Tag: community ecology

community ecology

Herbs, grasses and vines have more resource acquisitive leaf traits than shrubs, lianas and trees in tropical dry and wet forests

Tomonari Matsuo, Masha T. van der Sande, Lucy Amissah, Jonathan Dabo, Salim Mohammed Abdul, Lourens Poorter This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Early biogeographers have classified plant species based on their woodiness, size, and lifespan into a few life forms, such as grasses, shrubs, and trees. This allows to understand how life forms and … Continue reading Herbs, grasses and vines have more resource acquisitive leaf traits than shrubs, lianas and trees in tropical dry and wet forests

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community ecology

Wings and eyes predict the persistence of tropical birds in isolated forest fragments

Ian J. Ausprey, Felicity L. Newell, Scott K. Robinson This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Forest fragments are a ubiquitous part of human landscapes throughout the world, and avian ecologists have long wondered why some species persist in fragments and others disappear. This is especially true for the tropics, where small-scale agriculture is the … Continue reading Wings and eyes predict the persistence of tropical birds in isolated forest fragments

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community ecology

Root trait advantages promote plant invasion under nutrient enrichment

Hao Liu, Yan Zhang, Xiao Xu, Songshuo Li, Jihua Wu, Bo Li, Ming Nie This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. The rise in plant invasions has significant ecological and economic impacts. To control invasive plants and restore invaded environments, it is crucial to understand the mechanisms of plant invasion. Greater nutrient availability is known … Continue reading Root trait advantages promote plant invasion under nutrient enrichment

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community ecology

A new method finds that caterpillars are more abundant and earlier in warmer springs

Kirsty H. Macphie, Jelmer M. Samplonius, Joel L. Pick, Jarrod D. Hadfield, Albert B. Phillimore This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. In temperate regions, the arrival of spring heralds warmer conditions that are more conducive to growth and reproduction. Many plants and animals time key events, such as coming into leaf or hatching from … Continue reading A new method finds that caterpillars are more abundant and earlier in warmer springs

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community ecology

Diversified and organic agriculture poses an opportunity to promote healthy populations of wild and managed bee pollinators in the United States

Elias H. Bloom, Javier Gutiérrez Illán, Matthew R. Brousil, John P. Reganold, Tobin D. Northfield, David W. Crowder This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. A major driver of wild and managed bee species declines is the conventionalization of farming systems in the United States. Public awareness of these declines aligned with changes in federal … Continue reading Diversified and organic agriculture poses an opportunity to promote healthy populations of wild and managed bee pollinators in the United States

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community ecology

Functional identity of dominant species in a predator community prevails over functional diversity in shaping the top-down control of herbivores

Adrien Rusch, Marie D’Ottavio, Nicolas Hénon, Benjamin Joubard, Denis Thiéry, Lucile Muneret This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. The decline in biodiversity observed at the global scale raises major concerns about its impact on ecosystem functioning. For instance, the decline in the number of predator species in a given ecosystem could limit predation rates … Continue reading Functional identity of dominant species in a predator community prevails over functional diversity in shaping the top-down control of herbivores

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community ecology

The effect of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning can be stronger when different species of plants and animals are more complementary

Angelos Amyntas, Emilio Berti, Benoit Gauzens, Georg Albert, Wentao Yu, Alexandra S. Werner, Nico Eisenhauer, Ulrich Brose This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Diverse plant communities tend to exhibit higher levels of functioning such as increased plant productivity. This positive diversity-functioning relationship has been shown to increase over time. One proposed mechanism behind this … Continue reading The effect of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning can be stronger when different species of plants and animals are more complementary

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community ecology

Microbial mechanisms for carbon sequestration in coastal blue carbon ecosystems

Xiaoli Yu, Lu Qian, Qichao Tu, Yisheng Peng, Cheng Wang, Daoming Wu, Ziying He, Longfei Shu, Qiang He, Yun Tian, Kedong Yin, Shanquan Wang, Qingyun Yan, Qiuping Zhong, Zhili He This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Coastal blue carbon ecosystems (e.g., mangrove, salt marsh and seagrass) can effectively capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere … Continue reading Microbial mechanisms for carbon sequestration in coastal blue carbon ecosystems

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community ecology

Tree species differ in their response to diversity during forest development depending on who they are and who they grow with

Jon Urgoiti, Christian Messier, William S. Keeton, Alain Paquette This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. There is robust evidence that tree diversity has a positive effect on forest productivity and that it this effect strengthens over time along during forest development. Recent results have shown that this temporal strengthening of diversity effects on productivity … Continue reading Tree species differ in their response to diversity during forest development depending on who they are and who they grow with

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community ecology

Climate warming-induced changes in soil microbes and plants interact to impact decomposition

Emma Dawson-Glass, Charlotte R. Hewins, David J. Burke, Lara A. Souza, Katharine L. Stuble This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. As global climate change warms ecosystems, natural processes will be altered. One important process in ecosystems is the decomposition of plant litter, in which dead plant material is broken down by microbes (tiny organisms … Continue reading Climate warming-induced changes in soil microbes and plants interact to impact decomposition

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