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A meta-analysis comparing the ecological effects of variation within a species with the effects of species replacement or renewal shows that intraspecific effects may be comparable to, or sometimes stronger than, species effects.
Genetic variation in phenotypic plasticity suggests local adaptation is possible. A multi-site, multi-trait experiment shows such adaptation driven by predation in Daphnia pulex.
Latitudinal differences in the global distribution of pelagic and demersal teleost fish predators can be explained by the relative inflow of energy at the base of each food chain.
Climatic change and human control over river flow are likely to affect aquatic species distributions. Here, the authors model alterations to natural flow regimes and show that even small modifications can have consequences for the structure of riparian plant networks.
Analysis of promoter and enhancer activity and levels of downstream transcripts in liver samples from 15 mammalian species finds an association between the complexity of the regulatory landscape and the evolutionary stability of gene expression.
Analysis of 82 indictors of ecosystem functioning at the Jena grassland biodiversity experiment shows that multifunctionality increases strongly with diversity, but depends on the number and identity of the functions considered.
The bill and body size of the snail kite have significantly increased in the decade since invasion of its range by apple snails that are larger than the native prey. Greater survival of larger juveniles suggests that evolutionary change may be imminent.
Mathematical modelling suggests that nestedness and other features of mutualistic webs are spandrels resulting from the creation of diversity through speciation-divergence dynamics.
GC-biased gene conversion has many implications for evolutionary genetics, but its prevalence is unknown. Here, direct sequencing of tetrads in four species shows large differences in gene-conversion rate but no evidence of overall GC bias.
Whole-genome resequencing of 97 wolves from a highly inbred population reveals complete homozygosity of entire chromosomes in many individuals and characterizes the genomic consequences of intensive inbreeding.
Field, remote sensing and ecohydrological modelling estimates provide a framework to determine ecosystem sensitivity to climatic shifts, as well as expected patterns in the amount of precipitation that ecosystems can effectively use.
Accurate understanding of plant litter decomposition is vital to inform Earth system modelling. Here the dominant hierarchical model for plant litter decomposition is found to be wanting, and revisions are suggested.
Winter sea ice is thought to provide critical grazing habitat for overwintering Antarctic krill. In contrast, here the authors show that the pack-ice zone is a food-poor habitat, but does serve as an important sheltering ground for developing larvae.
Phylogenetic analysis of behavioural data across all living mammalian orders suggests the earliest mammals were nocturnal, and other modes such as cathemerality and strict diurnality did not arise until the end of the Cretaceous and early Cenozoic.
Leishmania donovani is an important human pathogen. Here, the authors show that aneuploidy turnover and haplotype selection are two mechanisms by which L. donovani adapts to environmental fluctuations inside the mammalian host.
Islands are thought to be an area of high concern in terms of invasive species impact. Here a global, network-oriented analysis of invasive species on islands characterizes this threat.
A statistical-estimators technique adapted from extinction research is shown to estimate accurately the timing of the onset and cessation of flowering, using sparsely sampled data from a variety of historical and contemporary sources.
Munias are small birds that underwent a rapid radiation in Papua New Guinea and Australia. Here, the authors show that the unique colouration of each species was generated by introgression and selection of ancestral genetic variation at a few relevant genes.
In spiralians (molluscs, annelids and platyhelminths), division of cells in the early embryo follows spiral geometry and cell fate is defined in early development. Here, the authors find spiralian-specific TALE genes that are essential for specifying cell fate.
Fungi of the genus Armillaria include devastating forest pathogens that cause root rot disease in many plants. Sequencing genomes and transcriptomes of several species, the authors reveal the genetic basis of dispersal, multicellular development and pathogenic mechanisms in Armillaria.