extravagant weaponry or ornamental displays, with the bearer of these traits gaining a reproductive advantage, potentially at a cost to the individual’s survival. The consequences of sexual selection can therefore impact species demographic processes and overall abundance. Currently, evidence connecting the effects of sexual selection to demography and [...]
Spatially explicit predictions of food web structure from regional level data
Published: 2023-09-15
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Knowledge about how ecological networks vary across global scales is currently limited given the complexity of acquiring repeated spatial data for species interactions. Yet, recent developments of metawebs highlight efficient ways to first document possible interactions within regional species pools. Downscaling metawebs towards local network predictions is a promising approach to use current [...]
Lasting effects of avian-frugivore interactions on seed dispersal and seedling establishment
Published: 2023-09-13
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
1. The consequences of plant-animal interactions often transcend the mere encounter stage, as those encounters are followed by a chain of subsequent stages on the plant’s reproductive cycle that ultimately determine fitness. Yet, the dissemination and recruitment stages of animal-mediated seed dispersal are seldom analysed jointly, hindering a full understanding of the ecology of seed [...]
Taming the terminological tempest in invasion science
Published: 2023-09-06
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Standardized terminology in science is important for clarity of interpretation and communication. In invasion science — a dynamic and quickly evolving discipline — the rapid proliferation of technical terminology has lacked a standardized framework for its language development. The result is a convoluted and inconsistent usage of terminology, with various discrepancies in descriptions of damages [...]
Re-defining common mycorrhizal and fungal networks
Published: 2023-09-06
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Plant Sciences
The current use of the term ‘common mycorrhizal network’ (CMN) stipulates a direct link between plants formed by the mycelium of a mycorrhizal fungus. This means that a specific case (involving hyphal continuity) is used to define a much broader phenomenon of hyphae interlinking among plant roots. We here offer a more inclusive definition of the common mycorrhizal network as a network formed by a [...]
Growth and opportunities for drone surveillance in pinniped research
Published: 2023-09-03
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Integrative Biology, Marine Biology, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Population Biology, Research Methods in Life Sciences, Zoology
Pinniped species undergo uniquely amphibious life histories that make them valuable subjects for many domains of research. Pinniped research has often progressed hand-in-hand with technological frontiers of wildlife biology, and drones represent a leap forward for methods of aerial remote sensing, heralding data collection and integration at new scales of biological importance. Drone methods and [...]
IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, Mangroves of the Andaman
Published: 2023-08-31
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Life Sciences
The 'Mangroves of the Andaman' is a regional ecosystem subgroup (level 4 unit of the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology) within the Andaman province. It includes intertidal forests and shrublands of the marine ecoregions of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands; the Andaman Sea Coral Coast of Myanmar and Thailand; and northwest Sumatra. The diverse biota is characterised by 43 species of true mangroves, [...]
IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, Mangroves of the Western Coral Triangle
Published: 2023-08-31
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Life Sciences
The 'Mangroves of the Western Coral Triangle' is a regional ecosystem subgroup (level 4 unit of the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology. It includes intertidal forests and shrublands of the following marine ecoregions in the Western Coral Triangle province: Banda Sea, Eastern Philippines, Halmahera, Lesser Sunda, Northeast Sulawesi, Palawan/North Borneo, Papua, and Sulawesi Sea/Makassar Strait. The [...]
IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, Mangroves of the Bay of Bengal
Published: 2023-08-29
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Life Sciences
Mangroves of the Bay of Bengal is a regional ecosystem subgroup (level 4 unit of the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology) spanning parts of South and Southeast Asia. It includes coastal areas of eastern India, Bangladesh, and northern and central Myanmar, and contains one of the largest single mangrove ecosystems in the world: the Sundarbans. Mangroves dominate along the extensive coastal waterways [...]
IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, Mangroves of the South China Sea
Published: 2023-08-29
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Life Sciences
The 'Mangroves of South China Sea' is a regional ecosystem subgroup (level 4 unit of the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology in the South China Sea province. It includes intertidal forests and shrublands of the marine ecoregions of the Gulf of Tonkin, South China Sea Oceanic Islands and Southern China. The diverse biota of this ecoregion is characterised by 42 species of true mangroves, plus many [...]
IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, Mangroves of the Sunda Shelf
Published: 2023-08-29
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Life Sciences
"The 'Mangroves of the Sunda Shelf' is a regional ecosystem subgroup (level 4 unit of the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology in the Sunda Shelf province. It includes intertidal forests and shrublands of the marine regions of the Malacca Straits, Gulf of Thailand, southern Viet Nam and the Sunda Shelf/Java Sea. This province has a tropical climate with protracted rainfall that provides very favourable [...]
Warming summer temperatures are rapidly restructuring North American bumble bee communities
Published: 2023-08-29
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Entomology, Life Sciences, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
A rapidly warming climate is a primary force driving changes in biodiversity worldwide. The impact of warming temperatures on insect communities is of particular interest given their importance for ecosystem function and service provision and the uncertainty around whether insect communities can keep pace with the rate of increasing temperatures. We use a long-term dataset on bumble bee species [...]
A standard protocol for harvesting biodiversity data from Facebook
Published: 2023-08-27
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
1. The expanding use of citizen science platforms has led to an exponential increase in biodiversity data in global repositories. Yet, our understanding of species distribution remains patchy for most of the world. Social media data has the potential to reduce the global biodiversity knowledge gap. However, practical guidelines and standardised pipelines to harvest such data sources are still [...]
Gardens as drivers of native plant dispersal and conservation
Published: 2023-08-25
Subjects: Biodiversity, Biology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
1. Gardens hold untapped potential for participatory biodiversity conservation. Conservation gardening has recently emerged as a way to foster declining native plant species in urban and rural green spaces. But the impact of cultivating these species on population trends in the broader landscape remains underexplored. 2. Here, I study the effects of cultivating herbaceous native plants on [...]
Family-living and cooperative breeding in birds are associated with the number of avian predators
Published: 2023-08-22
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Cooperative breeding occurs when individuals contribute parental care to offspring that are not their own. Numerous intra- and inter-specific studies have aimed to explain the evolution of this behaviour. Recent comparative work suggests that family living (i.e., when offspring remain with their parents beyond independence) is a critical steppingstone in the evolution of cooperative breeding. [...]