Preprints
There are 2976 Preprints listed.
A framework for predicting the dynamics of plant-mycorrhizal interactions
Published: 2026-01-23
Subjects: Life Sciences
Interactions between plants and mycorrhizal fungi shape nutrient cycling and ecosystem function on a global scale, but the dynamics of these interactions remain poorly understood. Due to their below-ground nature, directly observing key dynamical features such as Allee effects and oscillations is often not possible, hampering further progress in this area. Here we present a mechanistic model of [...]
Seasonal camouflage as a model to understand the scope for rapid adaptation in a changing world
Published: 2026-01-23
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Molecular Biology
Human-driven environmental change is reshaping ecosystems and challenging species’ ability to adapt. Understanding how genetic variation enables adaptation is crucial for conservation and requires exemplary systems to test hypotheses and make predictions. One particularly suitable model for studying climate-driven adaptation is seasonal color change (SCC), a phenological trait in which [...]
Understanding the dimensions and gaps in wildlife health surveillance for zoonotic risk management
Published: 2026-01-23
Subjects: Agriculture, Biodiversity, Immunology and Infectious Disease
Following the Covid 19 pandemic, One Health has been a topic of increasing global awareness, with the development of various global strategies and action plans to manage and counteract risks as well as identify potential risks. However, despite these calls for action, little work has been conducted to establish a global baseline on policies related to One Health, particularly dealing with the [...]
Volcanic deposits select for woodiness on islands
Published: 2026-01-23
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
Oceanic islands’ unique biodiversity often arises from woody plant radiations derived from non-woody continental ancestors. Since Darwin, various theories have tried to explain the evolution of woodiness on islands (insular woodiness). Recently, frequent volcanic activity and burial of vegetation by volcanic ash (tephra) depositions were linked to the abundance of woody species on islands. In a [...]
Supporting wildlife movement amid the rise of border infrastructure
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Law, Environmental Studies, Forest Management, Nature and Society Relations, Zoology
Transboundary areas of conservation importance affected by border infrastructure and militarization urgently need connectivity conservation solutions. Where human conflicts are ongoing and peace initiatives may be unviable, smaller-scale approaches can still be implemented. We propose a multi-faceted approach to support animal movement and minimize impacts of multiple border barriers on medium to [...]
Laboratory Evidence of the effect of Water Availability on Aedes Mosquito Population Dynamics: A Scoping Review
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Life Sciences
The increasing geographical spread, abundance and activity of invasive Aedes mosquitoes are cause of concern for public health at local and global scales. These species transmit diseases such as dengue, Chikungunya, Yellow Fever, and Zika, which can cause outbreaks in endemic and non-endemic settings. Unlike temperature, whose impact on key entomological traits has been extensively studied, the [...]
Microbial drivers of woody plant encroachment in fire-maintained grasslands and savannas
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Life Sciences
Woody plant encroachment into grasslands and savannas is a global phenomenon with wide-ranging consequences for people and nature, but we lack a comprehensive understanding of its drivers. Various factors can contribute to woody encroachment across ecosystems, but a notable commonality is that transitions from herbaceous to woody vegetation are spatially and temporally abrupt, suggesting that [...]
Scaling from Metawebs to Realised Webs: A Hierarchical Approach to Network Ecology
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Ecological networks provide a critical framework for understanding the architecture of biodiversity and predicting ecosystem responses to environmental change. However, the application of network ecology is often hindered by a lack of clarity regarding the assumptions inherent in different network representations. Here, we present a hierarchical framework that distinguishes between ‘metawebs’ [...]
The missing branches of the bee Tree of Life: addressing global Darwinian shortfalls and their drivers
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
Understanding the Darwinian shortfall (i.e., the lack of knowledge about phylogenetic relationships) can help us to guide future biodiversity research and conservation efforts. Overcoming this shortfall is essential to develop robust strategies to preserve the Tree of Life while facing the ongoing biodiversity crisis. Here, we present the first global assessment of Darwinian shortfalls and their [...]
A framework for understanding how and why animals die
Published: 2026-01-19
Subjects: Biology
Mortality is a fundamental demographic process that shapes both populations and ecological communities. Yet, how and why animals die is just as important as the simple fact of whether or not they do. A richer understanding about drivers of death across taxa is needed to advance ecological theory and to improve conservation practice. Both require identifying the causal pathways that lead to death; [...]
A Practitioner-Led Transdisciplinary Process for Adaptive Fire Management in Madagascar’s Protected Areas
Published: 2026-01-19
Subjects: Environmental Sciences, Natural Resources and Conservation
ABSTRACT Fire management in protected areas is constrained by gaps between scientific knowledge, practitioner experience, and institutional frameworks. Such constraints restrict how existing expertise is mobilised, formalised, and translated into alternative fire management practice, meaning fire management plans frequently fail to reflect the diverse socio-ecological contexts in which [...]
Delivering Nature Positive outcomes through landscape conservation: credible actions and shared responsibility in the mining sector
Published: 2026-01-19
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment, Environmental Sciences, Life Sciences, Natural Resources and Conservation, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Sustainability
The mining sector is increasingly expected to align their corporate nature commitments with global biodiversity goals. Emerging Nature Positive frameworks require companies not only to mitigate impacts of direct operations, but also to contribute to biodiversity recovery at the landscape scale, where impacts, dependencies and conservation priorities intersect. Yet expectations for credible [...]
Developmental density shapes adult mate guarding strategies in an invertebrate
Published: 2026-01-19
Subjects: Behavior and Ethology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Entomology, Evolution, Life Sciences
Post-copulatory mate guarding is a widespread reproductive strategy that reduces sperm competition but can generate sexual conflict when male and female optima diverge. While mate guarding is known to respond plastically to immediate social conditions, the extent to which early-life social environments of both sexes shape adult guarding behaviour remains poorly understood. We experimentally [...]
Different migration patterns of European anchovy and sardine around Iberian Peninsula revealed by eye lens isotopes
Published: 2026-01-19
Subjects: Marine Biology
Small pelagic fish are key components of productive coastal ecosystems, yet their migration ecology remains poorly understood, causing challenges for management. We applied stable carbon and nitrogen isotope (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N) analyses of eye lenses to investigate movements of European anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) and sardine (Sardina pilchardus) around the Iberian Peninsula. Muscle isotopes [...]
From the province-based Fish Management Plan to the first steps of a catchment-based Fish Management Plan in Sicily: the Ragusa experience.
Published: 2026-01-19
Subjects: Life Sciences
In Italy, the Fish Management Plan (FMP) is considered the fundamental document for the conservation and management of inland fish fauna and fisheries, as well as for the planning of the territory in which aquatic environments are located. There are two phases of the Fish Management Plan: the regional or provincial FMP and the catchment-based FMP. In Sicily, no catchment-based FMP had yet been [...]