Local Assemblages Research Articles

Habitat trumps biogeography in structuring coral reef fishes

AbstractAs one of the world’s most diverse ecosystems, coral reefs have been the focus of numerous biogeographic analyses. With strong biodiversity gradients across the Indo-Pacific, coral reefs have shed light on the effects of evolutionary history, isolation, and human exploitation on local assemblages. However, there are also strong environmentally driven local gradients in faunal assemblages. We ask, does reef fish community composition and trait space vary to a greater extent across small scales (i.e. along habitat gradients) or across large scales (i.e. across geographic regions separated by up to 12,000 km)? Using a standardized survey method that explicitly includes habitats (i.e. the slope, crest, and flat), we surveyed a highly diverse family of reef fishes (Labridae) in nine regions across the Indo-Pacific, from the Cocos (Keeling) Islands to French Polynesia. We demonstrate that small-scale habitat gradients represent a greater axis of variation, in both the taxonomic and trait composition of fish assemblages, than large-scale biogeographic gradients. Indeed, fish assemblages just 10 m apart, along a habitat gradient, appear to differ more than assemblages in the same habitats separated by over 12,000 km along the world’s largest biodiversity gradient. Essentially, fish assemblages cluster by habitat regardless of their biogeographic region, with habitat associations trumping biogeographic affiliations. This emphasizes the primacy of local environmental factors, such as hydrodynamics, in shaping the ecology of reef fishes. It also raises serious concerns over the use of combined datasets, where data from different habitats are used, without explicit recognition, in global-scale analyses.

Species assemblages and their drivers differ between trees and lianas in a seasonal evergreen forest in Thailand

AbstractDespite a long tradition in ecology of studying tree species assembly and its potential drivers in tropical forest communities, little information exists with respect to lianas (woody climbers), the second most abundant life form of woody plants in tropical forests. Lianas influence forest diversity and stability and provide critical resources for forest fauna. Using a unique dataset of a 30‐ha plot in Thailand, where tree and liana individuals were fully mapped, we investigated the degree to which local species assemblages of trees and lianas of different size classes (i.e., seedlings, established individuals, and large individuals) are related to local environmental conditions. We asked (1) What are the spatial patterns and environmental drivers of local tree and liana species assemblages? (2) How do such patterns and drivers differ among size classes? (3) Which species associate with these assemblages? Local assemblages of established trees showed substantial structuring by environmental variables, whereas we found only weakly structured assemblages of tree seedlings, large trees, and lianas of all size classes. Our results indicated that the biotic and abiotic drivers of local species assemblages differed strongly between tree and liana communities and across size classes. Species assemblages of trees were mainly driven by soil nutrients, leading to patchy assemblages associated with high base saturation (Alfisols) and assemblages associated with lower levels of base saturation and higher aluminum (Ultisols), whereas tree seedling assemblages were only weakly structured by riparian zones. In contrast, species assemblages of established and large lianas were primarily associated with forest canopy structure, separating low‐canopy forests from high‐canopy forests, whereas soil nutrients were the only factors associated with liana seedling assemblages. The weak environmental structuring of tree seedlings and large trees suggests that other mechanisms, such as stochastic disturbances, competition for space, or animal seed dispersal, may play an important role in structuring tree communities in this seasonal tropical forest. The weak patterns observed in liana communities across all life stages raise questions about the underlying mechanisms of liana community assembly, and further research should focus on liana niches, their dispersal mechanisms, and host tree relations.

Regional invasion history and land use shape the prevalence of non-native species in local assemblages.

The ecological impact of non-native species arises from their establishment in local assemblages. However, the rates of non-native spread in new regions and their determinants have not been comprehensively studied. Here, we combined global databases documenting the occurrence of non-native species and residence of non-native birds, mammals, and vascular plants at regional and local scales to describe how the likelihood of non-native occurrence and their proportion in local assemblages relate with their residence time and levels of human usage in different ecosystems. Our findings reveal that local non-native occurrence generally increases with residence time. Colonization is most rapid in croplands and urban areas, while it is slower and variable in natural or semi-natural ecosystems. Notably, non-native occurrence continues to rise even 200 years after introduction, especially for birds and vascular plants, and in other land-use types rather than croplands and urban areas. The impact of residence time on non-native proportions is significant only for mammals. We conclude that the continental exchange of biotas requires considerable time for effects to manifest at the local scale across taxa and land-use types. The unpredictability of future impacts, implied by the slow spread of non-native species, strengthens the call for stronger regulations on the exchange of non-native species to reduce the long-lasting invasion debt looming on ecosystems' future.

Additive partitioning of multispecies distributional aggregation of local assemblages.

The distribution of species is not random in space. At the finest-resolution spatial scale, that is, field sampling locations, distributional aggregation level of different species would be determined by various factors, for example spatial autocorrelation or environmental filtering. However, few studies have quantitatively measured the importance of these factors. In this study, inspired by the statistical properties of a Markov transition model, we propose a novel additive framework to partition local multispecies distributional aggregation levels for sequential sampling-derived field biodiversity data. The framework partitions the spatial distributional aggregation of different species into two independent components: regional abundance variability and the local spatial inertia effect. Empirical studies from field amphibian surveys through line-transect sampling in southwestern China (Minya Konka) and central-southern Vietnam showed that local spatial inertia was always the dominant mechanism structuring the local occurrence and distributional aggregation of amphibians in the two regions with a latitudinal gradient from 1200 to nearly 4000 m. However, regional abundance variability is still nonnegligible in highly diverse tropical regions (i.e. Vietnam) where the altitude is not higher than 2000 m. In summary, we propose a novel framework that shows that the multispecies distributional aggregation level can be structured by two additive components. The two partitioned components could be theoretically independent. These findings are expected to deepen our understanding of the local community structure from the perspective of both spatial distribution and regional diversity patterns. The partitioning framework might have potential applications in field ecology and macroecology research.

Influence of abiotic factors on the germination of an endemic sea lavender: First steps to shape local assemblage

Different Mediterranean sea lavender species, especially endemisms, appear within specific soil conditions led by vegetative trait syndromes. Nonetheless, seed traits contribute to functional structuring of plant communities, shaping the first stages of plant fitness and niche competition in stressful habitats. In this framework, we assess abiotic factors related to germination and establishment of Limonium tobarrense, an inland saltmarsh endemism located at the southeastern of the Iberian Peninsula, to shed light about the assembly processes in its early life stage. Experiments were performed to determine the effects of different salinities (0%, 0.5%, 1%, 1.5% and 2% NaCl) on seed germination under three combinations of day/night temperature (30 °C/20 °C, 25 °C/20 °C and 25 °C/15 °C) with a photoperiod of 12 h in light and 12 h in dark. Final germination percentage (FGP) and mean time-to-germinate (MTG) were studied after 30 days. The best FGP values were obtained in freshwater and low salinity conditions (1% and 1.5% NaCl). Moreover, similar MTG were observed at different salinities, but MTG was significantly high at lower temperature (i.e., 25 °C/15 °C). Finally, no differences between light conditions were observed. Our results suggest that salinity determines the germination and establishment of L. tobarrense, germinating successfully in freshwater and low salinity. In addition, a wide range of thermoperiod for its successful germination was found, although its interaction with the salinity was not significant. In consequence, L. tobarrense would germinate after the autumn rainfalls, when the salts are lixiviated in soil, and the medium temperature are favourable for the best seed germination conditions. Thus, specific environmental conditions would allow the own regeneration and adult niche of this endemism.

Resistance not resilience traits structure macroinvertebrate communities in newly drying stream sections

Transitioning from perennial to non-perennial flow regimes causes ecological shifts in aquatic communities. Aquatic macroinvertebrates deploy resistance and resilience strategies to cope with flow intermittency, crucial in rivers with long-term seasonal dry episodes. Less is known, about how these strategies support community persistence in streams that only recently have experienced drying, and where local assemblages lack such adaptations. Our study conducted two four-season campaigns, separated by a one-year break, to assess macroinvertebrate responses in newly drying intermittent streams by comparing intermittent and perennial stream sections. We characterize communities from structural and functional perspectives, and then evaluate the response at the trait state level. We observed a decline in taxa richness and abundance, but not structural diversity, in response to flow intermittency. Resistance traits are more important than resilient traits in structuring macroinvertebrate communities in newly intermittent stream sections. Taxa in intermittent sections exhibit a smaller trait space, indicating lower functional redundancy. The macroinvertebrate response to intermittency lacks a predictable pattern, suggesting time-dependent and trait-state-specific colonization by adapted taxa and community assembly with resistance and resilience strategies. As river drought increases due to climate change, recognizing the temporal dimension becomes crucial for understanding ecological responses to intermittency.

Habitat partitioning among sympatric tinamous in semiarid woodlands of central Argentina.

Sympatric, phylogenetically related and morphologically similar species that overlap in their distributions at a regional scale display different patterns of co-occurrence at local assemblages. Occurrence of each species at local scales might be the result of interspecific competition for limiting resources. However, these patterns could also arise from species-specific habitat preferences along the abiotic or land use gradients. To assess the role of these mechanisms, we investigated niche partitioning among sympatric tinamou species occurring in semiarid woodlands of central Argentina. We used occupancy models incorporating habitat characteristics and interspecific interactions, while accounting for detectability, to examine the spatial overlap among elegant crested tinamous (Eudromia elegans), brushland tinamous (Nothoprocta cinerascens), and nothura tinamous (Nothura darwinii and N. maculosa) across a wide regional scale. In addition, we investigated time partitioning among these species by estimating the degree of overlap in their daily activity patterns. The regional distribution of the three species was influenced by the gradient in plant productivity and vegetation structure, in agreement with their broad habitat requirements. We also found that the occurrence of each species was presumably affected by the presence of one or two predator species. Models including interactions among tinamou species found weak negative and positive interactions among species pairs, suggesting that co-occurrence patterns were mainly driven by species-specific habitat use rather than interspecific competition. The three species were diurnal, showing two main peaks of activity, and overlapped widely in their overall diel activity, although subordinate species tended to shift their activity patterns to reduce encounters with the dominant tinamou species, suggesting some segregation in this niche dimension. Projected changes in rainfall seasonality and warmer conditions in this region could benefit elegant crested tinamous over the other two species, although climate and land use changes will likely have a negative impact on all tinamou species.

Regional sets of diverse, specialized ground beetle and plant assemblages recolonise China’s restored temperate forest landscapes

Following the historic destruction of China’s forests, large protected forest landscapes have been reestablishment across the country in recent decades. Currently, the species assemblages inhabiting these landscapes remain widely unknown. Here, we aim to establish whether the new temperate forest landscapes in Eastern China, composed of plantation, secondary and remnant mature forest patches, are dominated by widely distributed habitat generalists, widely distributed habitat specialists, or by sets of highly localized forest habitat specialist species, using vascular plants and ground beetles as case studies. We sampled plants and ground beetles on 159 plots representing different forest types distributed across ten study regions. The Chord-normalized expected species shared (CNESS) dissimilarity for beetles and Jaccard dissimilarity for plants were calculated to establish species’ turnover patterns, while we used structural equation and multiple regression models for dissimilarity matrices to establish the relative importance of location, elevation and biotic interactions in explaining large-scale distribution patterns of species assemblages. Both taxa showed highly regionalized recruitment, with plant communities responding strongly to latitude, and to geographic location in general, while the composition of ground beetle communities appeared strongly governed by both the composition of the vegetation and study plot location. Both assemblages showed a distinct lack of widespread habitat generalists. Our results demonstrate for the first time that local assemblages of forest specialist species appear to have survived last century’s deforestation in unknown refugia before successfully re-colonizing China’s restored forest ecosystems. We argue that restored forest landscapes can play a significant role in the conservation of temperate China’s biodiversity at both local and regional scales.

Increased hydraulic risk in assemblages of woody plant species predicts spatial patterns of drought-induced mortality

Predicting drought-induced mortality (DIM) of woody plants remains a key research challenge under climate change. Here, we integrate information on the edaphoclimatic niches, phylogeny and hydraulic traits of species to model the hydraulic risk of woody plants globally. We combine these models with species distribution records to estimate the hydraulic risk faced by local woody plant species assemblages. Thus, we produce global maps of hydraulic risk and test for its relationship with observed DIM. Our results show that local assemblages modelled as having higher hydraulic risk present a higher probability of DIM. Metrics characterizing this hydraulic risk improve DIM predictions globally, relative to models accounting only for edaphoclimatic predictors or broad functional groupings. The methodology we present here allows mapping of functional trait distributions and elucidation of global macro-evolutionary and biogeographical patterns, improving our ability to predict potential global change impacts on vegetation.

Diversity and composition of mixed-ploidy unisexual salamander assemblages reflect the key influence of host species.

Understanding processes that govern and sustain biological diversity is a central goal of community ecology. Unisexual complexes, where reproduction depends on sperm from males of one or more bisexual host species, are rare and the processes driving their diversity and structure remain poorly understood. Unisexual Ambystoma salamanders produce distinct biotypes ('genomotypes') depending on which bisexual species they 'steal' sperm from. This reproductive mode should generate distinct assemblages depending on the locally available bisexual host species. Yet, how availability and relative abundance of multiple bisexual hosts influences composition and diversity of natural unisexual assemblages at local or regional scales remains unknown. We hypothesize that host identity most directly drives local assemblage composition, with host variation associated with increased beta and gamma diversity within unisexuals. We collected genetic samples from Ambystoma salamanders across Pelee Island, Ontario, Canada (2015-2022). Two host species were identified (A. texanum and A. laterale) with nine sites having a single host and one site having both. Unisexual assemblages were grouped into four clusters by similarity, with host identity being a key determinant. Gamma diversity increased as a result of distinct host-specific assemblages forming at different sites on the island (i.e., high beta diversity). Assemblage composition, but not diversity, was correlated with relative host abundance, which may reflect matching niche requirements between host and unisexual forms they produce. Our results demonstrate that diversity and structure of unisexual assemblages are clearly shaped by their host(s) and such systems may serve as models for studying how biotic interactions shape ecological communities.

Correlated biodiversity change between plant and insect assemblages resurveyed after 80 years across a dynamic habitat mosaic.

Historical data on co-occurring taxa are extremely rare. As such, the extent to which distinct co-occurring taxa experience similar long-term patterns in species richness and compositional change (e.g., when exposed to a changing environment) is not clear. Using data from a diverse ecological community surveyed in the 1930s and resurveyed in the 2010s, we investigated whether local plant and insect assemblages displayed cross-taxon congruence-that is, spatiotemporal correlation in species richness and compositional change-across six co-occurring taxa: vascular plants, non-vascular plants, grasshoppers and crickets (Orthoptera), ants (Hymenoptera: Formicinae), hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae), and dragonflies and damselflies (Odonata). All taxa exhibited high levels of turnover across the ca. 80-year time period. Despite minimal observed changes at the level of the whole study system, species richness displayed widespread cross-taxon congruence (i.e., correlated temporal change) across local assemblages within the study system. Hierarchical logistic regression models suggest a role for shared responses to environmental change underlying cross-taxon correlations and highlight stronger correlations between vascular plants and their direct consumers, suggesting a possible role for biotic interactions between these groups. These results provide an illustration of cross-taxon congruence in biodiversity change using data unique in its combination of temporal and taxonomic scope, and highlight the potential for cascading and comparable effects of environmental change (abiotic and biotic) on co-occurring plant and insect communities. However, analyses of historical resurveys based on currently available data come with inherent uncertainties. As such, this study highlights a need for well-designed experiments, and monitoring programs incorporating co-occurring taxa, to determine the underlying mechanisms and prevalence of congruent biodiversity change as anthropogenic environmental change accelerates apace.

Increasing the known specific richness of living mammals in Chile

The Chilean mammal fauna is one of the best known of South America. In spite of this, in the last decade several new species have been described based on specimens collected in the country, while other species previously known elsewhere have been recorded for the first time in Chile. Here we keep on this trend by recording for the first time for Chile a species of long-tailed mouse of the genus Oligoryzomys. This mention is based on genetic (cytochrome b gene sequences) and morphological data gathered from several specimens collected at four localities of Quebrada de Camarones, Región de Arica y Parinacota in northern Chile. At one of these localities a specimen was live-trapped; while in the other three localities several osteological remains were recovered from owl pellets. The morphologic and genetic information robustly indicate that the revised specimens belong to the genus Oligoryzomys. The phylogenetic analyses show that the trapped specimens belong to O. flavescens s. l. However, it remains unsolved to which of two main lineages of O. flavescens s. l., O. flavescens s. s. or O. occidentalis, belongs the specimens from Camarones. Here we increase the known species richness of Chilean living mammals by showing that northernmost Chile is inhabited by O. flavescens s. l. The possibility that the specimens from Camarones represent an undescribed species cannot be ruled out. These new records indicate, once again, that much remains to be learn about basic aspects of the Chilean mammals, including which species form the local assemblages.

Looking back on biodiversity change: lessons for the road ahead.

Estimating biodiversity change across the planet in the context of widespread human modification is a critical challenge. Here, we review how biodiversity has changed in recent decades across scales and taxonomic groups, focusing on four diversity metrics: species richness, temporal turnover, spatial beta-diversity and abundance. At local scales, change across all metrics includes many examples of both increases and declines and tends to be centred around zero, but with higher prevalence of declining trends in beta-diversity (increasing similarity in composition across space or biotic homogenization) and abundance. The exception to this pattern is temporal turnover, with changes in species composition through time observed in most local assemblages. Less is known about change at regional scales, although several studies suggest that increases in richness are more prevalent than declines. Change at the global scale is the hardest to estimate accurately, but most studies suggest extinction rates are probably outpacing speciation rates, although both are elevated. Recognizing this variability is essential to accurately portray how biodiversity change is unfolding, and highlights how much remains unknown about the magnitude and direction of multiple biodiversity metrics at different scales. Reducing these blind spots is essential to allow appropriate management actions to be deployed. This article is part of the theme issue 'Detecting and attributing the causes of biodiversity change: needs, gaps and solutions'.

The impact of land use on non-native species incidence and number in local assemblages worldwide

While the regional distribution of non-native species is increasingly well documented for some taxa, global analyses of non-native species in local assemblages are still missing. Here, we use a worldwide collection of assemblages from five taxa - ants, birds, mammals, spiders and vascular plants - to assess whether the incidence, frequency and proportions of naturalised non-native species depend on type and intensity of land use. In plants, assemblages of primary vegetation are least invaded. In the other taxa, primary vegetation is among the least invaded land-use types, but one or several other types have equally low levels of occurrence, frequency and proportions of non-native species. High land use intensity is associated with higher non-native incidence and frequency in primary vegetation, while intensity effects are inconsistent for other land-use types. These findings highlight the potential dual role of unused primary vegetation in preserving native biodiversity and in conferring resistance against biological invasions.

Imprints of historical and ecological factors in the phylogenetic structure of Australian Meliphagides assemblages

AbstractAimsUnderstanding how historical and ecological (species interactions) factors affect species and shape community structure is a fundamental goal in ecology. However, these two components are difficult to disentangle and are often confounded. We address the influence of these factors in governing the structure of bird assemblages.LocationSoutheastern Australia.TaxonThe Meliphagoidea superfamily.MethodsBy adopting a semi‐experimental approach (i.e. high vs low interference competition), we examine the influence of a genus (Manorina) of honeyeater species that is well known for its hyper‐aggressiveness and strong competitive capacity on the phylogenetic and functional structure of local assemblages across three different habitats (eucalypt woodlands, mallee and cleared habitat). We applied a model that explicitly incorporates the effects of neutral colonization and local extinction in shaping community structure and estimated the contributions of niche‐based and neutral processes to community assembly using the STEPCAM technique.ResultsCommunities with the presence of Manorina species were characterized by faster rates of colonization and local extinction and exhibited a higher degree of phylogenetic clustering than communities without these despotic species, which suggests that this model not only mirrors habitat preferences, but also unintendedly accounts for the effect of biotic interactions. Stochastic processes had a lower contribution in the presence of Manorina species, whereas the role of filtering tended to be higher. We observed habitat differences in terms of functional (but not phylogenetic) structure, with more functionally clustered assemblages in the cleared habitat.Main ConclusionsAlthough recent studies have suggested that neutral‐species processes are sufficient to explain local assemblage phylogenetic structure, our capacity to isolate them from contemporary ecological processes is still limited. This study also reinforces the idea that biotic interactions can also lead to patterns of underdispersion and thus, assumptions behind null model approaches for community assembly should be carefully considered in each case.

Fragmentation Level Drives Local Fish Assemblage Diversity Patterns in Fragmented River Basins

Longitudinal connectivity is the main attribute of river ecosystems and is essential for the maintenance of aquatic biota. When longitudinal connectivity decreases in a river network, abundance of some fish species decreases, and local extinctions may occur. Such abundance decreases and extinctions affect local assemblage structure (alpha diversity) and result in a high degree of dissimilarity among local assemblages (higher beta diversity). Specific ecological mechanisms that are behind these biodiversity changes induced by connectivity loss remain poorly understood. Here, we assessed the effects of fragmentation at the local and basin level, as well as local environmental variables on local fish diversity patterns in eight Andean river basins in central Chile (32–39° S). The results indicated that fish assemblages inhabiting pool habitats in highly fragmented basins were characterized by significantly lower species richness and alpha diversity mainly driven by absence of fish species with high dispersion capacities. Our results highlight the importance of the effects of barrier cascades upstream as drivers of local native fish diversity. Sustainable hydropower development necessitates system scale planning of the placement of future barriers and should consider both local and basin scale biodiversity indicators.

Combining environmental niche models, multi-grain analyses, and species traits identifies pervasive effects of land use on butterfly biodiversity across Italy.

Understanding how species respond to human activities is paramount to ecology and conservation science, one outstanding question being how large-scale patterns in land use affect biodiversity. To facilitate answering this question, we propose a novel analytical framework that combines environmental niche models, multi-grain analyses, and species traits. We illustrate the framework capitalizing on the most extensive dataset compiled to date for the butterflies of Italy (106,514 observations for 288 species), assessing how agriculture and urbanization have affected biodiversity of these taxa from landscape to regional scales (3-48 km grains) across the country while accounting for its steep climatic gradients. Multiple lines of evidence suggest pervasive and scale-dependent effects of land use on butterflies in Italy. While land use explained patterns in species richness primarily at grains ≤12 km, idiosyncratic responses in species highlighted "winners" and "losers" across human-dominated regions. Detrimental effects of agriculture and urbanization emerged from landscape (3-km grain) to regional (48-km grain) scales, disproportionally affecting small butterflies and butterflies with a short flight curve. Human activities have therefore reorganized the biogeography of Italian butterflies, filtering out species with poor dispersal capacity and narrow niche breadth not only from local assemblages, but also from regional species pools. These results suggest that global conservation efforts neglecting large-scale patterns in land use risk falling short of their goals, even for taxa typically assumed to persist in small natural areas (e.g., invertebrates). Our study also confirms that consideration of spatial scales will be crucial to implementing effective conservation actions in the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. In this context, applications of the proposed analytical framework have broad potential to identify which mechanisms underlie biodiversity change at different spatial scales.

Individual flowering phenology shapes plant-pollinator interactions across ecological scales affecting plant reproduction.

The balance of pollination competition and facilitation among co-flowering plants and abiotic resource availability can modify plant species and individual reproduction. Floral resource succession and spatial heterogeneity modulate plant-pollinator interactions across ecological scales (individual plant, local assemblage, and interaction network of agroecological infrastructure across the farm). Intraspecific variation in flowering phenology can modulate the precise level of spatio-temporal heterogeneity in floral resources, pollen donor density, and pollinator interactions that a plant individual is exposed to, thereby affecting reproduction. We tested how abiotic resources and multi-scale plant-pollinator interactions affected individual plant seed set modulated by intraspecific variation in flowering phenology and spatio-temporal floral heterogeneity arising from agroecological infrastructure. We transplanted two focal insect-pollinated plant species (Cyanus segetum and Centaurea jacea, n=288) into agroecological infrastructure (10 sown wildflower and six legume-grass strips) across a farm-scale experiment (125 ha). We applied an individual-based phenologically explicit approach to match precisely the flowering period of plant individuals to the concomitant level of spatio-temporal heterogeneity in plant-pollinator interactions, potential pollen donors, floral resources, and abiotic conditions (temperature, water, and nitrogen). Individual plant attractiveness, assemblage floral density, and conspecific pollen donor density (C. jacea) improved seed set. Network linkage density increased focal species seed set and modified the effect of local assemblage richness and abundance on C. segetum. Mutual dependence on pollinators in networks increased C. segetum seed set, while C. jacea seed set was greatest where both specialization on pollinators and mutual dependence was high. Abiotic conditions were of little or no importance to seed set. Intra- and interspecific plant-pollinator interactions respond to spatio-temporal heterogeneity arising from agroecological management affecting wild plant species reproduction. The interplay of pollinator interactions within and between ecological scales affecting seed set implies a co-occurrence of pollinator-mediated facilitative and competitive interactions among plant species and individuals.

The Archaeology of Twentieth-Century Drug Paraphernalia at Her Majesty’s Penitentiary, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador

The use of cannabis, narcotics, and other intoxicants is widespread within North American prisons, where do-it-yourself instruments are fashioned, used, traded, discarded, and/or confiscated. This cycle contributes to the long-term record of material culture and provides an opportunity to study innovations employed by incarcerated persons. An assemblage of improvised devices for consuming illicit drugs (pipes, syringe, and decoys) from Her Majesty’s Penitentiary (HMP) in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, provides an opportunity to explore the culture of twentieth-century drug consumption at an exceptionally long-lived penal institution. The collection of drug paraphernalia dates between 1971 and 1983 and represents a palimpsest of curated items confiscated by correctional officers. By drawing upon actor-network theory and a folkloric approach to the material assemblage, we situate this local assemblage within the larger carceral context wherein individuals “make do.” These objects speak to longstanding and widely shared technological traditions, an accomplished do-it-yourself ethic amongst those incarcerated, and the complex entanglement of criminality, carceral practices, and drug use.

New insights into the use of “imported” flint raw materials in the younger phases of the Funnel Beaker culture in the Starogard Lake District

In recent years, the region of Starogard Lake District in northern Poland has seen a growing interest in the Funnel Beaker culture, including the research on local flintworking, which has fed the discussion on the traffic in “exotic” flint in the younger phases of the Funnel Beaker settlement in the region (3650-3100 calBC). In this study, lithic assemblages from the Starogard Lake District are screened for “imported” flint artefacts to determine the parent rock material used for their production and monitor their frequencies in the local assemblages. By exploring the use-wear analysis results, we also investigate the production and consumption patterns of the local and “imported” flint artefacts from the Chełmno land and the Starogard Lake District. The obtained results were confronted with comparative data from other parts of the Eastern Group and confirming the marginal position of the Eastern Pomerania region in the “exotic” flint trading network during the Funnel Beaker era in Poland.