Vegetational diversity is generally thought to be associated with ecosystem stability and resilience to perturbations such as insect outbreaks. The enemies' hypothesis states that vegetational diversity contributes to greater top-down control of insect pests, by providing further resources to natural enemies than homogeneous environments. However, direct evaluation of this hypothesis is difficult because different species of natural enemies can respond to vegetational diversity in dissimilar manners and at different spatial scales depending on functional traits such as prey/host specificity and dispersal. In this study, we specifically test the enemies' hypothesis at the landscape level in a continuous forest environment. We investigated how parasitism of spruce budworm larvae by the common parasitoids Apanteles fumiferanae and Glypta fumiferanae vary with forest diversity and host larval density at different spatial scales in the province of Quebec (Canada). We found that parasitism rates of the two parasitoid species we examined respond in opposite ways to forest diversity. Parasitism by A. fumiferanae was positively related to forest diversity, whereas parasitism by G. fumiferanae was negatively related to forest diversity. In agreement with the enemies' hypothesis, we also found that spruce budworm larval density decreased with forest diversity. We discuss these results with respect to the enemies' hypothesis and the presumed host range of the parasitoids species we examined, as well as their body size. Because A. fumiferanae kills its host earlier than G. fumiferanae, we conclude that northern forest landscapes could be more affected by spruce budworm defoliation than southern forests during the present and future outbreaks.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ee/nvy113 | DOI Listing |
Plants (Basel)
January 2025
Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, Jinghong 666303, China.
Ecosystem functioning and management are primarily concerned with addressing climate change and biodiversity loss, which are closely linked to carbon stock and species diversity. This research aimed to quantify forest understory (shrub and herb) diversity, tree biomass and carbon sequestration in the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary. Using random sampling methods, data were gathered from six distinct forest communities.
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January 2025
College of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
The utilization of nitrogen (N) is crucial for the optimal growth and development of plants. As the dominant form of nitrogen in temperate soil, nitrate (NO) is absorbed from the soil and redistributed to other organs through NO transporters (NRTs). Therefore, exploration of the role of NRTs in response to various NO conditions is crucial for improving N utilization efficiency (NUE).
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January 2025
Department of Agricultural, Food and Forest Sciences, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Bldg. 5, 90128 Palermo, Italy.
In this study, a focus on the populations of bryophytes living in aquatic and humid habitats of Sicily is presented. This investigation aims to evaluate the consistency and diversity of this group of taxa. The complete list of taxa known to date in these habitats is provided, with reference to hornworts, liverworts, and mosses, and the patterns related to the biological, ecological, and chorological features of this bryophyte flora are also illustrated.
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January 2025
Departamento de Ciencias Jurídicas, Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, Loja 1101608, Ecuador.
Epiphytic bryophytes are an important component in terms of the diversity and functioning of montane forests known as biodiversity hotspots. Bryophytes are highly dependent on their external environments because they are sensitive to environmental changes related to disturbance, fragmentation, air pollution, and climate change. The richness and composition of bryophytes in remnants of primary and secondary forests were analyzed, where the richness and cover were recorded on trunk bases of 120 trees.
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January 2025
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Godoy Cruz 2290, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina.
Herein, we report the presence of a plant paleocommunity, dominated by ferns of the family Osmundaceae, structurally preserved from the only known Mesozoic, fossiliferous geothermal deposits, from the La Matilde Formation (Middle-Upper Jurassic) in the Deseado Massif of Southern Patagonia, Argentina. A total of 13 siliceous chert blocks sampled in an area of approximately 250 m, preserving a monotypic assemblage dominated by Osmundaceae embedded within its original swampy substrate, are documented. Additional Osmundaceae and fewer ferns and conifers are present in the stratigraphically continuous, adjacent chert levels.
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