Tag: plant physiology

Behind the paper

Matthew Gilbert: Flowers of a South African succulent plant predict tomorrow’s weather, synchronizing flower opening with pollinator activity

In this new post Matthew Gilbert—Associate Professor at University of California, Davis, CA, USA—presents his recently published paper “Flowers of a South African succulent plant predict tomorrow’s weather, synchronizing flower opening with pollinator activity“. He discusses the connection between phenology and weather, shows how inspiration can come from anywhere, and highlights the importance of observing nature to find interesting research questions. About the paper It’s … Continue reading Matthew Gilbert: Flowers of a South African succulent plant predict tomorrow’s weather, synchronizing flower opening with pollinator activity

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Behind the paper

Géraldine Hildbrand: Why some plants are better able to adapt to climate change

In this new post, Géraldine Hildbrand—Scientific collaborator, BFH-HAFL, Switzerland—presents her latest work ‘Above- and below-ground responses to experimental climate forcing in two forb species from montane wooded pastures in Switzerland’. She highlights the importance of ecophysiological traits, discusses the relevance of plasticity to cope with environmental changes, and explains how she can balance research while moving to teaching. About the paper It is undeniable that … Continue reading Géraldine Hildbrand: Why some plants are better able to adapt to climate change

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Behind the paper

Kristiina Visakorpi: The future of Alpine meadows: Can we predict winners and losers in a warmer climate?

In this new post Kristiina Visakorpi—a postdoc at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology—discusses her last research ‘Eco-physiological and morphological traits explain alpine plant species’ response to warming’. She considers the connections between functional traits and climate change, highlights the importance of eco-physiological traits, and provides some thoughts to fight apathy towards our current environmental crises. About the paper In our paper we investigated … Continue reading Kristiina Visakorpi: The future of Alpine meadows: Can we predict winners and losers in a warmer climate?

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Behind the paper

Wei Xue: Born with a silver spoon? How light condition experienced by parent plants influences the response of offspring to light

In this new post, Wei Xue from Taizhou University, China, presents his latest work ‘Light condition experienced by parent plants influences the response of offspring to light via both parental effects and soil legacy effects’. He discusses the importance of parental effects, soil legacy effects, and current light availability in driving clonal plant population growth. About the paper It is a common notion in humans, … Continue reading Wei Xue: Born with a silver spoon? How light condition experienced by parent plants influences the response of offspring to light

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Behind the paper

Pieter Arnold: How an alpine plant species responds to temperature stress depends on the type of trait and life stage

In this new post, Pieter Arnold, Research Fellow at The Australian National University (ANU), presents his latest work ‘Patterns of phenotypic plasticity along a thermal gradient differ by trait type in an alpine plant’. Pieter discusses the challenges of his group’s experimental design, highlights the importance of looking at plants along their entire life cycle, and also advises everyone to expand their horizons when looking … Continue reading Pieter Arnold: How an alpine plant species responds to temperature stress depends on the type of trait and life stage

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Behind the paper, Translation

Mario Blanco-Sánchez: La selección natural favorece de manera consistente a las plantas con una estrategia adquisitiva de recursos en el semiárido mediterráneo

En esta nueva publicación, Mario Blanco-Sánchez, estudiante de doctorado en la Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, España, presenta su última publicación ‘La selección natural favorece el escape de la sequía y una estrategia adquisitiva de uso de recursos en arbustos mediterráneos semiáridos‘. Habla de cómo lidió con un resultado sorprendente y alienta a los jóvenes ecologistas a perseguir sus propios intereses en el campo. Una traducción … Continue reading Mario Blanco-Sánchez: La selección natural favorece de manera consistente a las plantas con una estrategia adquisitiva de recursos en el semiárido mediterráneo

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Behind the paper

Mario Blanco-Sánchez: Natural selection consistently favours an acquisitive resource-use strategy in Mediterranean semiarid plants

In this new post, Mario Blanco-Sánchez, Ph.D student at University Rey Juan Carlos, Spain, presents his latest publication ‘Natural selection favours drought escape and an acquisitive resource-use strategy in semiarid Mediterranean shrubs’. He discusses how he dealt with a striking result and encourages young ecologists to pursue their own interests in the field! A Spanish translation of this blogpost is available to read here! About … Continue reading Mario Blanco-Sánchez: Natural selection consistently favours an acquisitive resource-use strategy in Mediterranean semiarid plants

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Behind the paper

Eli Bendall: Not so tall (tree) tales from the glasshouse

In this new post, Eli Bendall from Western Sydney University presents his last paper ‘Growth enhancements of elevated atmospheric [CO2] are reduced under drought-like conditions in temperate eucalypts’. He discusses the interacting impact of CO2 rise and drought for woody plants, highlights why sunny days can be problematic for ecologists, and shares his unconditional love for eucalyptus. About the paper Our work investigated the interacting … Continue reading Eli Bendall: Not so tall (tree) tales from the glasshouse

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Behind the paper

Jian-Yong Wang: What role do clonal plants play in our ecosystems?

In this new post, Jian-Yong Wang, a new ecological researcher working at Northeast Normal University, China, shares his paper: A meta-analysis of effects of physiological integration in clonal plants under homogeneous vs. heterogeneous environments—recently shortlisted for the Haldane Prize for Early Career Researchers. About the paper Clonal plants, i.e. those able to reproduce vegetatively, play important roles in many ecosystems. Connected individuals (ramets) can translocate … Continue reading Jian-Yong Wang: What role do clonal plants play in our ecosystems?

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Marco Chiminazzo
Behind the paper

Marco Chiminazzo: ‘your best buds are worth protecting’, plant strategies to cope with fire in Cerrado (Brazil)

In our latest post PhD candidate at Universidade Estadual Paulista, Marco Chiminazzo, presents his work ‘Your best buds are worth protecting: woody species exhibit different types of bud protection’, discuss about the importance of plant traits to cope with fire and shares how he got inspiration from Punk music to pursue his research career. About the paper In this paper we analysed how bud traits … Continue reading Marco Chiminazzo: ‘your best buds are worth protecting’, plant strategies to cope with fire in Cerrado (Brazil)

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