Key concepts and a world-wide look at plant recruitment networks.

Plant-plant interactions are major determinants of the dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems. There is a long tradition in the study of these interactions, their mechanisms and their consequences using experimental, observational and theoretical approaches. Empirical studies overwhelmingly focus at the level of species pairs or small sets of species.

Glacier retreat triggers changes in biodiversity and plant-pollinator interaction diversity.

Unlabelled: Due to global warming, the worldwide retreat of glaciers is causing changes in species diversity, community composition, and species interactions. However, the impact of glacier retreat on interaction diversity and ecological networks remains poorly understood. An integrative understanding of network dynamics may inform conservation actions that support biodiversity and ecosystem functioning after glacier extinction.

Contextualizing the ecology of plant-plant interactions and constructive networks.

Botanical concepts have traditionally viewed the environment as a static box containing plants. In this box, plants compete with one another and act as passive resource consumers subjected to the environment in a top-down manner. This entails that plants have only negative effects on other plants and have no influence on the environment.

RecruitNet: A global database of plant recruitment networks.

Plant recruitment interactions (i.e., what recruits under what) shape the composition, diversity, and structure of plant communities.