Ant-aphid interactions may affect host plants in several ways, however, most studies measure only the amount of fruit and seed produced, and do not test seed viability. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the effects of the presence of ant-aphid interactions upon host plant productivity and seed viability in two different contexts: isolated and within an arthropod community. For this...

The ecological function of animal seed dispersal depends on species interactions and can be affected by drivers such as the management interventions applied to protected areas. This study was conducted in two protected areas in the Monte Desert: a fenced reserve with grazing exclusion and absence of large native mammals (the Man and Biosphere Ñacuñán Reserve; FR) and an unfenced reserve with lo...

For the treatment of foliar diseases of cereals, fungicides may be applied as foliar sprays or systemic seed treatments which are translocated to leaves. Little research has been done to assess the resistance risks associated with foliar-acting systemic seed treatments when used alone or in combination with foliar sprays, even though both types of treatment may share the same mode of action. It...

Reproduction in rare plants may be influenced and limited by a complex combination of factors. External threats such as invasive species and landscape characteristics such as isolation may impinge on both pollination and seed predation dynamics, which in turn can strongly affect reproduction. I assessed how patterns in floral visitation, seed predation, invasive ant presence, and plant isolatio...

BACKGROUND Recovering endangered species would benefit from identifying and ranking of the factors that threaten them. Simply managing for multiple positive influences will often aid in recovery; however, the relative impacts of multiple threats and/or interactions among them are not always predictable. We used a series of experiments and quantitative observational studies to examine the import...

Plant functional traits reflect individual and community ecological strategies. They allow the detection of directional changes in community dynamics and ecosystemic processes, being an additional tool to assess biodiversity than species richness. Analysis of functional patterns in plant communities provides mechanistic insight into biodiversity alterations due to anthropogenic activity. Althou...

Cuphea is a new oilseed crop that has undergone agricultural domestication for approximately the past 20 years. Its seed is rich in smalland medium-chain fatty acids, which are highly valued for manufacturing soaps, detergents, personal care products, and industrial lubricants. Since 1999, we have focused on developing an agricultural management strategy for cuphea production utilizing conventi...

The large number of threatened species, both insects and plants, in the European agricultural landscape, has often been attributed to the abandonment of semi-natural grasslands. Species may also be threatened in the remaining managed grasslands due to a changed and intensified management, compared to the historical use. In this study, effects of grazing management and population characteristics...