🏔️ New in Journal of Vegetation Science! Llambí et al. analysed plant functional types across the high Andes and found that functional diversity declines with increasing latitude and elevation, while cold-tolerant growth forms become more dominant. 🔗

🌴 New research in Applied Vegetation Science! Trujillo-Miranda et al. show that forest edges reduce regeneration of two understory palms in Ecuador's Chocó Forest. Insects, rather than fungi or vertebrates, were the main natural enemies limiting recruitment. 🔗

🌳 Berriel et al. found that selective logging legacies and recurrent droughts slowed recovery and reduced species richness in Brazil's Atlantic Forest over 23 years, highlighting growing vulnerability to compound disturbances.

Roads inside protected areas are invasion highways! Zardetto & Fidelis find that roadside edges fuel invasive plant spread in tropical forests & savannas, hitting native species hard. 🌿🚧 #VegetationScience

Is Central Anatolia treeless because of humans? Bernardi et al. argue climate extremes, poor soils & topography are the real drivers of low tree cover, not just deforestation. 🌍🌿 #VegetationScience

Engst et al. find that plant functional traits like dispersal type & nutrient indicators reflect conservation status of protected floodplain meadows 🌿 A useful complement to species-based assessments! #VegetationScience

📦 New in Journal of Vegetation Science! Barranco-Elena & Baraibar present barrel, an R package that streamlines ecological ordination plotting in R. With ggplot2 integration, it helps create reproducible, customizable, publication-ready figures. 🔗

Can herder mobility help maintain steppe biodiversity? Jäschke et al found that seasonal mobility promotes plant richness, diversity, and palatable species in the Mongolian steppe, highlighting its role alongside climate and grazing.

What drives biomass–environment relationships in species-rich grasslands? Swacha et al found that non-dominant species are key drivers of community biomass responses, while dominant species show compensatory dynamics that promote biomass stability.

Where are the biggest knowledge gaps in grassland ecology? The Palaearctic Grasslands Special Feature seeks studies from underrepresented regions and grassland types, particularly from Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean, and Asia. Learn more:

Where are the biggest knowledge gaps in grassland ecology? The Palaearctic Grasslands Special Feature seeks studies from underrepresented regions and grassland types, particularly from Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean, and Asia. Learn more:

Fernández-Menéndez et al link riparian plant diversity and functional traits to satellite greenness (NDVI/EVI) in Atlantic rivers. Relationships vary through the year, showing that phenology matters when using remote sensing to infer biodiversity.

Plakman & Bokhorst show bryophytes strongly shape seed germination and early vascular plant growth in sub-Arctic habitats. Effects depend on bryophyte species via microclimate, pH, moisture and surface structure, influencing plant establishment.

What drives biodiversity turnover along mountain gradients? Guo et al found that local species pools explain beta diversity of woody plants and soil microbes better than assembly processes, highlighting their importance for montane biodiversity.

Do grasslands respond the same way to woody encroachment everywhere? Sánchez-Carmona et al found consistent shifts in plant traits and diversity as shrub cover increased, but responses varied strongly among sites, highlighting the importance of local context.

🌾 Call for Papers: Palaearctic Grasslands Special Feature We welcome contributions on grassland change, conservation, management and restoration across the Palaearctic region. Deadlines: 15 June / 31 Aug 2026 Info & submission: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/page/journal...

How do nitrogen and fire interact in grasslands? Wheeler et al show nitrogen effects on diversity and composition depend on fire. In burned plots nitrogen increased diversity, while in unburned plots effects were weak or negative.

How do centuries of land use shape today’s forests? Diez et al show that historical deforestation in southern Germany still drives higher plant diversity and stronger community turnover today.

Ferrari et al show habitat structure and nesting disturbance, rather than soil properties alone, drive cryptogam diversity and turnover on Nelson Island. Local habitat filtering strongly shapes species composition across rocky outcrops.

How do Mediterranean woodlands expand after farmland abandonment? Bentley et al show Juniperus thurifera has tripled in cover over 34 years, but biomass depends on light, drought stress, and shrub competition along the expansion front.

Can termite mounds shape forests? Babatunde et al show that in northern Benin, termite mounds act as fertility islands, increasing tree diversity, biomass, and carbon stocks while structuring local woody plant communities.

How do invasive grasses reshape ecosystems belowground? Giacom et al show that Urochloa brizantha alters Cerrado soil structure and bud banks, reducing native regeneration capacity and shifting belowground dominance toward fine roots and rhizomes.

How important are rare species? Yuan et al show that losing rare species in Gannan grasslands reduces functional redundancy and stability, increasing the risk of ecosystem collapse, especially when combined with losses of common species.

Rare‐Species Loss Reduces Gannan Grassland Ecosystem Functional Redundancy and Stability

Within grassland communities in Gannan, China, we investigated how the loss of rare and common species affected community functional metrics and stability. The species-richness effect was especially…

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

🌾 Call for Papers: *Palaearctic Grasslands* Seeking studies on grassland change, restoration & conservation across the Palaearctic, especially from understudied regions and habitats. 📅 Deadline: 31 Aug 2026

Why do seeds delay germination? Fernández-Pascual et al show it is more common in cold- and wet-adapted species and less common in disturbance-adapted ones, suggesting a strategy for coping with stress during regeneration.

How do stress and evolutionary history shape plant communities? Abreu Fávero & Waechter show bromeliads along a coastal–inland gradient in southern Brazil are structured by environmental filtering and niche conservatism, depending on growth form.

Grazing effects on plant diversity are not straightforward. Wild et al show that in German dairy pastures, outcomes depend on grazing intensity, stocking method, and region, with evenness responding differently under continuous vs rotational grazing.

Has climate warming shifted alpine boundaries upward? Kirkpatrick et al found remarkable stability in the alpine–moorland ecotone across three Tasmanian mountains from 1986–2020, with no clear upslope movement despite rising temperatures.

Early postfire recovery can shape forests for decades. Lee et al show that regeneration after fire strongly determines 20-year successional trajectories in Korean pine forests, influencing whether stands shift toward oak dominance or retain pine.

European habitat classification may need more regional detail. Jiménez-Alfaro et al show that a data-driven regionalization of EUNIS habitats in the Ibero-Atlantic region improves ecological resolution and supports better biodiversity assessment and mapping.