Climate, disturbances, and human activities as drivers of tropical forest and savanna dynamics across temporal scales Tropical forests and savannas are often described as alternative stable states maintained by feedbacks between disturbances (especially fire) and vegetation structure, although the strength and generality of these feedbacks remain debated. Their limited representation in vegetation [...]
Phylogenetic models of historical biogeography Fully understanding how any species evolved involves knowing where it lived. As the complete biogeographic history for most lineages cannot be directly observed, biologists often use phylogenetic models to reconstruct ancestral species ranges and to infer regional rates of dispersal, speciation, and extinction. This talk will [...]
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Forecasting like a climate scientist - predicting biodiversity change in the Anthropocene Biodiversity and ecosystems are degrading worldwide in response to multiple anthropogenic pressures. Yet, our ability to anticipate these changes remains limited. Current approaches are largely retrospective, making it difficult to evaluate future risks or the consequences of different [...]
Biodiversity patterns in environmental space Ever since Aristotle suggested that the distributions of organisms were related to environmental factors and Humboldt travelled the world observing dramatic differences in species richness depending on climate, scientists have been keenly aware that climate strongly influences the distribution and persistence of species on earth. Given [...]
Scaling Marine Biodiversity: Insights from a Trait-Based Framework Marine ecosystems are shaped by complex ecological and evolutionary processes that operate across spatial scales, from fine local gradients to broad biogeographical patterns. Capturing how biodiversity emerges from these drivers requires moving beyond traditional taxonomic approaches toward integrative frameworks that explicitly incorporate functional [...]
Ecology & Evolution in Spatial Structured Environments Ecological and evolutionary dynamics occur in environments that are intrinsically spatially structured, yet spatial environmental heterogeneity is often treated as a statistical complication (e.g., a nuisance term to be removed, a source of spatial autocorrelation to be corrected, or variance to be averaged out) [...]
The research of Aliaga Samanez spans biogeography, conservation biology, species distribution modeling, and public health. By integrating biogeography with disease ecology, she addresses urgent global challenges related to infectious disease prevention in an increasingly interconnected world. Her findings provide a foundation for informed decision-making in habitat management and disease surveillance strategies. Her focus on [...]
Mark Lomolino has made important contributions to island biogeography, especially to the concepts ‘habitat corridors’, ’small island effect’, and the species-area relationships. His dedicated support for The International Biogeography Society, including a profound role in the Society’s founding 25 years ago (around the year 2000), and his coauthoring of a foundational textbook of [...]
Michael Donoghue's conceptual creativity and impact in the field of biogeography, specifically his role in bringing “tree-thinking” to biogeography and in fostering connections between the phylogenetics community and researchers in historic biogeography, cannot overstated: His research and new ways of thinking have left an indelible legacy that has been carried forward by Michael’s [...]
