Ernest Henry Wilson

Prunus persica (peach), a well-known fruit species belonging to the family Rosaceae, has a long history of human consumption. Its hard and easily preserved fruitstones (endocarps) have often been found at archaeological sites in many parts of the world. However, there are several species within Prunus subg. Prunus sect. Persica with similar stone morphologies. In order to correctly identify the stones of P. persica and related taxa, we first sampled, described and analysed the stone morphological characteristics of all five species in sect. Persica , together with the related taxa P . armeniaca , P . mume and P . salicina . Then detailed fruitstone descriptions and measurements were made together with an illustrated key to the various species, to enable the identification of peaches at species level and to explore and understand the processes of domestication, cultivation and distribution of P. persica and its allies.

Ethnopharmacological relevanceGentiana is the largest genus within the Gentianaceae family, comprising around 400 species that are widely distributed in temperate alpine regions worldwide, including the Mongolian Plateau. Despite their broad distribution, no comprehensive review on the distribution, ethnobotany, traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and toxicology of Gentiana species in the Mongolian plateau.AimThis paper aims to provide the first detailed summary of Gentiana species distributed in the Mongolian Plateau, including those in Mongolia. It comprehensively addresses their botanical characteristics, traditional applications, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and toxicity, of Gentiana, providing a scientific basis for further research and identifying gaps in knowledge.Materials and methodsData were collected through a comprehensive survey of journal articles, books, and dissertations from databases such as Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, PubMed, Springer Link, CNKI, VIP, and Wan Fang Data. Additionally, online resources like Flora of China and Plants of the World Online were consulted for species distribution and scientific name verification. Phytochemical compounds were visualized using Chem Draw 14.0 software.ResultsThis review identifies twenty-nine Gentiana species distributed in the Mongolian Plateau, with nine species having documented folkloric uses for the treating digestive, skin, joint diseases, and sore throat, etc. Phytochemical studies have led to the isolation and identification of 602 compounds, including iridoids, triterpenoids, flavonoids, lignans, coumarins, xanthones, alkaloids, fatty acids, amino acids, organic acids, and polysaccharides. Notably, gentiopicroside (75) and swertiamarin (118) are the most studied monomeric compounds. Crude extracts of Gentiana show a broad spectrum of pharmacological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-bacterial, antioxidant, anti-tumor, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, immunomodulatory, hepatoprotective, gastroprotective, neuroprotective, and joint and bone protective activities, etc. These extracts exhibit no apparent toxicity in vivo and in vitro studies. However, clinical research on the therapeutic applications of Gentiana remains limited.ConclusionsThis review provides the first comprehensive summary of Gentiana species from the Mongolian Plateau, covering their distribution, morphology, phytochemistry, traditional uses, and pharmacological activities. Compared to existing literature, it offers a more thorough taxa, emphasizing key bioactive compounds such as gentiopicroside and swertiamarin, which are recognized for their anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective effects. The review also reveals the correlation between pharmacological activities and traditional applications. Furthermore, many Gentiana species remain underexplored, highlighting significant potential for future research and the development of therapeutic applications.

Bamboos are popular ornamental plants in the EPPO region though some of them have been observed to escape the confines of planting and establish in the natural environment. The aim of this study is to produce a risk‐based list of bamboo species which are recorded in the natural environment in the EPPO region, and to determine if any of the species require a pest risk analysis. Forty‐two bamboo species were identified as being present in the natural environment in the EPPO region. Of these, 11 species fulfil the three pre‐selected criteria for species to be considered potentially harmful: (1) the species is naturalized in at least one EPPO country; (2) the species has a running dispersal behaviour (leptomorph); and (3) there is evidence of invasive behaviour in at least one country. These 11 species were prioritized using the EPPO prioritization process for invasive alien plants. Owing to their high spread potential and potential high impact, three species, namely Phyllostachys aurea, Pseudosasa japonica and Sasa palmata, proceeded to the second stage of the prioritization process (risk management stage). All three species were identified as having a high priority for a pest risk analysis. In 2024, the EPPO Panel on Invasive Alien Plants agreed with the results of the study but noted that further information on impacts would be beneficial and therefore the Panel agreed that Ph. aurea and S. palmata should be added to the EPPO Alert List along with the already included P. japonica. This will raise awareness of these species in the region and further information can be gathered to support the development of a risk assessment.

Species distribution models rely on species' observed geographic distributions, which reflect only subset of the true ecological niche. This inevitably leads to discrepancies between the predictions of habitat suitability (HS) and the actual ecological performance in novel environments beyond the trained range. We examined this limitation by comparing modelled HS with empirical survival rates (SRs) of three Acer species, A. davidii, A. palmatum, and A. pictum, cultivated in the UK botanic gardens. We hypothesise that ex‐situ species with greater niche overlap with native UK/European species will show higher HS, which also correspond to species' SR relative to that of local species. This HS‐SR alignment will then indicate the alignment of species' geographic range and ecological range. We first quantified niche similarity between these East Asian species and UK/Europe native Acer species at both regional and continental scales. MaxEnt models were calibrated using native occurrences with various combinations of environmental variables and model configurations, then projected onto UK regions. Species' SRs were standardised against those of native species using long‐term inventory data. Our results show that niche overlap with native species generally corresponded to predicted HS, while observed SR patterns revealed an inverse relationship. A. davidii, showing high niche overlap and high HS, exhibited the lowest SR. Contrarily, A. pictum, despite showing low niche overlap and predicting most regions unsuitable, demonstrated the highest SR, comparable to native species. This discrepancy was particularly noteworthy as A. pictum shared closer phylogenetic relationships with European species, while A. davidii was more closely related to North American species. The observed phylogenetic signal in SR patterns suggests that intrinsic traits that relate to climate tolerance may be conserved yet masked in the conventional modelling approach. This interdisciplinary approach bridges the gap between macro‐scale predictions and local‐scale individual performance, offering a new perspective on niche conservatism through a phylogenetic framework.

The flowering phenology of many tropical mountain forest tree species remains poorly understood, including flowering synchrony and its drivers across neotropical ecosystems. We obtained herbarium records for 427 tree species from a long-term monitoring transect on the northwestern Ecuadorian Andes, sourced from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and the Herbario Nacional del Ecuador. Using machine learning algorithms, we identified flowering phenophases from digitized specimen labels and applied circular statistics to build phenological calendars across six climatic regions within the neotropics. We found 47 939 herbarium records, of which 14 938 were classified as flowering by Random Forest Models. We constructed phenological calendars for six regions and 86 species with at least 20 flowering records. Phenological patterns varied considerably across regions, among species within regions, and within species across regions. There was limited interannual synchronicity in flowering patterns within regions primarily driven by bimodal species whose flowering peaks coincided with irradiance peaks. The predominantly high variability of phenological patterns among species and within species likely confers adaptative advantages by reducing interspecific competition during reproductive periods and promoting species coexistence in highly diverse regions with little or no seasonality.

Understanding the drivers of species richness patterns is a major goal of ecology and evolutionary biology, and the drivers vary across regions and taxa. Here, we assessed the influence of environmental factors and evolutionary history on the pattern of species richness in the genus Sorbus (110 species). We mapped the global species richness pattern of Sorbus at a spatial resolution of 200 × 200 km, using 10,652 specimen records. We used stepwise regression to assess the relationship between 23 environmental predictors and species richness and estimated the diversification rate of Sorbus based on chloroplast genome data. The effects of environmental factors were explained by adjusted R2, and evolutionary factors were inferred based on differences in diversification rates. We found that the species richness of Sorbus was highest in the Hengduan Mountains (HDM), which is probably the center of diversity. Among the selected environmental predictors, the integrated model including all environmental predictors had the largest explanatory power for species richness. The determinants of species richness show regional differences. On the global and continental scale, energy and water availability become the main driving factors. In contrast, climate seasonality is the primary factor in the HDM. The diversification rate results showed no significant differences between HDM and non-HDM, suggesting that evolutionary history may have limited impact on the pattern of Sorbus species richness. We conclude that environmental factors play an important role in shaping the global pattern of Sorbus species richness, while diversification rates have a lesser impact.

Salurnis marginella causes agricultural and forest damage in various Asian environments. However, considering the environmental adaptability of pests and the active international trade, it may invade other regions in the future. As the damage to local communities caused by pests becomes difficult to control after invasion, it is essential to establish measures to minimize losses through pre-emptive monitoring and identification of high-risk areas, which can be achieved through model-based predictions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential distribution of S. marginella by developing multiple species distribution modeling (SDM) algorithms. Specifically, we developed the CLIMEX model and three machine learning-based models (MaxEnt, random forest, and multi-layer perceptron), integrated them to conservatively assess pest occurrence under current and future climates, and overlaid the host distribution with climatically suitable areas of S. marginella to identify high-risk areas vulnerable to the spread and invasion of the pest. The developed model, demonstrating a true skill statistic >0.8, predicted the potential continuous distribution of the species across the southeastern United States, South America, and Central Africa. This distribution currently covers approximately 9.53% of the global land area; however, the model predicted this distribution would decrease to 6.85%. Possible areas of spread were identified in Asia and the southwestern United States, considering the host distribution. This study provides data for the proactive monitoring of pests by identifying areas where S. marginella can spread.

Cold tolerance strategies in plants vary from structural to biochemical permitting many plants to survive and grow on sites that experience freezing conditions intermittently. Although tree ferns occur predominantly across the tropics, they also occur in temperate zones and occasionally in areas that experience sub‐zero temperatures, and how these large ferns survive freezing conditions is unknown. Many temperate tree fern taxa are marcescent – retaining whorls of dead fronds encircling the upper trunk – or develop short or prostrate trunks, possibly to insulate against frost damage to their trunks and growing crowns. We asked the following questions: 1) do global growth patterns and traits of tree ferns respond to freezing conditions associated with latitude and elevation, 2) do growth patterns of tree ferns in New Zealand vary along a temperature‐related gradient, and 3) do marcescent tree fern skirts insulate the growing crown from sub‐zero temperatures? To establish what morphological adaptations permitted the Cyatheales to occur in biomes that experience intermittent sub‐zero temperatures and frost, we 1) reviewed the global distributions of these structural and morphological traits within the tree ferns (Cyatheales); 2) assessed the patterns of tree fern marcescence, and other traits potentially associated with cold tolerance (no trunk, prostrate, short‐trunked) of nine taxa of the Cyatheales along environmental gradients across New Zealand; and 3) conducted a field experiment to assess the thermal insulation properties of tree fern marcescent skirts. We identified significant trends among growth forms, marcescence, and environmental gradients consistent with our hypothesis that these are adaptations to tolerate cold. Our field experiments provide quantitative evidence that marcescent skirts have a strong insulating effect on tree fern trunks. The Cyatheales have evolved several strategies to protect the pith cores of their trunks from extreme cold temperatures in temperate forests allowing them to capture niche space in environments beyond the tropics.

Lonicera japonica, an importante rsource plant, possesses significant medicinal, economic, and ecological value. To understand its response to climate change and to optimize its conservation and utilization, this study employed the Biomod2 ensemble model to predict its potential distribution under future climate scenarios and identified key environmental factors influencing its distribution. The results showed that under current climatic conditions, the potential distribution of honeysuckle is primarily concentrated in low-altitude regions of central and eastern China and the Sichuan Basin. In future scenarios, the overall distribution pattern changes less, and the area of highly suitable habitats slightly decreases by 0.80%. Distribution analysis indicated a trend of northward migration towards higher latitudes. Temperature-related factors, including temperature seasonality, the minimum temperature of the coldest month, the mean temperature of the coldest quarter, and the annual mean temperature, were identified as dominant factors affecting its distribution. The Biomod2 ensemble model significantly improved the precision and accuracy of suitability predictions compared to single models, providing a scientific basis for predicting the future geographic distribution of honeysuckle and for establishing and utilizing its cultivation regions in China.

The phased uplift of the Tibetan Plateau since the Cenozoic strongly changed the Asian topography and greatly impacted not only the regional but also the global climate. Being sensitive to past climate changes, fossil plants are proven pivotal bio-indicators that can infer the paleoclimate and paleoelevation of different Tibetan Plateau parts. However, the timing and mechanisms of the uplift in the northeastern Tibetan Plateau remain debated due to limited evidence from plant fossils and inconsistent results. In this investigation, Pueraria leaflet and pod fossils collected from the Miocene Upper Youshashan Formation of the Wulan Basin, northeastern Tibetan Plateau, are reported. The leaflet fossils are assigned as a new species: Pueraria qinghaiensis Zhen-Dong Cao et San-Ping Xie sp. nov., while P. montana is recognized as its nearest living relative; the pod fossils are assigned as Pueraria sp. The leaflet margins of P. qinghaiensis and other fossils found in the same layer indicate that Pueraria from the Wulan Basin likely lived in open habitats and sprawled at the waterside. Moreover, the climate of the basin apparently was warm and humid in the Middle Miocene, and the elevation was about 723–2398 m based on the ecological niche of Pueraria. The occurrence of these new Pueraria fossils from the Wulan Basin supports the view that the elevation of the northeastern Tibetan Plateau did not attain its present elevation during the Middle Miocene. Subsequently, the plateau's uplift caused a series of environmental transformations, including increased elevation, reduced temperature and precipitation, and the intensification of Asian monsoons, which altogether led to the regional disappearance of the Pueraria population in the Wulan Basin.