Complex responses of global insect pests to climate warming

Although it is well known that insects are sensitive to temperature, how they will be affected by ongoing global warming remains uncertain because these responses are multifaceted and ecologically complex. We reviewed the effects of climate warming on 31 globally important phytophagous (plant-eating) insect pests to determine whether general trends in their responses to warming were detectable. We included four response categories (range expansion, life history, population dynamics, and trophic interactions) in this assessment. For the majority of these species, we identified at least one response to warming that affects the severity of the threat they pose as pests. Among these insect species, 41% showed responses expected to lead to increased pest damage, whereas only 4% exhibited responses consistent with reduced effects; notably, most of these species (55%) demonstrated mixed responses. This means that the severity of a given insect pest may both increase and decrease with ongoing climate warming. Overall, our analysis indicated that anticipating the effects of climate warming on phytophagous insect pests is far from straightforward. Rather, efforts to mitigate the undesirable effects of warming on insect pests must include a better understanding of how individual species will respond, and the complex ecological mechanisms underlying their responses

Life expectancy can increase by up to 10 years following sustained shifts towards healthier diets in the United Kingdom

\ua9 2023, The Author(s).Adherence to healthy dietary patterns can prevent the development of non-communicable diseases and affect life expectancy. Here, using a prospective population-based cohort data from the UK Biobank, we show that sustained dietary change from unhealthy dietary patterns to the Eatwell Guide dietary recommendations is associated with 8.9 and 8.6 years gain in life expectancy for 40-year-old males and females, respectively. In the same population, sustained dietary change from unhealthy to longevity-associated dietary patterns is associated with 10.8 and 10.4 years gain in life expectancy in males and females, respectively. The largest gains are obtained from consuming more whole grains, nuts and fruits and less sugar-sweetened beverages and processed meats. Understanding the contribution of sustained dietary changes to life expectancy can provide guidance for the development of health policies

Establishment and dynamics of the balsam fir seedling bank in old forests of northeastern Quebec

This study examines balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.) recruitment in old fir stands. Studying the regeneration of these stands is essential to understand the regeneration dynamic of the species in the absence of standdestroying disturbances. The objectives were (1) to obtain substrate-seedling associations for different age-classes and according to the presence or absence of adventitious roots; (2) to evaluate the contribution of the seed rain to seedling recruitment; (3) to re-examine age structures using the most appropriate method that minimizes estimation errors due to the presence of adventitious roots. A total of 90 quadrats (1 m2) were established along transects. In each quadrat, subtrates were characterized (type and topography) and their area was estimated. All balsam fir seedlings (<50 cm tall) present in the quadrats were located, harvested whole (root and shoot), and described (age, height, presence of adventitious roots, etc). Fir seedlings were strongly associated with woody mounds covered with thin mats of mixed mosses and Pleurozium shreberi (Bird.) Mitt. but negatively associated with flat topography particularly dominated by Hylocomium splendens (Hedw.) B.S.G. The presence of adventitious root is related to seedling age more than substrate type or topography. The age structure is in agreement with seed production and disturbance regime

Annual (2023) taxonomic update of RNA-directed RNA polymerase-encoding negative-sense RNA viruses (realm Riboviria: kingdom Orthornavirae: phylum Negarnaviricota)

55 Pág.In April 2023, following the annual International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) ratification vote on newly proposed taxa, the phylum Negarnaviricota was amended and emended. The phylum was expanded by one new family, 14 new genera, and 140 new species. Two genera and 538 species were renamed. One species was moved, and four were abolished. This article presents the updated taxonomy of Negarnaviricota as now accepted by the ICTV.This work was supported in part through the Laulima Government Solutions, LLC, prime contract with the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infec tious Diseases (NIAID) under Contract No. HHSN272201800013C. J.H.K. performed this work as an employee of Tunnell Government Services (TGS), a subcontractor of Laulima Government Solutions, LLC, under Contract No. HHSN272201800013C. U.J.B. was supported by the Division of Intramural Resarch, NIAID. This work was also funded in part by Contract No. HSHQDC15-C-00064 awarded by DHS S and T for the management and operation of The National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Centre, a federally funded research and development centre operated by the Battelle National Biodefense Institute (V.W.); and NIH contract HHSN272201000040I/HHSN27200004/D04 and grant R24AI120942 (N.V., R.B.T.). S.S. acknowl edges support from the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station (MAFES), USDA-ARS project 58-6066-9-033 and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Hatch Project, under Accession Number 1021494. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analysis, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the U.S. Department of the Army, the U.S. Department of Defence, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, including the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S and T), or of the institutions and companies affiliated with the authors. In no event shall any of these entities have any responsibility or liability for any use, misuse, inability to use, or reliance upon the information contained herein. The U.S. departments do not endorse any products or commercial services mentioned in this publication. The U.S. Government retains and the publisher, by accepting the article for publication, acknowledges that the U.S.Government retains a non-exclusive, paid up, irrevocable, world-wide license to publish or reproduce the published form of this manuscript, or allow others to do so, for U.S. Government purposes.Peer reviewe

The effects of fine-scale disturbances on demography and population dynamics of the clonal moss Hylocomium splendens

1. The boreal forest is subject to disturbance but the effects on population dynamics are poorly understood. We investigated how a prominent species of the forest floor, the clonal moss Hylocomium splendens, responded to different types of fine-scale disturbance. 2. Canopy gap formation was simulated in H. splendens populations by removing 50␘f the bryophyte layer (Removal treatment) and herbivory by clipping all of its growing points (Clipped treatment). Demographic parameters and population dynamics were compared with an unmanipulated reference population (Ref). 3. Both types of disturbance caused a significant decrease in mean segment size (particularly following clipping) and an increase in branching rates. Branching rates in the Removal population were enhanced at all architectural opportunities for enhanced branching, but only the Clipped segments themselves were affected during the 2 years following disturbance. 4. The population effects of disturbance were analysed by a periodic matrix model, with 3-year as the period, followed by elasticity analysis. The Ref population was approximately stable (growth rate, λ = 1.012), with the survival of mature segments making an overwhelming contribution to its growth rate. The higher λ (1.740) in the Removal population was associated with higher elasticities of branching. Clipping reduced λ to 0.841 by blocking segment survival, although regeneration of new growing points on the remnant main shoot axis after 1 year, and its subsequent maturation in the next year, then made a major contribution. 5. Life table response experiment analyses revealed that almost all demographic processes including branching and the survival of mature segments contributed to the increased λ in Removal treatment. The relatively small decrease in λ following clipping was mainly due to the absence of mature segment survival, being almost balanced by the pulse of regeneration of growing points the year after disturbance. 6. We conclude that H. splendens populations show a good ability to recover from common types of disturbances in their environment. The general mechanisms behind the responses are discussed

Spatial structure in lotic macroinvertebrate communities in England and Wales: relationship with physicochemical and anthropogenic stress variables

We describe the relationship between macroinvertebrate community composition, the physicochemical environment and anthropogenic impacts, in running water sites across a range of water qualities in England and Wales. We have also investigated the degree of spatial structure present in both the macroinvertebrate community and the measured environment. Selected explanatory variables could account for 26% of the variation in lotic macroinvertebrate assemblage composition across England and Wales. The explanatory power of the CCA model was based predominantly on a combination of local scale variables (substrate, alkalinity, urban run-off) and regional scale variables (discharge category, northing). The physicochemical gradient associated with changes in stream type from headwaters to estuary dominated assemblage composition. The influence of pollution and habitat modification were of secondary importance. There was a substantial level of spatial structure to both the physicochemical (47% of its explanatory power spatially structured) and anthropogenic stress data (63% of its explanatory power spatially structured), which resulted in a high level of predictable spatial structuring in macroinvertebrate assemblages. Almost 40% of the variation in assemblage composition accounted for by the explanatory model exhibited spatial structure. Positive spatial autocorrelation in macroinvertebrate community composition extended to sites up to 150 km apart. As a consequence, community composition could be described from northing and easting with 75% of the explanatory power of the eight physicochemical variables. Our study has confirmed the importance of the longitudinal gradient within catchments, as well as the geographical position of the catchment to macroinvertebrate communities. We have also demonstrated how quantifying the spatial structure in the dataset can improve our understanding of the factors influencing macroinvertebrate community structure