đ± TWiB August 30, 2021
The response to the audio files on Botany One has been surprising since their launch. I didn't expect a lot of interest, but an unexpected number of people are choosing to listen to blog posts instead of reading them. In response, I've made the audio files available through Spotify and other sources in addition to the website.
The size of the response is all the more surprising as it's been a quiet week for the people following @BotanyOne on Twitter. Usually, there's a lot shared that doesn't make the list, but I think people taking a break for the end of summer in the northern hemisphere has reduced activity. If I'm right, there should be a pick-up in social media activity in September.
There will be a newsletter next week, but it might be shorter than usual as I'll be taking a brief break too, to see family. But there should be something with you this time next Monday. Until then, take care.
Alun (webmaster@botany.one)
In Botany One
The pros and cons of ant mutualism in epiphytic Tillandsia species â www.botany.one Ants provide protection and nutrients to some plant species but are there downsides to this mutualistic relationship?
A new study reveals how the Andes have shaped the history of aquatic plants â www.botany.one Researchers find that the rise of the Andes created conditions in the landscape that drove speciation in aquatic plants.
Plants drink in unknown ways on gypsum hills â www.botany.one Gypsum soils are dry and can be found in arid environments. Chemistry shows that a surprising variety of plants survive in them by getting water locked in crystals.
Creosote branches dance, even after death â www.botany.one Scientists watching the daily movement of branches in the creosote plant have found that even dead branches move to respond to changes in the air.
Half of all plants have never been photographed in the wild â www.botany.one If you can't find a photo of a plant in the wild, is that because the photo doesn't exist - or because you're looking in the wrong database? A recent article concludes either answer could be right, depending on the plant.
News & Views
ASPS 2021 ASPS 2021 will be a hybrid conference to be held concurrently across Australia on 25th November 2021.Â
Smoke from North America wildfires reaches Europe â www.independent.co.uk The smoke was seen in images taken from the European Unionâs Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service
Trees should be planted without plastic guards, says UK study Woodland Trust and National Trust trial sustainable alternatives to plastic protection for millions of saplings
Microbes Play Role in Corn âHybrid Vigorâ â globalplantcouncil.org The tiny organisms living in soil may have a greater effect on the yield and pest and disease resistance of crop plants grown in that soil than previously known.
Legal experts worldwide draw up âhistoricâ definition of ecocide Draft law is intended to prosecute offences against the environment
A bold plan to rewild the GalĂĄpagos will start with Floreana Island Re:wild, Island Conservation and their partners will work with local communities to bring back tortoises, mockingbirds and flycatchers to the island
Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest rises for fourth straight month Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest rose for the fourth consecutive month in June, according to preliminary government data, amid concern that the destruction and a drought will fuel worsening forest fires in the dry season ahead.
Lupin and Arsenic: research on soil decontamination by an exceptional plant â nouvelles.umontreal.ca Researchers at the University of Montreal and the Montreal Botanical Garden have discovered a new chemical mechanism used by roots of white lupin to clean up arsenic-contaminated soils.
Ecocide: why establishing a new international crime would be a step towards interspecies justice A movement of activists and legal scholars is seeking to make âecocideâ an international crime within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The Stop Ecocide Foundation has put together a prestigious international panel of experts that has just proposed a new definition of the term: If adopted by the ICC, the proposed definition would be a historic shift, paving the way for nature and other species to count legally as protected entities in their own right.
Why Some Plants Close Their Leaves at Night â www.discovermagazine.com While we may view it as a fascinating garden spectacle, flora likely evolved to shut in the dark to benefit their survival.
Scientific Papers
A hierarchical, multivariate metaâanalysis approach to synthesising global change experiments
Meta-analyses enable synthesis of results from globally distributed experiments to draw general conclusions about the impacts of global change factors on ecosystem function. Traditional meta-analyses, however, are challenged by the complexity and diversity of experimental results. Ogle et al. illustrate how several key issues can be addressed by a multivariate, hierarchical Bayesian meta-analysis (MHBM) approach applied to information extracted from published studies.
Plant growth: the What, the How, and the Why
Hilty et al. propose a general framework to distinguish between the different facets of growth, and the corresponding physiological processes, environmental drivers and mathematical formalisms. Based on these different definitions, they then review how plant growth can be measured and analysed at different organisational, spatial and temporal scales. They conclude by discussing why gaining a better understanding of the different facets of plant growth is essential to disentangle genetic and environmental effects on the phenotype, and to uncover the causalities around source or sink limitations of plant growth.
Microsatellites and petal morphology reveal new patterns of admixture in Orchis hybrid zones The coexistence of parental and admixed individuals in these Orchis hybrid zones implies they are likely to be tension zones being maintained by a balance between gene flow into the hybrid zone and selection acting against admixed individuals. The pattern of admixture in the three species combinations suggests intrinsic selection acting on the hybrids is weaker in more closely related taxa.
Effects of landâuse change in the Amazon on precipitation are likely underestimated â onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Although loss of tree transpiration from the Amazon causes a 13% drop in column water vapor, Baudena et al. found that it could result in a 55%â70% decrease in precipitation annually. Consequences of this nonlinearity might be twofold: although the effects of deforestation may be underestimated, it also implies that forest restoration may be more effective for precipitation enhancement than previously assumed.
Phylogenetic relationships in the Sorghum genus based on sequencing of the chloroplast and nuclear genes - Ananda The close relationship between the two monotypic subgenera Chaetosorghum and Heterosorghum suggests that species within these subgenera could be considered as one group. This analysis provides an improved understanding of the genetic relationships within the Sorghum genus and defines diversity in wild sorghum species that may be useful for crop improvement.
From agriculture to food systems in the IPCC The change towards a food systems approach in the IPCC reflects a needed paradigm shift in the scienceâpolicy interface, and particularly in the climate change and agri-food research communities. A systems approach allows assessing simultaneously both adaptation and mitigation options and to select those more effective strategies in addressing climate change. There are still limitations that need to be addressed regarding the number of assessed crops, sectors, countries and social groups representation in order to overcome the historical epistemic injustice of the IPCC.
Landâuse change and biodiversity: Challenges for assembling evidence on the greatest threat to nature â onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Land-use change is considered the greatest threat to nature, having caused worldwide declines in the abundance, diversity, and health of species and ecosystems. Despite increasing research on this global change driver, there are still challenges to forming an effective synthesis. The estimated impact of land-use change on biodiversity can depend on location, research methods, and taxonomic focus, with recent global meta-analyses reaching disparate conclusions. Davison et al. critically appraise this research body and our ability to reach a reliable consensus
Microclimatic differences between the periphery and the interior of tree crowns result in a variety of adaptive leaf macromorphological and anatomical features. Maslova et al.'s research was designed to reveal criteria for sun/shade leaf identification in two species of evergreen oaks, applicable to both modern and fossil leaves. They compared our results with those in other species similarly studied.
To date, the potential of utilizing root traits in plant breeding remains largely untapped. In this study, Kirschner et al cloned and characterized the ENHANCED GRAVITROPISM2 (EGT2) gene of barley that encodes a STERILE ALPHA MOTIF domainâcontaining protein. They demonstrated that EGT2 is a key gene of root growth angle regulation in response to gravity, which is conserved in barley and wheat and could be a promising target for crop improvement in cereals.
Lee et al. used formaldehyde or photoactivation to cross-link fluorescently tagged group 1 or group 2 CEPs to receptors in semi-purified Medicago truncatula or Arabidopsis thaliana leaf vascular tissues to verify that COMPACT ROOT ARCHITECTURE 2 (CRA2) is the Medicago CEP receptor, and to investigate whether sequence diversity within the CEP family influences receptor binding.
Careers
Assistant Professor The Warnell School (www.warnell.uga.edu) is an internationally-acclaimed professional school with a proud history of producing leaders in natural resource management. The program has strengths in applied ecology, game and nongame management, forest management, forest health, quantitative and decision sciences, and spatial analysis.
Post-doc & technician positions The Leakey group at the University of Illinois (http://lab.igb.illinois.edu/leakey/) seeks creative and energetic applicants for 2 postdoctoral associate positions studying stomata, photosynthesis and water use efficiency in the model C4 species of sugarcane and setaria.
Ecologist job in Leatherhead The M25 DBFO, despite being one of the busiest motorways in Europe, comprises a huge, connected area of primarily wild verge habitat which provides valuable habitat for a wide range of biodiversity. Often these undisturbed habitats offer the only viable habitat for some species, forming an ecological corridor through urban or intensive agricultural areas. At Connect Plus Services we strive not only to protect the wildlife and vital habitats within on the highway verge, but we also aim to go above and beyond to enhance these habitats to their full potential. This role sits within a multi-disciplinary our Environment and Sustainability Team working with Designers and Project Managers and the Construction Team to ensure positive ecological outcomes for all works on the network.
Postdoctoral Researcher- plant genomics and epigenetics The post holder will work very closely with a postdoctoral researcher (proteomics) based at Rothamsted Research and a postdoctoral researcher (pangenome construction and QTL analysis) based at University College London. The Rothamsted postdoctoral researchers will be supported by a full-time technician. The overall aims of the project are to conduct a multi-omic analysis of Arabidopsis MAGIC lines and founders, to identify RNA and protein regulatory networks and to determine to what extent protein abundance predicts plant phenotype.
Gila Watershed Partnership GWP will hire an Executive Director to serve as the chief executive for the organization, and provide leadership and direction to the staff. The Executive Director reports to the GWP Board of Directors. GWP is currently at a pivotal point and the new ED will be responsible for working with the Board, staff, and partners to establish and carry out a new vision and strategic plan. Â
Science Mus Collection Mgr,Sr - Herbarium
The Museum of Southwestern Biology (MSB) invites applications for a Senior Science Museum Collection Manager for the Herbarium (http://www.msb.unm.edu/divisions/herbarium/index.html), a full-time, 12-month staff position. The University of New Mexico Herbarium (UNM) is centrally located on the main campus in Albuquerque, a city with a rich cultural heritage in a biodiverse, scenic landscape. The MSB develops and maintains natural history collections for use in research and education, benefiting the university, science, and society at large.
Assistant/Associate Teaching Professor â Physiological and Developmental Biology We are seeking someone who can contribute to the instructional mission in our undergraduate program. Our goal is to create an integrated undergraduate experience, including lecture, lab, peer mentoring, and research. The Department invites applications for a non-tenure track lecturer/teaching professor starting Fall 2022.
Senior Research Associate/ Research Associate in Plant Molecular Biology Applications are invited for a postdoctoral research position in plant molecular biology at the Lancaster photosynthesis research team under the supervision of Prof Elizabete Carmo-Silva. This position is part of the project CAPITALISE, funded by the European Unionâs Horizon 2020 programme, which aims to identify naturally occurring genetic variation in photosynthetic traits to increase photosynthetic efficiency in the target crops barley, maize and tomato.
Assistant Professor of Biology The Lake Forest College Biology Department invites applications for a newly created tenure-track faculty position at the Assistant Professor level, starting August 2022. We are seeking a highly qualified biologist to teach, on a rotating basis, our core courses BIOL 120: Organismal Biology and BIOL 221: Molecules, Genes and Cells, and an upper-level course in the applicantâs area of expertise. Postdoctoral experience is required and demonstrated excellence in teaching beyond traditional TA experience is strongly preferred.
Events Internship - British Ecological Society We are looking for aâŻpaid intern to join our events team at the British Ecological Society. This is an unrivalled opportunity for someone wanting to develop their skills and gain experience in event management and communications. If you are interested in gaining skills to work within the events industry, you know the importance of good customer service, and are interested in working in the science and environment sector, this is for you.Â
Assistant Editor - British Ecological Society We are seeking an enthusiastic and self-motivated individual with excellent organisational and time management abilities, great attention to detail and outstanding communication and interpersonal skills. You will need to have good IT skills, with knowledge of Microsoft Office, and have demonstrable experience in an academic publishing role.
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