Category: Behind the paper

Behind the paper

Liesbeth van den Brink & Rafaella Canessa: Microbial communities prefer high quality food, not specifically the food available “at home”

In this new post, post-doctoral friends Liesbeth van den Brink and Rafaella Canessa from the University of Tübingen, Germany, present their recently published paper “No home-field advantage in litter decomposition from the desert to temperate forest.” They discuss the importance of litter characteristics for decomposition, share their experiences with rodents, and celebrate the joy of working with friends. Una versión en Español de esta publicación … Continue reading Liesbeth van den Brink & Rafaella Canessa: Microbial communities prefer high quality food, not specifically the food available “at home”

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Behind the paper, Translation

Liesbeth van den Brink & Rafaella Canessa: Las comunidades microbianas prefieren alimentos de alta calidad, no necesariamente comida local

En nuestro último post, las amigas y post-docs Liesbeth van den Brink y Rafaella Canessa de la University of Tübingen presentan su trabajo ‘No home-field advantage in litter decomposition from the desert to temperate forest’. En él discuten la importancia de las características de la hojarasca y su descomposición, presentan su ‘experiencia’ con roedores y comparten el placer de trabajar con tus amigos. An English … Continue reading Liesbeth van den Brink & Rafaella Canessa: Las comunidades microbianas prefieren alimentos de alta calidad, no necesariamente comida local

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Behind the paper, Podcast transcripts

Acoustic signature reveals blue whales tune life history transitions to oceanographic conditions: Podcast Transcript

In this podcast for Functional Ecology, Assistant Editor, Frank Harris, sits down with William K. Oestreich—a postdoctoral fellow at Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, USA—to discuss his recently published paper ‘Acoustic signature reveals blue whales tune life history transitions to oceanographic conditions’. Will’s paper suggests that blue whales use flexible cues, perhaps including individual sensing of food availability and social information from other individuals (blue … Continue reading Acoustic signature reveals blue whales tune life history transitions to oceanographic conditions: Podcast Transcript

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Behind the paper

Matthew Krna: Decomposition rates of leaf litter are temperature-independent

In this new post, Matt Krna—then a PhD student at Massey University, New Zealand—discusses his recently published paper in Functional Ecology: Temperature dependency of litter decomposition is not demonstrated under reciprocal transplantation of tussock leaves along an altitudinal gradient. This research follows on from his publication on clarifying carbon sequestration (Krna and Rapson, 2013). In his study of decomposition across a 700 m altitudinal gradient … Continue reading Matthew Krna: Decomposition rates of leaf litter are temperature-independent

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Behind the paper

Melissa Pastore: What’s happening beneath our feet when it comes to climate change?

In this new post, Melissa Pastore—a global change ecologist and Postdoctoral Associate at the University of Vermont in the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, USA, and with the Gund Institute for Environment, USA—discusses her recently published paper ‘Soil microbial legacies influence freeze–thaw responses of soil’. Her research takes a cross-scale approach to understanding the impacts of global environmental changes, spanning processes happening at … Continue reading Melissa Pastore: What’s happening beneath our feet when it comes to climate change?

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Behind the paper

Aoife Cantwell-Jones: How Arctic bees interact with plants depends on body size variation and spatiotemporal context

Aoife Cantwell-Jones—a PhD student at Imperial College London, UK—shares with us the background behind her recently accepted paper, “Mapping trait versus species turnover reveals spatiotemporal variation in functional redundancy and network robustness in a plant-pollinator community.” She discusses nuances of bumblebee-plant interactions and the importance of researching mutualistic interactions to solve global change issues, as well as celebrating teamwork. About the paper The intricate interdependencies … Continue reading Aoife Cantwell-Jones: How Arctic bees interact with plants depends on body size variation and spatiotemporal context

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Behind the paper

Veera Norros: Species of wood-inhabiting fungi display different reproductive and dispersal strategies—which is the winning strategy in changing environments?

In this new post, Finnish Senior Research Scientist, Veera Norros, present her latest work ‘Spore production monitoring reveals contrasting seasonal strategies and a trade-off between spore size and number in wood-inhabiting fungi’. She discusses the importance of season for fungi spore-production, the vulnerability of wood-dependant species, and the challenges to conciliate research and family. About the paper Habitat loss and climate change divide species into … Continue reading Veera Norros: Species of wood-inhabiting fungi display different reproductive and dispersal strategies—which is the winning strategy in changing environments?

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Behind the paper, Behind the Special Feature

Pedro Jaureguiberry: Plants from regions with different fire histories respond to fire and burn differently

In this new post Pedro Jaureguiberry—Adjunct Researcher at IMBIV (CONICET-UNC)—Argentina, presents his last work ‘A three-dimensional approach to general plant fire syndromes’. He highlights the importance of effect traits for fire ecology, hypothesizes plant traits based on regional fire history, and shows his interest in the connections between humans and nature.  Una versión en Español de esta publicación está disponible aquí! About the paper Fire … Continue reading Pedro Jaureguiberry: Plants from regions with different fire histories respond to fire and burn differently

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Behind the paper, Behind the Special Feature, Translation

Pedro Jaureguiberry: Las plantas de regiones con diferentes historias de incendios responden al fuego y se queman de manera diferente

En este nuevo post Pedro Jaureguiberry—Investigador Adjunto del IMBIV (CONICET-UNC), Argentina—presenta su último trabajo ‘A three-dimensional approach to general plant fire syndromes’. Aquí destaca la importancia de considerar rasgos funcionales de efecto en ecología del fuego, hipotetiza qué rasgos tendrá la vegetación en función de la historia regional de incendios y muestra su interés por la conexión entre el ser humano y la naturaleza. An … Continue reading Pedro Jaureguiberry: Las plantas de regiones con diferentes historias de incendios responden al fuego y se queman de manera diferente

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Behind the paper

Sam Ross: Listening for the answers to fundamental questions

In this new post, Sam Ross—a Postdoc at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Japan—presents his review paper ‘Passive acoustic monitoring provides a fresh perspective on fundamental ecological questions’. He discusses how acoustic monitoring isn’t just for applied ecology and conservation, and some of developments on the horizon. About the paper From a bleary-eyed dawn chorus, to magnificent symphonies of whale song, … Continue reading Sam Ross: Listening for the answers to fundamental questions

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