| 1. |
- Kattge, Jens, et al.
(författare)
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TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access
- 2020
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Ingår i: Global Change Biology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 26:1, s. 119-188
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives.
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| 2. |
- Stoler, Aaron B., et al.
(författare)
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Combined Effects Of Road Salt And An Insecticide On Wetland Communities
- 2017
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Ingår i: Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0730-7268 .- 1552-8618. ; 36:3, s. 771-779
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- As the numbers of chemical contaminants in freshwater ecosystems increase, it is important to understand whether contaminants interact in ecologically important ways. The present study investigated the independent and interactive effects of 2 contaminants that frequently co-occur in freshwater environments among higher latitudes, including a commonly applied insecticide (carbaryl) and road salt (NaCl). The hypothesis was that the addition of either contaminant would result in a decline in zooplankton, an algal bloom, and the subsequent decline of both periphyton and periphyton consumers. Another hypothesis was that combining the contaminants would result in synergistic effects on community responses. Outdoor mesocosms were used with communities that included phytoplankton, periphyton, zooplankton, amphipods, clams, snails, and tadpoles. Communities were exposed to 4 environmentally relevant concentrations of salt (27 mg Cl- L-1, 77 mg Cl- L-1, 277 mg Cl- L-1, and 727 mg Cl- L-1) fully crossed with 4 carbaryl treatments (ethanol, 0 mu gL(-1), 5 mu g L-1, and 50 mu g L-1) over 57 d. Contaminants induced declines in rotifer and cladoceran zooplankton, but only carbaryl induced an algal bloom. Consumers exhibited both positive and negative responses to contaminants, which were likely the result of both indirect community interactions and direct toxicity. In contrast to the hypothesis, no synergistic effects were found, although copepod densities declined when high concentrations of both chemicals were combined. The results suggest that low concentrations of salt and carbaryl are likely to have mostly independent effects on aquatic communities. (C) 2016 SETAC
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| 3. |
- Abecasis, David, et al.
(författare)
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A review of acoustic telemetry in Europe and the need for a regional aquatic telemetry network
- 2018
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Ingår i: Animal Biotelemetry. - : Springer. - 2050-3385. ; 6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Globally, there are a large and growing number of researchers using biotelemetry as a tool to studyaquatic animals. In Europe, this community lacks a formal network structure. The aim of this study is to review the useof acoustic telemetry in Europe and document the contribution of cross-boundary studies and inter-research groupcollaborations. Based on this, we explore the potential benefits and challenges of a network approach to identifyfuture priorities and best practices for aquatic biotelemetry research in Europe.Results: Over the past decade, there was an approximately sevenfold increase in the number of acoustic telemetrystudies published on marine and diadromous species in Europe compared to a sixfold increase globally. Over 90%of these studies were conducted on fishes and undertaken in coastal areas, estuaries, or rivers. 75% of these studieswere conducted by researchers based in one of five nations (Norway, UK, France, Portugal, and Spain) and, eventhough 34% were based on collaborations between scientists from several countries, there was only one study withan acoustic receiver array that extended beyond the borders of a single country. In recent years, acoustic telemetryin European waters has evolved from studying behavioural aspects of animals (82.2%), into more holistic approachesaddressing management-related issues (10%), tagging methods and effects (5%), and technology and data analysisdevelopment (2.8%).Conclusions: Despite the increasing number of publications and species tracked, there is a prominent lack ofplanned and structured acoustic telemetry collaborations in Europe. A formal pan-European network structure wouldpromote the development of (1) a research platform that could benefit the acoustic telemetry community throughcapacity building, (2) a centralized database, and (3) key deployment sites and studies on priority species requiringresearch in Europe. A network may increase efficiency, expand the scope of research that can be undertaken, promoteEuropean science integration, enhance the opportunities and success of acquiring research funding and, ultimately,foster regional and transatlantic collaborations. It may also help address research priorities such as the large-scalesocietal challenges arising from climate change impacts and assist the EU’s Marine Strategy Framework Directive viaidentification of good environmental status of endangered or commercially important species.
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| 4. |
- Holmes, Natalie P., et al.
(författare)
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Engineering Two-Phase and Three-Phase Microstructures from Water-Based Dispersions of Nanoparticles for Eco-Friendly Polymer Solar Cell Applications
- 2018
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Ingår i: Chemistry of Materials. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0897-4756 .- 1520-5002. ; 30:18, s. 6521-6531
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Nanoparticle organic photovoltaics, a subfield of organic photovoltaics (OPV), has attracted increasing interest in recent years due to the eco-friendly fabrication of solar modules afforded by colloidal ink technology. Importantly, using this approach it is now possible to engineer the microstructure of the light absorbing/charge generating layer of organic photovoltaics; decoupling film morphology from film deposition. In this study, single-component nanoparticles of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and phenyl-C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PC61BM) were synthesized and used to generate a two-phase microstructure with control over domain size prior to film deposition. Scanning transmission X-ray microscopy (STXM) and electron microscopy were used to characterize the thin film morphology. Uniquely, the measured microstructure was a direct input for a nanoscopic kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) model allowing us to assess exciton transport properties that are experimentally inaccessible in these single-component particles. Photoluminescence, UV-vis spectroscopy measurements, and KMC results of the nanoparticle thin films enabled the calculation of an experimental exciton dissociation efficiency (ηED) of 37% for the two-phase microstructure. The glass transition temperature (Tg) of the materials was characterized with dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) and thermal annealing led to an increase in ηED to 64% due to an increase in donor-acceptor interfaces in the thin film from both sintering of neighboring opposite-type particles in addition to the generation of a third mixed phase from diffusion of PC61BM into amorphous P3HT domains. As such, this study demonstrates the higher level of control over donor-acceptor film morphology enabled by customizing nanoparticulate colloidal inks, where the optimal three-phase film morphology for an OPV photoactive layer can be designed and engineered.
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