Background & Aims: East Asia represents a crucial refugium for Tertiary relict plants. Molecular phylogeographic studies have elucidated the divergence history between its north and south subregions. Nevertheless, current understanding regarding the evolutionary patterns and underlying drivers of trait variations remains relatively limited. Thus, the present study intends to investigate the evolutionary patterns and causes of the phenotypic and physiological traits of Tertiary relict plant.

Methods: Lindera obtusiloba was used to examine the geographic distribution patterns and drivers of its phenotypic and physiological traits variations by integrating field surveys and common garden experiments. We applied principal component analysis (PCA) to characterize leaf-trait distribution patterns, and used one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), redundancy analysis (RDA) and multiple linear regression analysis (MLR) to quantify population differences and environment-trait correlations.

Results: Leaf size and shape exhibited certain variations, with the most pronounced divergence observed in the southwest region or southeast region relative to other regions in the field or in the common garden. Temperature, light, and soil significantly correlated with leaf traits in the field while not in the common garden. For seeds, the greatest differences in color, weight, and maturity time were detected between north and south regions, followed by differences between the southeast and southwest regions. We found no significant correlation between environmental factors and seed weight. In the common garden, germination and unfolding phenology differed significantly among plants from different regions. Regarding other phenological characteristics, we observed more obvious differences between the north and southeast regions. The seedling survival rate was lowest in the southwest region, and the seedling growth rate and magnitude of variation were highest in the southeast region. We detected no significant differences in the light saturation point of seedlings from the three regions; the lowest light compensation point was found in seedlings from the north region, and the highest maximum net photosynthetic efficiency was found in seedlings from the southeast region.

Conclusion:The phenotypic traits of L. obtusiloba exhibit a clear geographical distribution pattern. Environmental factors predominantly regulate leaf-related traits, whereas genetic factors primarily shape seed-related and physiological traits. This research analyzes the patterns of trait variations and its associations with genetic differentiation and environmental variables, offering substantive empirical evidence for investigating the evolutionary trajectories of Tertiary relict plants..

Aims: Centaurea diffusa, an invasive alien weed characterized by broad ecological adaptability and high reproductive capacity, poses a significant threat to native ecosystems and has been listed as a quarantine pest in China. This study aims to delineate its potentially suitable habitats and spatial dynamics across China under global climate change, thereby providing a theoretical basis for early warning and precise control. 

Methods: A total of 815 valid global occurrence records of C. diffusa and 10 key environmental variables were compiled. An ensemble species distribution model was constructed using the Biomod2 package to simulate its potential suitability under current and projected future climate scenarios. Spatiotemporal shifts of the suitable habitat centroids were also quantified. 

Results: The ensemble model exhibited excellent predictive performance (AUC = 0.916). Under current climatic conditions, the total potentially suitable area for C. diffusa in China is estimated at 4.996 × 10⁶ km² (covering approximately 52.04% of the national territory), with highly suitable areas primarily concentrated in Xinjiang, Gansu, Shaanxi, and Henan provinces. The spatial distribution is predominantly driven by the mean temperature of coldest quarter (Bio11), human footprint index (Hfp), and annual mean temperature (Bio1). Under future climate scenarios, the total suitable area will remain extensive, while the highly suitable areas are projected to expand further northeastward, with Inner Mongolia emerging as the new habitat centroid. 

Conclusion: This study highlights the extensive invasion risk of C. diffusa in China. The delineated distribution patterns and spatiotemporal migration trajectories provide crucial scientific support for targeted monitoring, prevention, and management strategies.

Aims: This study aimed to identify areas of concentrated occurrence and priority verification units of the invasive plant Mikania micrantha under constrained survey coverage, and to provide spatial references for survey design, patch verification, and dynamic monitoring in protected areas. 

Methods: Spatial analyses were conducted in and around Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve, China, using occurrence records of M. micrantha and survey tracks. A total of 336 occurrence records and 283 survey-track line features, with a cumulative length of 737.75 km, were integrated. Distances from occurrence records to the nearest survey tracks were calculated, and a 200-m buffer on both sides of the survey tracks was used to define the survey-supported spatial extent. Within this extent, relative occurrence intensity was estimated using Gaussian kernel density estimation with a 2-km bandwidth and 200-m raster resolution. Relative occurrence-risk zones were classified into low, medium, high, and extremely high classes using the P50, P75, and P90 thresholds of kernel-density values. High-occurrence-intensity nodes were identified using local maxima and proximity merging, and priority verification levels were assigned according to patch-area density within the local survey-supported extent of a 2-km node buffer. 

Results: All 336 occurrence records were located within 200 m of the nearest survey track, with a mean distance of 0.96 m and a maximum distance of 10.90 m. The survey-supported spatial extent covered 282.96 km². High- and extremely high-risk zones accounted for 25.01% of the extent but contained 74.11% of occurrence records. Extremely high-risk zones occupied 10.01% of the extent and contained 44.94% of occurrence records. Six high-occurrence-intensity nodes were identified. S4 and S1 were classified as Level I priority verification nodes, S3 as a Level II node, and S2, S5, and S6 as Level III nodes. 

Conclusion: Occurrence records of M. micrantha showed strong spatial correspondence with survey tracks. Defining a survey-supported spatial extent based on survey tracks enables relative occurrence-risk zoning and priority node identification without extrapolating risk to unsurveyed areas. This approach provides a spatial reference for survey planning and field verification of invasive plants under constrained survey coverage.

Aims: Avian dietary studies are fundamental not only for understanding life-history traits but also for elucidating ecological adaptation and reproductive success. The red-billed leiothrix (Leiothrix lutea), a national second-class key protected species in China and a common insectivorous bird in the forests of southern China, exhibits highly secretive nesting and provisioning behavior during the breeding season. Consequently, the diet composition and diversity of its nestlings remain difficult to characterize accurately and comprehensively using conventional observational methods. This study aimed to assess the nestling diet of this species by integrating miniature camera monitoring with fecal DNA metabarcoding, and to evaluate the complementarity and respective limitations of the two approaches. 

Methods: Fieldwork was conducted from April to September 2025 in the Daweishan Provincial Nature Reserve, Liuyang, Hunan Province. Miniature cameras were deployed at active nests to continuously record parental provisioning behavior in a non-intrusive manner, and valid feeding events with identifiable prey items were extracted from the footage. Meanwhile, fresh nestling fecal samples were collected and subjected to DNA metabarcoding targeting the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene. Dietary composition obtained from the two methods was compared using the Sørensen similarity index and the Shannon diversity index. 

Results: Video monitoring recorded 274 valid feeding events and identified 11 invertebrate orders, with Orthoptera (29.45%), Mantodea (21.36%) and Hemiptera (19.42%) ranking highest in feeding frequency. DNA metabarcoding detected 12 invertebrate orders, with Lepidoptera (51.32%) and Hemiptera (37.17%) dominating the sequence relative abundance. The Sørensen similarity index between the two methods at the order level was 0.609, indicating moderate overlap. The Shannon diversity derived from sequencing data (3.386) was markedly higher than that from video monitoring (1.61), demonstrating that either method alone has inherent detection blind spots. 

Conclusions: The nestling diet of the Red-billed Leiothrix consists of both large-bodied and small-bodied prey: the former provide the energetic foundation, while the latter ensure dietary diversity and the stability of food provisioning. Miniature cameras and fecal DNA metabarcoding are highly complementary in dietary analysis—video monitoring excels at recording feeding behavior and identifying large, morphologically distinct prey, whereas metabarcoding is more sensitive to small, soft-bodied or highly digested prey. Their combined application yields more comprehensive dietary information and provides a reliable technical framework for future avian dietary studies.

Aims: The Himalayan marmot (Marmota himalayana) is a burrowing rodent endemic to the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. Accurately delineating its family territories holds both significant ecological value and practical importance for precision plague prevention and control. However, a rapid and quantifiable model for delineating family territory boundaries based on the burrow system has yet to be established.  

Methods: This study conducted field investigations in the high-altitude meadow of Duoma Village, Ruoergai County, and constructed a Voronoi diagram model based on the coordinates of 37 main burrows. The 701 temporary holes observed (observation group) were compared and verified with the number of temporary holes predicted within each polygon by the model (model group), and the validity of the model was evaluated using paired t-test, linear regression, and z-value method. 

Results: There was no significant statistical difference between the observation group and the model group (P > 0.05), and had a significant positive correlation (R² = 0.88, P < 0.01) between the two groups, with the overall validity of the model reaching over 95%. The model errors were mainly concentrated near the boundaries of the Voronoi diagram in the high-density central area of the study site, which was related to the elastic characteristics of the territory boundaries of the Himalayan marmot under dense competition conditions, while the fitting effect was better in the edge areas. 

Conclusion: We confirmed that the Voronoi diagram model based on the coordinates of main burrows can effectively delineate the family territory of the Himalayan marmot, and its “nearest-neighbor exclusive” principle basically conforms to the spatial utilization strategy of the species “core nest–peripheral activity area”. This study provided a simple and quantifiable technical solution for rapid assessment of the distribution of rodent territories based on the burrow system and had clear application value in the monitoring of marmot populations and targeted plague prevention and control.

Aims: The spotted seal (Phoca largha) as a flagship species in the Yellow and Bohai Seas, plays a significant ecological indicator role. In recent years, the combined effects of climate change and human activities have posed serious threats to its habitat security. This study aims to assess the potential distribution patterns and their changing trends of the spotted seal under current and future climate scenarios, providing scientific basis for the conservation and management of this species. 

Methods: Based on 10 species distribution modeling algorithms, we selected 9 high-performing models using the AUC and TSS metrics to construct an ensemble model for predicting suitable habitats for spotted seals and quantified the contributions of key environmental factors. 

Results: The combined model performs well, with an average AUC value of 0.87 and a TSS value of 0.69, indicating high prediction accuracy. The variable analysis results show that sea surface temperature is the most critical environmental factor affecting the distribution of spotted seals, while fishing intensity and shipping traffic intensity contribute relatively less. Under the current climate conditions, the potential distribution of spotted seals mainly concentrates in the northern regions of the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea. Under future climate change scenarios, the suitable habitats for spotted seals will significantly shrink. In the SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, and SSP5-8.5 scenarios, the suitable habitat area will decrease by 54.167%, 52.083%, and 65.709%, respectively; by 2100, the habitat area in the SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, and SSP5-8.5 scenarios will decrease by 68.978%, 95.636%, and 99.772%, respectively. 

Conclusion: This study reveals the contraction trend of the potential habitat of the spotted seal under the background of climate change and its main driving factors, which can provide scientific basis for marine ecological protection in the Yellow and Bohai Seas, as well as for the management and protection strategies of the spotted seal's habitat.

Aims: This study aimed to investigate fish diversity and community characteristics in estuarine reef waters and to examine seasonal differences in fish species composition, community structure, and functional characteristics in waters adjacent to Wanshan Island in the Pearl River Estuary. 

Methods: Fish assemblages were surveyed using trammel nets in March 2021 (spring) and September 2021 (autumn). Species composition, community structure, biodiversity, and seasonal differences in fish assemblages in waters adjacent to Wanshan Island were analysed. 

Results: A total of 97 fish species were recorded, including 59 species in spring and 60 species in autumn. The species-level Jaccard similarity index between the two seasons was 0.23, indicating low similarity in species composition. In contrast, the Margalef richness index, Shannon-Wiener diversity index, Pielou evenness index, average taxonomic distinctness (Δ+), and variation taxonomic distinctness (Λ+) were similar between seasons, with absolute differences of 0.003, 0.003, 0.004, 0.71, and 1.60, respectively. Functional β-diversity was dominated by the turnover component rather than the nestedness-resultant component, indicating that seasonal functional differences arose primarily from the replacement of portions of functional trait space rather than from the functional space of one season being nested within that of the other. Functional richness (FRic), functional evenness (FEve), functional divergence (FDiv), and functional dispersion (FDis) were all higher in spring than in autumn. Migratory fishes contributed greater proportions of total numerical abundance and biomass in spring, while medium- and large-bodied fishes also accounted for higher proportions of numerical abundance and biomass. Moreover, the trophic-level distribution was broader and multimodal in spring, indicating a broader trophic structure and a wider range of potential resource-use strategies. 

Conclusions: Fish species composition differed markedly between spring and autumn, whereas conventional diversity and taxonomic distinctness indices remained broadly similar. Seasonal functional differences were mainly driven by turnover in functional trait space, and the spring assemblage exhibited broader functional and trophic distributions than the autumn assemblage. These findings provide baseline information and a scientific basis for fish diversity conservation and the sustainable use of fishery resources in reef waters of the Pearl River Estuary.

Aim: The juvenile Tachypleus tridentatus is an endangered marine arthropod whose juveniles, generally ranging from instars 1 to 12, inhabit intertidal sand-mud flats. This study aimed to assess the population status of juvenile Tachypleus tridentatus and characterize the habitat conditions of its nursery grounds in Dongshan Bay, Fujian, China. 

Methods: Surveys on the distribution of juvenile populations and nursery grounds were conducted along the coastal tidal flats of Dongshan Bay. Ten seasonal surveys were carried out at Shanqian Beach, Lieyu Town, from August 2021 to June 2025. Intertidal transect surveys combined with kernel density estimation were used to analyze the spatial distribution of juveniles. Sediment grain-size composition and macrobenthic community characteristics were compared among zones with different juvenile densities. 

Results: Shanqian Beach was the only remaining functional nursery ground identified in Dongshan Bay. Juvenile density ranged from 0.0096 to 0.1536 ind./100 m², indicating an overall low population density. Juveniles ranged from instar 3 to instar 12, with instars 6–9 accounting for a relatively large proportion of the population across survey years, indicating temporal variation in instar structure. Sediment grain-size composition differed significantly among density zones; high-density zones were characterized by sandy substrates with low gravel content and relatively higher silt content. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index, Margalef richness index, and Pielou evenness index of macrobenthos were significantly higher in high- and medium-density zones than in the low-density zones, whereas macrobenthic density and biomass did not differ significantly among zones. Macrobenthic community composition differed significantly among density zones, but this differentiation was primarily driven by variations in the abundance of a few dominant species, such as Simplisetia erythraeensis and Batillaria cumingi. 

Conclusion: The spatial distribution of juvenile T. tridentatus was related to sediment characteristics and macrobenthic community composition. We recommend prioritizing the protection of the core nursery zone in the northern part of Shanqian Beach, controlling anthropogenic disturbances, conducting comprehensive assessments of the nursery ground and its surrounding environment, and implementing scientifically guided stock enhancement and release to promote long-term population recovery. This study provides a scientific basis for the conservation and ecological restoration of nursery habitats of the Chinese horseshoe crab.

Aims: Millipedes play diverse roles as consumers, decomposers, and soil engineers, exerting critical influences on carbon and nitrogen cycling and greenhouse gas emissions in ecosystems. However, the current paucity of studies on the seasonal dynamics of millipede communities hinders a systematic understanding of their ecological functions. 

Methods: This study investigated the seasonal variations in millipede community composition, structure, and diversity in the limestone tropical monsoon forests of Xishuangbanna, and analyzed the relationships between these variables and the plant community, microbial biomass, and soil physicochemical properties. 

Results: (1) A total of 268 millipedes were collected, belonging to six orders and six families. The composition and diversity of the millipede community showed significant seasonal variations. In the wet season, the total density of millipedes and the densities of the dominant groups Zephroniidae and Pseudospirobolellidae were 2.76, 2.80, and 6.29 times those in the dry season, respectively. The total number of millipede family-level groups, the Margalef richness index, and the Shannon-Wiener diversity index were 1.95, 1.80, and 1.41 times those in the dry season, respectively. (2) The partial correlation analysis revealed that the total density of millipedes was positively associated with the number of tree layer species, shrub layer species, and herbaceous layer species, litter thickness, soil water content, and total nitrogen (P < 0.05, 0.01, or 0.001). Moreover, both the total number of millipede groups and the Margalef richness index showed positive correlations with soil organic carbon and microbial biomass carbon (P < 0.05). By contrast, the total number of millipede groups and the Shannon-Wiener diversity index exhibited negative correlations with air temperature (P < 0.05 or 0.01). (3) The results of redundancy analysis (RDA) demonstrated that soil water content, litter thickness, and number of herbaceous layer species were the main factors regulating millipede community composition, with contributions of 88.6%, 3.8%, and 1.4%, respectively. In contrast, air temperature and microbial biomass carbon were the dominant factors driving millipede diversity, accounting for 77.8% and 5.7% of the explained variation, respectively. 

Conclusion: Seasonal variations in the surface-active millipede community in the limestone tropical monsoon forests of Xishuangbanna are primarily driven by the combined effects of biotic and abiotic factors, including microclimate, litter, and microorganisms. The findings of this study provide critical support for research on tropical millipede biogeography and its underlying mechanisms.

Aims: Bee and wasps constitute an important functional group in agroecosystems, encompassing pollinators that provide pollination services, as well as parasitoid wasps and predatory wasp assemblages involved in pest regulation. Elucidating the spatiotemporal variation patterns and driving mechanisms of their community structures is of great significance for the conservation of pollinator diversity and farmland natural enemy diversity. However, the relative contributions of habitat types and monthly dynamics to bee and wasp communities remain poorly understood in tropical agricultural landscapes. 

Methods: A one‑year monthly survey of bee and wasp taxa was conducted across four habitat types (roadside, wasteland, farmland, and woodland) in the agricultural landscape of Danzhou Campus, Hainan University. We applied α‑diversity indices, non‑metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS), permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA), β‑diversity partitioning, and indicator species analysis to systematically explore the spatiotemporal variation and driving mechanisms of bee and wasp community structure. 

Results: A total of 2,943 bee and wasp individuals were collected, belonging to 120 species, 75 genera, and 17 families. After controlling for sampling intensity (effective monthly sweep net sampling times), no significant differences in α-diversity were detected among habitat groups, although their median values differed numerically. PERMANOVA revealed that both habitat and month significantly affected community composition, with month explaining a higher proportion of community variation than habitat. β‑diversity partitioning indicated that community dissimilarity at both habitat and temporal scales was predominantly driven by species turnover, while the contribution of nestedness was low. Indicator species analysis showed that roadside habitats harbored the highest number of characteristic indicator species (18 species, including Apis cerana, Apis mellifera, and Amegilla sp. 1), woodland habitat had one significant indicator species (Cremnops sp. 1), while farmland and wasteland had no significant indicator species. 

Conclusion: In tropical agricultural landscapes, temporal turnover across months is the primary driver of compositional variation in bee and wasp communities, accounting for 19.9% of the total variance, while habitat type contributes far less explanatory power at only 9.5%. Species turnover constitutes the core process underlying both spatial and temporal differentiation of bee and wasp communities. Our findings highlight the crucial role of temporal processes in bee and wasp community assembly, and provide a theoretical basis for bee and wasp biodiversity conservation and habitat management in tropical agroecosystems.

Aim: The inherent growth characteristics of plants necessitate reliance on external agents for pollen transfer, forming close mutualistic relationships with flower-visiting insects. However, differences in flower-visiting insect communities between invasive and non-invasive plants in urban ecosystems, as well as the impacts of invasive plants on flower-visiting insect diversity and plant–pollinator interaction networks, remain poorly understood. This study, conducted in six urban parks in Fuzhou, compares the composition, diversity, and network-level parameters of flower-visiting insects between invasive and non-invasive plants to explore these differences. 

Methods: Based on field surveys of flowering plants and their flower-visiting insects in the six parks, we employed linear mixed models (GLMM and LMM), β-diversity partitioning, non-metric multidimensional scaling, and network analysis. 

Results: (1) A total of 26 invasive plant species were recorded, predominantly Asteraceae, while 98 non-invasive species were recorded, mainly Rosaceae. Among flower-visiting insects, 144 species (belonging to 6 orders and 36 families) were associated with invasive plants, and 156 species (belonging to 7 orders and 46 families) were associated with non-invasive plants. Hymenoptera dominated both groups, while Lepidoptera and Hemiptera exhibited significant visitation preferences for invasive plants. (2) The number of invasive plant species was significantly positively correlated with flower-visiting insect diversity and significantly negatively correlated with the species-level specialization index (d′), although the explanatory power was low (R² = 0.135). Invasive and non-invasive plants shared some flower-visiting insects, while invasive plants additionally attracted other insects. Functional group differences between the two insect communities were not significant, indicating functional redundancy. (3) Invasive plants led to decreased connectivity of plant-flower visitor networks, a less negative nestedness Z-score, and declines in both modularity and network specialization (H₂'). 

Conclusions: In Fuzhou parks, the flower-visiting insect community structure on invasive plants is more uneven than that on non-invasive plants, dominated by a few dominant species. Invasive plants attract new insects and form new interaction modules, rather than simply replacing or simplifying the original pollination network. We speculate that invasive plants may ultimately occupy a dominant position in the network.

Aim: Ex situ conservation is an important complement to in situ conservation, yet current ex situ practices often pay insufficient attention to maintaining genetic representativeness and integrity, limiting the long-term persistence and authenticity of ex situ populations. We investigated the genetic lineages and demographic history of the Chinese endemic Tertiary relict tree Parrotia subaequalis and developed an integrated framework for its ex situ conservation. 

Methods: We integrated field resource surveys, whole-genome resequencing, community phylogenetic analyses, ecological niche modeling, and artificial propagation experiments to characterize genetic diversity and evolutionary history, identify suitable habitats and companion species for ex situ conservation, and optimize propagation protocols. 

Results: Population genomic analyses identified four distinct genetic lineages (AD). Phylogenetic and genetic composition analyses revealed that the contemporary center of genetic diversity in P. subaequalis is located in the eastern mountainous region spanning the Zhejiang-Anhui border (from the Tianmu Mountains to the Tiantai Mountains), where all four genetic lineages are represented. In contrast, populations in the western Dabie Mountains consist exclusively of the genetically homogeneous lineage A, with individual genotypes showing signatures of recent differentiation. This distribution pattern is consistent with the founder effect associated with the postglacial westward expansion of P. subaequalis from eastern microrefugia. Ecological niche modeling further supported a Holocene range expansion of lineage A from east to west. Demographic reconstruction revealed a continuous decline in effective population size across all lineages since approximately 0.3 million years ago (Ma), indicating that glacial isolation in microrefugia followed by postglacial dispersal jointly shaped the contemporary genetic structure of the species. Community phylogenetic analyses identified environmental filtering as the dominant mechanism of community assembly, with the strongest filtering occurring between 400 and 800 m elevation. Based on these results, we identified 19 suitable companion species to guide ex situ site selection and community design. Ex situ cultivation trials further demonstrated that this elevational range provided the most suitable conditions for seedling growth, with maximum stem diameter and seedling height recorded at 565 and 835 m, respectively. Orthogonal experiments optimized containerized seedling production, resulting in the propagation of 11,436 container-grown seedlings and the establishment of two ex situ conservation populations representing all four genetic lineages. 

Conclusion: By integrating genetic structure analyses, community assembly, artificial propagation, and long-term monitoring, we established a comprehensive ex situ conservation system for P. subaequalis. This integrated framework preserves genetic diversity and evolutionary potential while facilitating sustainable population establishment, and provides a transferable model for the conservation of other relict and threatened woody plants.

Aims: Genetic diversity is an indispensable component of biodiversity conservation and management. Przewalski’s gazelle (Procapra przewalskii) is among the world’s most endangered antelopes. In recent years, its population size has shown demographic recovery. Therefore, investigating the genetic diversity of Procapra przewalskii in the context of population recovery is essential for the effective conservation of this species. 

Methods: We analyzed 287 fecal samples of Procapra przewalskii collected during 2023–2024 using mitochondrial DNA and microsatellite markers. Genetic diversity, genetic structure, and demographic history were assessed. 

Results: Mitochondrial DNA revealed high haplotype diversity and low nucleotide diversity, while microsatellite markers indicated relatively high nuclear genetic diversity. The genetic diversity of Procapra przewalskii has shown an increasing trend compared with that around 2010, although marked differences in genetic diversity were observed among geographic populations. Genetic variation in extant Procapra przewalskii was mainly distributed within populations. Genetic differentiation among populations was low, no significant phylogeographic structure was detected, and the overall level of inbreeding was moderate to low. Geographic distance was significantly positively correlated with genetic distance among geographical populations. Moreover, genetic differentiation between populations on either side of the Qinghai–Tibet Railway was higher than that across G315 Highway, indicating that the railway impedes gene flow among populations within the core distribution area. Demographic history analyses indicated that Procapra przewalskii experienced a population expansion event, while the effective population size has undergone a rapid decline over the past three to four thousand years, primarily driven by the combined effects of late-Holocene climatic cooling and drying, vegetation pattern shifts, and intensified human agro-pastoral activities. 

Conclusions: Based on the current genetic status of Procapra przewalskii, we recommend that all extant Procapra przewalskii populations be treated as a single evolutionarily significant unit. In addition, ecological corridors should be prioritized on both sides of the Qinghai–Tibet Railway, and the introduction of individuals from external populations into the Bird Island population should be considered after genetic risk assessment, with the aim of achieving genetic rescue of this small population. This study provides a conservation genetic basis for the scientific conservation of extant Procapra przewalskii in the context of population recovery.

Aims: This study aims to investigate the evolutionary origin and molecular mechanisms underlying homoploid hybrid speciation in the golden-crowned manakin (Lepidothrix vilasboasi), a hybrid bird species distributed in the Amazon Basin. 

Methods: Using genome-wide SNP data from L. vilasboasi and its two parental species, the snow-capped manakin (L. nattereri) and the opal-crowned manakin (L. iris), we conducted population genetic analyses with ADMIXTURE and PCA to infer genetic structure, and employed D-statistics (ABBA-BABA tests) to examine gene flow patterns. We further applied a recently proposed molecular model of homoploid hybrid speciation to explore how hybridization contributes to reproductive isolation. Finally, gene family analyses of those positively selected genes were carried out using BLASTP, MAFFT alignments, and phylogenetic reconstruction to assess gene duplication and evolutionary constraint. 

Results: Our results support the hypothesis that L. vilasboasi has an ancient hybrid origin. The establishment of reproductive isolation in this hybrid species may have been facilitated by the inheritance of alternate parental premating isolation-related candidate genes from both parental species. Genes related to skin pigmentation and reproductive system development were identified as potential contributors to both prezygotic and postzygotic isolation mechanisms. Gene family analysis revealed that ADAMTS10, ASTL, and ALX4 underwent multiple duplication events; ESRRG showed extensive gene expansion; and OCA2 exhibited strong evolutionary constraint and high sequence conservation. 

Conclusion: This study highlights the important role of hybridization in avian speciation and phenotypic diversification, providing new molecular evidence for the genetic basis of reproductive isolation in homoploid hybrid species. Our findings further support the applicability of the proposed molecular model of homoploid hybrid speciation across different lineages and suggest that the inheritance of alternate parental genomic components associated with reproductive isolation may facilitate the origin of new species.

Aims: Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) within protected areas keeps showing an increasing trend, undermining the effectiveness of biodiversity conservation. However, previous studies fail to identify conservation targets highly susceptible to ALAN, neglect to address the mitigating effect of functional zoning on ALAN disturbance, and rarely focus on the landscape pattern characteristics of patches disturbed by ALAN. 

Methods: We employed nighttime light remote sensing data of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region from 2015 to 2024 recorded by the Joint Polar Satellite System. A time-series dataset was constructed via the mean value overlay composite method. On designated spatial units, the mean radiance index of ALAN was calculated. Multiple analyses were subsequently conducted, including the Mann-Kendall trend test, establishment of a disturbance intensity classification system, and landscape pattern analysis of disturbed patches. 

Results: (1) The ALAN radiance intensity within nature reserves across the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region accounted for approximately one quarter of the regional average, which indicated that human disturbance had been well restrained inside reserves. Nevertheless, 94.54% of the reserve areas showed a significant or extremely significant increasing trend in ALAN. Human activities significantly altered the nighttime darkness within nature reserves. (2) The number of reserves with II and III disturbance grades kept rising. Among all reserves, 22 experienced a one-grade upward shift, and 12 saw a two-grade increase. (3) Wetland reserves exhibited remarkably higher ALAN radiance intensity than others. Significant disparities existed between both core zones, buffer zones and experimental zones. (4) II and III disturbance grades patches were distributed both inside and along the edges of reserves, while IV grade patches concentrated on reserve peripheries. 

Conclusion: This research broadens the application of nighttime light remote sensing in ecological assessment of protected areas. It suggests strengthened monitoring and regulation of human activities surrounding reserves, and calls for wider application of nighttime light remote sensing in protected area planning, supervision of key ecological spaces, and conservation effectiveness evaluation.

Aims: To clarify the current status of macrofungi resources in Northeast Asia and to address the deficiencies of scattered data and synonyms. 

Methods: By integrating data from domestic and international core journals and authoritative databases, and combining with our team’s field survey data on macrofungi in Northeast China from 2022 to 2025, we compiled and constructed a species checklist of macrofungi in Northeast Asia, and analyzed it from three aspects: species composition, regional common taxa, and familial and generic floristic composition. 

Results: The results showed that the checklist recorded a total of 6,731 species and 28 varieties belonging to 2 phyla, 10 classes, 43 orders, 223 families, and 1,115 genera, among which Basidiomycota accounted for 85.92% of the total species and Ascomycota accounted for 14.08%. The regional distribution of species richness was significantly different, with Northeast China having the most (3,678 species, 2 varieties), followed by the Russian Far East (2,934 species and 2 varieties) and Japan (2,894 species and 14 varieties), while the Republic of Korea had fewer species (2,161 species and 10 varieties) and Mongolia the lowest (473 species). The proportion of common taxa increased progressively from species to order levels among the five regions (3.54%, 16.32%, 39.91%, and 44.19%), and the proportion of regional endemic species was higher at lower taxonomic ranks. Adjacent regions shared a higher proportion of common species, while distant regions shared fewer common taxa. The endemic species in Northeast China, the Russian Far East, and Japan were abundant. In terms of floristic composition at the family and genus levels, 32 dominant families (14.35% of total families) encompassed 67.62% of the species, and 334 dominant genera (3.05% of total genera) contained 40.67% of the species, while the numbers of oligotypic and monotypic families and genera, and monotypic genera were large but their species proportions were relatively low. 

Conclusion: All data compiled in this study were collected up to December 31, 2025. The checklist provides fundamental data support for species conservation, resource development, and subsequent floristic research on macrofungi in Northeast Asia, and this inventory will be regularly updated and refined in the future.

Background & Aim: Zeta (ζ) diversity is a core metric for quantifying compositional changes in species assemblages across multiple sites, defined as the average number of species shared by a given number of sites. By systematically assessing how this metric changes as the number of shared sites increases, it constructs a complete distribution spectrum from rare to common species, providing a novel perspective for analyzing multi-scale community assembly mechanisms. The continuous expansion and integration of methodologies centered on the zeta diversity have collectively formed the zeta diversity analytical framework, which has become an important tool for understanding biodiversity’s spatial and temporal dynamics. This review aims to systematically summarize the latest advances in this framework to comprehensively reflect its developmental landscape. 

Review results: This review first traces the theoretical origins of the zeta diversity analytical framework and outlined its research status across different biological taxa and ecosystems. It then detailed the evolutionary trajectory of its core metric (zeta diversity), key derived patterns (zeta decline, zeta decay), and analytical tools (e.g., retention rate, multi-site generalized dissimilarity modelling). Furthermore, the expansion of the framework into frontier dimensions such as functional traits and species interaction networks was elaborated. Subsequently, the review summarized the framework’s concrete applications in conservation practice, including assessing conservation effectiveness, diagnosing biotic threats, and supporting spatial planning. 

Conclusions: Finally, the paper discusses the current data and methodological challenges facing the framework and provides an outlook on future research directions. The objective is to promote its deeper application within the context of biodiversity conservation research and management practice in China.

Vegetation plot data play a crucial role in addressing major scientific questions, including theoretical issues such as community assembly mechanisms and species distribution patterns, as well as practical challenges like responses to global environmental change. However, the broad use of these data is constrained by factors such as structural discrepancies, restricted access, and duplicate records. Therefore, this paper identified ten prominent global public vegetation plot databases through literature review and expert consultations, including GIVD, sPlot, BIEN, VegBank, EVA, FIA, GFBI, BioTIME, ReSurveyEurope, and forestREplot. We compiled datasets across these databases and analyzed their characteristics to enhance data usability and support macroecological research.Our results show that, as of May 2026, these 10 vegetation plot databases have integrated data from 6.109 million plots, yet significant limitations remain. First, the spatial distribution is extremely uneven, with plots heavily concentrated in Europe (4.079 million, 67.1%) and North America (1.353 million, 22.1%), while data from other regions are severely scarce. Second, data heterogeneity is high: 78.5% (4.370 million) of the plots contain complete vascular plant checklists, whereas 21.5% (1.914 million) record only woody plants. Species abundance metrics are primarily recorded as cover (63.1%, 3.388 million plots); fewer than 35% of plots record individual counts or diameter at breast height (DBH)/tree height. Third, crucial information is widely lacking: the majority of plots (71.1%, 3.952 million) exhibit low georeferencing precision (error > 25 m), and environmental variables are generally underreported, especially for microtopography (5.2%, 0.229 million plots) and soil factors (soil pH, soil depth, and other soil attributes are all below 10%). Fourth, long-term monitoring data are scarce: only 14.8% (0.905 million plots) of the plots have resurvey records.Future efforts should prioritize filling data gaps in underrepresented regions and promoting the development of globally unified data standards.In addition, China possesses abundant vegetation survey data, but they are scattered across data centers, vegetation monographs, and data papers. For China, an urgent priority is to establish a national standardized data integration platform, promote data sharing through incentives such as data papers, and actively lead the construction of a regional vegetation database covering the entirety of Asia.

Aims: Urbanization has increasingly altered freshwater ecosystems and threatens the biodiversity of Odonata, a group highly dependent on coupled aquatic-terrestrial habitats. Although studies on urban dragonfly habitats have expanded rapidly in recent years, a systematic synthesis that links ecological threats, habitat requirements and restoration strategies remains scarce. This study aims to review current knowledge on urban dragonfly habitats within the context of urban ecology, urban biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration. 

Methods: Publications from 2005 to 2025 were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection using a bibliometric search strategy and combined with a systematic screening procedure. Bibliometric and thematic analyses were combined to examine the temporal trends and geographic distribution in dragonfly habitat studies. The ecological threats, habitat requirements and restoration approaches identified in previous studies were further synthesized and categorized

Review Findings: Existing studies indicate that urban dragonfly diversity is jointly constrained by habitat fragmentation, hydrological alteration, water pollution, vegetation simplification and reduced habitat connectivity. Dragonflies rely not only on aquatic environments for larval development, but also on surrounding terrestrial habitats for foraging, dispersal, shelter and reproduction, highlighting the importance of coupled aquatic-terrestrial habitat systems. Habitat heterogeneity, riparian vegetation structure, microclimatic stability and landscape-scale connectivity were repeatedly identified as key determinants of species persistence and assemblage stability. Recent studies increasingly emphasize metacommunity dynamics, regional species pools and blue-green ecological networks in urban dragonfly conservation. 

Conclusion: Based on this synthesis, we summarize restoration strategies at the regional and habitat-patch scales, including enhancement of blue-green connectivity, restoration of habitat heterogeneity and adaptive management of urban freshwater habitats. Future research should strengthen empirical studies on dragonfly responses across urbanization gradients, multi-scale habitat connectivity and long-term adaptive management, in order to facilitate the transition from isolated habitat restoration toward integrated urban freshwater biodiversity governance.

Background & Aim: To optimize the management of China’s new protected area system with national parks as the mainstay and to support the Global "30 by 30" Target for priority area conservation. This study systematically reviews mainstream domestic and international methodologies for evaluating the management effectiveness of protected areas, as well as the current status of assessments within China. 

Progress: The assessment framework has evolved into a pattern of parallel progression between internationally accepted paradigms and localized Chinese explorations; Assessment tools have become increasingly diverse, yet methods specifically targeting nature parks under the new system remain underdeveloped; While existing indicators generally emphasize foundational safeguards, management processes, conservation outcomes, and negative impacts, they lack sufficient responsiveness to the differentiated positioning of various protected areas categories. Domestic assessments reveal high management standards in national parks and national-level nature reserves, whereas the coverage and research depth for provincial-level nature reserves and nature parks require urgent enhancement to meet the demands of refined management in the new era; and management effectiveness is driven by multiple factors—including natural attributes, socio-economic conditions, and management indicators—although their coupled mechanisms remain insufficiently understood. 

Perspectives: It is imperative to construct a modular assessment system characterized by "unified core indicators and adaptive flexible indicators," expand empirical research on all types and levels of protected areas, and build a tiered-coordinated, periodically implemented assessment mechanism and a national shared platform for assessment data. Furthermore, future efforts should strengthen the analysis of multi-factor driving mechanisms behind management effectiveness and promote the dynamic alignment of indicator systems with laws, policies, regulations, and technical standards. These steps are crucial for systematically enhancing the comprehensive management efficacy of China’s protected areas.

Background & Aim: Biodiversity loss constitutes one of the most pressing ecological crises of the twenty-first century. Conventional conservation approaches centered on direct driver intervention—protected area designation, habitat restoration, species recovery and pollution control—have proven structurally insufficient, as evidenced by the failure to fully achieve any of the 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets globally by 2020. The Transformative Change Assessment of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) argues that the root causes of biodiversity decline reside in indirect structural drivers—production–consumption patterns, institutional arrangements and socio-cultural norms—and that systemic transformation of these upstream mechanisms is indispensable. This paper develops a comparative analytical framework contrasting direct driver intervention with transformative change across four dimensions (governance targets, governance scale, policy instruments and evaluative criteria) and applies it to diagnose China's current governance trajectory in the context of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). Building on this framework, we further clarify the defining features that distinguish transformative change from incremental governance improvement, propose an operational definition of transformation-oriented biodiversity governance in the Chinese context, and derive a four-link mechanism of institutional translation: national strategic coordination, spatial governance anchoring, sectoral policy embedding, and feedback from local experimentation. 

Progress: This review reveals that China has established a solid governance foundation, including a protected area system covering approximately 18% of its terrestrial territory, an ecological conservation redline encompassing over 30% of national land, a substantially strengthened legislative framework, and an updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (2023–2030). The analysis shows that national strategies translate the ecological civilization agenda into overarching goals; ecological conservation redlines, protected areas and territorial spatial planning anchor these goals in spatial rules; the “1+N” policy system is intended to embed biodiversity requirements in relevant economic sectors; and local pilot programmes provide feedback for policy calibration and institutional diffusion. Nevertheless, the analysis identifies four structural bottlenecks: limited intervention along causal driver chains, insufficient mainstreaming constraints in core economic sectors, incomplete cross-ministerial coordination, and evaluation frameworks that do not yet capture transformative processes. In particular, the assessment and disclosure of large companies' biodiversity dependencies, impacts and risks—including those along supply and value chains—remain underdeveloped. 

Perspectives: Taken together, the findings indicate that deepening China’s biodiversity governance transition depends not primarily on adding individual conservation instruments, but on strengthening the coupling and feedback among national strategy, spatial rules, sectoral responsibilities and local experimentation. This four-link mechanism extends the explanatory scope of the IPBES transformative change framework from identifying drivers of biodiversity loss to explaining how global transformation goals are translated into spatial governance rules, sectoral responsibilities and adaptive policy feedback within a national governance system.

Background& Aim: Amid accelerating biodiversity loss and the growing mainstreaming of biodiversity conservation in policy and planning, a central challenge for urban-rural ecological spatial governance is how to translate complex ecological knowledge into spatial evidence that can inform planning and management. The surrogate species approach has long been valued in conservation biology because it can organize ecological information, identify conservation priorities, and support spatial intervention at relatively low informational and managerial cost. However, most existing applications remain rooted in protected-area designation and species-oriented conservation, and are not readily transferable to the multi-objective, multi-scalar, and implementation-oriented context of territorial spatial planning. This paper aims to reconsider the surrogate species approach from the perspective of urban-rural ecological spatial governance, clarify its planning-oriented conceptual boundaries, and explore how it may be translated into operational planning evidence and implementation pathways. 

Findings: The review shows that the surrogate species approach has gradually expanded from protected-area selection and species conservation toward broader spatial governance contexts, including ecological network construction, green-blue infrastructure optimization, watershed governance, and urban biodiversity enhancement. Nevertheless, several limitations remain. Conceptual boundaries among different surrogate-related categories are still blurred; application experiences are often fragmented and case-specific; cross-scenario and cross-scale integration is insufficient; and the spatial evidence derived from surrogate species has not been effectively incorporated into statutory planning processes. In response to these gaps, this paper develops a planning-oriented interpretive framework for the surrogate species approach. It proposes a translation logic linking ecological niches, ecological processes, and spatial planning, establishes a three-dimensional analytical framework structured around ecological baselines, disturbance intensity, and planning objectives, and discusses differentiated technical pathways for three typical scenarios: urban built-up areas, urban-rural transitional zones, and watershed-rural zones. It further identifies the main planning interfaces through which surrogate-species-based spatial evidence can enter county- and lower-level master plans, detailed plans, and special plans, and outlines an implementation framework composed of practical constraints, supporting conditions, and adaptive operation. 

Recommendations: The significance of the surrogate species approach does not lie in replacing the full complexity of ecosystems with a few representative species, but in providing an intermediate pathway through which ecological recognition can be transformed into spatial evidence and further incorporated into planning, implementation, and feedback processes. Future research should strengthen dynamic scenario simulation, cross-scale translation, multi- objective evaluation, institutional embedding, and the integration of intelligent technologies, so as to enhance the applicability and practical effectiveness of the surrogate species approach in urban-rural ecological spatial governance.