Symbiotic relationships with microorganisms are fundamental to life on Earth, yet relatively little is known about how these interactions persist through time, how they co-evolve, and to which degree they are genetically constrained. In this study, three cardinalfish species in the genus Siphamia, S. tubifer, S. mossambica, and S. fuscolineata, from locations throughout the hosts’ broad Indo-Pacific distribution were analyzed for patterns of genetic divergence along with their luminous bacterial symbionts . Using whole genome sequencing (WGS) of the fish light organ, we investigated whether the specificity of the association is maintained across host species and over this geographic range and whether there are patterns of symbiont divergence associated with either host or geography. The results indicated that the light organ symbionts of all three Siphamia species examined were Photobacterium mandapamensis, suggesting high specificity of the symbiosis is conserved. There was evidence of biogeographic structure in the symbiont between the three sampling regions, but no co-diversification between the hosts and their symbionts (p = 0.92). However, an analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) between two S. tubifer populations from Japan and the Philippines indicated genetic differentiation in the host (F ST = 0.043) with phylogenetically-distinct clades of symbionts. Overall, these findings indicate that the association between Siphamia hosts and P. mandapamensis is highly conserved, yet there is significant genetic diversity within the symbionts driven by geography and possibly host ecology.

Protected areas are vital for preserving native biodiversity, yet invasive alien plant species (IAPS) pose significant threats to their conservation. This study investigates how IAPS diversity varies across their dispersal corridors, such as road verges, riversides, seasonal springs, fire lines, and trekking trails, and examines the relationship between tree canopy openness and IAPS richness. We sampled 156 plots (2m  5m) along these corridors, ensuring a minimum distance of 100 meters between plots. Out of 10 IAPS recorded during the study, road verges and riversides were invaded by 70% of the recorded species, while the walking trail had the lowest number of IAPS (30%). The most prevalent IAPS was Chromolaena odorata, followed by Mikania micrantha and Ageratum conyzoides. One-way ANOVA indicated significant differences in IAPS richness among dispersal corridors (p<0.001). Furthermore, IAPS richness increased with increasing tree canopy openness (R=0.8, p<0.001). Given that road verges and riversides appeared to be the major dispersal corridors of IAPS, it is imperative to prioritize these corridors for IAPS monitoring, early detection, eradication, and control. Such efforts can reduce the establishment probability of new IAPS and mitigate the impacts of the widespread IAPS on the native species and ecosystems.

Strangler figs (Ficus spp.) typically establish as epiphytes on host trees before developing ground roots. Here we document abundant terrestrial establishment of strangler figs in burned tropical peat-swamp forests of Sumatra, Indonesia. Across 3.4 ha of transects in two post-fire sites, 97% of 138 strangler fig individuals (representing 10 species) germinated directly on the ground rather than epiphytically. Ficus sundaica dominated, comprising 22% of all trees and 67% of all figs. Our findings challenge the assumption that strangler figs require epiphytic establishment and reveal unexpected ecological flexibility in degraded peatlands where active planting efforts have largely failed. Given their abundance, flexible establishment mode, and role as keystone species supporting frugivore communities, naturally regenerating strangler figs may facilitate broader ecosystem recovery in fire-damaged peat-swamp forests.

Amphibian populations in upland areas have experienced disproportionately high rates of decline worldwide, yet the status of many remains poorly understood due to limited systematic surveys and long-term monitoring. In eastern Australia, the Pseudophryne bibronii complex (P. bibronii and P. dendyi) was once widespread and common, but its current status is uncertain. We aimed to quantify contemporary occupancy, abundance, and disease prevalence in this group by surveying 70 historically occupied sites spanning an elevational gradient from near sea level to 1700 m above sea level. Sites were surveyed up to six times over two breeding seasons, and adult males were swabbed to determine infection rates with the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). Occupancy declined sharply with elevation, from 71% at low elevations to 28% in upland areas, with abundance counts showing a similar pattern. Bd prevalence increased from 6.7% at low elevations to 29.2% in upland sites, with the highest infection intensities also recorded at higher elevations. These findings implicate Bd as a potential contributor to upland declines, possibly alongside other environmental pressures. Our results demonstrate that common species can undergo substantial, unrecognized contractions in the absence of targeted monitoring and provide an example of time-lagged declines potentially associated with chytrid fungus.

An adaptive radiation is an evolutionary process that results in ecological and morphological diversification of a monophyletic lineage, often in response to new environmental opportunities. Islands often give rise to such radiations, owing to the absence of mainland competitors and predators. Several families of African insectivorous bats are absent from Madagascar. We examined whether Miniopterus bats in Madagascar, a monophyletic clade of twelve species, underwent adaptive radiation following the colonization of the island by the ancestral form. Linear wing measurements related to flight were taken from two Miniopterus sister clades: one with twelve species from Madagascar and the other represented by nine species from Kenya, which constitutes a comparable surface area of continental Africa. Principal component analysis revealed that Miniopterus species cluster within a narrow region of morphospace, with PC1 representing a size gradient that explains 93.6% of the variance in seven wing measurements. A phylomorphospace analysis integrating a resolved species phylogeny demonstrated that closely related species often occupy similar regions of morphospace, particularly among the smaller Malagasy taxa. Euclidean distance matrices showed similar nearest, average, and farthest neighbor values between Kenya and Madagascar, indicating strong morphological resemblance. Multivariate dispersion analysis yielded an observed mean dispersion of 1.8137, which did not significantly differ from a randomized expectation (p = 0.08819), suggesting that species are not more regularly or unevenly distributed than expected by chance. These findings do not support strong adaptive morphological evolution or niche partitioning during the evolution of the Malagasy clade, at least based on the traits examined. This work highlights the complexity of detecting adaptive patterns and suggests the need to incorporate broader ecological and behavioral data when studying diversification in bats.

Land use intensification threatens pollinator-dependent tropical ecosystems. However, studies linking melliferous flora to honeybee forage resources in West African ecosystems remain poorly. This study evaluated floristic composition and honeybee foraging across agroforestry systems (fallow land and farmland) and protected areas surrounding local apiaries in Burkina Faso (West Africa). Ninety floristic surveys identified 48 melliferous woody species from 16 families and 35 genera, dominated by Fabaceae (41.12%), Combretaceae (32.12%), and Sapotaceae (12.69%). Nonmetric multidimensional scaling revealed significant floristic divergence among land uses (Stress = 0.174; r = 0.214; p = 0.001). Farmlands showed the highest individuals (6.6±2.3 m; p = 0.00432) with the largest diameter (27.9±19.5 cm; p=6.31E-5) while protected areas showed the greatest tree density (280.4 ± 132.5 trees/ha; p=6.78E-9). Vitellaria paradoxa dominated all land uses (IVI: farmland 99.03%, protected areas 41.94%, fallow 30.06%). Indicator species analysis identified 19 significant species, with Combretum glutinosum (IndVal = 0.730) and T erminalia avicennioides (IndVal = 0.712) characterizing fallow land and protected area while farmland lacked specific indicators. Protected areas supported extended bee foraging periods (≥3 months) with multiple high-density species, including Mitragyna inermis (5-month flowering duration). These findings highlight the importance of conserving melliferous flora and integrating afforestation into land management to sustain pollination services and enhance beehive productivity in West African ecosystems.

1.Plant-insect interactions regulate ecosystem processes and productivity. The effect of plant diversity on insect herbivory is whether Amplification Effect (AE) or Dilution Effect (DE) that is still in dispute. Other than plant diversity, factors such as canopy height, soil nutrient availability, and climate also influnce leaf insect herbivory. However, previous studies have mainly focused on key drivers of specific types of herbivory in grasslands, farmlands and forests in terrestrial ecosystems, it is lack of studies on consistency of total herbivory and its inner diverse guilds’ herbivory in relation to plant diversity over multiple years. Additionally, the mixed effect of plant diversity and other factors in island ecosystems remains understudied. 2.This study investigated three insect guilds’ herbivory (chewing, sucking, mining), measured mean annual temperature (MAT), mean annual precipitation (MAP), tree height, soil total carbon content (TC), total phosphorus content (TP), and total nitrogen content (TN) in Zhoushan Archipelago, China. We employed linear regression, stepwise regression, and variation partitioning analysis to explore these relationships. 3.Our findings show that tree species diversity was positively correlated with total herbivory and leaf mining in both 2019 and 2021, but only had positively associated with sucking in 2019 and chewing in 2021. 4.In 2019, tree species diversity, tree height, soil nutrition and their interactions collectively explained 60% of the variation in sucking. Tree species diversity, soil nutrition and their interactions accounted for 32% of the variation in leaf mining. 5.Synthesis. Our results support that plant diversity amplified both total herbivory and three insect guilds’ herbivory. However, the effects of plant diversity on sucking and chewing herbivory varied discontinuously in different years. The results for sucking align with the hypothesis that larger trees attract more herbivores. Plant diversity, soil nutrition, and their mixed effects simultaneously influence sucking herbivory, as well as leaf mining.

The division of labor represents a crucial characteristic of cooperation that is linked to diverse strategies employed by group members when utilizing spaces and resources. In cooperatively-breeding species, dominants and helpers typically exhibit distinct parental care behaviors. However, it remains unclear whether the labor division serves as a mechanism for such differences. To address this question, we used GPS tracking to precisely determine the home range sizes, locomotor speeds, and activity levels of dominant breeders and helpers in the giant babax (Babax waddelli). Our results indicated that helpers occupied larger home ranges than did dominant breeders throughout all seasons. During the breeding season, when parental care is essential for offspring, helpers foraged more frequently in higher-altitude areas that were relatively distant from the nest, whereas dominant breeders primarily performed foraging near the nest. The temporal variation in movement patterns of dominant breeders differed significantly from that of helpers. During the post-fledging season, when offspring require less parental care, helpers continued to forage at higher altitude; and the movement patterns of dominant breeders and helpers tended to complement one another. During the wintering season, when offspring no longer require parental care, helpers foraged at lower altitude than dominant breeders, and no differences were observed in their movement patterns. These findings provided evidence that a division of labor indeed occurred in giant babaxes when offspring were in need of parental care. Therefore, labor division serves as the underlying mechanism for distinct parental care strategies adopted by dominant breeders and helpers.

Topographically complex mountainous regions are critical for biodiversity conservation, supporting high beta diversity, endemic species, and essential ecosystem services. These landscapes enhance ecological connectivity by facilitating species movement and providing vital resources for wildlife and human communities. In this study, we deployed 131 camera traps to assess the occupancy of 34 mammal species in relation to key topographic variables in a semi-arid mountain catchment in South Africa. Multispecies occupancy models were used to evaluate the probability of habitat use concerning topographic complexity, characterized by features such as catchment aspect, slope, ruggedness, solar gain and landscape units. The results identified floodplains, valleys, low slopes, and areas with low ruggedness as biodiversity hotspots, offering critical resources like water and forage, and supporting high species richness. Conversely, steep slopes, rugged terrains, and high solar gain areas, while supporting fewer species, served as critical refuges for specialized taxa such as leopard, klipspringer, caracal, and grey rhebok. While topographic features like ruggedness may have a limited impact at the community level, their importance becomes more pronounced at the species level. This study underscores the value of incorporating detailed topographic metrics into ecological research, particularly in mountainous landscapes where these features govern species distribution. Conservation strategies should integrate both community-level and species-specific monitoring approaches to safeguard the unique biodiversity and ecological dynamics of topographically complex mountain landscapes.

Over the past several centuries, the Baltic Proper harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) has undergone significant population declines, resulting in its current IUCN classification as critically endangered. While conservation efforts are extensive and multinational, the population’s abundance has only been estimated once (SAMBAH Project, 2011-2013). Ad hoc historical sources and the sub-fossil archaeological record, dating to 7,000 years BP, suggest that the population once had a wider distribution in the Baltic Sea. However, the historical abundance and distribution of the Baltic Proper harbour porpoise population remain largely unknown, especially before the mid-20th century. This study examines archival Swedish newspaper records from the late 1700s to the early 1900s to assess the presence and distribution of porpoises and human interactions with porpoises. Digitized articles were searched for by keyword in the National Library of Sweden Newspaper Archive. This dataset was combined with HELCOM/ASCOBANS historic data. The records show that harbour porpoises historically occurred regularly along the entire Swedish coast, including the northernmost parts of the Gulf of Bothnia, where the species is virtually absent today, suggesting a notable range retraction. While harbour porpoises appeared less frequently in the Baltic Sea than along the west coast, the number of Baltic records indicates that porpoises occurred more frequently than today. The peak occurrence of porpoises during spring and summer suggests that the Gulf of Bothnia historically constituted an important foraging habitat for migrating animals from the southern Baltic. Bycatch is a common anthropogenic impact, consistent with the historic importance of fishing in the region. By integrating historical records with modern conservation data, this study provides critical insights into the long-term effects of human activity on the Baltic Proper harbour porpoise. Understanding past ranges, population size and the history of negative anthropogenic impacts is vital for guiding more effective conservation strategies.

Large terrestrial herbivores play crucial roles in shaping ecosystem structure and function through their foraging activities. Still, the dietary ecology of elusive tropical species remains poorly understood. We investigated the diet composition of lowland tapirs (Tapirus terrestris), the largest terrestrial herbivore in the Neotropics, using DNA metabarcoding of fecal samples from 31 latrines in Carlos Botelho State Park, Brazil. We characterized local plant communities through vegetation plots and analyzed five leaf economic spectrum (LES) traits from both consumed and surrounding vegetation to assess selective feeding patterns. Lowland tapirs consumed 61 plant species from 69 genera and 46 families, predominantly those from the Melastomataceae, Asteraceae, and Myrtaceae families. Beta diversity analysis revealed high compositional turnover among latrines, with a high dissimilarity index, indicating that the samples being compared are distinct in terms of species composition. The plant composition in tapir diets differed significantly from that of the surrounding vegetation, suggesting that this species forages on distinct plant species across its extensive home range rather than consuming locally abundant species. Finally, the functional trait analysis revealed no significant differences between the dietary species and the surrounding vegetation in terms of LES traits. Tapirs consumed plants that spanned both ”fast” (high specific leaf area and high nitrogen content) and ”slow” (high leaf dry matter content and thick leaves) strategies, indicating a broad dietary tolerance rather than trait-based selectivity. This suggests that tapirs can adapt to diverse plant textures and nutritional profiles, browsing from tough to softer, more digestible leaves. Our findings demonstrate that lowland tapirs exhibit generalist feeding strategies, which promote high plant species turnover, potentially contributing to the maintenance of tropical forest diversity, as observed in the Atlantic forest. Given the critical threats facing this endangered megafauna, understanding their generalist diet is essential for developing effective conservation strategies.

1. There is still little emphasis within One Health on building linkages between human health, changes in biodiversity, and ecosystem perturbation. 2. We use the Great Plains, a system of substantial One Health concern, to illustrate a persistent data challenge through the lens of small mammals, parasitic vectors of disease, and long-term ecosystem change. 3. With progressive ecological change of grasslands through woody encroachment, we see that shifting plant communities cause a turnover in dominant rodent species, changes in the evolutionary complexity of host-vector relationships, a reduction in host species richness and an increase in carrying capacity of both hosts and vectors. 4. Knowledge of these progressive and accelerating dynamics are evident through novel data syntheses and collectively indicate heightened risk of emerging zoonotic disease throughout the region. 5. We call for One Health research that promotes novel digitized data linkages between specimen time-series held in biorepositories, long-term ecological research initiatives, and surveillance of pathogens.

Collective movement in terrestrial isopods has rarely been documented and almost never discussed. Here, we report a novel behavioral phenomenon in Armadillo isopods: large nocturnal aggregations forming coordinated circular movements involving thousands of individuals. The behavior was observed in several locations in northern Israel and could be experimentally induced using artificial white light, while magnetic fields had no effect. Image analysis revealed approximately 5,500 individuals within a single aggregation, and manual tracking confirmed a clear circular pattern. The observed sex ratio (1:4 males to females) and presence of many gravid females suggest that the behavior is not reproductive. Instead, the circular motion appears to represent a density-dependent, light-induced aggregation response. To our knowledge, this is the first formal documentation of collective circular movement in isopods, potentially arising from anthropogenic light pollution.

Understanding the status and global trends of soil invertebrate diversity requires accurate and comparable data across geographical regions. However, soil animal extraction approaches still vary among laboratories, and no commonly accepted, openly available and well-documented protocols exist across taxa. Here, we present harmonised methodologies, assembled by an international group of experts, for extracting soil- and litter-inhabiting nematodes, enchytraeids, microarthropods, and larger invertebrates. The protocols are illustrated with images and videos, and include advice for overcoming the most frequent issues (‘expert tips’) for increasing extraction efficiency and reproducibility. In addition, we provide results from two pilot experiments on nematode and large invertebrate extractions. First, we show that using two layers of milk filters instead of one in wet extraction of nematodes yields very similar extraction efficiency and has little effect on the sample cleanliness. Second, we demonstrate that on average approximately 31.3% of large soil animals (3 mm and more in body length) are overlooked during hand sorting but were then captured in heat extraction of the sorted samples across three geographically distinct laboratories. The extent of bias varied by collection team and taxon, with particularly high collection bias for Pseudoscorpiones (64.4% overlooked), Diptera (62.9%) and Coleoptera larvae (57.1%). Observed differences among the laboratories call for standardized ring tests of extraction efficiency across regions and research groups. Overall, we provide openly available protocols for assessing soil animal taxa in ecological studies worldwide, facilitating comparisons for a better understanding of the dynamics of global soil biodiversity.

Increasing pressure on the Amazon rainforest from illegal mining and deforestation threatens biodiversity. Current surveillance strategies remain insufficient due to the vast size of the territory. This article presents the deployment of a Remote Monitoring System (RMS) in the Colombian Amacayacu National Natural Park designed to detect unauthorized entries into the park via waterways. However, achieving effective data collection depends among other factors on the equipment performance in the field, revealing two critical issues: equipment protection against environmental conditions and strategies to prevent vandalism or theft. Solutions to these concerns are rarely addressed in detail in the literature, thus limiting replicability. Therefore, this work proposes three solutions for the enclosure design of the RMS. First, mounting and housing components were designed to withstand environmental conditions, some manufactured with 3D printing. Second, a camouflage strategy was implemented to reduce the system’s visibility in the environment, through color selection and a pixelated pattern, minimizing the risk of vandalism. Finally, resistant materials, paints, and coatings were selected to protect the equipment against humidity and corrosion, supported by exposure tests such as a salt spray chamber test conducted to prevent potential material failures. This experience covers the field assessment, design, and installation of the RMS prototype, and offers recommendations based on practical, validated solutions to improve monitoring deployments using long-term outdoor, and unattended technological devices.

How wild organisms are responding to climate change is one of the most pressing issues of the 21st century. As ectotherms, insects are particularly vulnerable to increases in temperature and extreme weather events because their fitness and survival are directly linked to abiotic conditions. For holometabolous insects with a wide geographic range, it is important to quantify upper thermal and lower hydric limits for multiple populations and life stages that differ in habitat usage and mobility. Population differences in egg survival are understudied despite the importance this life stage plays in population dynamics. As a sessile life stage, eggs likely experience strong selection pressures in response to extreme heat and drought. In this paper, we tested for genetic and phenotypic differences in egg survival for multiple USA populations of the invasive mosquito vector, Aedes albopictus. We found evidence of interpopulation differences in egg survival in response to high temperature and low humidity as well as plasticity in survival depending on experimental conditions. Some populations consistently had low survivorship across experiments. We found that field-collected eggs have low survivorship under field conditions, suggesting that egg survivorship may be low in nature. Finally, we showed that eggs experiencing high temperatures produced larvae that were unable to develop to the fourth instar during a simulated heatwave. Combined, our results reveal phenotypic plasticity and genetic variation in thermal and hydric tolerance for a globally invasive species.

The Bengal fox (Vulpes bengalensis) is a small, den-obligate, wild canid that faces growing pressures in non-protected landscapes. In Bangladesh, the species is considered vulnerable, receives minimal conservation attention, and knowledge of many components of its ecology are lacking. We present a fine-scale behavioral account of the Bengal fox at a den site, based on 12.18 hours of video recorded in camera trapping from March 2024 to May 2024 in a peri-urban landscape of north-western Bangladesh. Our analyses indicated high site fidelity and consistent crepuscular den-site activity in Bengal foxes. Our estimated lorelograms indicated that foxes remained active at the den site for up to two hours following an initial detection, confirming behavioral persistence around the den. Fox activity declined gradually with the progression of the survey period, coinciding with the breeding cycle. Behaviorally, foxes engaged in structured, non-random behavior, with routine bouts of foraging, feeding, grooming, and vigilance as well as complex affiliative social interactions. Foxes displayed persistent antagonistic interactions with Bengal monitors (Varanus bengalensis), but their avoidance of humans and feral dogs appeared temporal, not spatial. We noted insects, birds, and rodents in feeding activity, including foraging on termite swarms. These findings suggest that Bengal foxes persist in shared spaces and highlight the necessity of quantifying the potential risks of living with dominant predators in human-dominated landscapes. By integrating camera-trapped behavioral data with fine-scale modeling, this study provides evidence to consider Bengal foxes in the mainstream conservation dialogue and offers a replicable framework for behavioral studies of denning carnivores—especially across the Global South, where data deficiency often hinders policy and action.

For road mitigation measures to prevent roadkill and conserve landscape connectivity to be effective, the measures must be located where animals are most likely to encounter roads. However, accurate identification of road encounter hotspots is difficult when presence records are sparse and collected haphazardly, often the case with small, uncommon species. Blanding’s turtle Emydoidea blandingii (BT) is a threatened species for which road-mortality contributes to population declines. Using fortuitous detections of BT along roads, we investigated whether it is possible to predict road encounter hotspots throughout an extensive road network with such data. We applied three approaches: (1) general linear modeling (GLM) to infer landscape features associated with BT road encounter records; (2) after locating spatial clusters of encounters, GLM was used to identify landscape features associated with these hotspots; and (3) BT least cost movement paths were delineated within the landscape and sites where paths crossed roads were located. Predicted hotspots based on the modeled movement trajectories were then compared with BT road encounter hotspots. BT locations were positively associated with presence of wetlands and negatively associated with grasslands and developed land use. Hotspots were located along predicted BT least cost movement paths, indicating that behavioral movement models are useful for predicting encounter locations. Each of the three modeling approaches identified valid landscape indicators of BT road encounter hotspots, and a significant fraction of road encounter records came from a small number of hotspot sites, located along the predicted movement paths. Overall, we conclude that it is possible to generate predictive models of road encounter hotspots even when data are sparse, collected unsystematically, and subject to spatial biases in reporting across a road network, and these models can be applied throughout a road network to identify road segments that are good candidates for effective road mitigation.