Article
Ecology
Yingying Ni, Teng Yang, Yuying Ma, Kaoping Zhang, Pamela S. Soltis, Douglas E. Soltis, Jack A. Gilbert, Yunpeng Zhao, Chengxin Fu, Haiyan Chu
Summary: The study found that plant phylogeny accounts for a small fraction of the variation in bacterial community composition, while soil pH is the primary determinant, independently explaining 68.6% and 69.9% of the variation in bacterial diversity and composition. The analysis showed that bacterial community assembly is more phylogenetically clustered with increasing soil pH.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Sarah J. Adams, Brent M. Robicheau, Diane LaRue, Robin D. Browne, Allison K. Walker
Summary: This study investigated the culturable foliar fungi present in Geum peckii leaves at different sites in Canada with varying degrees of human impact, finding that habitats with more human impact showed lower endophytic diversity and potentially unknown fungal taxa.
Article
Forestry
Dandan Gao, Ning Zhang, Shuguang Liu, Chen Ning, Xinyue Wang, Shuailong Feng
Summary: Urbanization alters soil bacterial diversity and community composition, with higher diversity in urban areas compared to suburban and rural areas in forests and grasslands. The dominant soil bacterial community shifts from Acidobacteria to Proteobacteria in forestland with increasing urbanization intensity. In contrast, Proteobacteria consistently dominate the soil bacterial community in grassland along the rural-suburban-urban gradient, with significant changes in Nitrospirae and Latescibacteria induced by urbanization. Factors such as urbanization, total nitrogen, total organic carbon, ratio of carbon and nitrogen, and soil water content are found to be related to the bacterial community in forest and grassland soils.
Article
Plant Sciences
Celina Ben Saadi, Luis Cayuela, Guillermo Banares de Dios, Julia G. de Aledo, Laura Matas-Granados, Norma Salinas, Maria de los Angeles La Torre Cuadros, Manuel J. Macia
Summary: This study investigates the diversity attributes, latitudinal variation, and environmental drivers of plant species in western Amazonian terra firme forests. The results reveal that taxonomic diversity, functional diversity, and phylogenetic diversity increase with latitude, and temperature seasonality and annual precipitation are the main drivers of diversity patterns.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Elias Alfaro, Valentina Perez-Tello, Manuel Acevedo, Juan Ovalle, Ricardo Segovia, Dylan Craven
Summary: This study presents the Rasgos-CL Database, which provides a comprehensive set of plant traits for woody flora in Chile by mobilizing and standardizing unstructured data largely from Spanish-language literature. The database fills gaps in trait data compared to global trait databases and identifies phylogenetic and geographic biases of trait data gaps.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Biology
Teng Yang, Leho Tedersoo, Pamela S. Soltis, Douglas E. Soltis, Miao Sun, Yuying Ma, Yingying Ni, Xu Liu, Xiao Fu, Yu Shi, Han-Yang Lin, Yun-Peng Zhao, Chengxin Fu, Chuan-Chao Dai, Jack A. Gilbert, Haiyan Chu
Summary: This study surveyed fungal communities associated with 55 woody plant species in mountain forests in eastern China. The results showed that plant phylogeny was the strongest predictor for fungal community composition in leaves, while plant phylogeny, climatic factors, and soil properties together explained a portion of the variation in soil fungal community. The plant-fungus networks in leaves exhibited higher specialization, modularity, and robustness, but less complicated topology than those in soils. The findings provide insights into cross-kingdom species co-occurrence at large spatial scales.
SCIENCE CHINA-LIFE SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Soil Science
Apolline Benoist, Daniel Houle, Robert L. Bradley, Jean-Philippe Bellenger
Summary: The contribution of Coarse Woody Debris (CWD) to N inputs in boreal ecosystems has been reported, but data from Eastern Canadian forests is scarce. This study evaluated the contribution of CWD to total biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) in two forest sites and tested factors that can affect the conversion ratio for N-2-fixation estimates. The results showed that N-2-fixation by CWD in balsam fir and black spruce from eastern boreal forest is low compared to other estimates, and moss-covered CWD can significantly contribute to CWD N-2-fixation.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Forestry
Joshua R. Flinn, Roger W. Perry, Lynn W. Robbins
Summary: Eastern red bats have different roosting preferences in winter, preferring oak trees when roosting in trees and facing threats when roosting in leaf litter. The southerly aspect is the most important factor influencing roost selection, and prescribed burning can reduce potential bat mortality by providing faster arousal time.
Article
Soil Science
Luwen Ma, Lan Liu, Yaoshun Lu, Lin Chen, Zhaochen Zhang, Hongwei Zhang, Xiaoran Wang, Li Shu, Qingpei Yang, Qingni Song, Qiaohua Peng, Zeping Yu, Jian Zhang
Summary: Climatic variability along elevational gradients has significant impacts on soil microbial community composition. In this study, we used high-throughput sequencing to examine the taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity of soil bacteria and fungi along a 320-1350 m elevation gradient in subtropical forests. Our findings revealed contrasting patterns in the taxonomic diversity of bacteria and fungi, with bacteria populations decreasing monotonically while fungi taxonomic richness remained unchanged but with an increased Shannon-Wiener index with increasing elevation. Furthermore, we observed that the phylogenetic variability of fungi increased with greater elevation, whereas no significant variability was found for bacteria. Soil temperature and pH were found to be strongly associated with bacterial diversity, while fungal diversity showed weaker correlations with these soil variables. Our study highlights the ecological importance of microclimates in shaping soil microbial communities.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Abhishek Gopal, D. K. Bharti, Navendu Page, Kyle G. Dexter, Ramanathan Krishnamani, Ajith Kumar, Jahnavi Joshi
Summary: The Western Ghats is a biodiversity hotspot with high diversity and endemicity of woody plants. The southern region of the Western Ghats acts as both a museum and cradle of evolutionary diversity, with a higher proportion of old and young lineages restricted to this area. The high geo-climatic stability and moist climate in the south contribute to the diversity gradient in this region.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Xiayan Zhou, Zhao Wang, Wenxin Liu, Qianjin Fu, Yizhen Shao, Fengqin Liu, Yongzhong Ye, Yun Chen, Zhiliang Yuan
Summary: The distribution of woody plants in mountain forest ecosystems is specialized and influenced by topography and monsoons. The community structure and stability vary among different aspects of the mountain.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Francesco Parisi, Michele Innangi, Roberto Tognetti, Fabio Lombardi, Gherardo Chirici, Marco Marchetti
Summary: The relationships between structural complexity, deadwood abundance, microhabitat type, and species-diversity indicators are crucial tools for monitoring biodiversity in forest ecosystems. However, the impact of these factors on beetle communities can vary in different forest environments. Our study highlights the significance of ecological attributes in tracking changes in beetle biodiversity in specific forest contexts.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Mehdi Heydari, Javad Cheraghi, Reza Omidipour, Mahmood Rostaminia, Yahya Kooch, Orsolya Valko, Christopher Carcaillet
Summary: Mountain landscapes have diverse topography that controls ecosystem mechanisms and vegetation patterns. Topography influences tree dieback, with lower slopes supporting productive but less diverse communities, and upper slopes supporting stress-resistant and more diverse communities. Understanding this heterogeneity is important for managing mountain forest dominated by Quercus brantii.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Xiaomei Kang, Yanan Li, Jieyang Zhou, Shiting Zhang, Chenxi Li, Juhong Wang, Wei Liu, Wei Qi
Summary: The research found that temperature is the strongest factor influencing leaf traits, affecting leaf size, shape, stomatal structure, and chemical composition, indicating the important role of local heat quantity in determining variations in leaf morphology and biochemical properties. Additionally, the effects of precipitation and humidity on leaf growth were mainly through their impact on leaf traits related to plant water-use physiological processes.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Agronomy
Alba Sanmiguel-Vallelado, J. Julio Camarero, Enrique Moran-Tejeda, Antonio Gazol, Michele Colangelo, Esteban Alonso-Gonzalez, Juan Ignacio Lopez-Moreno
Summary: This study in Pyrenean valley in NE Spain found that snow dynamics have a significant impact on tree growth and functioning, influencing soil temperature and moisture. It highlights the importance of early and late growing season soil temperatures on radial growth of mountain conifers, suggesting that future climate change may increase productivity in similar mountain forests.
AGRICULTURAL AND FOREST METEOROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Alexander V. Rudbeck, Miao Sun, Melanie Tietje, Rachael V. Gallagher, Rafael Govaerts, Stephen A. Smith, Jens-Christian Svenning, Wolf L. Eiserhardt
Summary: The lack of knowledge of phylogenetic relationships hinders understanding of global biodiversity patterns, especially when there are spatial biases in phylogenetic knowledge. A study on seed plants found that the Darwinian shortfall is closely related to the macroecological distribution of species' range sizes, with smaller-ranged species less likely to have phylogenetic data. Socioeconomic factors have a small effect on the spatial bias of the Darwinian shortfall.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Shuyue Liu, Yu Shi, Mingming Sun, Dan Huang, Wensheng Shu, Mao Ye
Summary: Microbial community assembly plays a crucial role in the restoration and rehabilitation of disturbed ecosystems. In this study, the assembly mechanism of viral communities under soil contamination was investigated and compared to bacterial communities. The results showed that the assembly of both bacteria and viruses was primarily controlled by deterministic processes. However, with increasing Cr content in soils, the assembly of bacterial genes shifted from stochastic to deterministic processes, while the assembly of viral genes shifted from deterministic to stochastic processes. The stochasticity of viral assembly was found to facilitate the functional redundancy and evolution of bacterial communities towards deterministic processes.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Teng Yang, Luyao Song, Han-Yang Lin, Ke Dong, Xiao Fu, Gui-Feng Gao, Jonathan M. Adams, Haiyan Chu
Summary: The study found that plant phylogenetic relationships significantly influence fungal community structure in tree roots and surrounding soils. However, little research has been done on whether plant phylogenetic relationships within a single species can also affect fungal communities. The researchers surveyed ectomycorrhizal (EcM) and saprotrophic (SAP) fungal community structure in the fine roots and neighboring soils of Betula ermanii along the Changbai Mountain timberline. They found that within-species plant phylogeny was the main driver of EcM fungal community composition in roots, while geographic distance had the strongest influence on SAP fungal community composition in both soils and roots. Overall, the study shows that within-species plant phylogeny plays a crucial role in shaping EcM fungal communities in roots, and the assembly of fungal communities is dependent on both guild and habitat.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Han-Yang Lin, Yue Yang, Wen-Hao Li, Yu-Xin Luo, Xiao-Hua Bai, Tetsuo Ohi-Toma, Changkyun Kim, Joo-Hwan Kim, Yun-Peng Zhao
Summary: Clear species boundaries are important for biodiversity conservation, but morphological similarities can make taxonomy difficult. In this study, we used a multi-individual sampling strategy to evaluate the taxonomic status of Cinnamomum japonicum, C. chenii, and C. chekiangense. Phylogenetic analyses supported that C. chenii is the same species as C. japonicum, while C. chekiangense is a distinct species. Genetic analysis showed differentiation between Chinese C. japonicum populations and those in Japan and Korea. Ecological niche modeling predicted unsuitability of the current distribution area of Chinese C. japonicum under global warming scenarios. Based on these findings, we recommend prioritizing the conservation of Chinese C. japonicum.
JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATICS AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Wu-Bing Xu, Wen-Yong Guo, Josep M. Serra-Diaz, Franziska Schrodt, Wolf L. Eiserhardt, Brian J. Enquist, Brian S. Maitner, Cory Merow, Cyrille Violle, Madhur Anand, Michael Belluau, Hans Henrik Bruun, Chaeho Byun, Jane A. Catford, Bruno E. L. Cerabolini, Eduardo Chacon-Madrigal, Daniela Ciccarelli, J. Hans C. Cornelissen, Anh Tuan Dang-Le, Angel de Frutos, Arildo S. Dias, Aelton B. Giroldo, Alvaro G. Gutierrez, Wesley Hattingh, Tianhua He, Peter Hietz, Nate Hough-Snee, Steven Jansen, Jens Kattge, Benjamin Komac, Nathan J. B. Kraft, Koen Kramer, Sandra Lavorel, Christopher H. Lusk, Adam R. Martin, Ke-Ping Ma, Maurizio Mencuccini, Sean T. Michaletz, Vanessa Minden, Akira S. Mori, Uelo Niinemets, Yusuke Onoda, Renske E. Onstein, Josep Penuelas, Valerio D. Pillar, Jan Pisek, Matthew J. Pound, Bjorn J. M. Robroek, Brandon Schamp, Martijn Slot, Miao Sun, Enio E. Sosinski Jr, Nadejda A. Soudzilovskaia, Nelson Thiffault, Peter M. van Bodegom, Fons van der Plas, Jingming Zheng, Jens-Christian Svenning, Alejandro Ordonez
Summary: Studying the impacts of past climate change on biodiversity helps to understand the risks from future climate change. This study found that larger glacial-interglacial temperature change was associated with lower species replacements and higher richness changes in beta-diversity. Furthermore, regions with large temperature change showed lower phylogenetic and functional turnover and higher nestedness than expected, indicating selective processes during glacial-interglacial oscillations. These findings suggest that future human-driven climate change could lead to local homogenization and reduction in angiosperm tree diversity.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Han-Yang Lin, Chao-Nan Cai
Summary: This study reports the first complete chloroplast genome of the rare plant species S. sichuanensis from the Theaceae family, which is endemic to China and has a highly restricted distribution. The chloroplast genome is 158,903 bp long with a GC content of 37.3%, and it contains 129 genes, including encoding, transfer RNA, and ribosomal RNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis indicates that S. sichuanensis is closely related to S. laotica and S. pteropetiolata.
MITOCHONDRIAL DNA PART B-RESOURCES
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Hanyang Lin, Luxi Chen, Junmin Li
Summary: This study investigates the introduction history of Canada goldenrod in China, revealing multiple introduction events, genetic bottlenecks, and potential human-mediated spread. The findings suggest the importance of SNP data in understanding the evolutionary trajectory of invasive plants.
Article
Ecology
Xing Wang, Zuoqiang Yuan, Arshad Ali, Teng Yang, Fei Lin, Zikun Mao, Ji Ye, Shuai Fang, Zhanqing Hao, XugaoWang, Yoann Le Bagousse-Pinguet
Summary: This study investigates the response of the phyllosphere microbiome in mountain ranges to climate and leaf functional traits. The results show that the phyllosphere microbiome declines with increasing elevation, contrary to commonly observed hump-shaped biodiversity patterns. Host plant traits and climate have different effects on the endo- and epiphytic phyllosphere microbiomes.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Melanie Tietje, Alexandre Antonelli, Felix Forest, Rafael Govaerts, Stephen A. Smith, Miao Sun, William J. Baker, Wolf L. Eiserhardt
Summary: Regions with high unique phylogenetic diversity (PD) are important for conservation. The global distribution of plant PD remains poorly understood, but our analysis using a comprehensive global checklist of vascular plants identifies hotspots of unique plant PD. Our results support three hypotheses: PD is more evenly distributed than species diversity, areas of highest PD do not maximize cumulative PD, and multiple biomes are needed to maximize cumulative PD.
Article
Soil Science
Xu Liu, Cunzhi Zhang, Teng Yang, Gui-Feng Gao, Yu Shi, Haiyan Chu
Summary: The study reveals consistencies and discrepancies between phylogenetic relatedness and network associations within soil bacterial and archaeal communities. Negative complexity in archaeal networks correlates only with mean phylogenetic distance, while both positive and negative complexity in bacterial networks are significantly associated with mean phylogenetic distance. Even after accounting for the effects of environmental factors, phylogenetic relatedness still explains variations in the complexities of bacterial and archaeal associations. Furthermore, network complexity exhibits phylogenetic signals in both bacterial and archaeal networks, albeit within different associated distance classes, suggesting distinct coexistence mechanisms driven by niche and fitness trade-offs among soil bacteria and archaea.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Wen-Yong Guo, Josep M. Serra-Diaz, Wolf L. Eiserhardt, Brian S. Maitner, Cory Merow, Cyrille Violle, Matthew J. Pound, Miao Sun, Ferry Slik, Anne Blach-Overgaard, Brian J. Enquist, Jens-Christian Svenning
Summary: This study examines the spatial pattern and drivers of tree phylogenetic endemism using a global dataset. The researchers found that most endemism hotspots are located in low-to-mid latitudes, with current climate being the main driver. However, these hotspots are also at risk from land-use change and future climate change.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Han-Yang Lin, Miao Sun, Ya-Jun Hao, Daijiang Li, Matthew A. Gitzendanner, Cheng-Xin Fu, Douglas E. Soltis, Pamela S. Soltis, Yun-Peng Zhao
Summary: This study investigates the patterns of phylogenetic diversity (PD) and phylogenetic beta diversity (PBD) of congeners disjunctly distributed between eastern Asia and eastern North America (EA-ENA disjuncts) and their associated factors. The results show that, despite having fewer disjunct species than EA, ENA disjuncts have higher standardized effect size of PD (SES-PD) at the continental scale. The SES-PD of EA-ENA disjuncts decreases with increasing latitude, with a stronger latitudinal diversity gradient in EA sites.
Article
Plant Sciences
Zuoqiang Yuan, Ji Ye, Fei Lin, Xing Wang, Teng Yang, Boyuan Bi, Zikun Mao, Shuai Fang, Xugao Wang, Zhanqing Hao, Arshad Ali
Summary: This study investigated the bacterial diversity and composition of canopy leaves in six dominant tree species in deciduous broad-leaved forests in northeastern China. The results showed that tree species with closer evolutionary distances had similar phyllosphere microbial alpha diversity. The dominant phyla of phyllosphere bacteria were Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Firmicutes. Functional genes of phyllosphere bacteria were mainly involved in amino acid metabolism and carbohydrate metabolism processes. Plant nutrient acquisition and resistance to diseases and pests were found to be the main factors influencing the community structure of phyllosphere bacteria.
