Michael Kessler
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View article: Global Diversification Rates of Ferns Across Spatial and Climatic Gradients
Global Diversification Rates of Ferns Across Spatial and Climatic Gradients Open
Geographic patterns of diversity in any group of plants are the result of the interplay of environmental conditions and the evolutionary dynamics of the respective plant group. Here, the geographic distribution of current mean diversificat…
View article: Analogous Environments Across the Tropics Have Similar Levels of Tree Species Αlpha Diversity
Analogous Environments Across the Tropics Have Similar Levels of Tree Species Αlpha Diversity Open
Different regions of the tropics vary in overall tree species diversity, with the tropical Americas exhibiting strikingly higher regional tree species richness than Africa and Southeast Asia. We investigated whether these differences also …
View article: Water availability and evolutionary similarity shape the global distribution of ferns with chlorophyllous spores
Water availability and evolutionary similarity shape the global distribution of ferns with chlorophyllous spores Open
About 14% of all fern species have chlorophyllous spores, which lack dormancy, have thin walls, and have a shorter viability (only a few days in some species). These spores should have limited dispersal distances and be more susceptible to…
View article: One Century of Change: Stronger Diversity Decline in Lowland Than in Mountain Grasslands in Central Europe
One Century of Change: Stronger Diversity Decline in Lowland Than in Mountain Grasslands in Central Europe Open
Quantitative long‐term assessments of the extent and direction of biodiversity change due to anthropogenic environmental change are challenging because representative baseline data older than a few decades are very rare. This is also the c…
View article: First complete plastomes of the emblematic Andean tree genus Polylepis Ruiz & Pav. (Rosaceae)
First complete plastomes of the emblematic Andean tree genus Polylepis Ruiz & Pav. (Rosaceae) Open
Plastome genomics and phylogenomics are essential tools for understanding plant diversity and evolution. Here we report the complete plastomes of Polylepis australis and P. microphylla , two species of the Andean tree genus Polylepis which…
View article: Divergence and Selection in a Cryptic Species Complex (<i>Geonoma undata</i>: Arecaceae) in the Northern Andes of Colombia
Divergence and Selection in a Cryptic Species Complex (<i>Geonoma undata</i>: Arecaceae) in the Northern Andes of Colombia Open
Palms (family Arecaceae) are integral to understanding the evolution of tropical rainforests due to their long evolutionary history, high species richness, and hyper dominance in these ecosystems. Some palm genera, like Geonoma, are region…
View article: A reassessment of the Neotropical Cyathea pungens complex (Cyatheaceae)
A reassessment of the Neotropical Cyathea pungens complex (Cyatheaceae) Open
Cyathea pungens, a widespread Neotropical scaly tree fern, is reassessed taxonomically. Based on extensive field observations in South America and the Caribbean, and comparative studies of herbarium specimens and online resources, we defin…
View article: Temperature dependence of liverwort diversification reveals a cool origin and hot hotspots
Temperature dependence of liverwort diversification reveals a cool origin and hot hotspots Open
The evolutionary history underlying gradients in species richness is still subject to discussions and understanding the past niche evolution might be crucial in estimating the potential of taxa to adapt to changing environmental conditions…
View article: Low Mortality Rates Among Tropical Ferns
Low Mortality Rates Among Tropical Ferns Open
Tropical ferns are underrepresented in demographic studies, despite their ecological importance in forest ecosystems. This study investigates the mortality rates of terrestrial ferns along an elevational gradient (500–4000 m a.s.l.) in Ecu…
View article: Contrasting topography-vegetation relationships at natural and human-influenced mountain treelines in the Peruvian Andes
Contrasting topography-vegetation relationships at natural and human-influenced mountain treelines in the Peruvian Andes Open
Context The tropical Andes have a long history of human land use, which has affected vegetation patterns especially at high elevations. However, reference patterns to quantify these effects are missing due to lacking data from mountain ran…
View article: Global decoupling of functional and phylogenetic diversity in plant communities
Global decoupling of functional and phylogenetic diversity in plant communities Open
Plant communities are composed of species that differ both in functional traits and evolutionary histories. As species' functional traits partly result from their individual evolutionary history, we expect the functional diversity of commu…
View article: GLOBAL BIOGEOGRAPHY AND EVOLUTIONARY DRIVERS OF FERNS WITH CHLOROPHYLLOUS SPORES
GLOBAL BIOGEOGRAPHY AND EVOLUTIONARY DRIVERS OF FERNS WITH CHLOROPHYLLOUS SPORES Open
About 14% of all fern species have chlorophyllous spores. Unlike their counterparts, chlorophyllous spores lack dormancy and have a shorter viability (i.e. only a few days in some species). Such spores should limit long-distance dispersal …
View article: Geographic and ecological effects on species richness of liverworts worldwide
Geographic and ecological effects on species richness of liverworts worldwide Open
Liverworts are one of the oldest lineages of the extant land plants but the geographic patterns and ecological determinants of their species richness have not yet been studied at a global scale until now. Here, using a comprehensive global…
View article: Endemism Centres of the Five Richest Vascular Epiphyte Families in the Neotropics
Endemism Centres of the Five Richest Vascular Epiphyte Families in the Neotropics Open
Aim Endemic species, characterised by limited geographic ranges, face a high risk of extinction. The neotropical region harbours diverse ecosystems and a substantial number of endemic species, thus identifying areas of high endemism is cru…
View article: Untangling poikilohydry and desiccation tolerance: evolutionary and macroecological drivers in ferns
Untangling poikilohydry and desiccation tolerance: evolutionary and macroecological drivers in ferns Open
Background and Aims Poikilohydry describes the inability of plants to internally regulate their water content (hydroregulation), whereas desiccation tolerance (DT) refers to the ability to restore normal metabolic functions upon rehydratio…
View article: The power of independent generations in plants
The power of independent generations in plants Open
This article is a Commentary on Blake‐Mahmud et al . (2025), 245 : 885–898 .
View article: Phylogenetic structure of liverwort assemblages along an elevational gradient in the tropical Andes: geographic patterns and climatic drivers
Phylogenetic structure of liverwort assemblages along an elevational gradient in the tropical Andes: geographic patterns and climatic drivers Open
Liverworts are an ancient plant lineage that occurs worldwide with the highest species richness in cool and humid habitats such as tropical montane and temperate rain forests. It has been proposed that liverworts originated under such temp…
View article: Wind dispersed tree species have greater maximum height
Wind dispersed tree species have greater maximum height Open
Aim We test the hypothesis that wind dispersal is more common among emergent tree species given that being tall increases the likelihood of effective seed dispersal. Location Americas, Africa and the Asia‐Pacific. Time period 1970–2020. Ma…
View article: Comparative analysis of mycorrhizal communities associated with Struthiopteris spicant (L.) Weiss across Europe and North America
Comparative analysis of mycorrhizal communities associated with Struthiopteris spicant (L.) Weiss across Europe and North America Open
Introduction Ferns constitute the second largest group of vascular plants. Previous studies have shown that the diversity and composition of fern communities are influenced by resource availability and water stress, among other factors. Ho…
View article: Spatial patterns and climatic drivers of phylogenetic structure of regional liverwort assemblages in China
Spatial patterns and climatic drivers of phylogenetic structure of regional liverwort assemblages in China Open
Background and Aims Latitudinal diversity gradients have been intimately linked to the tropical niche conservatism hypothesis, which posits that there has been a strong filter due to the challenges faced by ancestral tropical lineages to a…
View article: Macroevolution of the plant–hummingbird pollination system
Macroevolution of the plant–hummingbird pollination system Open
Plant–hummingbird interactions are considered a classic example of coevolution, a process in which mutually dependent species influence each other's evolution. Plants depend on hummingbirds for pollination, whereas hummingbirds rely on nec…
View article: Fern mycorrhizae do not respond to fertilization in a tropical montane forest
Fern mycorrhizae do not respond to fertilization in a tropical montane forest Open
Ferns are known to have a lower incidence of mycorrhization than angiosperms. It has been suggested that this results from carbon being more limiting to fern growth than nutrient availability, but this assertion has not been tested yet. In…
View article: Navigating Climate Change: Exploring Plenter Forest Potential in Styria, Austria
Navigating Climate Change: Exploring Plenter Forest Potential in Styria, Austria Open
Forests stand at the forefront of climate change adaptation strategies, with their ability to sequester and store carbon, sustain bioeconomies, foster biodiversity, and provide a whole range of other ecosystem services. There is an increas…
View article: Effects of climate and environmental heterogeneity on the phylogenetic structure of regional angiosperm floras worldwide
Effects of climate and environmental heterogeneity on the phylogenetic structure of regional angiosperm floras worldwide Open
The tendency of species to retain ancestral ecological distributions (phylogenetic niche conservatism) is thought to influence which species from a species pool can persist in a particular environment. Thus, investigating the relationships…
View article: (3006) Proposal to conserve the name <i>Sticherus</i> (<i>Gleicheniaceae</i>) with a conserved type
(3006) Proposal to conserve the name <i>Sticherus</i> (<i>Gleicheniaceae</i>) with a conserved type Open
International audience
View article: Angiosperm phylogenetic diversity is lower in Africa than South America
Angiosperm phylogenetic diversity is lower in Africa than South America Open
Although originating from a common Gondwanan flora, the diversity and composition of the floras of Africa and South America have greatly diverged since continental breakup of Africa from South America now having much higher plant species r…
View article: Phylogenetic diversity and the structure of host-epiphyte interactions across the Neotropics
Phylogenetic diversity and the structure of host-epiphyte interactions across the Neotropics Open
Understanding the mechanisms driving community assembly has been a major focus of ecological research for nearly a century, yet little is known about these mechanisms in commensal communities, particularly with respect to their historical/…