Franz Speta

Abstract. Statistical climate reconstruction techniques are fundamental tools to study past climate variability from fossil proxy data. In particular, the methods based on probability density functions (or PDFs) can be used in various environments and with different climate proxies because they rely on elementary calibration data (i.e. modern geolocalised presence data). However, the difficulty of accessing and curating these calibration data and the complexity of interpreting probabilistic results have often limited their use in palaeoclimatological studies. Here, I introduce a new R package (crestr) to apply the PDF-based method CREST (Climate REconstruction SofTware) on diverse palaeoecological datasets and address these problems. crestr includes a globally curated calibration dataset for six common climate proxies (i.e. plants, beetles, chironomids, rodents, foraminifera, and dinoflagellate cysts) associated with an extensive range of climate variables (20 terrestrial and 19 marine variables) that enables its use in most terrestrial and marine environments. Private data collections can also be used instead of, or in combination with, the provided calibration dataset. The package includes a suite of graphical diagnostic tools to represent the data at each step of the reconstruction process and provide insights into the effect of the different modelling assumptions and external factors that underlie a reconstruction. With this R package, the CREST method can now be used in a scriptable environment and thus be more easily integrated with existing workflows. It is hoped that crestr will be used to produce the much-needed quantified climate reconstructions from the many regions where they are currently lacking, despite the availability of suitable fossil records. To support this development, the use of the package is illustrated with a step-by-step replication of a 790 000-year-long mean annual temperature reconstruction based on a pollen record from southeastern Africa.

Climate change causes environmental variation worldwide, which is one of the most serious threats to global food security. In addition, more than 2 billion people in the world are reported to suffer from serious malnutrition, referred to as ‘hidden hunger.’ Dependence on only a few crops could lead to the loss of genetic diversity and high fragility of crop breeding in systems adapting to global scale climate change. The exploitation of underutilized species and genetic resources, referred to as orphan crops, could be a useful approach for resolving the issue of adaptability to environmental alteration, biodiversity preservation, and improvement of nutrient quality and quantity to ensure food security. Moreover, the use of these alternative crops will help to increase the human health benefits and the income of farmers in developing countries. In this review, we highlight the potential of orphan crops, especially amaranths, for use as vegetables and health-promoting nutritional components. This review highlights promising diversified sources of amaranth germplasms, their tolerance to abiotic stresses, and their nutritional, phytochemical, and antioxidant values for vegetable purposes. Betalains (betacyanins and betaxanthins), unique antioxidant components in amaranth vegetables, are also highlighted regarding their chemodiversity across amaranth germplasms and their stability and degradation. In addition, we discuss the physiological functions, antioxidant, antilipidemic, anticancer, and antimicrobial activities, as well as the biosynthesis pathway, molecular, biochemical, genetics, and genomic mechanisms of betalains in detail.

We present a composite terrestrial pollen record of latest Eocene through Oligocene (35.5–23 Ma) vegetation and climate change from the Gippsland Basin of south-eastern Australia. Climates were overwhelmingly mesothermic through this time period, with mean annual temperature (MAT) varying between 13 and 18 °C, with an average of 16 °C. We provide evidence to support a cooling trend through the Eocene–Oligocene Transition (EOT), but also identify three subsequent warming cycles through the Oligocene, leading to more seasonal climates at the termination of the Epoch. One of the warming episodes in the Early Oligocene appears to have also occurred at two other southern hemisphere sites at the Drake Passage as well as off eastern Tasmania, based on recent research. Similarities with sea surface temperature records from modern high southern latitudes which also record similar cycles of warming and cooling, are presented and discussed. Annual precipitation varied between 1200 and 1700 mm/yr, with an average of 1470 mm/yr through the sequence. Notwithstanding the extinction of Nothofagus sg. Brassospora from Australia and some now microthermic humid restricted Podocarpaceae conifer taxa, the rainforest vegetation of lowland south-eastern Australia is reconstructed to have been similar to present day Australian Evergreen Notophyll Vine Forests existing under the sub-tropical Köppen-Geiger climate class Cfa (humid subtropical) for most of the sequence. Short periods of cooler climates, such as occurred through the EOT when MAT was ~ 13 °C, may have supported vegetation similar to modern day Evergreen Microphyll Fern Forest. Of potentially greater significance, however, was a warm period in the Early to early Late Oligocene (32–26 Ma) when MAT was 17–18 °C, accompanied by small but important increases in Araucariaceae pollen. At this time, Araucarian Notophyll/Microphyll Vine Forest likely occurred regionally.

В ходе экспедиционных исследований уточнена современная фактическая граница натурализации Аmbrosia artemisiifolia на Европейской территории России. Эта граница проходит по югу Брянской, Курской и Саратовской, северу Воронежской областей. Общая протяжённость экспедиционных маршрутов составила около 8900 км, количество обследованных точек – 777. В целях выявления потенциала дальнейшего продвижения вида на север проведён сравнительный эколого-географический анализ и моделирование распространения амброзии на севере её вторичного ареала на Европейской территории России и первичного – в Канаде. Выявлено, что основным фактором, лимитирующим продвижение вида на север, служит недостаточная теплообеспеченность периода созревания семян. Для определения эколого-географической ниши амброзии была составлена глобальная карта распределения сумм активных температур с порогом выше 10 °С за период от даты перехода длины дня через 14 часов после летнего солнцестояния до устойчивого перехода осенних температур через 0 °С (САТфп). Было определено значение САТфп на самых северных точках натурализации Аmbrosia artemisiifolia на Европейской территории России и в Канаде. Сравнение эколого-географических границ по фактору теплообеспеченности на Европейской территории России и в Канаде показало, что реализованная видом эколого-географическая ниша на Североамериканском континенте в настоящее время в целом шире, чем на Европейской территории России. Рассмотрены возможные причины, по которым амброзия не освоила всю потенциальную экологическую нишу на Европейской территории России, сделаны предположения о возможности дальнейшего продвижения вида на север. Амброзия по фактору теплообеспеченности на Европейской территории России может продвинуться дальше на север – в Брянскую, Орловскую, Липецкую, Тамбовскую, Саратовскую, Оренбургскую, южную половину Пензенской, юг Ульяновской, Самарской областей и Башкортостана. Дополнительные проблемы с продвижением вида в северо-восточном направлении на Европейской территории России могут быть обусловлены сопряжённым неблагоприятным воздействием дополнительного фактора – недостаточной влагообеспеченности, поскольку от Саратовской области и восточнее амброзия на северном пределе распространения находится в зоне экологического пессимума одновременно по показателям тепло- и влагообеспеченности.

In this study, we analyzed the distribution and the spatial pattern of species diversity of vascular plants in Nepal. The aim was to identify and evaluate the occurrence and status of species‐rich areas in Nepal using ecological and environmental drivers. We used 52,973 georeferenced herbarium specimen records, representing 2650 species collected from Nepal. Altogether, 41 environmental variables were used for model development and validation. We used MaxEnt to predict the distribution pattern. All the significant species distribution predictions were then used to develop a species richness and endemism pattern in Nepal. The High Mountain and Himalaya, particularly east and central Nepal, were found to be species diverse and endemically rich areas, whereas western Nepal had lower species richness. We observed that isothermality, slope, rugosity, potential evapotranspiration, precipitation of humid months, temperature annual range, mean diurnal range, and normalized difference in vegetation index of humid months were the most influential environmental and climatic variables. We observed that about 60% of the areas, which had highest richness and endemism values, are still not included in protected areas in Nepal. We quantitatively analyzed the species richness and endemicity patterns of Nepal and were able to identify 19 areas of high species diversity and endemicity, six of which are newly identified.

Abstract Rodent biogeographic studies are disproportionately scarce in Iran, however, they are an ideal system to understand drivers of biodiversity distributions in the country. The aims of the present research are to determine (i) the pattern of rodent richness across the country, (ii) quantify th…

Morphometry and diagnosis of Rhinomias forticornis (Boheman, 1842) are given. Distribution of Rhinomias forticornis is analyzed using known occurrences, original ecological data, correlative species distribution modeling with aspect on Last Glacial Maximum environment are given. To achieve a more re…

Background and Aims Petioles are important plant organs connecting stems with leaf blades and affecting light-harvesting ability of the leaf as well as transport of water, nutrients and biochemical signals. Despite the high diversity in petiole size, shape and anatomy, little information is availabl…

Biodiversity can be quantified by taxonomic, phylogenetic, and functional diversity. Current evidence points to a lack of congruence between the spatial distribution of these facets due to evolutionary and ecological constraints. A lack of congruence is especially evident between phylogenetic and ta…

The present study aims to use systematic conservation planning to analyse and review the national protected areas (PAs) network in Jordan. The analysis included the application of three modules: the environmental risk surface (ERS), the relative biodiversity index (RBI), and the application of Marxa…