Global change threatens plant diversity and disrupts its interrelationship with ecosystem structure and function. This disruption in turn undermines confidence in the knowledge ecologists produce, and whether it will translate into multidisciplinary research settings or guide the effective management of natural lands. To address this challenge, ecology needs to consider the interactions between different

1. Herbivore-induced changes in both leaf silicon-based defence and nutrient levels are potential mechanisms through which grazers alter the quality of their own grass supply. In tundra-grasslands, herbivores have been shown to increase nutrient contents of grasses; yet, it is an open question whether they also increase grass silicon-based defence levels. Here, we asked if, and to what extent, herbivores

The epidemiological and demographic dynamics of plant-pathogen interactions in natural environments are strongly affected by spatial and temporal influences. Here we assess the interaction between Filipendula ulmaria and its rust pathogen Triphragmium ulmariae by analysing a 30-year long dataset that has followed pathogen and plant population dynamics in a metapopulation of ~230 host patches growing

It is common to characterise the species niche using climate and global species distribution maps. This is then used to predict changes in distribution under a warming climate. This approach assumes that climate is a major driver of species distribution and that each species responds individually (sensu Gleason) to climate.

Millions of trees are expected to be planted in forested and non-forested ecosystems during the United Nations Decade of Restoration. Trees and soil organisms are known to interact, and are both crucial for maintaining multiple ecosystem functions. However, little is known about how the bidirectional relationships among above- and belowground diversity and ecosystem functions differ across forested

Environmental changes, e.g. in rainfall and land use, lead to changes in the environment experienced by subsequent generations of plant species. Environmental conditions of maternal plants can influence the fitness and phenotypes of subsequent generations via non-genetic mechanisms: transgenerational plasticity (TGP). However, relevant empirical evidence remains scarce and ambiguous. What are the adaptive

Within ecosystems, intra-annual precipitation patterns – the variability and timing of rainfall – may be a stronger driver of net primary productivity than total annual precipitation. In particular, the amount and timing of precipitation directly affects the amount and timing of plant production, but also indirectly affects productivity via changes to plant community composition. Community response

Intertidal seagrass meadows are exposed to both marine and terrestrial environmental constraints. Seagrass vulnerability to climate changes in these highly dynamic and thermally stressful environments is concerning. Using broad scale monitoring data covering contrasted intertidal environments, this study aims to provide a comprehensive view of the extent, drivers and potential limits of Zostera marina

Fire is a fundamental ecological factor in savannas because it affects vegetation dynamics and ecosystem functioning. However, the effects of fire on belowground compartments, including biomass and root traits, and their regeneration remain poorly understood. In this study, we assess the variation of above- and belowground plant components along fire-history gradients in Brazilian open savannas and

1. The population of Soay sheep on the island of Hirta in the Outer Hebrides has been the subject of continuous study for more than 35 years. This paper focuses on the botanical aspects of the plant-herbivore interaction, showing how the vegetation affects and is affected by the sheep.

Abiotic stresses, physiological dysfunction, forest stand dynamics, and primary tree attackers (native and non-native) are all recognized as important contributors to both anomalous tree mortality and background tree mortality, and thus as important influences on biogeochemical cycling and habitat for associated terrestrial organisms. Opportunistic and latent tree pathogens and insect pests have largely

Mycorrhizal fungi play a central role in plant nutrition and nutrient cycling, yet our understanding on their effects on free-living microbes, soil carbon (C) decomposition and soil CO2 fluxes remains limited. Here we used trenches lined with mesh screens of varying sizes to isolate mycorrhizal hyphal effects on soil C dynamics in subtropical successional forests. We found that the presence of mycorrhizal

Elevational range size patterns reflect ecological and evolutionary processes, but they are also affected by geometric constraints. The confounding effect of these constraints led to an ongoing controversy about the elevational Rapoport’s rule, which postulates a positive association between the range size and elevation, and about the plausibility of the climate variability hypotheses as its causal

Increased wildfire activity and climate change have intensified disturbance regimes globally and have raised concern among scientists and land managers about the resilience of disturbed landscapes. Here we test the effects of climate, topographic variation, and pre-fire stand structure on regeneration in lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia) forests following high severity fire over the past