| 1. |
- Schroeder, J., et al.
(author)
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Fewer invited talks by women in evolutionary biology symposia
- 2013
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In: Journal of evolutionary biology. - : Wiley. - 1420-9101 .- 1010-061X. ; 26:9, s. 2063-2069
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Lower visibility of female scientists, compared to male scientists, is a potential reason for the under-representation of women among senior academic ranks. Visibility in the scientific community stems partly from presenting research as an invited speaker at organized meetings. We analysed the sex ratio of presenters at the European Society for Evolutionary Biology (ESEB) Congress 2011, where all abstract submissions were accepted for presentation. Women were under-represented among invited speakers at symposia (15% women) compared to all presenters (46%), regular oral presenters (41%) and plenary speakers (25%). At the ESEB congresses in 2001-2011, 9-23% of invited speakers were women. This under-representation of women is partly attributable to a larger proportion of women, than men, declining invitations: in 2011, 50% of women declined an invitation to speak compared to 26% of men. We expect invited speakers to be scientists from top ranked institutions or authors of recent papers in high-impact journals. Considering all invited speakers (including declined invitations), 23% were women. This was lower than the baseline sex ratios of early-mid career stage scientists, but was similar to senior scientists and authors that have published in high-impact journals. High-quality science by women therefore has low exposure at international meetings, which will constrain Evolutionary Biology from reaching its full potential. We wish to highlight the wider implications of turning down invitations to speak, and encourage conference organizers to implement steps to increase acceptance rates of invited talks.
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| 2. |
- Zamora, Juan Carlos, et al.
(author)
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Considerations and consequences of allowing DNA sequence data as types of fungal taxa
- 2018
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In: IMA Fungus. - : INT MYCOLOGICAL ASSOC. - 2210-6340 .- 2210-6359. ; 9:1, s. 167-185
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Nomenclatural type definitions are one of the most important concepts in biological nomenclature. Being physical objects that can be re-studied by other researchers, types permanently link taxonomy (an artificial agreement to classify biological diversity) with nomenclature (an artificial agreement to name biological diversity). Two proposals to amend the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN), allowing DNA sequences alone (of any region and extent) to serve as types of taxon names for voucherless fungi (mainly putative taxa from environmental DNA sequences), have been submitted to be voted on at the 11th International Mycological Congress (Puerto Rico, July 2018). We consider various genetic processes affecting the distribution of alleles among taxa and find that alleles may not consistently and uniquely represent the species within which they are contained. Should the proposals be accepted, the meaning of nomenclatural types would change in a fundamental way from physical objects as sources of data to the data themselves. Such changes are conducive to irreproducible science, the potential typification on artefactual data, and massive creation of names with low information content, ultimately causing nomenclatural instability and unnecessary work for future researchers that would stall future explorations of fungal diversity. We conclude that the acceptance of DNA sequences alone as types of names of taxa, under the terms used in the current proposals, is unnecessary and would not solve the problem of naming putative taxa known only from DNA sequences in a scientifically defensible way. As an alternative, we highlight the use of formulas for naming putative taxa (candidate taxa) that do not require any modification of the ICN.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Olsson, Urban, 1954, et al.
(author)
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New insights into the intricate taxonomy and phylogeny of the Sylvia curruca complex
- 2013
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In: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. - : Elsevier BV. - 1055-7903 .- 1095-9513. ; 67:1, s. 72-85
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We use the mitochondrial cytochrome b from 213 individuals and the three nuclear introns BRM 15, myoglobin 2 and ODC 6–7 from a smaller subsample to evaluate the taxonomy of the Lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca (Aves, Passeriformes, Sylviidae) complex, which has long been controversial. We sequenced type material of the taxa althaea, blythi, margelanica and minula, and used topotypical material of caucasica, chuancheica, curruca and telengitica. The nuclear introns fail to resolve the complex, but cytochrome b recovers six major clades, revealing genetically identifiable populations corresponding to previously named taxa, and we propose that the names althaea, blythi, curruca, halimodendri, margelanica and minula, respectively, should be used for these. The margelanica clade is suggested to have a more extensive distribution than previously known, including both the taxon telengitica and a population in eastern Mongolia. The taxon minula is found to have a more restricted range than generally believed, only breeding in China. According to the mitochondrial gene tree, there is a basal dichotomy, with the taxa althaea, blythi, halimodendri and margelanica being part of one clade, well separated from a clade containing curruca and minula. Dating analysis suggests that a basal divergence separating curruca and minula from the other four taxa occurred between 4.2 and 7.2 mya; these two then diverged between 2.3 and 4.4 mya. The splits between the althaea, blythi, halimodendri and margelanica lineages is inferred to have occurred later, approximately between 1.0 and 2.5 mya (all 95% HPD). The nucleotide data suggest significant departure from demographic equilibrium in blythi (clade 1a), halimodendri (clade 2a) and minula, whereas tendencies are weaker for other clades. We propose that the names althaea, blythi, curruca, halimodendri, margelanica and minula should be used for the major clades. However, whether these are treated as subspecies or species is largely a matter of species definition and is not resolved by our data.
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| 5. |
- Svensson, Johan, et al.
(author)
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Boreal Forest Landscape Restoration in the Face of Extensive Forest Fragmentation and Loss
- 2023
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In: Boreal Forests in the Face of Climate Change. - Cham : Springer. - 9783031159886 ; , s. 491-510:74, s. 491-510
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Book chapter (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Historical conditions that provide a natural legacy for defining restoration targets are not applicable without adjusting these targets to expected future conditions. Prestoration approaches, defined as restoration that simultaneously considers past, present, and future conditions with a changing climate, are necessary to advance the protection of biodiversity and the provisioning of ecosystem services. Large areas of boreal forest landscapes are transformed and degraded by industrial forestry practices. With largely fragmented and too-small areas of remaining high conservation value forests, protection and preservation are insufficient and must be complemented by active restoration in the managed forest matrix. Successful forest landscape restoration incorporates varied spatiotemporal scales and resolutions to compose restoration routes that best reflect the expected future sustainability challenges as well as planning and governance frameworks.
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| 6. |
- Blicharska, Malgorzata, 1979-, et al.
(author)
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Shades of grey challenge practical application of the Cultural Ecosystem Services concept
- 2017
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In: Ecosystem Services. - : Elsevier BV. - 2212-0416. ; 23, s. 55-70
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Despite rapid advances in development of the ecosystem services (ES) concept, challenges remain for its use in decision making. Cultural ES (CES) have proven particularly difficult to pin down and resultant “shades of grey” impede their consideration by decision-makers. This study undertakes a literature review of CES to highlight the shades of grey, briefly illustrates findings by reference to the Swedish mountain landscape, then addresses potential implications for practical decision making. The concept of CES is complex and difficult to operationalize. The root of confusion appears to be a lack of rigour in identifying CES, hindering identification of proper methods for determining: the ecosystem elements that underpin CES; the beneficiaries of CES and how they value benefits delivered; and how CES may vary in space and time. We conclude by proposing a framework of questions, which we relate to the ES cascade model, that is intended to help researchers and decision-makers to reflect when considering CES. Answers to the questions should enable decision-makers to prioritise policy development or implementation in relation to the differing needs of potentially competing beneficiaries and what needs to be done or not done to the ecosystem, where, when and by whom.
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| 7. |
- Börjesson, Gunnar, et al.
(author)
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A national landfill methane budget for Sweden based on field measurements, and an evaluation of IPCC models
- 2009
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In: Tellus, Series B: Chemical and Physical Meteorology. - : Stockholm University Press. - 1600-0889 .- 0280-6509. ; 61:2, s. 424-435
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Seven Swedish landfills were investigated from 2001 to 2003. On each landfill, a measure of the total methane production was calculated from data on: (1) methane emissions (leakage); (2) methane oxidation and (3) from gas recovery. Methane emissions were determined via a tracer gas (N2O) release-based remote sensing method. N2O and CH4 were measured with an Fourier Transform infrared detector at a distance of more than 1 km downwind from the landfills. Methane oxidation in the landfill covers was measured with the stable carbon isotope method. The efficiency in gas recovery systems proved to be highly variable, but on an average, 51% of the produced landfill gas was captured. A first-order decay model, based on four fractions (waste from households and parks, sludges and industrial waste), showed that the use of a degradable organic carbon fraction (DOCf) value of 0.54, in accordance with the default value for DOCf of 0.50 in the latest IPCC model, gave an emission estimate similar to the official national reports.
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| 8. |
- Harvey, Deborah J., et al.
(author)
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Making the invisible visible : Determining an accurate national distribution of Elater ferrugineus in the United Kingdom using pheromones
- 2017
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In: Insect Conservation and Diversity. - : Wiley. - 1752-458X .- 1752-4598. ; 10:4, s. 1-11
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To date, conservation-status saproxylic beetle species in the UK have been monitored by chance findings or by monitor-based observational studies. Here, using Elater ferrugineus as our target species, we present the first national distribution survey carried out in the UK or across mainland Europe on such a species using chemicals produced by the insect. Over 3 years, mark-release-recapture studies were performed across the UK, using 416 lured (pheromone) traps monitored by volunteer recorders; the first survey in Europe to do so. Traps were baited with 7-methyloctyl- (Z)-4-decenoate, a compound previously identified as a female sex pheromone. The results were used to plot a distribution map and investigate factors that may influence the distribution, including summer temperatures, possible habitat availability and larval food source. The survey revealed a south-eastern distribution of E. ferrugineus in the UK, which was suggested by previous casual studies. A correlative model was fitted to the data, indicating that 55% of the variation in the distribution of E. ferrugineus was explained by climatic variables (temperature and wind speed).
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| 9. |
- Hentati-Sundberg, J, et al.
(author)
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Fueling of a marine-terrestrial ecosystem by a major seabird colony.
- 2020
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In: Scientific reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 10
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Seabirds redistribute nutrients between different ecosystem compartments and over vast geographical areas. This nutrient transfer may impact both local ecosystems on seabird breeding islands and regional biogeochemical cycling, but these processes are seldom considered in local conservation plans or biogeochemical models. The island of Stora Karlsö in the Baltic Sea hosts the largest concentration of piscivorous seabirds in the region, and also hosts a large colony of insectivorous House martins Delichon urbicum adjacent to the breeding seabirds. We show that a previously reported unusually high insectivore abundance was explained by large amounts of chironomids-highly enriched in δ15N-that feed on seabird residues as larvae along rocky shores to eventually emerge as flying adults. Benthic ammonium and phosphate fluxes were up to 163% and 153% higher close to the colony (1,300m distance) than further away (2,700m) and the estimated nutrient release from the seabirds at were in the same order of magnitude as the loads from the largest waste-water treatment plants in the region. The trophic cascade impacting insectivorous passerines and the substantial redistribution of nutrients suggest that seabird nutrient transfer should be increasingly considered in local conservation plans and regional nutrient cycling models.
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| 10. |
- Lindegarth, Mats, 1965, et al.
(author)
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Testing the Potential for Predictive Modeling and Mapping and Extending Its Use as a Tool for Evaluating Management Scenarios and Economic Valuation in the Baltic Sea (PREHAB)
- 2014
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In: Ambio. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0044-7447 .- 1654-7209. ; 43:1, s. 82-93
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We evaluated performance of species distribution models for predictive mapping, and how models can be used to integrate human pressures into ecological and economic assessments. A selection of 77 biological variables (species, groups of species, and measures of biodiversity) across the Baltic Sea were modeled. Differences among methods, areas, predictor, and response variables were evaluated. Several methods successfully predicted abundance and occurrence of vegetation, invertebrates, fish, and functional aspects of biodiversity. Depth and substrate were among the most important predictors. Models incorporating water clarity were used to predict increasing cover of the brown alga bladderwrack Fucus vesiculosus and increasing reproduction area of perch Perca fluviatilis, but decreasing reproduction areas for pikeperch Sander lucioperca following successful implementation of the Baltic Sea Action Plan. Despite variability in estimated non-market benefits among countries, such changes were highly valued by citizens in the three Baltic countries investigated. We conclude that predictive models are powerful and useful tools for science-based management of the Baltic Sea.
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