Conspecific negative density dependence (CNDD) strongly influences plant demography, especially in highly diverse tropical forests, but its relative importance may vary between growth forms. We used hierarchical Bayesian models to assess how neighbor densities affected the survival of more than 30,000 seedlings from 87 tree and 56 liana species in a tropical forest across two 1‐year census intervals. Although standardized CNDD...

Genetic diversity is vital for population survival, yet there is a paucity of studies focusing on the effectiveness of establishing protected areas for maintaining the population genetic diversity of threatened plant species. To evaluate the effectiveness of in situ conservation measures, we used simple sequence repeats (SSR) and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) markers to monitor temporal dynamics in genetic diversity of...

The Siberian roe deer ( Capreolus pygargus ) is a widely distributed ungulate in northeast China. Due to a series of human disturbance activities such as large‐scale forest cutting, deforestation and reclamation, road construction in the past, the appearance and internal structure of forest vegetation in the habitat of Siberian roe have changed significantly. At the same time, Siberian roe population had a series of ecological...

Extreme temperatures were considered natural hazards because they could increase morbidity and mortality. Understanding the extreme temperature changes at different warming levels is crucial to climate change mitigation and adoption for human health. This study projected climate change effects on the intensity, occurrence, and duration of extreme temperatures in Taiwan with 2 and 4°C global warming scenarios using the Weather...

Warming is known to reduce soil carbon (C) stocks by promoting microbial respiration, which is associated with the decomposition of microbial residue carbon (MRC). However, the relative contribution of MRC to soil organic carbon (SOC) across temperature gradients is poorly understood. Here, we investigated the contribution of MRC to SOC along two independent elevation gradients of our model system (i.e., the Tibetan Plateau an...

Mechanisms of soil organic carbon (SOC) stabilization have been widely studied due to their relevance in the global carbon cycle. No‐till (NT) has been frequently adopted to sequester SOC; however, limited information is available regarding whether sequestered SOC will be stabilized for long term. Thus, we reviewed the mechanisms affecting SOC stability in NT systems, including the priming effects (PE), molecular structure of...

Pollen and spores from 110 samples from sediment core NS07‐25 from the Nansha Trough in the South China Sea (SCS) were analysed with a particular focus on reconstructing vegetation and climate change and identifying the sources of palynomorphs on the Sunda Shelf during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Palynomorph sources were identified using the Near Analysis function in ArcGIS with 62 data points of the pollen in surface sedi...

It is critical to accurately estimate carbon (C) turnover time as it dominates the uncertainty in ecosystem C sinks and their response to future climate change. In the absence of direct observations of ecosystem C losses, C turnover times are commonly estimated under the steady state assumption ( SSA ), which has been applied across a large range of temporal and spatial scales including many at which the validity of the assump...

Low oxygen and temperature pose key physiological challenges for endotherms living on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau ( QTP ). Molecular adaptations to high‐altitude living have been detected in the genomes of Tibetans, their domesticated animals and a few wild species, but the contribution of transcriptional variation to altitudinal adaptation remains to be determined. Here we studied a top QTP predator, the saker falcon, and ana...

The overriding of the L uzon volcanic arc atop the underlying C hinese rifted‐continental margin has caused the formation of the T aiwan mountain belts and a peripheral foreland basin west of the orogen since the late Miocene. In this study, lithofacies analysis and calcareous nannofossil biostratigraphic investigations of the Dahan River section in northwestern ( NW ) T aiwan were performed. Our results offer insights into th...

The purpose of this study is to improve prehistoric knowledge of paleo‐typhoon and winter monsoon activity in the western North Pacific after 8 cal. ka BP. We examine two sediment cores derived from lakes located to the south and north of the Ilan Plain in northeastern Taiwan. Seasonal and typhoon rainfall data over the past several decades are collected for this study region. We also use mineral indicators, K/Rb ratios and gr...

Wu, H.‐C., Lin, R.‐C., Hung, H.‐Y., Yeh, C.‐F., Chu, J.‐H., Yang, X.‐J., Yao, C.‐J., Zou, F.‐S., Yao, C.‐T., Li, S.‐H. & Lei, F.‐M. (2011). Molecular and morphological evidences reveal a cryptic species in the Vinaceous Rosefinch Carpodacus vinaceus (Fringillidae; Aves). — Zoologica Scripta, 40 , 468–478. The Vinaceous Rosefinch ( Carpodacus vinaceus ) is endemic in East Asia with two recognized subspecies – C. v. vinaceus , d...

The climatic oscillations of the last glacial period have had profound influences on the demography and levels of genetic diversity of extant species. Molecular evidence of glacial effects on temperate species has been well documented, whereas little is known regarding that on subtropical species. Here we present analyses based on partial sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I ( COI ) gene (1052 bp) and...