Article
Plant Sciences
Stanislav Sukhikh, Svetlana Noskova, Svetlana Ivanova, Liubov Skrypnik, Artem Pungin, Elena Ulrikh, Evgeny Chupakhin, Olga Babich
Summary: The medicinal plant Dactylorhiza maculata is rich in bioactive substances with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. The extracts have been found to have low levels of heavy metals, pesticides, aflatoxin B1, and radionuclides, making them safe for use in livestock and poultry feed additives.
Article
Biology
Anna K. Monfils, Erica R. Krimmel, Debra L. Linton, Travis D. Marsico, Ashley B. Morris, Brad R. Ruhfel
Summary: Biodiversity scientists need to have interdisciplinary skills, including quantitative, computational, and data skills, as well as foundational knowledge in ecology, evolution, taxonomy, and systematics. To effectively train the emerging workforce, teaching should integrate science and data skills. An open education resource that updates traditional plant collection exercises can enhance students' skills in plant taxonomy and systematics, and deepen their understanding of collections-based data resources. Extended specimens play a crucial role in scientific discovery and reinforcing foundational concepts in biodiversity science, taxonomy, and systematics.
Article
Ecology
Alexandra Evans, Hans Jacquemyn
Summary: Climate change affects the distribution and habitat of terrestrial orchid species. Species with wide ecological niches are more capable of shifting their distribution and adapting to climate change, while species with narrow ecological niches are at greater risk. However, successful adaptation also depends on the availability of suitable habitat for expansion.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Review
Plant Sciences
Zbigniew Lobas, Anatoliy Khapugin, Elzbieta Zolubak, Anna Jakubska-Busse
Summary: The Epipactis helleborine (L.) Crantz group is one of the most taxonomically challenging species complexes within the genus Epipactis, with high morphological variability and potential for hybridization with other species leading to uncertainty and dispute over its taxonomic status. Based on recent research and online databases, an updated list of 10 accepted taxa in this group, including two species, six subspecies, and two varieties, has been proposed.
Article
Plant Sciences
Anna Jakubska-Busse, Izabela Czelusniak, Michal J. Kobylka, Marek Hojniak
Summary: During five years of field research, no true pollinating insects were observed visiting the flowers of E. albensis, which produces nectar containing compounds that may not attract pollinating insects.
Article
Biology
Anna Jakubska-Busse, Anna Kedziora, Gabriela Cieniuch, Agnieszka Korzeniowska-Kowal, Gabriela Bugla-Ploskonska
Summary: Using proteomics-based identification, we analyzed the composition of endophytic bacteria isolated from different parts of Epipactis species, identifying aerobic and anaerobic bacteria that may promote plant growth and aid orchids in adapting to their environment. We also found distinct differences in microbiomes between closely related taxa.
SAUDI JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Ryan A. Folk, Heather R. Kates, Raphael LaFrance, Douglas E. Soltis, Pamela S. Soltis, Robert P. Guralnick
Summary: This study presents a high-throughput collections-based approach using an integrated Specimen-to-Laboratory Information Management System (SLIMS), enabling researchers to explore more branches of the tree of life with numerous loci. The workflow was applied to ~15,000 species, resulting in a data set with ~50% taxonomic representation of the nitrogen-fixing clade of angiosperms. The approach is scalable to any taxonomic scale and demonstrates the potential of large-scale sampling strategies for broad taxonomic sampling with thousands of species.
APPLICATIONS IN PLANT SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Salvatore Brullo, Cristian Brullo, Salvatore Cambria, Gianmarco Tavilla, Salvatore Pasta, Leonardo Scuderi, Angelo Zimmitti
Summary: A new subspecies of Epipactis microphylla, proposed as subsp. cossyrensis, is described and illustrated from Pantelleria, a volcanic island near Sicily. It differs from subsp. microphylla mainly in the shape and size of leaves and bracts and several floral traits. This taxon, previously attributed to E. pollinensis, a species currently treated as a synonym of E. purpurata, grows in the undergrowth of thermophilous woodlands occurring on the top of the island, where it numbers a few tens of individuals. The conservation status, phenology and taxonomic remarks are provided. Keys for the species belonging to the Epipactis atrorubens group (= subsect. Atrorubensae), including E. microphylla, are presented.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Matthias Kropf, Monika Kriechbaum
Summary: The central questions of reproductive research on Dactylorhiza sambucina (Orchidaceae) involve the maintenance of its flower colour polymorphism through pollinator-mediated negative frequency dependent selection. This study investigates the spatial-temporal variation of flowering, flower colour morph frequencies, and population fluctuations in D. sambucina to understand its population and reproduction dynamics, which is crucial for conservation. Results show repeated changes in flower colour dominance in some populations, with smaller populations being more prone to these changes.
Review
Ecology
Emily K. Meineke, Barnabas H. Daru
Summary: Biological collections from museums are vital resources for studying the impact of human activities on biodiversity, but biases and incomplete understanding have limited their widespread use in ecology research. To enhance the application of specimen-based data, it is necessary to quantify biases and mitigate their effects by assessing collection biases and understanding their interactions.
TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Gerard Thijsse, Margreet Wesseling
Summary: This paper explores the destiny of the botanical collections of the renowned Leiden physician and botanist professor Herman Boerhaave, introducing the known collections associated with him and raising questions about their origins.
Article
Plant Sciences
Hermes Vega, William Cetzal-Ix, Edgar Mo, Katya J. Romero-Soler, Saikat K. Basu
Summary: This article presents a comprehensive compilation of all the orchid species known from Honduras, including species checklist, habit classification, and specimen collection. Honduras is one of the countries with the highest number of orchid species, including 10 endemic species. However, there are still challenges in collecting specimens and obtaining sufficient data in certain areas.
Article
Plant Sciences
Beatriz Alfonso, Olga Ortega-Martinez, Jose Carlos Hernandez, Marta Sanson, Carlos Sangil, Ricardo T. Pereyra
Summary: This study utilized mitochondrial intergenic marker cox2-3 to investigate the genetic variability of the macroalga Gelidium canariense over the last 40 years. The research found the presence of the same haplotype at the same location, both within populations on Tenerife Island and between populations of different islands. The study provides a baseline for future molecular research on the genetic characterization and distribution of genetic diversity in this vulnerable species.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nakarin Suwannarach, Jaturong Kumla, Chanalug Rachanarin, Kanok-Orn Srimuang
Summary: The research found that the fungus Tulasnella phuhinrongklaensis CMU-CR41 shows compatibility as a symbiont for the in vitro seed germination and protocorm development of the rheophytic orchid, Epipactis flava. The symbiotic treatment resulted in higher rates of seed germination and protocorm development compared to the asymbiotic treatment. Additionally, peloton-like structures were found in the rhizoids and cortical cells of protocorms in the symbiotic treatment.
CHIANG MAI JOURNAL OF SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Vladan Djordjevic, Predrag Lazarevic, Vera Stankovc, Eva Kabas
Summary: Epipactis exilis P. Delforge (Orchidaceae) was discovered as a new species in the flora of Serbia at Mount Kopaonik in Central Serbia. This is the first known location of this species in the Central Balkans. Morphological characteristics, distribution data, habitat preferences, and population size are provided in the study. Based on the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, E. exilis is estimated to be Critically Endangered (CR D) in Serbia.
PHYTON-ANNALES REI BOTANICAE
(2022)
Article
Zoology
Tamas Cserkesz, Csaba Kiss, Zoltan Barkaszi, Tamas Gorfol, Igor Zagorodniuk, Gabor Sramko, Gabor Csorba
Summary: The study revealed significant morphological differentiation between European polecats and steppe polecats, with a slight overlap in sympatric populations. The subspecies and nominal taxa of steppe polecats partially overlapped, indicating ongoing hybridization. Although intermediate individuals were found in sympatric populations, limited genetic exchange between the species was suggested.
Article
Plant Sciences
Michael Hohla, Konrad Pagitz, Gergely Kiraly
Summary: Rubus ser. Rhamnifolii comprises apomictic polyploid species mainly found in north-western and central Europe, with occasional occurrences in eastern central Europe. The description of Rubus noricus, a regionally distributed tetraploid species in the northern and southern regions of the Eastern Alps in Austria and Germany, is provided in this article. The new species is morphologically compared with similar taxa and data on its distribution.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Lajos Szatmari, Tamas Cserkesz, Levente Laczko, Jozsef Lanszki, Cino Pertoldi, Alexei Abramov, Morten Elmeros, Barnabas Ottlecz, Zsolt Hegyeli, Gabor Sramko
Summary: Analyzing genetic data from two polecat species in Europe, the study found low levels of natural hybridization and clear genetic differentiation between populations, suggesting that introgressive hybridization may not pose a significant threat to the species. Different molecular techniques revealed insights into the genetic makeup and diversity of the populations, indicating that the habitat preference of the species may act as a barrier to gene flow.
EVOLUTIONARY APPLICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Edy Fantinato, Judit Sonkoly, Peter Torok, Gabriella Buffa
Summary: The study found a hump-shaped relationship between community-level pollinator visitation rate and the quantity of floral resources, which was consistent across different types of floral resources. The relationship between the quantity of floral resources and the structure and robustness of the network was inconsistent among different types of floral resources, with only intermediate levels of nectar volume associated with high levels of network robustness.
FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Ecology
Francesco de Bello, Sandra Lavorel, Lauren M. Hallett, Enrique Valencia, Eric Garnier, Christiane Roscher, Luisa Conti, Thomas Galland, Marta Goberna, Maria Majekova, Alicia Montesinos-Navarro, Juli G. Pausas, Miguel Verdu, Anna E-Vojtko, Lars Gotzenberger, Jan Leps
Summary: Under global change, maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services over time is a fundamental question. Ecologists suggest that differences in functional traits among organisms play a key role in determining the temporal stability of ecosystem properties.
TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Marta Gaia Sperandii, Francesco de Bello, Enrique Valencia, Lars Gotzenberger, Manuele Bazzichetto, Thomas Galland, Anna E-Vojtko, Luisa Conti, Peter B. Adler, Hannah Buckley, Jiri Danihelka, Nicola J. Day, Juergen Dengler, David J. Eldridge, Marc Estiarte, Ricardo Garcia-Gonzalez, Eric Garnier, Daniel Gomez-Garcia, Lauren Hallett, Susan Harrison, Tomas Herben, Ricardo Ibanez, Anke Jentsch, Norbert Juergens, Miklos Kertesz, Duncan M. Kimuyu, Katja Klumpp, Mike Le Duc, Frederique Louault, Rob H. Marrs, Gabor Onodi, Robin J. Pakeman, Meelis Partel, Begona Peco, Josep Penuelas, Marta Rueda, Wolfgang Schmidt, Ute Schmiedel, Martin Schuetz, Hana Skalova, Petr Smilauer, Marie Smilauerova, Christian Smit, Ming-Hua Song, Martin Stock, James Val, Vigdis Vandvik, Karsten Wesche, Susan K. Wiser, Ben A. Woodcock, Truman P. Young, Fei-Hai Yu, Amelia A. Wolf, Martin Zobel, Jan Leps
Summary: Analyzing temporal patterns in plant communities is crucial for understanding ecological changes. The LOTVS initiative provides a global collection of vegetation time-series, with 79 datasets from five continents, making it the largest collection of fine-grained vegetation time-series derived from permanent plots. This resource has the potential to support innovative research in vegetation science, plant ecology, and temporal ecology.
JOURNAL OF VEGETATION SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Edina Nemeshazi, Gabor Sramko, Levente Laczko, Emese Balogh, Lajos Szatmari, Nora Vili, Nikolett Ujhegyi, Balint Uveges, Veronika Bokony
Summary: Anthropogenic environmental changes have significant impacts on biodiversity and microevolution, especially for ectothermic vertebrates. This study examined the prevalence of sex reversal in wild toad populations and their susceptibility to estrogenic pollutants. The results showed negligible sex-reversal frequency in free-living adults and similar susceptibility to sex reversal among different habitat types. This suggests a potentially species-specific resistance to sex reversal in wild toads.
Article
Plant Sciences
Bohumil Travnicek, Michal Sochor, Piotr Kosinski, Gergely Kiraly
Summary: The study investigated the narrower-leaved biotypes of the Rubus gothicus group in south-eastern central Europe, identifying four stable tetraploid biotypes. Taxonomic and nomenclatural discussions, revised morphological descriptions, ecological characteristics, and distribution maps were provided for the studied species.
Article
Ecology
Elena Motivans Svara, Valentin Stefan, Esther Sossai, Reinart Feldmann, Dianne Joy Aguilon, Anna Bontsutsnaja, Anna E-Vojtko, Isabel C. Kilian, Piret Lang, Marilin Motlep, Elisabeth Prangel, Mari-Liis Viljur, Tiffany M. Knight, Lena Neuenkamp
Summary: The study shows that low-intensity traditional management types affect the composition of plants and pollinators, as well as the structure of plant-pollinator interactions, and are mediated by floral and insect functional traits. Both wooded meadows and alvar pastures promote diversity of plants and pollinators, but differ in the structure of pollination networks.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Cornelia Adlhoch, Alice Fusaro, Jose L. Gonzales, Thijs Kuiken, Stefano Marangon, Eric Niqueux, Christoph Staubach, Calogero Terregino, Inma Aznar, Irene Munoz Guajardo, Francesca Baldinelli
Summary: The invasive grass Sporobolus cryptandrus can reduce functional diversity, species richness, specific leaf area, and increase plant community height. These effects are stronger in non-native ranges, negatively impacting insect-pollinated plant species and native perennials. In areas without Sporobolus, there is an increase in specific leaf area and seed mass, with varying effects on plant height depending on the region.
APPLIED VEGETATION SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Anna E-Vojtko, Robert R. Junker, Francesco de Bello, Lars Gotzenberger
Summary: This study integrated floral traits into the dimensions of plant form and function and found that floral traits play an independent role in the variation of plant traits. Flower size is positively correlated with plant size and leaf size, and mating system is one of the most important traits across different plant tissue/organ types.
Article
Plant Sciences
Gergely Kovacsics-Vari, Judit Sonkoly, Katalin Toth, Andrea McIntosh-Buday, Patricia Diaz Cando, Viktoria Toro-Szijgyarto, Nora Balogh, Luis Roberto Guallichico Suntaxi, Francis David Espinoza Ami, Laszlo Demeter, Bela Tothmeresz, Peter Torok
Summary: By analysing cattle-and sheep-grazed sand grasslands in the Nyirseg region, East Hungary, the study aimed to determine the effects of livestock type and grazing intensity on vegetation characteristics. The results showed that livestock type did not have a significant independent effect on the studied characteristics, but the interaction between livestock type and grazing intensity did have an impact. It was concluded that careful adjustment of grazing intensity and long-term experiments studying different livestock and habitat types are essential for the management of sand grasslands.
APPLIED VEGETATION SCIENCE
(2023)
Editorial Material
Plant Sciences
Abraham van de Beek, Detlev Drenckhahn, Hendrik DeVriese, Thomas Gregor, Erik van den Ham, Rense Haveman, Michael Hohla, Gergely Kiraly, Piotr Kosinski, Guenter Matzke-Hajek, Karst Meijer, David P. Mercier, Iris de Ronde, Ulf Ryde, Bohumil Travnicek
Article
Plant Sciences
Martin Lepsi, Petr Lepsi, Michael Hohla, Gergely Kiraly
Summary: A new tetraploid bramble species, Rubus lentianus, has been discovered in Central Europe (Upper Austria and Lower Bavaria). It can be distinguished from other species in the Radula series by its deeply incised terminal leaflets of primocane leaves and long, abruptly narrowing apex. This research provides an identification key, a distribution map, a list of revised specimens, a scan of the type specimen, pen drawings, and photographs of living specimens.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Judit Sonkoly, Edina Toth, Nora Balogh, Lajos Balogh, Denes Bartha, Kinga Csendesne Bata, Zoltan Batori, Nora Bekefi, Zoltan Botta-Dukat, Janos Boloni, Aniko Csecserits, Janos Csiky, Peter Csontos, Istvan Dancza, Balazs Deak, Zoltan Konstantin Dobolyi, Anna E-Vojtko, Ferenc Gyulai, Alida Anna Habenczyus, Tamas Henn, Ferenc Horvath, Maria Hohn, Gusztav Jakab, Andras Kelemen, Gergely Kiraly, Szabolcs Kis, Gergely Kovacsics-Vari, Andras Kun, Eva Lehoczky, Attila Lengyel, Barbara Lhotsky, Viktor Loki, Balazs Andras Lukacs, Gabor Matus, Andrea McIntosh-Buday, Attila Mesterhazy, Tamas Miglecz, V. Attila Molnar, Zsolt Molnar, Tamas Morschhauser, Laszlo Papp, Patricia Posa, Tamas Redei, David Schmidt, Ferenc Szmorad, Attila Takacs, Julia Tamas, Viktor Tiborcz, Csaba Tolgyesi, Katalin Toth, Bela Tothmeresz, Orsolya Valko, Viktor Virok, Tamas Wirth, Peter Torok
Summary: The existing plant trait databases have limited applicability for studying the flora and vegetation of Eastern and Central Europe due to their limited geographical data coverage and incorporation of records from regions with different climatic conditions. To address this issue, PADAPT, a regional dataset of plant traits for the Pannonian region, has been compiled, providing data on 54 traits and attributes of plant species in the region.