Characterizing the “fungal shunt”: parasitic fungi on diatoms affect carbon flow and bacterial communities in aquatic microbial food webs
The study demonstrates that parasitic fungi profoundly modify microbial interactions through several mechanisms (e.g., stimulating bacterial colonization on phytoplankton cells, altering the community composition of bacteria). Hence, fungal microparasites can substantially shape the microbially mediated carbon flow at the base of aquatic food webs which we termed "fungal shunt" .
Marine algae facilitate transfer of microplastics and associated pollutants into food webs
In this conceptual paper, the authors argue that micro- and macro-algae represent an underappreciated, yet, important pathway for transporting microplastics and associated pollutants via marine food webs to humans, facilitating potential invasion of pathogens into the human body. For the assessment of human health risks, interactions between microplastics and algae need to be explored.
Local disconnects in global discourses: the unintended consequences of marine mammal protection on small-scale fishers
Efforts to protect sea lions along South America's west coast have contributed to species recovery, but also to conflict between sea lions and small-scale fisheries. To understand the concerns, the authors assessed how 301 coastal small-scale fishers perceive their interactions with the sea lions. They propose solutions to manage conflict that are sensitive to heterogeneity among fisher groups.
Setting robust biodiversity goals
The new global biodiversity framework (GBF) must drive action to reverse the decline of biodiversity. However, the draft goals and targets fail to set out these clear outcomes. The authors propose modifications that would help to reveal the specific contribution of each action and provide clarity on whether the achievement of action targets would be adequate to achieve the outcome goals.
A novel measurement-based model for calculating O2 flux at interfaces in aquatic environments
This study presents a novel model approach for diffusive fluxes of dissolved gases, nutrients, and solutes from concentration profiles measured across the substrate-water interfaces using microsensors. The model offers a robust computational scheme for automatized determination of the interface position and enables precise calculations of the interfacial diffusive fluxes simultaneously.
From microbes to mammals: agriculture homogenizes pond biodiversity across different land-use types
The team investigated the aquatic biodiversity in ponds located in different land-use types embedded in an agricultural area. Intensive agriculture erased most differences in aquatic biodiversity between grasslands, forests, and arable fields across all species from microbes to large organisms. Sediments, serveing as a biodiversity archive, reveal that such differences occured in the area.
Stratification strength and light climate explain variation in chlorophyll a at the continental scale in a European multilake survey in a heatwave summer
To determine the drivers of phytoplankton biomass, the authors collected morphometric, physical, and biological data in 230 lakes in different European climatic zones. This summer snapshot of phytoplankton biomass and its drivers supports that light and stratification metrics are better predictors for phytoplankton biomass in nutrient-rich lakes than nutrient concentrations or surface temperature.
PhyloFisher: a phylogenomic package for resolving eukaryotic relationships
The authors developed a user-friendly software tool (“PhyloFisher”) for phylogenomic analyses of eukaryotes. This software package aids in the construction and curation of protein sequence-based datasets, conducts post-assembly analyses, and allows visualisation of the results.
Phylogenomic insights into the origin of primary plastids
Did primary plastids originate by a single or multiple endosymbiosis events between a heterotrophic host eukaryote and cyanobacteria? By using a phylogenomic approach to untangle the diversification of the primary plastid-bearing lineages (Archaeplastida), the authors propose a single endosymbiosis but highlight and discuss the affiliation of the plastid-lacking Picozoa to the Archaeplastida.
Increased sediment deposition triggered by climate change impacts freshwater pearl mussel habitats and metapopulations
The authors investigated the influence of climate change on the river pearl mussel through a coupled, complex model cascade in the catchment area of the Aist (Austria). Discharge changes might lead to reduced sediment transport capacity and to increased fine sediment input. As a consequence the mussel's dispersal probability decreases to up to 76% of the maximum theoretical value.