Competition and coexistence: The dangers of ignoring environmental heterogeneity

Annie Schiffer, Utah State University, discusses her article: The importance of accounting for spatial heterogeneity in studies of plant competition and coexistence Our paper explores how ignoring spatial environmental heterogeneity produces biases in competition and coexistence models. The original motivation for this study was to explain why interspecific competition was underestimated in observational studies of…

Which non-native plants tend to occupy similar climates at home and far away from home?

Marc Riera, Center for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF), discusses his article: Climatic niche conservatism in non-native plants is largely dependent on their climatic niche breadth in the native range Setting the scene: niche conservatism in the context of biological invasions The Biosphere is on the move. Thousands of species are jumping from one…

Diversity enhances forest productivity through its effect on the number of trees within forests.

Xavier Morin, CEFE, CNRS, University of Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France, discusses his article: More species, more trees: The role of tree packing in promoting forest productivity The effect of tree species diversity on forest productivity is now well-known. On average, plots with more species (in mixed forests) have a greater net productivity than plots with…

The February Art Gallery

The February Art Gallery features the work of NeoMeta, Wiebke Pandikow, Agnese Bankovska and Sophie Anna Gibbings. Mediums include jewellery, plastics, living organisms, drawing, installation, sound, printmaking, alternative process photography, painting, and sculpture. Artist: NeoMeta Title: MetaNature NeoMeta explores hidden narratives and unheard stories of slime and plants with the non-living post-human ecosphere of the…