Synzoochory is the dispersal of seeds by seed-caching animals. The animal partner in this
interaction plays a dual role, acting both as seed disperser and seed predator. We propose …

The germline mutation rate determines the pace of genome evolution and is an evolving
parameter itself. However, little is known about what determines its evolution, as most …

Primates, like other mammals, exhibit an annual reproductive pattern that ranges from strictly
seasonal breeding to giving birth in all months of the year, but factors mediating this …

Multiple factors modulate microbial community assembly in the vertebrate gut, though
studies disagree as to their relative contribution. One cause may be a reliance on captive …

Animals in the wild are able to subsist on pathogen-infected and poisonous food and show
immunity to various diseases. These may be due to their microbiota, yet we have a poor …

The number of plastic-degrading microorganisms reported is rapidly increasing, making it
possible to explore the conservation and distribution of presumed plastic-degrading traits …

Severe insect declines make headlines, but they are rarely based on systematic monitoring
outside of Europe. We estimate the rate of change in total butterfly abundance and the …

How coral reefs survive as oases of life in low-productivity oceans has puzzled scientists for
centuries. The answer may lie in internal nutrient cycling and/or input from the pelagic zone …

Genomic DNA base composition (GC content) is predicted to significantly affect genome
functioning and species ecology. Although several hypotheses have been put forward to …

A core question in evolutionary biology is whether convergent phenotypic evolution is driven
by convergent molecular changes in proteins or regulatory regions. We combined …