Digging into dirt: how rewilded mammals shape the hidden insect communities beneath our feet

This blog post is provided by Lucy Johanson and Heloise Gibb and tells the #StoryBehindThePaper for the article, “Digging into dirt: rewilding with threatened mammals shapes soil insect assemblages”, which was recently published in the Journal of Animal Ecology. In their study, Johanson, Gibb and colleagues explore the insect communities of the Australian desert and how they are impacted as ecosystem engineers are reintroduced. In Australia, … Continue reading Digging into dirt: how rewilded mammals shape the hidden insect communities beneath our feet

Functional Traits Predict Sensitivity of Forest Birds to Habitat Disturbance in Tropical Countryside

This blog post is provided by Ian Ausprey and tells the #StoryBehindthePaper for the paper ‘Functional response traits and altered ecological niches drive the disassembly of cloud forest bird communities in tropical montane countrysides‘, which was recently published in Journal of Animal Ecology. In their study they examine how functional response traits related to morphology, diet, foraging behaviour and environmental niche breadth of birds predict … Continue reading Functional Traits Predict Sensitivity of Forest Birds to Habitat Disturbance in Tropical Countryside

Can traits of individuals inform on how populations respond to change?

We are in great need of an integrative framework that allows ecologists to predict life history strategies from functional traits that inform on population performance. The aim of a recent British Ecological Society cross-journal Special Feature is to link organismal functions, life history strategies and population performance. Here, Dr Isabel Smallegange discusses a test published within this Special Feature that shows how a recently developed dynamic energy … Continue reading Can traits of individuals inform on how populations respond to change?