Publications by authors named "D K Waller"
Article Synopsis
- Plant communities consist of species with varying functional traits and evolutionary backgrounds, leading to the expectation that functional diversity increases with phylogenetic diversity.* -
- Contrary to this expectation, a study of over 1.7 million vegetation plots showed that functional and phylogenetic diversity are weakly and negatively correlated, suggesting they operate independently.* -
- Phylogenetic diversity is more pronounced in forests and reflects recent climate, while functional diversity is influenced by both past and recent climate, highlighting the need to assess both types of diversity for ecosystem studies and conservation strategies.*
Article Synopsis
- * The study analyzes a comprehensive database called NAPRALERT, which includes over 38,000 experiments, helping to identify NPs that have shown promise in pain relief and related biological effects.
- * The report provides tools for users to effectively navigate the vast data set and emphasizes the importance of combining traditional medicinal uses with scientific evidence for selecting potential NP leads in pain research.
Biological nitrogen fixation is a fundamental part of ecosystem functioning. Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition and climate change may, however, limit the competitive advantage of nitrogen-fixing plants, leading to reduced relative diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants. Yet, assessments of changes of nitrogen-fixing plant long-term community diversity are rare.
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- Climate change often leads to habitat shifts for species towards the poles, but other factors also play a significant role in determining species distribution.
- A study on European forest plants shows that they are more likely to shift westward rather than northward, with westward movements being 2.6 times more common.
- These shifts are primarily driven by nitrogen deposition and recovery from past pollution, indicating that biodiversity changes are influenced by multiple environmental factors, not just climate change alone.
Freshwater mussels (order: Unionida) are highly imperiled globally and are increasingly the focus of captive propagation efforts to protect and restore wild populations. The Upper Tennessee River Basin (UTRB) in Virginia is a freshwater biodiversity hotspot hosting at least 45 of North America's ~300 species of freshwater mussels, including 21 threatened and endangered species listed under the U.S.
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