On recently deglaciated terrain, soil instability can be a physical barrier limiting seedling establishment. Here we used a space-for-time approach to study the role of biological soil crust (biocrust) as soil surface stabilizer and facilitator of ecological succession along a glacier forefield chronosequence at the retreating Conejeras glacier in the Tropical Andes. We used the point-intercept method to estimate surface cover...

Background Maximal oxygen uptake (VO 2max ) is the gold standard for assessing cardiopulmonary fitness. However, the link between VO 2max and mitochondrial function is complex, with no direct causality proven. Analysing mtDNA copy number offers an innovative way to understand aerobic performance by measuring mitochondrial biogenesis, although its relation to physical performance and fitness is not well studied, especially in t...

Key message QTL associated with whitefly resistance were identified in a cassava F 2 population and KASP markers applicable in selection for the trait were validated. Abstract Whitefly species pose a major threat to cassava production in tropical regions causing direct plant damage and transmitting viruses that lead to devastating cassava diseases. Aleurotrachelus socialis whitefly is one of the pests that affect cassava in So...

Acclimatization through phenotypic plasticity represents a more rapid response to environmental change than adaptation and is vital to optimize organisms' performance in different conditions. Generally, animals are less phenotypically plastic than plants, but reef‐building corals exhibit plant‐like properties. They are light dependent with a sessile and modular construction that facilitates rapid morphological changes within t...

Climate change and human pressures are changing the global distribution and the extent of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES), which comprise half of the global river network area. IRES are characterized by periods of flow cessation, during which channel substrates accumulate and undergo physico‐chemical changes (preconditioning), and periods of flow resumption, when these substrates are rewetted and release pulse...

Since the 1990s national and international programs have aimed to legitimize local conservation initiatives that might provide an alternative to the formal systems of state‐managed or otherwise externally driven protected areas. We used discourse analysis (130 semistructured interviews with key informants) and descriptive statistics (679 surveys) to compare local perceptions of and experiences with state‐driven versus communit...