Forming and managing a Farmer Cluster for improved farmland biodiversity in Europe – The Applied Ecologist

Shortlisted for the Chico Mendes Prize About the research Overview Farmer Clusters are groups of neighbouring farmers that come together to select their own biodiversity targets in a “bottom-up” approach and therefore offer an amazing opportunity to tackle agricultural biodiversity declines across the landscape. They allow farmers to take control of the conservation initiatives on […]

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How tree species with different abundance shape rhizosphere symbioses‌ |

Jiarong Yang and Yu Liu, East China Normal University, discuss their article: Rare tree species host a high diversity of rhizosphere fungi Forest ecosystems are intricate webs of life where trees and their root-associated fungi form a delicate balance. One question that remains, is whether and how tree species abundance influences the fungal communities that […]

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Seabird-vessel interactions in industrial fisheries of Northwest Africa – The Applied Ecologist

Shortlisted for the 2025 Southwood Prize About the research Overview Seabirds and fisheries almost inevitably meet at sea because we depend on the same marine resources. Interactions become direct when seabirds deliberately follow vessels to take advantage of what seems like an easy meal. We have long known this can pose a serious threat. A seabird […]

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Nitrogen content of herbarium specimens from arable fields and mesic meadows reflect the intensifying agricultural management during the 20th century |

2025 HARPER PRIZE SHORTLIST: For the next two weeks, we are featuring the articles shortlisted for the 2025 Harper Prize. The Harper Prize is an annual award for the best early career research paper published in Journal of Ecology. Paul Kühn & Raymond Umazekabiri’s ‘Nitrogen content of herbarium specimens from arable fields and mesic meadows reflect the intensifying agricultural management during […]

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Microclimatic niche shifts predict long-term survival and body mass declines in a warmer and more degraded world – The Applied Ecologist

Shortlisted for the 2025 Southwood Prize About the research Overview The eastern Himalaya is a global biodiversity hotspot housing nearly 10% of the world’s bird diversity. In recent years, the region has experienced rapid climate warming (three times faster than the global average), which is further compounded by habitat degradation. The determinants of how various bird […]

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Plant species loss reduces rare soil microbes through diversity effects amplified by multitrophic interactions |

2025 HARPER PRIZE SHORTLIST: For the next two weeks, we are featuring the articles shortlisted for the 2025 Harper Prize. The Harper Prize is an annual award for the best early career research paper published in Journal of Ecology. Jie Li’s ‘Plant species loss reduces rare soil microbes through diversity effects amplified by multitrophic interactions‘ is one of those shortlisted […]

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A practical guide to research co-production – The Applied Ecologist

Shortlisted for the Georgina Mace Prize About the research Palaeoecology – the ecology of the past – has much to offer in addressing complex conservation challenges. By providing a long-term perspective of ecological change, palaeoecology can provide insight on pre-disturbance conditions, long-term processes, and the responses of ecological systems to dynamic climatic and anthropogenic change. […]

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Pollinator facilitation between florally contrasting congeners scales up to regional co-occurrence patterns |

2025 HARPER PRIZE SHORTLIST: For the next two weeks, we are featuring the articles shortlisted for the 2025 Harper Prize. The Harper Prize is an annual award for the best early career research paper published in Journal of Ecology. Xuening Zhang’s ‘Pollinator facilitation between florally contrasting congeners scales up to regional co-occurrence patterns‘ is one of those shortlisted for the award. […]

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Commission Assessment: Belgium’s National Energy and Climate Plan shows increased ambition, but requires more effort and implementation

The Commission has published its assessment of Belgium’s final updated National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP). Outlining the Belgian plan for achieving its 2030 energy and climate targets, the final updated plan provides revised projections that mark some improvements compared to the draft updated plan. Belgium has raised its ambition relative to the previous version, but additional efforts […]

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A framework for addressing recovery actions through multi-agency collaboration – The Applied Ecologist

Shortlisted for the Chico Mendes Prize About the research Overview Our paper asks a simple but uncomfortable question: why do so many species recovery strategies fail to translate into recovery outcomes? Using more than a decade of collaborative work on the endangered semi-aquatic queensnake (Regina septemvittata) in Ontario, we developed and tested a framework for […]

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