Mechanisms of convergence and divergence: understanding the variability of plant community responses to multiple resource manipulations

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Introduction and Goals Ecologists have been tasked with predicting how communities will respond to altered environmental conditions in the face of global change. This task, however, is complicated by the inherent complexity of many ecological systems. Indeed, within a system the species composition of experimental replicates does not always respond to resource manipulations in similar… Read more »

Do fish graze the way for coral recovery?

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Fish clear space for corals to grow in small scale experiments. But does fish grazing cause reefs to recover faster? A new study says no.

Climate change makes kelp less nutritious

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For Southern California reefs and beaches, giant kelp fuels the food web and creates an environment in which biodiversity booms. But the nutritional quality of kelp is lower than it once was, a new study from the Santa Barbara Coastal LTER shows. The culprit? Climate change and warming ocean water, coauthors Dr. Heili Lowman and Kyle Emery find.

In “The Conversation”: Climate change is already disrupting US forests and coasts

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  Scientists have been consistently documenting environmental changes at research sites like this one in the Cascade Mountains for decades. US Forest Service Michael Paul Nelson, Oregon State University and Peter Mark Groffman, CUNY Graduate Center Record-breaking heat waves and drought have left West Coast rivers lethally hot for salmon, literally cooked millions of mussels… Read more »

Choose Your Poison: Plant Disease Outbreaks May Be Curbed by Periodic Wildfire

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A controlled burn in Cedar Creek oakland

Wildfires have made headlines worldwide in recent years — and for good reason. Evidence points to increasing wildfire frequency and intensity across many vulnerable ecosystems as climate change impacts grow ever more evident. However, periodic wildfires in ecosystems adapted to them can actually help inhibit plant disease outbreaks, according to new research from Cedar Creek… Read more »

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