How do past dynamics of tree species inform us about their future?

Todor Minchev, Université du Québec à Rimouski, discusses his article: Early departures and delayed arrivals: Holocene dynamics of temperate tree species in the boreal temperate ecotone. Forests are the backbone of most terrestrial ecosystems and form some of the largest biomes on the planet, excluding the oceans. Such is the case of the circumboreal forest…

Making robust projections of species distributions at fine resolution: Go spatially-nested

Antoine Guisan, University of Lausanne, Switzerland, discusses his article: Spatially-nested species distribution models (N-SDM): An effective tool to overcome niche truncation for better inference and projections Setting the scene Species distribution models (SDMs) relate species observations to mapped environmental conditions to estimate the ecological niche (i.e., the ensemble of suitable conditions) and predict the spatial distribution…

Predicting the unpredictable: Modelling the distribution of plant-associated microbes with species distribution models

Sarah Ishak, Université du Québec à Montréal, discusses their article: Modelling the distribution of plant-associated microbes with species distribution models The array of bacteria, fungi, protists, viruses, and archaea that live inside or outside of plant tissue, AKA plant-associated microbes, perform functions that vary from beneficial to parasitic to simply neutrally existing with the plant.…

Bringing habitat patches into the species distribution models world

Federico Riva, Environmental Geography Dept. of the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM),Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, discusses his review article: Incorporating effects of habitat patches into species distribution models Habitat patches are everywhere – forests surrounded by agriculture, pastures within Alpine forests, or green areas in a city. This patchiness of many ecosystem types is key to…

Mangrove range expansion limited by ocean currents and coastal features

Jackie Raw discusses her recent article: Dispersal and coastal geomorphology limit potential for mangrove range expansion under climate change. Find out more about the implications of this work for modelling mangrove responses to climate change. Mangroves, often described as tropical swamp lands, are classic features of warm coastlines where sea-surface temperatures are above 20°C. These…

Harper Prize Shortlist 2019: Katie Baer

In this post author Katie Baer, offers an insight into her paper Declining demographic performance and dispersal limitation influence the geographic distribution of the perennial forb Astragalus utahensis (Fabaceae), which was shortlisted for the 2019 Harper Prize.  Katie also discusses her wider research and ecological career. You can see a full list of all shortlisted papers in the Harper…