Conservation Biology Research Articles

On the importance of diversity in ecological research

Societal Impact StatementProtecting diversity is critical to maintaining functional and adaptive ecosystems. However, research groups that explore these relationships tend to lack diversity themselves. To address the challenges of our changing world, it is crucial to consider a wide range of perspectives and knowledge. We propose that just as greater diversity in ecosystems relates to a variety of functions and, consequently, enhances resilience, stability, and efficiency, a comparable diversity within research teams results in a broader spectrum of creative endeavors. Thus, it is important to re‐evaluate our scientific communities' openness toward greater diversity to meet the diverse problems of our changing world.SummaryEcosystems face multiple threats, jeopardizing natural and human well‐being. Biodiversity loss can increase ecosystem vulnerability to global change, risking abrupt and irreversible changes. Protecting biodiversity can prevent ecosystems from crossing tipping points, preserving their functions and resilience, which sustain life on our planet. In addressing these challenges, society demands creativity, innovation, and diverse perspectives. Yet, our societal structures often neglect the full range of voices and experiences, limiting problem‐solving. Understanding how research teams with diverse demographics may stimulate creative solutions to global change challenges may help. In this context, we emphasize examples from plant ecology, where the advantages of diverse ecosystems are well recognized, and we draw an analogy of these features to the innovation of research teams. In ecosystems, biodiversity can maximize productivity and function but can also serve as a protective “insurance” against disruptions. Similarly, in a time of multifaceted environmental changes, diverse research groups play a critical and analogous role, resembling the biodiversity within ecosystems. Diverse research teams not only bring complementary strengths, fostering creative problem‐solving by embracing various perspectives, but also drive scientific innovation by integrating a wide range of research topics (e.g., ecosystems, taxa, and conservation priorities). These human‐centered dynamics are congruent with the mechanisms in ecosystems, with a diversity of solutions promoting resilience, stability, and efficiency, all of which ultimately provide a counterbalancing effect on global change. Much like biodiverse ecosystems, a diverse spectrum of knowledge, and expertise within the scientific community can enrich a dynamic landscape of innovation.

Integrating supply and benefits of ecosystem services into ecological security pattern: A spatial flow perspective

Ecological security pattern (ESP) is an effective way to alleviate the conflict between social development and ecological conservation. Previous studies on ESP mostly identified ecological sources derived from local supply and demand of diverse ecosystem services (ESs), overlooking the spatial flow of ESs and thus limiting its significance in both local and regional scales. This study proposed a framework integrating ESs supply and benefit from a spatial flow perspective for ecological sources identification. After modifying resistance surface by nighttime light data and extracting ecological corridors by MCR model, the ESP was finally constructed and optimized for sustainable land use management in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) in 2020. The findings indicated that ecological sources were predominantly concentrated in the southwestern forestland and central Taihu Lake region, accounting for 18.47 % of the total area in the YRD. Totally 1035 ecological corridors were extracted, including 45 main corridors with a distance of 4284.47 km, overall exhibiting a “one vertical and three horizontals” shape distribution. Finally, an ESP of “four areas and four lines” was constructed after optimization, and targeted suggestions were proposed for regional sustainability. This study introduced spatial flow perspective and ESs benefit into ESP construction, which provides a scientific basis for sustainable land use management in a regional integration perspective.

The comparison of gut microbiota between wild and captive Asian badgers (Meles leucurus) under different seasons

The gut microbiota plays an important role in the immunology, physiology and growth and development of animals. However, currently, there is a lack of available sequencing data on the gut microbiota of Asian badgers. Studying the gut microbiota of Asian badgers could provide fundamental data for enhancing productivity and immunity of badgers’ breeding, as well as for the protection of wild animals. In this study, we first characterized the composition and structure of the gut microbiota in the large intestines of wild and captive Asian badgers during summer and winter by sequencing the V3-V4 region of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene. A total of 9 dominant phyla and 12 genera among the bacterial communities of the large intestines exhibited significant differences. Our results showed that Firmicutes and Proteobacteria were the most predominant in both wild and captive badgers, regardless of the season. Romboutsia, Streptococcus and Enterococcus may represent potential sources of zoonoses, warranting further attention and study. Our findings indicated that the diversity and availability of food resources were the most important influencing factors on the gut microbiota of Asian badgers, providing fundamental data for the protection and conservation of wild animals. Variation in the gut microbiota due to season, age and sex in both wild and captive Asian badgers should be considered in future research directions. Furthermore, combined multi-omics studies could provide more information for wild animal conservation, and enhancing our understanding of the molecular mechanism between the microbiota and host.

Combining ecosystem service value and landscape ecological risk to subdivide the riparian buffer zone of the Weihe River in Shaanxi

Riparian buffer zones are transitional and ecological intersections between land and water. These areas play a major role in advancing ecosystem protection and restoration. Here, we investigated the spatial and temporal evolution of land use, ecosystem service value (ESV), and landscape ecological risk (LER) in riparian buffer zones between 1990 and 2020 using the Shaanxi section of the Weihe River as a case study using a GIS grid, the unit-area-equivalent-factor method, the landscape ecological risk index, and the natural breakpoint method. We also established four ecological zones using standardized Z-scores. The predominant land categories in the study area comprised cultivated, construction, and grassland, which together accounted for more than 80 % of the total area. The construction land demonstrated the most significant increase of 4,062.33 hm2 area, and cultivated land showed most significant decrease of 13,048.56 hm2 area, between 1990 and 2020. Next, study-site ESV increased from 28.30 × 108 CNY in 1990 to 28.94 × 108 CNY in 2020, reflecting 2.26 % growth. High-value areas were principally bodies of water and primarily situated along the Weihe River, extending from west to east along the main channel. The LER of the study area was dominated by the lowest ecological risk, low ecological risk, and medium ecological risk classes, which collectively accounted for more than 70 % of the total area. The main land types in the areas with high ecological risk were forest land and cultivated land. The study area’s LER demonstrated a decreasing trend from 1990 to 2020, and the area with the lowest ecological risk and low ecological risk zones increased by 9.97 %. The riparian buffer zone was divided into ecological restoration, reconstruction, conservation, and protection zones based on two factors, namely, ESV and LER. The most dominant of these was the ecological reconstruction zone, which showed a 13.75 % decrease in area share between 1990 and 2020. The ecological restoration zone occupied the smallest area with the largest increase of 56.63 % during this period. In conclusion, this study contributes to ecological zoning and management of the riparian buffer zone along the main channel of the Weihe River. Appropriate zoning is integral to protecting this valuable ecosystem and achieving sustainable development of surrounding human communities.

Design and management considerations for the Kenya-Tanzania marine transboundary conservation area.

Although transboundary conservation areas (TCAs) are critical tools for protecting ecosystems and ecological processes that transcend national jurisdictions, they are challenging to create due to the differences in governance contexts and capacity and power dynamics among countries. Marine TCAs are also more difficult to enforce relative to terrestrial TCAs because most nations still treat oceans as open access. Current guidelines for TCA development and implementation also focus mostly on terrestrial TCAs, which are not practical for marine TCAs. Hence, we reviewed the challenges associated with the design and management of marine TCAs and devised analytical and practical approaches to support the application of spatial planning frameworks and adaptive governance mechanisms. We used the lessons from the review to examine the decisions made for the proposed marine TCA in the Kenya-Tanzania border region and created options and considerations to promote effective design and management processes. We found the obstacles to marine TCAs in general are related to issues of fit, particularly differences in environmental research capacity, socioeconomic contexts, and internal institutional arrangements. These included differences in knowledge and capacity for marine ecological research and conservation; ability to adjust and update data; differences in values, interests, and resource uses; conservation costs; jurisdictional differences; engagement of multiple levels of organization; and differences in legal bases and policy development processes. Understanding and reconciling these challenges during the TCA development process can help enhance meaningful discussions in the design of the TCA and cultivate the enabling conditions for collaborative governance across countries and within different levels of organization from national to local actors.

Driving Analysis and Multi Scenario Simulation of Ecosystem Carbon Storage Changes Based on the InVEST-PLUS Coupling Model: A Case Study of Jianli City in the Jianghan Plain of China

The carbon storage capacity of terrestrial ecosystems serves as a crucial metric for assessing ecosystem health and their resilience to climate change. By evaluating the effects of land use alterations on this storage, carbon management strategies can be improved, thereby promoting carbon reduction and sequestration. While county-level cities are pivotal to ecological conservation and high-quality development, they often face developmental challenges. Striking a balance between economic growth and meeting peak carbon emissions and carbon neutrality objectives is particularly challenging. Consequently, there is an urgent need to bolster research into carbon storage management. The study focuses on Jianli City, employing the InVEST model and land use data to examine the response patterns of land use changes and terrestrial system carbon storage from 2000 to 2020. Using the PLUS model, the study simulated the land use and carbon storage in Jianli City for the year 2035 under three scenarios: Natural Development scenario, Urban Expansion scenario, and Ecology and food security scenario. Our findings indicate the following: (1) Between 2000 and 2020, significant shifts in land use were observed in Jianli City. These changes predominantly manifested as the interchange between Cropland and Water areas and the enlargement of impervious surfaces, leading to a decrease of 691,790.27 Mg in carbon storage. (2) Under the proposed scenarios—Natural Development scenario, Urban Expansion scenario, and Ecology and food security scenario—the estimated carbon storage capacities in Jianli City were 39.95 Tg, 39.90 Tg, and 40.14 Tg, respectively. When compared with the 2020 data, all these estimates showed an increase. In essence, our study offers insights into optimizing land use structures from a carbon storage standpoint to ensure stability in Jianli’s carbon storage levels while mitigating the risks associated with carbon fixation. This has profound implications for the harmonious evolution of regional eco-economies.

Overlap between priority conservation areas and natural assets appeals to a shared responsibility for global primate conservation

Expanding protected areas (PAs) coverage to match countries’ conservation responsibility is vital to stemming global biodiversity loss. Uneven biodiversity distribution and conservation responsibility among countries pose challenges to the implementation of conservation targets, and currently diminish conservation effectiveness. Using primates as a global model, we evaluated the conservation responsibility of countries to assess if their PA coverage adequately meets their conservation responsibility. We quantified spatial national responsibility for primate species conservation in each country from their range size of priority conservation areas (PCAs) and protected areas coverage on PCAs. We identified the high-responsibility countries for global primate conservation as countries that held > 1 % of global PCAs. We paid particular attention to the circumstances associated with PCAs in the least developed countries, especially the overlap between PCAs and the areas containing natural assets (natural assets areas). Seventeen countries were identified as high-responsibility countries that in total covered 84 % area of global PCAs. Current protected areas only covered less than 50 % of PCAs for fifteen of these high-responsibility countries. Among these fifteen countries, four countries (DR Congo, PA coverage: 19 %; Myanmar, 9 %; Madagascar, 29 %; Laos, 22 %) were the least developed countries. Most existing PCAs (95 %; SD 6 %) in these 17 countries are located within natural assets areas, which creates tension between primate conservation and local development. Global primate conservation is a shared responsibility among the international community. Developing countries have greater responsibility than most because of the overlapping of their PCAs with natural assets areas. For developing countries to fulfill their conservation responsibilities requires international conservation resources (funding support and cooperation). Protected areas expansion has to be matched with a realizable target for each country to avoid crippling conflicts between conservation and local development. Community-based management models, including other effective area-based conservation measures, may reduce potential conflict and improve conservation effectiveness.

Changes in Wuhan’s Carbon Stocks and Their Spatial Distributions in 2050 under Multiple Projection Scenarios

Urbanization in the 21st century has reshaped carbon stock distributions through the expansion of cities. By using the PLUS and InVEST models, this study predicts land use and carbon stocks in Wuhan in 2050 using three future scenarios. Employing local Moran’s I, we analyze carbon stock clustering under these scenarios, and the Getis–Ord Gi* statistic identifies regions with significantly higher and lower carbon-stock changes between 2020 and 2050. The results reveal a 2.5 Tg decline in Wuhan’s carbon stock from 2000 to 2020, concentrated from the central to the outer city areas along the Yangtze River. By 2050, the ecological conservation scenario produced the highest carbon stock prediction, 77.48 Tg, while the economic development scenario produced the lowest, 76.4 Tg. High-carbon stock-change areas cluster in the north and south, contrasting with low-change area concentrations in the center. This research provides practical insights that support Wuhan’s sustainable development and carbon neutrality goals.

The genetic consequences of population marginality: A case study in maritime pine

AbstractAimMarginal tree populations, either those located at the edges of the species' range or in suboptimal environments, are often a valuable genetic resource for biological conservation. However, there is a lack of knowledge about the genetic consequences of population marginality, estimated across entire species' ranges. Our study addresses this gap by providing information about several genetic indicators and their variability in marginal and core populations identified using quantitative marginality indices.LocationSouthwestern Europe and North Africa.MethodsUsing 10,185 SNPs across 82 populations of maritime pine (Pinus pinaster Ait.), a widespread conifer characterised by a fragmented range, we modelled the relationship of seven genetic indicators potentially related to population evolutionary resilience, namely genetic diversity (based on both all SNPs and outlier SNPs), inbreeding, genetic differentiation, recessive genetic load and genomic offset, with population geographical, demo‐historical and ecological marginality (as estimated by nine quantitative indices). Models were constructed for both regional (introducing gene pool as a random factor) and range‐wide spatial scales.ResultsWe showed a trend towards decreasing overall genetic diversity and increasing differentiation with geographic marginality, supporting the centre‐periphery hypothesis (CPH). However, we found no correlation between population inbreeding and marginality, while geographically marginal populations had a lower recessive genetic load (only models without the gene pool effect). Ecologically marginal populations had a higher genomic offset, suggesting higher maladaptation to future climate, albeit some of these populations also had high genetic diversity for climate outliers.Main ConclusionsOverall genetic diversity (but not outlier‐based estimates) and differentiation patterns support the CPH. Ecologically marginal populations and those at the southern edge could be more vulnerable to climate change due to higher climate maladaptation, as predicted by genomic offsets, and/or lower potentially adaptive genetic diversity. This risk is exacerbated by typically small effective population sizes and increasing human impact in marginal populations.

The US Endangered Species Act and acceptable risk

The fundamental criterion for listing or delisting species under the United States Endangered Species Act (ESA) is acceptable extinction risk. But what is the meaning of “acceptable risk”? This concept has received little attention in conservation biology, and hence, the purpose of this paper is to explain acceptable risk within the context of the ESA. All complex environmental policy decisions involve trade-offs, and hence, choosing one policy from several policy options entails a comparison of the benefits, costs, and risks of all options. Acceptable-risk problems are decision problems requiring a choice among different policy options, and an acceptable risk is defined as the risk associated with the chosen policy. In general, people will accept the risk imposed by a particular policy when that policy yields sufficient net benefits. The ESA, its legislative history, and implementing regulations clearly state that species listing determinations must be based solely on science and “without reference to possible economic or other impacts” caused by the listing of that species. If economic considerations are prohibited from influencing listing decisions, then risk reduction is not constrained by cost, and therefore, the only rational choice for acceptable extinction risk is zero risk. This outcome, known as a “stopping-point problem”, is absurd, and consequently, federal agencies responsible for listing determinations are forced to issue opaque decisions that obscure their true rationale, which in turn, lead to inconsistency and improper political influence. Illustrations of acceptable risk in null hypothesis tests, the United States Clean Air Act, and minimum viable population size are also presented.

Conservation Status of The Military Frog (Atelopus Balios) In the San Miguel Canton Naranjal Community

The present research focused on the conservation status of Atelopus balios, a species classified in the red list in danger of extinction, the destruction of its natural habitat is the main cause not only of the mentioned species but of all the amphibian fauna existing in the locality intervening in its development and reproduction. Three priority conservation areas were monitored within the locality, all this could be carried out with Geographic Information Systems, capturing the coordinates of identification of species records, and thus be able to interpret each of the data, where more specimens were found establishing areas of interest for the conservation of the species where measures for sustainable management should be implemented.

Unravelling the novel sex determination genotype with 'ZY' and a distinctive 2.15-2.95 Mb inversion among poplar species through haplotype-resolved genome assembly and comparative genomics analysis.

Populus tomentosa, an indigenous tree species, is widely distributed and cultivated over 1,000,000 km2 in China, contributing significantly to forest production, ecological conservation and urban-rural greening. Although a reference genome is available for P. tomentosa, the intricate interspecific hybrid origins, chromosome structural variations (SVs) and sex determination mechanisms remain confusion and unclear due to its broad and even overlapping geographical distribution, extensive morphological variations and cross infiltration among white poplar species. We conducted a haplotype-resolved de novo assembly of P. tomentosa elite individual GM107, which comprises subgenomes a and b with a total genome size of 714.9 Mb. We then analysed the formation of hybrid species and the phylogenetic evolution and sex differentiation across the entire genus. Phylogenomic analyses suggested that GM107 likely originated from a hybridisation event between P. alba (♀) and P. davidiana (♂) which diverged at approximately 3.8 Mya. A total of 1551 chromosome SVs were identified between the two subgenomes. More noteworthily, a distinctive inversion structure spanning 2.15-2.95 Mb was unveiled among Populus, Tacamahaca, Turaga, Aigeiros poplar species and Salix, highlighting a unique evolutionary feature. Intriguingly, a novel sex genotype of the ZY type, which represents a crossover between XY and ZW systems, was identified and confirmed through both natural and artificial hybrids populations. These novel insights offer significant theoretical value for the study of the species' evolutionary origins and serve as a valuable resource for ecological genetics and forest biotechnology.

Population structure of Dugong dugon across the Indo-Pacific revealed by historical mitogenomes.

Sirenia, an iconic marine taxon with a tropical and subtropical worldwide distribution, face an uncertain future. All species are designated 'Vulnerable' to extinction by the IUCN. Nonetheless, a comprehensive understanding of geographic structuring across the global range is lacking, impeding our ability to highlight particularly vulnerable populations for conservation priority. Here, we use ancient DNA to investigate dugong (Dugong dugon) population structure, analysing 56 mitogenomes from specimens comprising the known historical range. Our results reveal geographically structured and distinct monophyletic clades characterized by contrasting evolutionary histories. We observe deep-rooted and divergent lineages in the East (Indo-Pacific) and obtain new evidence for the relatively recent dispersal of dugongs into the western Indian Ocean. All populations are significantly differentiated from each other with western populations having approximately 10-fold lower levels of genetic variation than eastern Indo-Pacific populations. Additionally, we find a significant temporal loss of genetic diversity in western Indian Ocean dugongs since the mid-twentieth century, as well as a decline in population size beginning approximately 1000 years ago. Our results add to the growing body of evidence that dugong populations are becoming ever more susceptible to ongoing human action and global climate change.

Inferring the extinction risk of marine fish to inform global conservation priorities.

While extinction risk categorization is fundamental for building robust conservation planning for marine fishes, empirical data on occurrence and vulnerability to disturbances are still lacking for most marine teleost fish species, preventing the assessment of their International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) status. In this article, we predicted the IUCN status of marine fishes based on two machine learning algorithms, trained with available species occurrences, biological traits, taxonomy, and human uses. We found that extinction risk for marine fish species is higher than initially estimated by the IUCN, increasing from 2.5% to 12.7%. Species predicted as Threatened were mainly characterized by a small geographic range, a relatively large body size, and a low growth rate. Hotspots of predicted Threatened species peaked mainly in the South China Sea, the Philippine Sea, the Celebes Sea, the west coast Australia and North America. We also explored the consequences of including these predicted species' IUCN status in the prioritization of marine protected areas through conservation planning. We found a marked increase in prioritization ranks for subpolar and polar regions despite their low species richness. We suggest to integrate multifactorial ensemble learning to assess species extinction risk and offer a more complete view of endangered taxonomic groups to ultimately reach global conservation targets like the extending coverage of protected areas where species are the most vulnerable.

Microhabitat and seasonal influence on bess beetle (Coleoptera: Passalidae) assemblage in Altitudinal Atlantic Forest

AbstractUnderstanding the spatiotemporal distribution of diversity has been a significant challenge in the field of conservation biology. Presently, there exists a limited understanding of the spatial distribution of passalid beetles within decomposing logs, as well as their distribution in microhabitats such as the cortex, heartwood and trunk–soil interface. Moreover, there is a scarcity of studies that delve into the temporal distribution patterns of passalid beetles. We evaluate the effect of seasons of the year and microhabitats on the distribution of passalid in an Altitudinal Atlantic Forest. More specifically, the effects of the period of the year and microhabitats were analysed on an assemblage scale and population structure scale. Collections were actively conducted monthly, during dry and rainy seasons, and distinct microhabitats of logs (tree cortex, heartwood and trunk–soil interface) were sampled. We discovered passalid galleries within 235 logs, housing a total of 785 individuals representing nine species across six genera and two tribes. Within the three examined microhabitats, the heartwood and cortex harboured the majority of individuals. In contrast, the trunk–soil interface microhabitat displayed reduced diversity and abundance and the absence of indicator species, exhibiting a distinct community structure compared with the others. The dry season stood out with a greater number of individuals, underscoring the influence of precipitation on passalid activity in this study. Our study contributes to understanding the ecological dynamics of these insects and evaluating their resilience to current landscape transformations on the planet.

The complex effects of modern oncogenic environments on the fitness, evolution and conservation of wildlife species.

Growing evidence indicates that human activities are causing cancer rates to rise in both human and wildlife populations. This is due to the inability of ancestral anti-cancer defences to cope with modern environmental risks. The evolutionary mismatch between modern oncogenic risks and evolved cancer defences has far-reaching effects on various biological aspects at different timeframes, demanding a comprehensive study of the biology and evolutionary ecology of the affected species. Firstly, the increased activation of anti-cancer defences leads to excessive energy expenditure, affecting other biological functions and potentially causing health issues like autoimmune diseases. Secondly, tumorigenesis itself can impact important fitness-related parameters such as competitiveness, predator evasion, resistance to parasites, and dispersal capacity. Thirdly, rising cancer risks can influence the species' life-history traits, often favoring early reproduction to offset fitness costs associated with cancer. However, this strategy has its limits, and it may not ensure the sustainability of the species if cancer risks continue to rise. Lastly, some species may evolve additional anti-cancer defences, with uncertain consequences for their biology and future evolutionary path. In summary, we argue that the effects of increased exposure to cancer-causing substances on wildlife are complex, ranging from immediate responses to long-term evolutionary changes. Understanding these processes, especially in the context of conservation biology, is urgently needed.

Scale effect of landscape characteristics on undergrowth vegetation variance with different ecological traits

Herbaceous understory vegetation plays a significant role in temperate forested ecosystems, with its diversity strongly dependent on both local and landscape conditions. However, the contribution of these factors across different spatial scales (e.g., scale effect) remains inadequately understood. The objective of this study was to determine the most important landscape and local characteristics influencing the species richness of the herb layer. We surveyed and sampled 53 sites in a mountainous forest within the Baihuashan National Nature Reserve of Beijing. Using generalized linear models, we investigated the simultaneous effect of local (e.g. tree density, average tree height, and cover of tree, shrub, and ground vegetation) and landscape (e.g. Area-weighted Mean Patch Size, Area-weighted Mean Euclidean Nearest Neighbor Distance, Area-weighted Mean Fractal Dimension Index, forest area, and shrubbery area) variables on the richness of species in the understory herb layer. Variation partitioning was used to examine the individual contribution of local and landscape variables. Our results identified 366 plant species from 95 families across 53 sampling sites. Significant differences in species richness were found among life forms, seed dispersal types, and habitat preferences (P < 0.001). Parsimonious models indicated that combining local and landscape factors at a 2 km scale explained the most variation in phanerophytes (R2 = 0.658). Locally, average tree height significantly influenced the species richness of biotic dispersal, phanerophytes, and geophytes. At the landscape level, variables such as the Area-weighted Mean Fractal Dimension Index and farmland area significantly impacted plant community traits across different scales. Understanding these effects is crucial for developing effective sustainable forest ecosystem management strategies and for establishing robust ecological conservation policies.

Ecological zoning and ecosystem management based on landscape ecological risk and ecosystem services: A case study in the Wuling Mountain Area

Land use and cover changes have substantially altered surface landscape patterns, resulting in landscape ecological risk (LER) and jeopardizing the continued supply of ecosystem services (ES). Although ES and LER are positive and negative aspects of ecological security representation, respectively, the spatiotemporal mechanism of their interaction still needs to be further clarified. This study focused on the Wuling Mountain Area (WMA), a critical ecological functional zone. First, multi-source data and multi-models were used to evaluate LER and ES and analyze their spatiotemporal characteristics. Subsequently, a geographically and temporally weighted regression model was applied to uncover the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of the impacts of LER on various ES. Finally, ecological zones were delineated based on the LER-ES quadrant, a driving force analysis was conducted, and ecological management strategies are proposed. The main results are as follows: (1) LER and various ES showed overall decreasing and increasing trends, respectively. (2) Except for water yield, the impact of LER on various ES showed clear spatiotemporal non-stationarity, with a significant negative impact, which was most pronounced for habitat quality. (3) The WMA was divided into four ecological zones: ecological risk prevention zone, ecological conservation zone, ES enhancement zone, and ecological reshaping zone. Elevation, normalized difference vegetation index, and human footprint were identified as the main drivers of ecological zoning. This research lays a solid foundation for in-depth understanding of the impacts of LER on ES. The proposed zoning scheme provides strong support for the ecologically sustainable development of the WMA.

Insights into nitrogen biogeochemical cycling in mangrove wetland from Genome-Resolved metagenomic sequencing

The critical role of nitrogen (N) in sustaining the vitality of mangrove wetlands is widely recognized, yet research elucidating complex microbiome structures and functional genes driving N biogeochemical cycles are markedly limited. This study leverages high-throughput and metagenomic sequencing to investigate N biogeochemical cycling from the Dongzhai Harbor mangrove wetland. Results reveal that Proteobacteria (29.95–49.26%), Chloroflexi (15.68–35.33%), and Acidobacteria (5.18–12.46%) are the predominant phyla, with Deltaproteobacteria (3.71–7.95%), Gammaproteobacteria (0.83–8.73%), and Alphaproteobacteria (1.73–14.13%) leading at the order level. Microbial diversity and the prevalence of functional genes diminish with increasing sediment depth, indicating that N transformation predominantly occurs in surface sediments. The identified N metabolic pathways in mangrove sediments encompass N fixation (nifD, nifK, nifH genes), nitrification (amoA, amoB, amoC, hao, nxrA and nxrB genes), denitrification (narG, nirK, nirS, norB and nosZ genes), dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (hzo、hzsA and hzsB genes), and organic N mineralization (gdhA and ureC genes). Organic N mineralization and N fixation are most pronounced in mangrove sediments, with N fixation exhibiting greater intensity in the mangrove than mudflat zone. Salinity, TOC, TN, and SO42- predominantly foster N cycling facilitated by microbial activities, while Fe appears to impede it. These insights offer a scientific foundation for the ecological restoration and conservation of mangrove wetlands.

Significance of AI-assisted techniques for epiphyte plant monitoring and identification from drone images

Monitoring forest canopies is vital for ecological studies, particularly for assessing epiphytes in rain forest ecosystems. Traditional methods for studying epiphytes, such as climbing trees and building observation structures, are labor, cost intensive and risky. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have emerged as a valuable tool in this domain, offering botanists a safer and more cost-effective means to collect data. This study leverages AI-assisted techniques to enhance the identification and mapping of epiphytes using UAV imagery. The primary objective of this research is to evaluate the effectiveness of AI-assisted methods compared to traditional approaches in segmenting/identifying epiphytes from UAV images collected in a reserve forest in Costa Rica. Specifically, the study investigates whether Deep Learning (DL) models can accurately identify epiphytes during complex backgrounds, even with a limited dataset of varying image quality. Systematically, this study compares three traditional image segmentation methods Auto Cluster, Watershed, and Level Set with two DL-based segmentation networks: the UNet and the Vision Transformer-based TransUNet. Results obtained from this study indicate that traditional methods struggle with the complexity of vegetation backgrounds and variability in target characteristics. Epiphyte identification results were quantitatively evaluated using the Jaccard score. Among traditional methods, Watershed scored 0.10, Auto Cluster 0.13, and Level Set failed to identify the target. In contrast, AI-assisted models performed better, with UNet scoring 0.60 and TransUNet 0.65. These results highlight the potential of DL approaches to improve the accuracy and efficiency of epiphyte identification and mapping, advancing ecological research and conservation.