Coral reefs are increasingly threatened by marine heatwaves, driving efforts to enhance coral thermal resilience. One promising approach involves engineering coral symbioses by introducing heat-evolved (HE) algal symbionts into corals. To use this intervention with adult corals, the native symbiont community needs to be depleted, typically via chemical bleaching, prior to inoculation with HE symbionts. However, host recovery and community assembly dynamics in mildly bleached corals remain poorly understood. In this study, a dose-dependent chemical bleaching (CB) experiment was conducted using menthol and diuron (DCMU) to understand how different levels of CB impact host health and acquisition of HE symbionts (Cladocopium and Durusdinium). We monitored coral mortality, change in area, pigmentation, and photochemical efficiency through bleaching and twelve weeks of recovery and found that impacts on host health were proportional to bleaching level, although there were strong genotypic effects. Shuffling to the previously low abundance native Durusdinium was also proportional to CB treatment, and only fragments from the severe treatment experienced significant uptake of HE symbionts. Furthermore, significant uptake was not detected until 12 weeks post-deployment, suggesting delayed niche establishment and proliferation of these symbionts. Findings from this study provide insight into symbiont community assembly processes, informing the optimisation and scaling of symbiont engineering and manipulation interventions that enhance coral resilience.

Aim To assess how community diversity and phylogenetic context shape plant thermal tolerance strategies along a tropical elevational gradient, and to determine whether biotic context explains variation in thermal niches beyond elevation alone. Location Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Time period 2023–2024. Major taxa studied Vascular plants, with emphasis on the bromeliad Pitcairnia flammea and co-occurring monocots, dicots, and ferns. Methods We surveyed plant assemblages across seven sites spanning sea level to ~2,200 m elevation. Community diversity, species cover, and phylogenetic structure were quantified for each assemblage. Photosynthetic heat and cold tolerance (T50) and leaf functional traits were measured for P. flammea populations and dominant sympatric species. Phylogenetic analyses, principal component analysis, and AIC-based model comparisons were used to assess the relative roles of elevation, diversity, and phylogenetic context in shaping thermal strategies. Results Cold tolerance and leaf area showed strong phylogenetic conservatism across taxa, whereas heat tolerance exhibited little phylogenetic structure. Mid-elevation assemblages, characterized by peak species richness, showed greater divergence in thermal tolerance among species. In contrast, P. flammea populations displayed their broadest thermal tolerance at high elevations, coinciding with high monocot diversity and phylogenetic clustering, despite harsher abiotic conditions. Lowland populations were abundant but exhibited reduced heat tolerance in assemblages with lower representation of closely related taxa. Overall, community diversity and phylogenetic structure explained variation in thermal strategies better than elevation alone. Main conclusions Biotic context plays a central role in structuring plant thermal niches along tropical elevational gradients. Integrating community composition and evolutionary history with abiotic gradients is essential for interpreting elevational patterns and predicting species responses to climate change in species-rich tropical systems.

Conserving tigers (Panthera tigris) in human-dominated landscapes requires careful management of human-tiger conflict. Tiger attacks on human are the extreme form of conflict occurring primarily during livelihood activities in the Terai arc landscape of Nepal. We assessed spatio-temporal patterns of tiger attacks on human and factors associated with human fatality due to attacks. We collected human tiger conflict data from the government authorities, primarily national park offices and division forest offices. We interviewed 245 victims or family members attacked by tigers between 2010 and 2024 using a semi-structured questionnaire. Most tiger attacks on human (>90%) occurred inside forest areas and over half were fatal. Men were attacked more frequently (65.3%) but fatality was higher among women (>70%). Majority of the victims (93%) were illiterate or had a low level of education and 62% were hill migrants while indigenous Terai peoples were less frequently (27%) attacked. Large number of the tiger attacks occurred during resource collection from forests or livestock herding. The victim’s group size, sex and posture during the tiger attacks affected human fatality. Tiger attack can be minimized by applying adaptive management of buffer zone and corridor forests, adopting safety protocols through behavior change campaigns, promoting alternative livelihoods and tiger tourism, and proactive management of conflict-causing tigers. The finding of this research has long term implications to strengthen human-tiger coexistence in human-dominated landscapes in Nepal and elsewhere. Keywords: Tiger attack, Human-tiger-conflict, Co-existence, Terai-arc-landscape, Nepal

Non-invasive DNA sampling from feces can provide powerful tools for wildlife research, management, and conservation. However, obtaining high quality and quantity fecal DNA is notoriously problematic, being affected by many different variables. Arguably, the most influential factor within the control of biologists is how samples are collected and stored prior to laboratory analyses. Here, we aimed to compare different fecal DNA preservation methodologies for their performance with a targeted genotyping approach and improve the quality and quantity of DNA extracted to better inform sampling of feces in the field. We assessed the proportion of missing single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data resulting from seven different fecal DNA preservation methodologies on fresh koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) scats. DNA was successfully obtained from all preservation methodologies; however, optimal recovery of DNA was obtained via a lysis shaken (i.e., washed) methodology, which provided a yield almost equivalent to that of more invasively sampled, high-quality, tissue samples. Our findings suggest there is a significant advantage of using a lysis buffer and washing technique coupled with targeted genotyping from scats. As a robust sampling method underpins successful data analysis, this optimized fecal sampling technique can further enhance our ability to address critical questions in population ecology, conservation genetics, and population management and help implement improved conservation strategies and decision making.

Social insects represent a major component of tropical forest biomass, yet the ecological fate of their necromass remains poorly understood. Stingless bees (Apidae: Meliponini), particularly species in the genus Trigona, frequently engage in aggressive, sometimes lethal conflicts while competing for nutrient-rich resources such as carrion. Here we report a previously undescribed trophic interaction in which rove beetles of the genus Macrogerodonia (Staphylinidae) prey exclusively on wounded or recently killed Trigona workers. Field observations and cafeteria choice experiments showed that beetles consistently preyed on injured Trigona bees, ignoring carrion and alternative invertebrates, including flies, grasshoppers, and other stingless bee genera. Same behavior was observed at additional sites in Peru and Costa Rica, suggesting this interaction is geographically widespread. Our observations indicate a previously undescribed, highly specialized trophic interaction linking social insect warfare to predator specialization, emphasizing the ecological significance of social insect necromass in structuring tropical forest food webs.

The diet of wild non-human primates is still largely unknown, but advances in molecular techniques using DNA metabarcoding allow obtaining such information much faster and in more detail than until recently. The genus Trachypithecus is the most speciose and most broadly distributed genus among Asian colobines, a group of highly folivorous primates. The genus contains four species groups of which three occur in rainforest habitats while the fourth, the T. francoisi group, is restricted to limestone habitat. To characterize the food plant composition of langurs living in different habitats, we employed a metabarcoding approach and analyzed monthly samples (n = 419) collected over a 1-year period from T. crepusculus and T. germaini, members of the T. obscurus and T. cristatus groups, respectively, and T. delacouri and T. hatinhensis, both members of the T. francoisi group. By identifying plant taxa primarily to the genus level, we found that langur species consume a large number of different plants, with diets comprising of 122 - 129 plant genera across 59 - 73 families. While both overall dietary diversity and the most common plants consumed differed among the four species, we found no clear distinction between rainforest and limestone langurs. The four langur species also differed in their reaction to seasonal changes, as some species consumed different plants during dry and wet season, whereas others showed little change in plant consumption over the year. This study improves understanding of Trachypithecus dietary composition and represents the first dietary inventory of T. crepusculus in Vietnam.

Plant functional traits are frequently used to compare strategies of species and to predict functions such as growth, reproduction, or phenology. While aboveground traits are well studied, comparatively little is known about belowground traits. In the context of global change, it is crucial to better understand the responses of traits, both above- and belowground, to changing abiotic factors. In this study, we investigated the response of above- and belowground plant traits to climatic and soil parameters by cultivating five perennial herbaceous species in experimental beds at five Central European botanical gardens. After up to four growing seasons we measured above- and belowground traits, and analysed their relationships to differences in climatic conditions, soil chemistry and nutrient availability. In particular, we investigated whether above- and belowground trait pairs with similar functions respond correspondingly to environmental parameters. We found that above- and belowground traits are tightly linked, with plant height negatively correlated with root branching and LDMC positively correlated with RDMC. Overall intraspecific variation in response to environmental factors was mainly driven by nutrient availability in terms of soil C/N ratios, while climatic differences played a less important role. Traits differed in the extent to which they were shaped by broad scale environmental conditions compared to micro-environmental conditions. Our results emphasise that even minor differences in environmental gradients or microhabitat variations can lead to intraspecific variation in above- and belowground traits. This highlights the importance of using traits measured on sites for trait-based approaches. To some extent, easily measurable aboveground traits are linked to root traits in terms of their function and responses to environmental conditions, but we do not recommend using aboveground traits as a substitute for root traits in trait-based approaches as the correlations are very difficult to predict and may depend on the habitat.

Long-term, individual-level studies can provide valuable insights into the effects of climate and landscape change on the ecology and population dynamics of wild animals. However, many such studies lack environmental data collected at sufficient spatial and temporal scales to determine how populations respond to changing conditions. In these cases, the retrospective use of satellite-derived data can provide a way to recover past environmental information. Here, we used 27 years of data from an insectivorous passerine in southeastern Australia, the superb fairy-wren Malurus cyaneus, to assess how climate variation influences vegetation productivity and, indirectly, superb fairy-wren life history traits through potential changes in trophic interactions. Specifically, we combined long-term individual-level monitoring of superb fairy-wrens and local weather records with Landsat satellite imagery, from which we derived measures of vegetation productivity using the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) as a proxy for food availability through arthropod abundance. We found a complex set of associations between NDVI and different components of weather, when considering both concurrent and lagged effects. Our analyses of the causes of seasonal variation in superb fairy-wren life history traits demonstrated that NDVI was associated with: (i) temporal variation in breeding success, with years with high spring and summer NDVI values having relatively high average breeding success; and (ii) spatial variation in adult mortality in autumn and winter, with superb fairy-wren territories with low autumn–winter NDVI values having higher average mortality rates. Notably, autumn–winter NDVI values were found to have remained relatively consistent over time, and therefore cannot explain recently observed increases in adult autumn–winter mortality. Our study illustrates the potential of using long-term Landsat satellite imagery to investigate whether associations between animal life history traits and climate are mediated by vegetation productivity and to what extent temporal trends are influenced by climate change.

Intraspecific variation is the collective genotypic and phenotypic variability among individuals and populations of a species. Its documentation across taxa is considered essential for understanding ecological-evolutionary processes and biodiversity consequences in Anthropocene environments. The systematic assessment of intraspecific variation is, however, a complex task. Here, we present a conceptual approach for holistic surveying of intraspecific variation. We illustrate its feasibility through application in chimpanzees, a taxon with high anthropological significance for understanding hominid diversification and conservation importance as flagship and umbrella species. By establishing a large-scale, highly collaborative and well-structured network of research sites, standardized genomic, microbiome, mycobiome, physiological, dietary, demographic, behavioral and ecological data could be collected across many populations. Studies unprecedented in scale, complexity, and disciplinary integration allow addressing long-standing questions and complex topics which previously could not be studied with existing approaches restricted in extent and scale. Adopting similar approaches for other taxa exhibiting high intraspecific variation, including other primates, corvids, parrots or cetaceans will advance holistic species understanding. Such work will reveal generalizable patterns and improve understanding of contexts shaping ecological-evolutionary processes underlying the emergence of intraspecific variation, facilitating inclusion of intraspecific variation into conservation strategies and revealing consequences of losing intraspecific variation in Anthropocene environments.

Wild bees and wasps are vital to ecosystems, yet large-scale monitoring of individual insects as well as their habitats and behaviors requires expert knowledge and is very labour-intensive. Recent advances in computer vision offer both methodological solutions and practical applications for these tasks. This review systematically surveys state-of-the-art literature (2020-2025) on computer-vision-based monitoring of wild bees and wasps. We compare the primary monitoring tasks, such as individual detection and classification, habitat observation, and assessment of insect behavior, and analyze how specific computer vision techniques contribute to each. By examining the datasets used in the reviewed studies, we further categorize dataset types and collection strategies to inform future image acquisition. In addition, we draw insights from widely used public resources (e.g., iNaturalist, Observation) regarding their strengths and limitations for this domain. We then examine how hardware and software are integrated in these studies, and review released repositories, existing applications, and the design of more complex, multifunctional monitoring stations. These analyses provide guidance for benchmarking and future deployment with existing datasets and monitoring tools. We eventually propose the design of building more comprehensive and efficient automatic monitoring systems for wild bees and wasps.

Collisions between vehicles and wildlife pose significant threats to terrestrial mammal populations, particularly in tropical dry forests characterized by high endemism and fragmentation. Understanding spatial patterns of road mortality and connectivity constraints remains limited in these ecosystems. Here, we conducted a two-year systematic survey of mammal roadkill along an 83-km highway segment in the Tumbesian dry forest of southwestern Ecuador, recording 91 individuals across nine species. We integrated roadkill data with circuit-theory connectivity modeling and spatial prioritization analyses to identify key areas for conservation and restoration. Landscape structure metrics did not predict roadkill rates, but species-specific traits influenced vulnerability. Our spatial framework reveals discrete priority zones where road mortality may disrupt functional connectivity. These findings demonstrate that empirical mortality data, when integrated with connectivity modeling, provide a non-redundant diagnostic tool for targeted mitigation, essential for maintaining biodiversity in increasingly fragmented tropical dry forests.

Against the backdrop of global climate change, altered precipitation patterns profoundly affect grassland ecosystems in arid and semi-arid regions. To clarify the spatiotemporal heterogeneity in the relationship between long-term precipitation variation and vegetation response, this study focuses on East Ujimqin Banner, Inner Mongolia. Utilizing 35 years of precipitation monitoring data (1983-2017) and field vegetation survey data from four key years (1983, 2009, 2013, 2017), nine Sums (townships) were categorized into three regions: northeast, central, and southwest. Methods including linear regression and ANOVA were employed to systematically analyze the long-term trends in precipitation and their relationships with the productivity and dominance of Stipa species, as well as community species richness. The results indicate that: (1) The long-term precipitation trend exhibited spatial heterogeneity, with more pronounced interannual fluctuations and a higher rate of change in the northeastern and southwestern regions compared to the central region; (2) Vegetation sensitivity to precipitation change displayed a pattern of higher responsiveness in the periphery and lower in the central region, as the response slopes of Stipa fresh weight, importance value index, and total community fresh weight per unit precipitation change were significantly greater in the northeastern and southwestern areas than in the central area. (3) Stipa populations showed a tendency to shift from the northeastern and southwestern regions toward the central area. Concurrently, species richness increased in the peripheral regions as Stipa declined, while it temporarily decreased in the central region. This study reveals the specific process of spatial range shifts in dominant grassland species and the reshaping of community structure driven by climate change, elucidating the regional differentiation in ecological sensitivity. It provides an important scientific basis for adaptive grassland management and biodiversity conservation in the region.

Roe deer and mountain hares are known to select same food sources and engage in indirect exploitative competition. Here we report on a case of direct interaction between a roe deer doe and a mountain hare recorded by a camera trap in Tydal Municipality, Norway, suggestive of direct interference competition. The roe deer doe is as a minimum following and displacing the mountain hare for 2 minutes and 29 seconds, including a 19 second active chase phase. Although this could be just a case of curiosity, we suggest this is a case of interference encounter competition between these two herbivore species, previously not documented. Our traditional textbook understanding of ecology is based on the common and the easily observable, not the rare and difficult to observe. This observation paints a different picture of our understanding of the interactions between roe deer and hares, as roe deer may compete directly with mountain hares over food resources.

Urbanisation and urban heat frequently co-occur, and climate change is expected to amplify these effects, yet their consequences on population dynamics and life-history traits remain unclear. Using the common woodlouse Armadillidium vulgare, a widespread decomposer and urban indicator species, we combined fine-scale field surveys with climatic chamber experiments on field animals’ offspring to disentangle these effects. Field surveys revealed consistently higher abundances and occurrences in Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) compared to Urban Cool Islands (UCIs), but with lower reproductive success and elevated senescence, as measured by β-galactosidase activity, pointing to a trade-off between density and individual fitness. For field animals’ offspring following in chambers, growth remained unaffected, but survival and reproduction declined under future (2050) climate conditions relative to present (2024), suggesting only limited acclimatisation. Offspring of individuals from Urban Heat Islands (UHI) showed earlier reproductive timing under future climate conditions, suggesting a potential adaptive response. Moreover, β-galactosidase activity was lower in UHI offspring exposed to 2050 conditions, pointing to acclimatisation in stress physiology. Together, these results highlight that even highly opportunistic urban generalists may experience fitness costs when urban heat and urbanisation interact with climate change, with potential consequences for decomposer-driven ecosystem functioning in cities.

The remnant forest fragments along the Kenyan coast constitute a globally important biodiversity hotspot, characterized by exceptional species richness and high levels of endemism. However, these ecosystems are increasingly threatened by habitat fragmentation, land-use change, and accelerating species extinctions. Despite their recognized ecological importance, limited understanding of the evolutionary history embedded within these forests constrains the development of effective conservation strategies aimed at mitigating biodiversity loss and sustaining key ecosystem functions. In this study, we assess patterns of phylogenetic diversity across coastal forest fragments in Kenya, examining their relationships with protection status, IUCN Red List threat categories, endemic species, and implications for conservation planning. Using data collected through standardized and intensive vegetation sampling, we calculated multiple phylogenetic diversity metrics, including mean pairwise distance (MPD), mean nearest taxon distance (MNTD), and Faith’s phylogenetic diversity (PD). To evaluate departures from random assembly, we applied null models to generate standardized effect sizes (sesMPD, sesMNTD, and sesPD). Our results provide the first comprehensive insight into the evolutionary history of plant species in Kenya’s coastal forests. We demonstrate that formal forest reserves alone are insufficient to conserve the full breadth of evolutionary history without incorporating sacred forest fragments. Notably, several sacred forests exhibited higher phylogenetic diversity than protected reserves, highlighting their critical role in conserving distinct evolutionary lineages and serving as seed sources for biologically unique species. Connectivity between sacred and protected forests therefore emerges as essential for enhancing dispersal and maintaining evolutionary processes. Furthermore, species classified under higher IUCN Red List threat categories contributed disproportionately to overall evolutionary history, with this contribution increasing with extinction risk. These findings underscore the importance of adopting phylogenetically informed conservation approaches that complement traditional taxonomic metrics and emphasize the protection of threatened species to prevent disproportionate losses of evolutionary history.

1. Birds are among the most colourfully diverse organisms globally, with colour playing a crucial role in many life-strategies. However, tropical deforestation for farmland threatens species’ existence and the efficacy of colouration strategies through habitat loss and fragmentation. Given the rapid rate of deforestation, regenerating secondary forests on abandoned agricultural land may offer a viable option for conserving biodiversity and colour. While the recovery of avian species richness with secondary forest regrowth has been recorded, little is known about the impact on community colour diversity. 2. To address this gap, we investigated the effects of secondary forest regeneration on avian richness and colour diversity. We used a meta-dataset of 35 paired tropical primary and secondary forest sites across the Old World and New World, combined with data on male and female colouration derived from standardised visible and UV light photography of museum specimens. 3. We found that species richness in closed habitat species increased with secondary forest age in the Old World, whereas richness in open habitat species declined with forest age in the New World. 4. We also found that community colour diversity for both closed (Old World) and open habitat (Old World and New World) species was lower in the young secondary forests but returned to primary forest levels over time, implying the recovery of natural visual signalling environments as the forest regenerates. 5. Synthesis and applications: Overall, our findings emphasise that secondary forests, particularly older forest regrowth, can maintain avian species richness and colour diversity. Acknowledging the role of secondary forests in sustaining colourfully diverse and aesthetically pleasing species could be effective in guiding policy and investment decisions toward their sustained protection.

1. The nature of endosymbiont interactions is driven by different ecological and evolutionary processes. In herbivorous reptiles exhibiting sexual dimorphism, it remains unclear whether host´s sex and habitat type influence their interactions with hindgut nematodes. 2. To explore this, we sampled spur-thighed tortoises (Testudo graeca) across different land-use practices in southern Spain (Mediterranean shrublands, traditional and intensified agricultural fields, pine plantations, and unproductive lands). For male and female tortoises, we assessed the relationships between nematode infestation with body traits (weight, height, volume, plastron width, and carapace length) and growth rates, across different land uses. Further, we investigated differences in species composition and diversity of hindgut nematode communities between sexes. Finally, with an intrapopulation ecological network approach, we evaluated the structure and diversity of tortoise-nematode interactions by focusing on nematode species infesting individual male and female tortoises. 3. The results revealed a sex-mediated relationship between nematodes and tortoises. Although nematode prevalence and infestation were similar between sexes, infestation increased with body size and weight in females, whereas in males, infestation was negatively related to size. At low levels of nematode infestation, males grew faster than females; however, as infestation increased, male growth rates declined, whereas female growth remained stable. In both sexes, nematode infestation decreased with the proportion of unproductive lands, and growth rates increased significantly in response to this landscape characteristic. Females hosted significantly more diverse and evenly distributed nematode communities than males despite low compositional dissimilarity between sexes. Nestedness was greater in female-nematode networks, suggesting that nematodes can be more easily transmitted across these networks compared with males. 4. Overall, females seem more resilient to nematode infestation than males. These findings have important implications for understanding the complex interactions between hindgut nematodes, habitat loss and host ecophysiological traits, which emphasises the need for sex-directed conservation approaches for tortoises.

Globally the climate change is leading to profound shifts in species distributions, particularly in high-altitude ecosystems where cold-adapted fauna face limited options for upslope migration. We investigated the biogeographic responses of the Himalayan Ibex (Capra sibirica), a Near Threatened mountain ungulate and key prey species of the Snow Leopard, to ongoing and projected climate change across the Western Himalaya in India. Using ensemble species distribution models (SDMs) integrating five algorithms (MaxEnt, Random Forest, BRT, GLM, and MARS), we modeled current (2018–2023) and future habitat suitability for the years 2050, 2070, and 2090 under two Shared Socioeconomic Pathway (SSP) scenarios: SSP2-4.5 (intermediate) and SSP5-8.5 (high emissions). We further examined habitat connectivity using least-cost path and circuit theory-based tools, and assessed landscape fragmentation using FRAGSTATS metrics. Our results indicate that under the SSP5-8.5 scenario, the suitable habitat of Himalayan Ibex is projected to decline sharply from 16,127 km² (8% of the landscape) to 5,241 km² (3%) by 2090. Additionally, the number of core habitat patches is expected to fall from 19 to 10, and functional ecological linkages from 25 to 11 under SSP2-4.5, signaling a considerable breakdown in landscape connectivity. Fragmentation metrics reveal increasing patch isolation, declining core area size, and overall loss of landscape cohesion. Alarmingly, 88% of the most suitable habitats lie outside the current protected area network, raising concerns about the efficacy of existing conservation strategies. Our findings demonstrate that the Himalayan Ibex is highly vulnerable to climate-driven habitat shifts and fragmentation. These spatial dynamics pose serious challenges not only to the species’ persistence but also to the broader integrity of alpine ecosystems. We emphasize the need to embed climate-informed biogeographic modeling and connectivity planning into conservation frameworks to secure long-term ecological resilience in the Western Himalayas.