Frondless ferns lie low to survive
Article Abstract:
The Killarney fern, which grows in deep shade, frequently in dark, wet, rocky ravines in oceanic settings, has come under significant pressure since the mid-19th century. Indeed, the sporophyte generation, which has the fronds that carry the spore-bearing structures, is now found only in a few places in western parts of the UK, Ireland, Brittany, western Iberia and some of the Atlantic islands. However, the gemetophyte, a free-living, independent stage with a haploid constitution, has now been found in Germany, eastern England, northern Italy, France and the Czech Republic.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1998
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Sprucing up beaver meadows
Article Abstract:
The interdependence of species in communities is often very complex, and this is demonstrated in the ecology of beaver ponds once they are abandoned by the animals that built them. Terwilliger and Pastor have focused on mycorrhizal fungi and suggest that slow and chancy dispersal may occur if the fungi is carried by small mammals, particularly the red-backed vole, which is often found in forest-edge habitats. This supports the hypothesis that the red-back vole is vital in facilitating the invasion of spruce trees into beaver meadows.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1999
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