Preprints
There are 3134 Preprints listed.
The signal of admixture can decay rapidly when using clustering-based methods
Published: 2026-04-08
Subjects: Genetics and Genomics, Life Sciences, Molecular Genetics
Gene flow shapes evolutionary trajectories by introducing novel alleles, facilitating or retarding adaptation, or eroding divergence among populations. Studies commonly infer gene flow through estimates of genetic admixture from methods that cluster individuals by allele-frequency similarity. However, the ability of these methods to reliably detect historical admixture remains poorly understood, [...]
What is the human germline mutation rate? methodological innovations, challenges, and evolutionary implications
Published: 2026-04-08
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Evolution, Genetics, Genetics and Genomics, Life Sciences
Germline mutations are the ultimate source of heritable genetic variation, driving evolution, enabling adaptation, and underlying disease. Despite their fundamental importance, key questions remain unanswered: How frequently do germline mutations arise? Do mutation rates vary systematically across individuals, populations, and local genomic context? And what determines whether a mutation arising [...]
Unraveling contaminant effects on biodiversity across scales: the macroecotoxicology perspective
Published: 2026-04-08
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Pharmacology, Toxicology and Environmental Health
With the spread of contaminants across the globe, ecosystems are increasingly exposed to pollutants at varying levels of biological organization. The effects of a wide range of contaminants on individuals have been extensively studied within the discipline of ecotoxicology, but understanding the generality of species’ responses across taxa and ecosystems remains a major challenge. This is because [...]
Harry Potter shows mirror to dire wolf de-extinction: perils of chasing ghosts of species’ past
Published: 2026-04-08
Subjects: Animal Sciences, Biology, Genetics and Genomics, Life Sciences, Other Life Sciences
Abstract 1. Conservation faces a paradox. As urban expansion and industrial-scale agriculture erode relational values between people and nature, a privileged minority dictates global biodiversity narratives. This shift is reinforced by media and technological interventions that frequently override lived, local experiences. For instance, gene editing tools like CRISPR are incorporated for [...]
Diversity and co-occurrence patterns of wood inhabiting insects along a tropical forest regeneration gradient
Published: 2026-04-07
Subjects: Biodiversity, Biology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Entomology, Life Sciences
More than 90% of global carbon released during dead wood decomposition comes from the tropics, where insects contribute significantly to this process, especially in lowland rainforests. Understanding community assembly of dead wood-inhabiting insects is therefore important. We investigated diversity patterns between habitats and host trees, and co-occurrence of wood-inhabiting ants, termites, and [...]
Taxonomic bias: a persistent issue in ecology and evolution
Published: 2026-04-07
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Scientific hyperfocus on certain organisms slows innovation and hinders the generality of ecological and evolutionary inference. Yet, the extent of taxonomic bias in this field and its potential changes over time remain poorly quantified. By assessing 1,383,803 papers and 612 journals, we show that ecology and evolution research is strongly taxonomically biased. We found that studies on [...]
Microplastic ingestion induces changes in coelomocyte composition of Eisenia fetida
Published: 2026-04-07
Subjects: Animal Sciences, Life Sciences, Toxicology
The earthworm Eisenia fetida is a widely used model organism for environmental toxicity assessment, including microplastic particles (MPP). Impacts of MPP at the organismic level have been extensively documented. Effects on the cellular level and in particular the immune system of E. fetida are less well understood. Here we exposed earthworms outside soil for six days to food pellets containing [...]
Archaeal genes code for GGDEF domain proteins with diguanylate cyclase activity
Published: 2026-04-07
Subjects: Life Sciences
A biofilm-like tightly surface-associated mode of growth of pre-cellular life protected by an extracellular matrix has been hypothesized to be a prerequisite for the emergence of cellular life and its persistence under challenging environmental conditions. Ubiquitous in Bacteria including members of the deepest branching phyla, cyclic di-GMP, a positive regulator of biofilm formation, has not yet [...]
Population genomic processes in Brassicaceae in the light of mating system variation
Published: 2026-04-07
Subjects: Life Sciences
Mating system in plants is a highly variable trait ranging from obligatory outcrossing to full self-fertilization, i.e. selfing. In nature, there are various mechanisms to prevent self-fertilization, indicating evolutionary advantages of outcrossing. Still, self-fertilization is very common in plants. In addition, selfing is a useful property in plant breeding and research since it allows [...]
Celebrating 50 years of virus genomics by revisiting the first decade (1976-1985)
Published: 2026-04-07
Subjects: Life Sciences
Whole genome sequencing was pioneered in viruses, beginning with the publication of the third and final portion of the levivirus MS2 genome on April 8th, 1976. Fifty years and incalculable viral genomes later, we chose to examine the first decade of viral genomics for posterity. We found that 97 whole genome sequences were published between 1976 and 1985, with some species having as many as [...]
Network architecture and vulnerability of macroalgal epiphyte-host interactions in Caribbean coastal ecosystems: implications for marine conservation
Published: 2026-04-07
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Marine Biology, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Background and Aims Tropical coastal marine ecosystems depend critically on macroalgal epiphyte–host interaction networks to sustain biodiversity, primary production, and ecosystem services, yet the architecture and vulnerability of these networks remain poorly characterised in the Caribbean. This study aimed to characterise the topological structure of the epiphyte–host interaction network in [...]
Integrating ecoacoustic monitoring with machine learning to survey black-and-white ruffed lemurs (Varecia variegata) in Madagascar's Corridor Forestier d'Ambositra Vondrozo (COFAV)
Published: 2026-04-06
Subjects: Biodiversity, Zoology
Black-and-white ruffed lemurs (Varecia variegata) are a Critically Endangered species limited to the fragmented eastern Malagasy rainforests. The importance of their conservation is underscored by their vital seed dispersal and pollinator niches; they are a keystone species and indicator of forest health. Little is known of their distribution in the Corridor Forestier d'Ambositra Vondrozo [...]
A review of 28 Years of beach-nesting Australian Pied Oystercatcher Haematopus Longirostris conservation in the Richmond River Area, New South Wales
Published: 2026-04-06
Subjects: Ornithology, Population Biology
The Australian pied oystercatcher Haematopus longirostris is a shorebird that is Endangered in the state of New South Wales (NSW), Australia. This study reviewed data from the Richmond River Area Pied Oystercatcher Protection Program 1997–2013 and Richmond River Area Shorebird Protection Program 2014–2024, on the north coast of NSW. The increase in breeding population size from an estimated 25 [...]
Monsoon meteorology and agricultural phenology structure atmospheric transport of aerial biomass across the Indian subcontinent
Published: 2026-04-06
Subjects: Life Sciences
The movement of organisms through the atmosphere is a fundamental but under-observed ecological process that redistributes biomass, genes, and ecological interactions across continents. Aeroecology has revealed that such movements are strongly determined by synoptic and mesoscale atmospheric dynamics, which jointly determine when, where, and at what altitudes animals initiate, sustain, and [...]
Secondary Forests Matter: Botanical Diversity and Structure Supporting Plecturocebus Oenanthe Persistence in Fragmented San Martín Forests, Peru
Published: 2026-04-06
Subjects: Biodiversity, Life Sciences
Plecturocebus oenanthe (Callicebinae) is Critically Endangered and restricted to fragmented premontane forests of San Martín, Peru. Severe habitat loss and altered forest structure threaten population persistence, and baseline ecological knowledge of habitat requirements is lacking. We characterized floristic composition and forest structural attributes across occupied habitats to identify [...]