Ecological niche models were used to evaluate whether large differences between rubyspot damselfly (Hetaerina) species in geographic range can be explained by niche differentiation. Surprisingly, the species with the largest latitudinal range has one of the narrowest climatic niches. These findings strengthen the alternative hypothesis that species interactions—in particular reproductive interference—have limited species range expansion in this genus.

We conducted a long-term N-addition experiment in a the typical steppe and found that above-ground vegetation β-diversity increased and then decreased, whereas soil seed bank β-diversity decreased linearly with increasing N addition, which suggested decoupled relationships. Our findings shed new light on plant community assembly, and highlighted the importance of considering above- and below-ground processes in effectively conserving grassland ecosystems under N enrichment.

Species-specific pairwise interactions in diverse forests significantly influence the growth of tree individuals. The resulting positive diversity–productivity relationships in forest communities are determined by systematic differences between intra- and inter-specific interactions, offering new insights into how local process drive patterns at the community scale.

We propose and test the selective sequestration hypothesis, that specialists preferentially sequester compounds that are less toxic to themselves while maintaining toxicity to enemies. Using chemically distinct plants, we show that monarch butterflies sequester a subset of cardenolide toxins from milkweed leaves that are less potent against their target enzyme (Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase) compared to those from leaves. However, sequestered compounds remain highly potent against sensitive Na⁺/K⁺-ATPases, such as those found in most predators.

Although sampling the five tallest young aspen in a stand is useful for detecting the occurrence of any aspen recruitment, this technique overestimates the population response of aspen to wolf reintroduction. Our original conclusion that random sampling described a trophic cascade that was weaker than the one described by non-random sampling is unchanged.