Ecology Letters最新文献

Woodstock and Harris raise concerns about generalisations in our paper ‘Calibrated Ecosystem Models Cannot Predict the Consequences of Conservation Management Decisions’. They implied that our conclusions are invalidated by the exclusion of density dependent compensatory feedback and the existence of automated calibration approaches with overfitting penalties—claims that overlook the broader structural issues we identified. Here, we explore their key criticism in more detail, clarify our position and explain why we continue to stand by our findings.

Solène, C., Victor, R., Florentin, R., Jean-Michel, G., & Jean-François, L. 2025. Male Reproductive Senescence in Mammals Is Pervasive and Aligned With the Slow-Fast Continuum. Ecology Letters, 28, no. 9: e70194. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.70194.

In the author byline of the above article, the first names and surnames were reversed as shown, and also reversed in the citation.

The correct surnames of authors are given and underlined here: Solène Cambreling, Victor Ronget, Florentin Remot, Jean-Michel Gaillard & Jean-François Lemaître

Therefore, the citation should be:

Cambreling, S., Ronget, V., Remot, F., Gaillard, J.M., & Lemaître, J.F. 2025. Male Reproductive Senescence in Mammals Is Pervasive and Aligned With the Slow-Fast Continuum. Ecology Letters, 28, no. 9: e70194.

The published article has been updated to reflect these changes.

We apologize for this error.

Neff, F., Chittaro, Y., Korner-Nievergelt, F., Litsios, G., Martínez-Núñez, C., Rey, E., & Knop, E. 2025. Contrasting 50-year trends of moth communities depending on elevation and species traits. Ecology Letters, 28, no. 8: e70195. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.70195

We apologise for this error.

The Janzen-Connell Hypothesis posits that plant species diversity is maintained by a reduction in seedling survival near living conspecific trees relative to heterospecifics–known as negative conspecific density dependence (CDD). CDD facilitates coexistence if stronger than heterospecific density dependence (HDD). However, whether and how long CDD persists after trees die is unknown. In a three-year study across three forests, we monitored seedling survival near living and dead trees, both conspecific and heterospecific, across a seven-year chrono-sequence since tree death. CDD persisted for at least 5 years after tree death (‘legacy CDD’), and most species showed stronger CDD relative to HDD through time. We used our empirical findings to parametrize a theoretical community dynamics model. Our model suggests that both stabilising niche differences and fitness differences persist after tree death. While legacy CDD can facilitate coexistence, fitness differences often overwhelmed niche differences, making competitive exclusion the most likely outcome.

Dispersal syndromes based on traits assumed to be adaptations for specific dispersal mechanisms are routinely assigned to flowering plants. Using the colonisation record from a volcanic island formed in 1963, we assess whether dispersal syndromes predict which species establish on newly formed land. We evaluated the long-distance dispersal (LDD) syndromes of the 78 plant species using three European classification systems. Syndrome assignments were inconsistent between classifications (coinciding for ≤ 13% of species). Two systems showed no evidence that LDD syndromes conferred a colonisation advantage. The third classification suggested wind syndromes were favoured, but only assigned a minority of colonisers to LDD syndromes. ‘Unassisted’ species assumed to lack dispersal adaptations were dominant. However, empirical evidence supports endozoochory via aquatic birds for 62 colonisers. This suggests bird-dispersal is a major driver of colonisation for dry-fruited plants, and underscores the need for new approaches to plant dispersal that account for overlooked plant–animal interactions.

The cover image is based on the article Drying Spring Accelerates Transitions Toward Pyrogenic Vegetation in Eastern Boreal North America by Adam, Ahmed Ali et al., https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.70166

The Equilibrium Theory of Island Biogeography (ETIB) proposes that species richness on islands reflects a balance between extinctions and colonisations. However, ETIB assumes species neutrality, limiting predictions to species richness rather than types. Here, we integrate traits into equilibrium dynamics for 132 Australian islands' native floras sampled repeatedly over six decades. Our analysis shows that both species richness and community mean trait composition remain stable despite continuing turnover. We found evidence for traits being associated with both species' colonisation and extinction. Colonisations were faster for low-stature, small-seeded species, while extinctions were faster in species with low leaf mass per area and annual life history. Our results highlight that species equilibria on islands are maintained by species-specific turnover dynamics linked to traits. This trait dependence in colonisation and extinction helps explain how ecological communities assemble and why some species are more likely to occur on islands than others.

Agriculture is fundamentally dependent on biodiversity, yet unsustainable management practices increasingly threaten various organisms and ecosystem services. Confronting the global crisis of biodiversity loss requires a thorough understanding of the gaps, clusters and biases in existing knowledge across various management practices, spatial scales, and taxonomic groups. We undertook a comprehensive literature review, synthesising secondary data from 200 meta-analyses on agricultural management impacts on biodiversity in croplands. Our systematic map covers 1885 comparisons (mean effect sizes), from over 9000 primary studies. In the latter, seven high-income countries prevail (notably the USA, China and Brazil), with particular focus on fertiliser use, phytosanitary interventions and crop diversification. This emphasis on individual practices overshadows research at the farm and landscape levels. In secondary evidence, arthropods and microorganisms are most frequently studied, while annelids, vertebrates and plants are less represented. Evidence predominantly stems from averaged abundance data, revealing substantial gaps in studies on functional and phylogenetic diversity. Our findings highlight the need to analyse combinations of multiple practices to accurately reflect real-world farming contexts, and covering a wider range of taxa, biodiversity metrics and spatial levels, to enable evidence-based conservation strategies in agriculture. Given the uneven evidence on agricultural impacts, caution is required when applying meta-analytical findings to public policies and global assessments.