Author: curtislubbe

Sebastian Neun, Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment (ICBM) at the University of Oldenburg, Germany, discusses his article: Light spectrum matters: Interactive effects of light and nutrients on phytoplankton communities and trophic transfer Where is the rainbow? All lakes are characterised by a tightly linked network of food chains, and phytoplankton forms […]

Kauane Bordin, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, discusses her article: Growth–survival trade-off in temperate trees is weak and restricted to late-successional stages Temperate forests, such as those in the U.S. and Europe, are a huge part of Earth’s lungs. They provide habitat for countless species, store massive amounts of carbon that help […]

Ethan E. Butler, Peter B. Reich, Neha Mohanbabu, and Forest Isbell from the University of Minnesota, USA, Zhong Wang from the Wuhan University inChina, and Xiujuan Qiao from the Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, discuss their article: Elevated CO2 and enriched nitrogen proportionally decrease species richness most at small spatial scales in a […]

Alice Ardichvili, Sorbonne University, discusses her article: Spatial context allows the evolution of the control of nitrification by plants Once upon a time The project began a long time ago, in the late 1990s, when my PhD advisor J-C was still a carefree and enthusiastic individual. He and his colleagues observed that a common grass […]

Amanda Gallinat, Colby College, USA, and Theresa Crimmins, USA National Phenology Network, discuss their article: Combined volunteer and ecological network observations show broad-scale temperature-sensitivity patterns for deciduous plant flowering and leaf-out times across the Eastern USA Around the globe, the timing of seasonal activity in plants and animals – termed phenology – is shifting substantially […]

Chao Guo and Hans Cornelissen, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, discuss their article: Using traits to integrate non-additive effects of species mixtures across ecosystem processes Imagine you want to make a campfire outside your tent in the woods. You have some big wood blocks available, but they are hard to get going. You know from your parents’ […]

Miaojun Ma, Gansu Gannan Grassland Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, discusses his article: Asynchronous phenological responses to warming affect biomass production contrastingly in flowering functional groups Background Plant phenology and productivity changes represent two of the most critical climate-induced changes […]

Romain Goury, University of Grenoble Alpes in France, discusses his article: Recent vegetation shifts in the French Alps with winners outnumbering losers, in both English and French. When we walk through the mountains, it is often easy to notice plants that have not been there before. But spotting those that are quietly disappearing is a […]

Shao-peng Li and Bingwei Lv, East China Normal University, discuss their article: Multidimensional diversity recovery following invasive species removal: Roles of colonization, extinction, and abundance shifts. Background Plant invasion is a global ecological challenge, and invasive species often outcompete native plants, leading to a loss of biodiversity and disruption of ecosystem functions. Removing these unwelcome […]

Hang Ci, East China Normal University, discusses her article: Temporal dynamics of bark and wood functional traits in determining invertebrate communities during coarse and fine woody debris decomposition When a tree falls in the forest, its death marks a vibrant new beginning. Deadwood is not merely lifeless debris; it becomes a bustling source of food […]