Integrating multiple hypotheses to understand grassland drought resistance

Diana Bertuol Garcia, University of Victoria, discusses her article: Long-term aridity shapes grassland drought resistance and modulates the roles of plant diversity and functional composition As ecologists, we often ask how ecosystems cope with change. This question now feels more urgent than ever. Around the world, ecosystems are facing habitat loss, overexploitation, invasive species, rising…

Thirteen years, three climates, one path to stability?

Johanne Gresse, University of Tübingen, discusses her article: Drought resistance drives population temporal stability of annuals in drylands Imagine a desert after rain. For a few brief weeks, the ground bursts into a colourful carpet of annual plants. At first glance, this display seems fleeting and fragile. But when observed over many years, a pattern…

Editor’s Choice: Volume 109 Issue 7

The Editor’s Choice for our July issue is “Plant diversity effects on plant longevity and their relationships to population stability in experimental grasslands” by Roeder et al. The findings of this article show that the diversity of a grassland community can directly affect the longevity of the forbs, and thereby the temporal stability of populations…