Aim: A fundamental question in macroecology centres around understanding the relationship between species’ local abundance and their distribution in geographic and climatic space (i.e. the multi-dimensional climatic space or climatic niche). Here, we tested three macroecological hypotheses that link local abundance to the following range properties: (1) the abundance-range size relationship, (2) the abundance-range centre relationship, and (3) the abundance-suitability relationship. Location: Europe Taxon: Vascular plants Methods: Distribution range maps were extracted from the Chorological...

Effects of global warming are most pronounced in winter. A reduction in snow cover due to warmer atmospheric temperature in formerly cold ecosystems, however, could counteract an increase in soil temperature by reduction of insulation. Thus, soil freeze-thaw cycles (FTC) might increase in frequency and magnitude with warming, potentially leading to a disturbance of the soil biota and release of nutrients. Here, we assessed how soil freeze-thaw magnitude and frequency affect short-term release of nutrients...

The phylogeny of the carabid beetle supertribe Nebriitae is inferred from analyses of DNA sequence data from eight gene fragments including one nuclear ribosomal gene (28S), four nuclear-protein coding genes (CAD, topoisomerase 1, PEPCK and wingless) and three mitochondrial gene fragments (16S + tRNA-Leu + ND1, COI (“barcode” region) and COI (“Pat/Jer” region)). Our taxon sample included 264 exemplars representing 241 species and subspecies (25% of the known nebriite fauna), 39 of 41 currently accepted...

Forest understories play a vital role in ecosystem functioning and the provision of ecosystem services. However, the extent to which environmental conditions drive dominant ecological strategies in forest understories at the continental scale remains understudied. Here, we used ~29,500 forest vegetation plots sampled across Europe and classified into 25 forest types to explore the relative role of macroclimate, soil pH, and tree canopy cover in driving abundance-weighted patterns in the leaf economic spectrum (LES) and...

Morphology, the oldest discipline in the biosciences, is currently experiencing a renaissance in the field of comparative phenomics. However, morphological/phenotypic research still suffers on various levels from a lack of standards. This shortcoming, first highlighted as the “linguistic problem of morphology”, concerns the usage of terminology and also the need for formalization of morphological descriptions themselves, something of paramount importance not only to the field of morphology but also when it comes to the use...

New thiosemicarbazide linked acridines 3a-c were prepared and investigated as chemosensors for the detection of biologically and environmentally important anions. The compounds 3a-c were found selective for fluoride (Fˉ) with no affinity for other anions i.e. ˉOAc, Brˉ, Iˉ, HSO4ˉ, SO4ˉ2, PO4ˉ3, ClO3ˉ, ClO4ˉ, CNˉ, and SCNˉ. Further, upon the gradual addition of fluoride anion (Fˉ) source (TBAF), a well-defined change in color of solution of probes 3a-c was observed. The anion sensing process was...

The current level of knowledge on transcriptome responses triggered by endotoxins and glucocorticoids in immune cells in pigs is limited. Therefore, in the present study, we treated porcine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and dexamethasone (DEX) separately or combined for 2 hours. The resultant transcriptional responses were examined by mRNA sequencing. We found that the LPS treatment triggered pronounced inflammatory responses as evidenced by upregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and related signaling...

1. Niche filtering predicts that abundant species in communities have similar traits that are suitable for the environment. However, niche filtering can operate on distinct axes of trait variation in response to different ecological conditions. Here, we use a trait-based approach to infer niche filtering processes and (1) test if abundant and rare species in grassland communities are differently positioned along distinct axes of trait variation, (2) determine if these trait variation axes, as well...

Colluvial deposits are considered as sedimentary archives for the reconstruction of soil erosion history, Holocene climate, past pedogenesis and land use. However, the human contribution to the formation of colluvial deposits is mainly based on quantitative assumptions derived from the local chronostratigraphy and archaeology. For this reason, there is often a substantial gap in the qualitative identification of specific land use practices that caused prehistoric soil erosion. We use an archaeopedological multi-proxy approach on a...

Key plant traits affecting growth performance can differ among and within species, influencing competitive plant community dynamics. We determined the intra-specific variability of germination base temperature among 13 arable weed species and the seedlings’ early post-emergence relative growth rate among 21 species in climate chamber and green house experiments. Intra-specific variability was quantified with two seed populations (originating from contrasting climate in Germany & France) for the germination base temperature of 6 species and for...

1. In mosaic marine habitats, such as intertidal zones, ocean acidification (OA) is exacerbated by high variability of pH, temperature, and biological CO2 production. The non-linear interactions among these drivers can be context-specific and their effect on organisms in these habitats remains largely unknown, warranting further investigation. 2. We were particularly interested in Mytilus edulis (the blue mussel) from intertidal zones of the Gulf of Maine (GOM), USA for this study. GOM is a hot...

Additional file 33. Raw Mesquite data that show morphological character states in the species examined and those parsimonily reconstructed in their ancestors.

Additional file 33. Raw Mesquite data that show morphological character states in the species examined and those parsimonily reconstructed in their ancestors.

Managing eutrophied systems using only nutrient decreases to impose bottom-up control can be economically and ecologically challenging. Top-down controls through increased consumption have sometimes effectively controlled phytoplankton blooms. However, mechanistic insights, especially on possible trophic cascades, are less understood in brackish, species-poor coastal waters, where large cladocera are absent. In this study, we set up large mesocosms for three consecutive years during the growing season. One set of mesocosms contained mesopredators (gobies and shrimps), whereas...

1.Low phosphorus (P) availability limits plant biomass production in fens, which is a prerequisite for the persistence of many endangered plant species. We hypothesized that P limitation is linked to soil iron (Fe) content and soil Fe:P ratios as iron compounds provide binding sites for dissolved P, presumably reducing P availability to plants. 2.We sampled 30 fens in a trans-European field survey to determine how soil Fe pools relate to pools of P and Fe-bound...

1. Objective: Over time dental composites age due to mechanical impacts such as chewing and chemical impacts such as saliva enzymes and food ingredients. For this research, the focus was placed on chemical degradation.The objective of this study was to simulate hydrolysis by using different food simulating liquids and to assess their impact on the mechanical parameter Vickers microhardness (MHV) and the physicochemical parameter contact angle (CA). 2. Methods: Specimen of three composites (d =...

A major prediction of coevolutionary theory is that plants may target particular herbivores with secondary compounds that are selectively defensive. The highly specialized monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) copes well with cardiac glycosides (inhibitors of animal Na+/K+-ATPases) from its milkweed host plants, but selective inhibition of its Na+/K+-ATPase by different compounds has not been previously tested. We applied 17 cardiac glycosides to the D. plexippus-Na+/K+-ATPase and to the more susceptible Na+/K+-ATPases of two non-adapted insects (Euploea...

Aim: Recent studies suggest insect declines in parts of Europe; however, the generality of these trends across different taxa and regions remains unclear. Standardized data are not available to assess large-scale, long-term changes for most insect groups but opportunistic citizen science data is widespread for some. Here, we took advantage of citizen science data to investigate distributional changes of Odonata. Location: Germany Methods: We compiled over 1 million occurrence records from different regional databases. We...

The current level of knowledge on transcriptome responses triggered by endotoxins and glucocorticoids in immune cells in pigs is limited. Therefore, in the present study, we treated porcine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and dexamethasone (DEX) separately or combined for 2 hours. The resultant transcriptional responses were examined by mRNA sequencing. We found that the LPS treatment triggered pronounced inflammatory responses as evidenced by upregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and related signaling...

Aims: The rapid increase in the number of species that have naturalized beyond their native range is among the most apparent features of the Anthropocene. How alien species will respond to other processes of future global changes is an emerging concern and remains largely misunderstood. We therefore ask whether naturalized species will respond to climate and land-use change differently than those species not yet naturalized anywhere in the world. Location: Global Methods: We investigated future...

Additional file 1. Character state data matrix showing character states of all characters in the species examined.

Additional file 1. Character state data matrix showing character states of all characters in the species examined.

The aerial performance of flying insects ultimately depends on how flapping wings interact with the surrounding air. It has previously been suggested that the wing’s three-dimensional camber and corrugation help to stiffen the wing against aerodynamic and inertial loading during flapping motion. Their contribution to aerodynamic force production, however, is under debate. Here we investigated the potential benefit of three-dimensional wing shape in three different-sized species of flies using models of mCT-scanned natural wings and...

Understanding the evolution of Tetraconata or Pancrustacea —the clade that includes crustaceans and insects—requires a well-resolved hypothesis regarding the relationships within and among its constituent taxa. Herein, we assembled a taxon-rich phylogenomic data set focusing on crustacean lineages based solely on genomes and new-generation Illumina-generated transcriptomes, including 89 representatives of Tetraconata. This constitutes the first phylogenomic study specifically addressing internal relationships of Malacostraca (with 26 species included) and Branchiopoda (36 species). Seven matrices comprising 81...

This palaeo data set consists of a Holocene record from a small, temperate lake (Lake Fuglsø, Denmark). It comprises radiocarbon (14C)-dating, pollen, X-ray fluorescence scanning, carbon and nitrogen (contents and stable isotopes), phosphorus (P) pools (from sequential P extraction and 31P nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy), pigment, diatom, and plant macrofossil data. Our multi-proxy palaeolimnological study aimed to investigate how natural processes and anthropogenic land-use changes have affected sedimentary P forms and primary producers. We found...