Mark D Bertness, Lohengrin A Cavieres, C J Lortie, Ragan M Callaway
{"title":"Positive interactions and interdependence in communities.","authors":"Mark D Bertness, Lohengrin A Cavieres, C J Lortie, Ragan M Callaway","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Facilitative interactions play crucial roles in community organization, and the stress gradient hypothesis (SGH) provides a simple conceptual framework for the context-dependency of competitive and facilitative interactions. The idea is that positive interactions are more common under high physical and consumer stress, where species benefit from stress-tolerant neighbors, than in benign environments. We explore insights from the SGH into ecological generality, niche theory, community assembly, and diversity effects on ecosystem function and discuss how the SGH can inform our understanding of rapid evolution, mutualisms, exotic invasions, and facilitation cascades. We suggest that, with escalating global stresses, the SGH may provide a conceptual template for an interdependent perspective in ecology that can contribute to conservation and restoration efforts.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":"1014-1023"},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142401425","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ecological debts induced by heat extremes.","authors":"Gerard Martínez-De León, Madhav P Thakur","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.07.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.07.002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Heat extremes have become the new norm in the Anthropocene. Their potential to trigger major ecological responses is widely acknowledged, but their unprecedented severity hinders our ability to predict the magnitude of such responses, both during and after extreme heat events. To address this challenge we propose a conceptual framework inspired by the core concepts of ecological stability and thermal biology to depict how responses of populations and communities accumulate at three response stages (exposure, resistance, and recovery). Biological mechanisms mitigating responses at a given stage incur associated costs that only become apparent at other response stages; these are known as 'ecological debts'. We outline several scenarios for how ecological responses associate with debts to better understand biodiversity changes caused by heat extremes.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":"1024-1034"},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141856575","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"An audacious approach to conservation.","authors":"Robert M Ewers","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.07.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.07.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>New digital and sensor technology provides a huge opportunity to revolutionise conservation, but we lack a plan for deploying the technologies effectively. I argue that environmental research should be concentrated at a small number of 'super-sites' and that the concentrated knowledge from super-sites should be used to develop holistic ecosystem models. These, in turn, should be morphed into digital twin ecosystems by live connecting them with automated environmental monitoring programmes. Data-driven simulations can then help select pathways to achieve locally determined conservation goals, and digital twins could revise and adapt those decisions in real-time. This technology-heavy vision for 'smart conservation' provides a map toward a future defined by more flexible, more responsive, and more efficient management of natural environments.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":"995-1003"},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141914084","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jacob I Levine, Ruby An, Nathan J B Kraft, Stephen W Pacala, Jonathan M Levine
{"title":"Why ecologists struggle to predict coexistence from functional traits.","authors":"Jacob I Levine, Ruby An, Nathan J B Kraft, Stephen W Pacala, Jonathan M Levine","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.10.002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.10.002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The rationale behind trait-based ecology is that shifting focus from species' taxonomic names to their measurable characteristics ('functional traits') leads to greater generality and predictive power. This idea has been applied to one of ecology's most intractable problems: the coexistence of competing species. But after 20 years, we lack clear evidence that functional traits effectively predict coexistence. Here, we present a theory-based argument for why this might be the case. Specifically, we argue that coexistence often depends on special quantities called 'process-informed metrics' (PIMs), which combine multiple traits and demographic characteristics in non-intuitive ways, obscuring any direct ties between individual traits and coexistence. We then lay a path forward for trait-based coexistence research that builds on mechanistic models of competition.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142558872","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The biological relevance of 'me': body awareness in animals.","authors":"Petra Dobos, Péter Pongrácz","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.10.001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.10.001","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Applying human concepts of self-awareness to animals often lacks anchoring in biologically meaningful contexts. We advocate a new, modular framework of self-representation, including body-awareness, which helps an individual to negotiate physical obstacles. We emphasize the importance of ecologically valid approaches that allow adaptivity-based hypotheses and discussion about self-representation.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142547666","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Roxanne S Beltran, A Marm Kilpatrick, Simona Picardi, Briana Abrahms, Gabriel M Barrile, William K Oestreich, Justine A Smith, Max F Czapanskiy, Arina B Favilla, Ryan R Reisinger, Jessica M Kendall-Bar, Allison R Payne, Matthew S Savoca, Danial G Palance, Samantha Andrzejaczek, Daphne M Shen, Taiki Adachi, Daniel P Costa, Natalie A Storm, Conner M Hale, Patrick W Robinson
{"title":"Maximizing biological insights from instruments attached to animals.","authors":"Roxanne S Beltran, A Marm Kilpatrick, Simona Picardi, Briana Abrahms, Gabriel M Barrile, William K Oestreich, Justine A Smith, Max F Czapanskiy, Arina B Favilla, Ryan R Reisinger, Jessica M Kendall-Bar, Allison R Payne, Matthew S Savoca, Danial G Palance, Samantha Andrzejaczek, Daphne M Shen, Taiki Adachi, Daniel P Costa, Natalie A Storm, Conner M Hale, Patrick W Robinson","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Instruments attached to animals ('biologgers') have facilitated extensive discoveries about the patterns, causes, and consequences of animal behavior. Here, we present examples of how biologging can deepen our fundamental understanding of ecosystems and our applied understanding of global change impacts by enabling tests of ecological theory. Applying the iterative process of science to biologging has enabled a diverse set of insights, including social and experiential learning in long-distance migrants, state-dependent risk aversion in foraging predators, and resource abundance driving movement across taxa. Now, biologging is poised to tackle questions and refine ecological theories at increasing levels of complexity by integrating measurements from numerous individuals, merging datasets from multiple species and their environments, and spanning disciplines, including physiology, behavior and demography.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142547665","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Scott W Yanco, Christian Rutz, Briana Abrahms, Nathan W Cooper, Peter P Marra, Thomas Mueller, Brian C Weeks, Martin Wikelski, Ruth Y Oliver
{"title":"Tracking individual animals can reveal the mechanisms of species loss.","authors":"Scott W Yanco, Christian Rutz, Briana Abrahms, Nathan W Cooper, Peter P Marra, Thomas Mueller, Brian C Weeks, Martin Wikelski, Ruth Y Oliver","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.008","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>As biodiversity loss continues, targeted conservation interventions are increasingly necessary. Stemming species loss requires mechanistic understanding of the processes governing population dynamics. However, this information is unavailable for most animals because it requires data that are difficult to collect using traditional methods. Advances in animal tracking technology have generated an avalanche of high-resolution observations for a growing list of species around the globe. To date, most research using these data has focused on questions about animal behavior, with less emphasis on population processes. Here, we argue that tracking data are uniquely poised to bring powerful new insights to the urgent, global problem of halting species extinctions by revealing when, where, how, and why populations are changing.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142589827","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Dollo's law of irreversibility in the post-genomic age.","authors":"Kathryn R Elmer, Jean Clobert","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Dollo's law of irreversibility argues that evolution cannot revert to earlier states. It has remained controversial ever since its inception in the 19th century. Enabled by advances in phylogenomics and functional genomics, recent studies show that there are very likely some cases of 'breaking Dollo's law'. As post-genomic research grows from showing patterns to revealing processes, new emphasis is needed on the molecular mechanisms by which Dollo's law might be broken. Shifting the argument from 'if it happened' to 'how it happened' will provide richer understanding of organismal and evolutionary biology. Motivated by case studies and novel avenues to test trait loss and regain, we outline a set of alternative hypotheses to be evaluated and what the outcomes tell us about evolution.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142508751","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Anna C Bowland, Amanda D Melin, David J Hosken, Kimberley J Hockings, Matthew A Carrigan
{"title":"The evolutionary ecology of ethanol.","authors":"Anna C Bowland, Amanda D Melin, David J Hosken, Kimberley J Hockings, Matthew A Carrigan","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The consumption of ethanol has frequently been seen as largely restricted to humans. Here, we take a broad eco-evolutionary approach to understanding ethanol's potential impact on the natural world. There is growing evidence that ethanol is present in many wild fruits, saps, and nectars and that ethanol ingestion offers benefits that favour adaptations for its use in multiple taxa. Explanations for ethanol consumption span both the nutritional and non-nutritional, with potential medicinal value or cognitive effects (with social-behavioural benefits) explored. We conclude that ethanol is ecologically relevant and that it has shaped the evolution of many species and structured symbiotic relationships among organisms, including plants, yeast, bacteria, insects, and mammals.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142558871","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Léa Lorrain-Soligon, François Brischoux, Julien Pétillon
{"title":"The interactive effects of salt and heat on coastal ectotherms.","authors":"Léa Lorrain-Soligon, François Brischoux, Julien Pétillon","doi":"10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.011","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2024.09.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Coastal ecosystems face salinization and rising temperatures. In coastal ectotherms, salinity and temperature affect metabolism, tolerance, infections, growth, behavior, and survival. Overall, the combined effects of salinity and temperature on species distribution, community structure, invasive species, and ecosystem functioning need to be fully assessed to understand impacts from these stressors.</p>","PeriodicalId":23274,"journal":{"name":"Trends in ecology & evolution","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142508752","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}