Tag: community ecology

community ecology

Vultures and large herbivores mediate plant community responses to mass mortality events

Carolina Baruzzi, Brandon Barton, Michael Cove, Bronson Strickland, Marcus Lashley This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Mass mortality events of wildlife are increasingly frequent as their causes (e.g., extreme weather events, diseases) are exacerbated by global change. Mass mortality events can have profound effects on ecological communities. Broadly, mass mortality events can have two … Continue reading Vultures and large herbivores mediate plant community responses to mass mortality events

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community ecology

Some microbes may be early indicators of the consequences of global warming

Daniel J. Wieczynski, Holly V. Moeller, Jean P. Gibert This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. All microbes need to eat. Some are like plants, using photosynthesis and consuming CO2 from the atmosphere. Others are like animals and eat smaller microbes like bacteria, which releases CO2 back into the atmosphere. These divergent effects on CO2 … Continue reading Some microbes may be early indicators of the consequences of global warming

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community ecology

Multilayer networks reveal that the interactions between plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi influence plant recruitment dynamics (+ Spanish translation)

José L. Garrido, Julio M. Alcántara, Álvaro López-García, Carmen V. Ozuna, Antonio J. Perea, Jorge Prieto, Ana Rincón, Concepción Azcón-Aguilar This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Plants interact with different organisms during their life cycles. These interactions may be antagonistic, if they negatively affect the plants (e.g. herbivores or parasites), or mutualistic, if they … Continue reading Multilayer networks reveal that the interactions between plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi influence plant recruitment dynamics (+ Spanish translation)

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community ecology

How to find species potentially able to withstand the specific conditions of a site?

Eva Janíková, Jan Lepš This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Two main factors determine which plant species will form a meadow plant community. The first one is the ability of the species to reach the site, and the second the ability to establish and survive there.  In any site, species are constrained by abiotic … Continue reading How to find species potentially able to withstand the specific conditions of a site?

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community ecology

Towards a more holistic framework for assessing traits in eusocial insects

Leo Ohyama, Douglas B. Booher, Joshua R. King This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Trait-based approaches in ecology focus on quantifying and assessing the traits of an organism. These traits are usually tied to ecological fitness and ecosystem function and can often be a product of the environment affecting the organism or the organism … Continue reading Towards a more holistic framework for assessing traits in eusocial insects

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community ecology

A new method for estimating functional diversity of multiple communities

Alex Laini, Thibault Datry, Benjamin Blonder This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Species differ in their ability to relate to the environment. For example, some species are more adapted to live at higher temperatures, while others thrive in ice. Measuring the diversity of responses in ecological communities (a group of two species or more) … Continue reading A new method for estimating functional diversity of multiple communities

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community ecology

Grassland roots better inform responses to climate change albeit modulated by functional species composition

Sandra Rojas-Botero, Leonardo H. Teixeira, Paula Prucker, Veronika Kloska, Johannes Kollmann, Soizig Le Stradic This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Climate change has multiple components that affect how ecosystems function, and how well they cope with environmental stress. In grasslands, roots control carbon allocation, water and nutrient acquisition, and most biomass is found belowground. … Continue reading Grassland roots better inform responses to climate change albeit modulated by functional species composition

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community ecology

Assembling the dream team: Host selection drives the composition of mycorrhizal fungi in plant roots

Adam Frew, Meike Katharina Heuck, Carlos Aguilar-Trigueros This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. The symbiosis between arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and plants is not only very old (>450 million years old) but also widespread in ecosystems around the world. These fungi can enhance plant nutrient uptake, in particular phosphorus, but can also affect plant … Continue reading Assembling the dream team: Host selection drives the composition of mycorrhizal fungi in plant roots

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community ecology

Drought weakens grazing effects on grassland productivity through altering plant-soil interactions

Dongdong Duan, Zhen Tian, Nana Wu, Xiaoxuan Feng, Fujiang Hou, Zhibiao Nan, Paul Kardol, Tao Chen This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Livestock grazing is among the most intensive land-use activities in grasslands and is known to influence plant communities, as well as abiotic and biotic soil properties. The changes in abiotic and biotic … Continue reading Drought weakens grazing effects on grassland productivity through altering plant-soil interactions

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community ecology

Future CO2 scenarios reduce silicon and phosphorous in a pasture grass  

Scott N. Johnson, Craig V.M. Barton, Fikadu N. Biru, Tarikul Islam, Wade J. Mace, Rhiannon C. Rowe, Ximena Cibils–Stewart This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Many grasses store silicon and partner with mutualistic Epichloë fungal endophytes, both of which can alleviate diverse environmental stresses (e.g. herbivory). Silicon in leaves often increases physical resistance to … Continue reading Future CO2 scenarios reduce silicon and phosphorous in a pasture grass  

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