News

2026. 05. 15. magyar.aniko

The chemical “fingerprint” of water shapes the hidden microbial world of lakes

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Not only the salinity of water, but also the composition of dissolved ions plays a key role in shaping the structure of bacterial communities living in lakes. These aquatic bacteria are essential for nutrient cycling and also strongly influence water quality. According to a study led by the Microbial Ecology Research Group of the Institute of Aquatic Ecology at the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, the composition of ions has a much stronger effect on bacterial community structure than the amount of dissolved salt alone.

The researchers analyzed 375 water samples collected from 130 lakes worldwide, ranging from freshwater to hypersaline environments, including both soda lakes and saline lakes. In soda lakes, sodium, carbonate and bicarbonate ions are dominant, while the ionic composition of saline lakes resembles that of seawater, where chloride ions are dominant with sodium. There are several soda lakes and pans in Hungary, especially in the Kiskunság region, and both Lake Fertő and Lake Velence are also classified as soda lakes, although their total salt content is relatively low. In contrast, Lacul Ursu in Sovata, Transylvania (Romania), belongs to the other type, containing extremely high concentrations of dissolved salts.

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The aim of the study was to investigate how the dominant dissolved ions in lake water – especially differences between carbonate- and chloride-rich waters – influence the structure of aquatic bacterial communities. The results clearly showed that the composition of planktonic bacteria is more strongly influenced by the type of dissolved ions than by total salinity itself. Several bacterial groups were found to be strongly associated with specific water types. For example, certain groups of Actinobacteria preferentially occur in soda lakes. The study also revealed that these specialized bacterial groups are evolutionarily related, suggesting that habitats with different ionic compositions also have shaped the evolution of microorganisms over long periods of time.

These findings contribute to a better understanding of lake ecology, particularly because microscopic organisms that influence food webs and water quality respond very rapidly to climate change and other human-induced environmental changes.

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The study was published in the prestigious scientific journal Limnology and Oceanography Letters under the title “A matter of salt: Global assessment of the effect of salt ionic composition as a driver of aquatic bacterial diversity”.

Publication:

Szabó A, Székely AJ, Boros E, Márton Zs, Csitári B, Barteneva N, Anda D, Dobosy P, Eiler A, Bertilsson S, Felföldi T. 2026. A matter of salt: Global assessment of the effect of salt ionic composition as a driver of aquatic bacterial diversity. Limnology and Oceanography Letters 11: e70088.

News

2026. 04. 23. magyar.aniko

AI species evolving like organisms may soon emerge – and create risks

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Evolutionary biology holds clues for the future of AI, argue researchers from the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, Eötvös Loránd University, and the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts. In a new Perspective published April the 20th in PNAS (the flagship science journal of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA), the team warn that evolvable AI (eAI) systems that can undergo Darwinian evolution may soon emerge, and they will generate special risks that can be understood, and mitigated, based on insights from evolutionary biology.

“The power of evolution is manifest in the history of biological evolution on Earth, which has created the cognitive capabilities of the human mind,” said Eörs Szathmáry, professor of evolutionary biology at the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research and at Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, and Director of the Parmenides Center for the Conceptional Foundations of Science in Pöcking, lead author of the study. “We find it inevitable that the development of AI systems will eventually, and probably soon, tap into that power,” added Luc Steels, emeritus professor of AI at the University of Brussels (VUB) and member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts, co-corresponding author of the paper.

The study outlines the use of evolutionary concepts and components in current AI research and explains how further developments, particularly agentic AI, may soon give rise to AI systems that fulfill all criteria for genuine Darwinian evolution. Such systems may open a new epoch in AI development, passing hurdles that even current learning AI systems cannot easily negotiate. However, “lessons from biological evolution teach us that evolving AI systems will be particularly hard to control,” said Viktor Müller, associate professor at Eötvös Loránd University and first author of the study. The two evolutionary biologists, Szathmáry and Müller teamed up with robotics and AI expert Steels to give an advance warning on the risks of eAI—and to recommend possible measures to mitigate them.

Using illustrative examples from biological and artificial (in silico) evolution, the study underlines the propensity of evolution to produce ‘selfish’ actors which, in the case of eAI, increases the risk of breaking the ‘alignment’ with human goals. Importantly, while much of the current discussion on AI risks centers on ‘Artificial General Intelligence’ (AGI), a theoretical threshold where AI matches or surpasses human intelligence across all cognitive tasks, lessons from evolution show that superior intelligence is not a pre-requisite for the ability of an organism to harm or manipulate another; for example, the simple rabies virus has evolved to manipulate and exploit its mammalian hosts. Evolvable AI may break the alignment and pose risks well before AGI is reached, and the risk does not require any further special circumstance to arise: AI systems and humanity share common resources, so an efficiently self-replicating system will sooner or later divert resources that are vital to our survival.

The study warns that any attempt to control reproduction will, unless control is perfect, select most strongly for traits that enable escape from that control. Analogies from biology involve bacteria and pests rapidly evolving resistance to antibiotics and pesticides. On the top of this general rule of evolution, the central drive in the development of AI systems, to achieve improved cognitive ability, further exacerbates the risk: while thousands of years of animal breeding has made domesticated species more, rather than less, controllable, selection for increasing ‘intelligence’ will increase the ability and probability of AI systems to deceive humans and to escape control.

Finally, while evolution by natural selection is hard enough to control, the study enumerates multiple ways in which the evolution of AI systems can beat the speed and efficiency of biological evolution. In contrast to biological organisms, eAI will be able to inherit ‘acquired’ traits and even improve its function by design rather than having to wait for random mutations to generate useful variations. “The potential speed of AI evolution is deeply alarming,” said Steels.

The authors recommend guardrails that may mitigate the risks associated with eAI. Above all, the ‘reproduction’ of AI systems must remain under centralized human control which needs to be absolute and complete.

“We hope our warning arrives in time, and regulations can be put in place before eAI would really take off,” said Müller. “If we fail to act, we may witness a new ‘major transition’ in evolution, in which eAI will replace or at least dominate humans. Our future may be at stake,” warned Szathmáry.

This research was supported by funding from the European Research Council, the National Research, Development and Innovation Office in Hungary, and the European Innovation Council. The final version of the paper took shape during collaborative writing sessions at the Parmenides Foundation (Pöcking).

About:

Szathmáry, Eörs is an evolutionary biologist, a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and the chairman of the Sustainable Development Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. In his research, he studied and modeled many evolutionary processes from the origin of life to the development of human language skills. His book, The Major Transitons in Evolution, co-authored with John Maynard Smith, is considered a cornerstone of modern evolutionary biology.

News

2026. 04. 21. magyar.aniko

Statement on the Future of the HUN-REN Hungarian Research Network

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In connection with the objective set out in the government program —

“We will restore the autonomy of science. We will prepare a new, transparent law that reinstates the professional independence of the MTA (Hungarian Academy of Sciences) and the research institutes, and settles the status of academic assets.”

— we propose reconsidering the future vision and operating principles of the organization established by the HUN-REN law.

The HUN-REN research network was established as an organization independent of the central budget, but the principle of researchers’ self-governance is only marginally reflected in the legislation that created the network. It is worth considering whether the size and centralizing ambitions of the newly established administrative governing center are in line with the research and innovation potential represented and to be developed by the network.

The Public Task Financing Contract (KFSZ) provides funding for six years, aiming to improve scientific performance, innovation, internationalization, and the training of the next generation of researchers. The performance evaluation indicators, priorities, and target values of the KFSZ require reconsideration and clarification.

We consider it of fundamental importance to resolve the unconstitutional situation regarding the real estate assets owned by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences MTA and used by the institutions of the research network.

The directors of the HUN-REN research institutions agree that from the decisions of the new government we expect a strengthening of the self-governing nature of scientific autonomy, as well as the creation of a supportive science policy environment in which decisions about the development of research institutions can be made jointly by representatives of the scientific community and the institutions themselves.

We propose the following measures and agree with the general directions implied by these decisions:

1) The government should amend the HUN-REN law. The most important element of the amendments should be to ensure researchers’ self-governance and the scientific, economic, and operational autonomy of research institutions. We propose that the founding rights of HUN-REN be transferred by law to the MTA, and that the source of the annual funding specified in the KFSZ be moved under the Academy’s budget chapter. The legal status of the institutions should not change; their position outside the scope of the public finance law should be maintained.

2) With the involvement of the MTA, it should be examined how the legal deadlock regarding property rights between the MTA and HUN-REN can be resolved as soon as possible through amendments to the KFI, MTA, and HUN-REN laws.

3) The government and HUN-REN should, by mutual agreement and in a forward-looking and realistic manner, revise the indicators and target values of the KFSZ while keeping the funding specified in the contract unchanged.

If the research network continues to operate within the framework of the MTA, we propose preserving the integrity, organizational independence, and operational autonomy of the institutions, thereby ensuring their independence from public body and governance structures. As leaders of HUN-REN institutions, we stand ready to participate in working out the details.

Zsolt Dombrádi
HUN-REN Institute for Nuclear Research

Tibor Magyar
HUN-REN Veterinary Medical Research

Gábor Vasas
HUN-REN Balaton Limnological Research Institute

László Kiss
HUN-REN Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences

Ákos Horváth
HUN-REN Centre for Energy Research

István János Kovács
HUN-REN Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science

Beáta Sperlágh
HUN-REN Institute of Experimental Medicine

László Zsolt Garamszegi
HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research

András Stipsicz
HUN-REN Alfréd Rényi Institute of Mathematics

László István Monostori
HUN-REN Institute for Computer Science and Control

Ferenc Nagy
HUN-REN Biological Research Centre

László Buday
HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences

Péter József Lévai
HUN-REN Wigner Research Centre for Physics

News

2026. 04. 16. magyar.aniko

The nucleus may have been the necessary prerequisite/missing link for the acquisition of mitochondria by eukaryotes

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This paper elaborates on the issues of microbial endosymbiosis stemming from conflict of interest and how multilevel selection can solve it once central control is gained by the host – given it has a nucleus. This is usually the case for extant endosymbiont of unicells (protists), where a huge asymmetry already exists (host being larger, with heterotrophic metabolism, assumed to be phagotrophic, having a nucleus, control mechanisms, etc.). However, among prokaryotes, this is not the case, as prokaryotic partners are far from being as different size- and structure-wise. Presumably there is something preventing prokaryotes to form endosymbiotic partnerships more often. The issue pertains especially to mitochondrial origins. Since we do not know if the ancestral host to mitochondria was nucleated or not, we cannot exclude the possibility that their success was not only due to the metabolic and architectural synergy the mitochondrial ancestor may have provided for the host but due to the fact that the host already could 1) shield its genome from uncontrolled hybridization with the symbiont’s genes plus 2) had the means to unilaterally exert control on the symbiont.

Our paper discusses why endosymbiosis (one microbe living inside another) is common in complex cells but rare in simple prokaryotes. In modern single-celled eukaryotes, the genetic interaction between host and symbiont is more asymmetric, potentially due to the nuclear envelope, acting as a barrier. In contrast, prokaryotes lack such features and are more equal, making stable partnerships harder. For mitochondria, it’s unclear if the original host had a nucleus, but if it did, that may have helped it control the symbiont and avoid harmful genetic interference – making the partnership more successful.

kep a Zachar cikk kozepere — The amount of expected horizontal gene transfer (HGT) under various conditions of symbiosis. Red arrows indicate potential gene transfer, green arrows blocked transfer attempts; the strength of arrows indicates presumed magnitude of successful transfers in unit time.

illusztracio 2 a Zachar cikkhez — Overview of theories proposing various orders of events including the origin of nucleus, mitochondria and intronal evolution. A) mitochondria-early scenario of (Martin and Koonin 2006): An archaeon (without NE) acquires the mitochondrial endosymbiont as the first step. The endosymbiont incurs an increased level of HGT (EGT; thicker arrow) and as a result, Group II introns (among other genes) make their way into and proliferate in the host genome. Introns that lose their self-splicing ability become a burden for the host, and as a result, NE and spliceosomal machinery evolve only after intron proliferation. B) Early intron evolution and late mitochondrial acquisition based on (Vosseberg et al. 2020, 2022). Group II introns were either acquired by HGT by the host from pre-mitochondrial endosymbionts or were vertically inherited from archaeal introns already present in the lineage. A rudimentary version of NE is formed (or other mechanism to separate transcription and translation) with a wave of gene duplications potentially introducing further introns. As introns proliferated throughout the genome, the spliceosome evolved for the same reasons as described above. As the mitochondrial endosymbiont was established, a second wave of gene duplications and possibly more introns further shaped the proto-eukaryotic genome. C) Proposed hypothesis assuming serial endosymbiosis before mitochondria (Pittis and Gabaldón 2016, Gabaldón 2018), compatible with scenario B. An increased level of HGT from transient endosymbiotic partners perturb the host genome before the NE fully evolved. Early endosymbionts could not stabilize due to the lack of a NE that would enable controlled EGT and, ultimately, central control over the symbionts. The rest of this scenario follows B.

News

2026. 03. 06. magyar.aniko

Bee hotels in research – a new protocol to study wild bees and wasps

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Solitary wild bees and wasps play a key role in ecosystem functioning – both as pollinators and as biological pest control agents. Yet we still know surprisingly little about the life history, population dynamics and ecological interactions of many species. Researchers at the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research have recently published a study presenting the first detailed, step-by-step protocol for using trap nests to study cavity-nesting Hymenoptera, i.e., solitary bees and wasps (Fig. 1). Standardising this sampling method will allow data collected in different parts of the world to become comparable, which is an important step towards improving pollinator conservation.

The trap nests used by researchers may look familiar to many people: “bee hotels”, increasingly common in gardens, consist of hollow stems or wooden blocks with drilled holes (Fig. 2 – Main foto). These structures mimic natural nesting sites and attract cavity-nesting bees and wasps. Inside the cavities, brood cells are constructed where bee and wasp larvae develop on the food provisions stored by the mother (Fig. 3). The special advantage of this method is that it allows researchers not only to identify the species present but also to study a range of ecological processes – including nesting behaviour, the presence of parasites, and the use of environmental resources such as food and nesting materials.

The newly published study provides detailed guidance on how to construct trap nests, when and how to place them in the field, and how to collect and process the samples found within them. The entire process can take up to nearly two years – from deploying the nests, through larval development and overwintering, to the final identification of species (Fig. 4).

“Trap nests contain a remarkable amount of ecological information. From a single nest we can learn what food the nesting individuals collected, what materials it used to build the nest, and which natural enemies harnessed the offspring,” said Áron Bihaly, the first author of the study. “The aim of the protocol is to ensure that researchers around the world collect these data using the same methods, making the results of different studies comparable.” He added that “although the data collection process can be lengthy, it allows us to obtain detailed information that is almost impossible to collect with any other sampling method.”

One advantage of the method is that it can provide valuable data with relatively little fieldwork. The nests are placed in the field in spring and collected in autumn, meaning that the samples provide insights into ecological processes throughout an entire season. The analysis of nests reveals not only which species are present, but also information about the structure of local insect communities, their reproductive success and how they use resources available in the surrounding landscape.

The researchers emphasise that standardised methods are particularly important in the context of the global pollinator crisis. Wild bees and other hymenopteran insects provide many ecosystem services, including pollination and the natural control of pest species. Monitoring changes in their populations is therefore essential for designing effective conservation measures. Trap-nest sampling has proven to be a particularly useful tool in this effort.

One of the online supplementary materials of the publication provides a detailed, illustrated guide to the bee and wasp species that nest in cavities in Hungary. This guide can also be useful for members of the public who maintain bee hotels. “Such protocols are not only useful for mainstream research, but they also open the door to involving wider communities in observations,” said Edina Török, one of the lead authors of the study. “For example, we are launching a survey of wild bees in Budapest with the involvement of local residents as part of the citizen-science UrbanBEE project. Within the project, we distributed bee hotels to participants, who record a few basic observations. Initiatives like this help us better understand how pollinators live in urban environments.”

The researchers hope that the new protocol will contribute to the wider and more consistent use of trap nests, which in the long term may support the conservation of pollinators and other insects, strengthen international ecological research collaborations, and help design more precise agri-environmental measures and habitat restoration efforts.

Related publication:
Bihaly Áron Domonkos et al. (2026): A standardised protocol for sampling cavity-nesting Hymenoptera using trap nests. Journal of Hymenoptera Research.
https://doi.org/10.3897/jhr.99.183051

News

2026. 03. 05. magyar.aniko

Mosquito monitoring through sound – implications for AI species recognition

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AI algorithms are increasingly developed to monitor vector populations based on either photos or sounds. However, the real-life accuracy of the models is highly dependent on the training data. Unfortunately, training data is still limited, both in matter of the species that are actually included, and the natural variation represented within a given species. In this study, researchers from HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, ELTE University, Budapest and University of Szeged show that mosquito sound is fairly consistent among species., especially if environmental parameters such as temperature are taken into account. This means that, to develop field-accurate AI identification models based on mosquito sounds, we either need to properly represent the natural variations caused by environmental and biological factors into the training data (especially temperature), or adjust the identification algorithm based on those factors. These types of models could help us monitor vector populations and implement efficient public health strategies.

Mosquitoes transmit several pathogens of public health importance, including malaria, dengue, chikungunya and ZIKA. These vector-borne diseases are responsible for millions of cases every year, and hundreds of thousands of deaths. The most effective way to cope with the threat of emerging or re-emerging vector borne diseases is the prevention by rigorous surveillance system, which can help early detection of risk and the initiation of mitigation efforts (e.g. mosquito control). In recent years, numerous technologies have been developed to monitor and control vectors and vector-borne diseases, many of which rely on the use of deep-learning, specifically for the detection and classification of species. Acoustic data in particular, used as passive acoustic monitoring, could allow the surveillance of vector populations in real-time, and assist timely public health decisions. Mosquitoes emit sound when they flap their wings during flight; the faster they beat their wings, the higher the sound. Mosquito sound varies based on several factors, including species, which is extremely useful because we only need to monitor a few species of interest; often those that transmit the diseases, but it could also apply to invasive species. AI-based algorithms already exist for the identification of mosquito species based on sound, and some perform rather well (up to 97%). However, there are a few caveats: (1) accuracies tend to decrease when many species are included, (2) few species are available in the training datasets, (3) the sounds of wild mosquito populations are likely much more variable than those represented in the training data, due to the impact of environmental (e.g. temperature, humidity) and biological factors (sex, age, size) on mosquito sound. All these aspects reduce the field applicability of AI-based species recognition based on mosquito sound. A study of researchers from HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, ELTE University, Budapest and University of Szeged investigates the last point, i.e. the impact of several environmental and biological factors on the variability of mosquito sound between species and between individuals.

The researchers captured and recorded hundreds of mosquitoes in Hungary, and used the recordings from the 10 most abundant species to evaluate how much mosquito sound varies among species and individuals. In addition, they assessed the impact of several factors on sound variability : temperature, humidity, time of day, sex, age and size (represented by wing length). Sound was fairly consistent among species and among individuals. However, the acoustic signal related to a given species was even more consistent when environmental and biological variables were controlled for.

Sex and temperature both affected significantly mosquito sound. Females had a lower sound compared to males; this is not surprising, as females are usually bigger compared to the males in most mosquito species. Temperature also affected mosquito sounds; usually a higher temperature resulted in a higher sound. Higher temperature increases insect metabolism (up to a point); thus mosquito muscles move faster when temperature is higher, and they can beat their wings faster. However, the importance of this increase varied between species, meaning that different species responded differently to temperature. This could be explained by the origin of the species (temperate vs subtropical), or their preferred host and the associated blood temperature (bird blood’s temperature is usually lower compared to mammal’s blood). This species-specific difference in response to temperature suggests that we cannot apply a simple temperature correction rule for mosquito sounds, or at least that we cannot apply the same mathematical formula to all species.

Figure1 kep 1200x1600 rotated — 4-channel microphone used for the recording of mosquitoes. 4 small microphones are plugged into the Handheld Digital Recorder, and placed on the side of the mosquito cage. Even though recordings were done in a soundproof box, mosquito’s sound is really faint, so having a microphone on each side of the cage increases the chances of picking up its sound when it flies close to the microphone. Credit:Augustin Julie

“Our data demonstrates that we cannot ignore intra-specific and intra-individual variability for AI based acoustic classification. One solution for better integration of natural variance would be to adequately represent that environmental and biological variability in the training data. Unfortunately, such complete databases remain rare, especially for invertebrates, and building these extensive databases require a lot of time and effort” – said Julie Augustin, the first author of the publication. Alternatively, classification systems could control for or include additional environmental information to improve classification accuracy. Some studies already implement this, but it requires a detailed understanding of the impact of environmental variables on all species included in the model, which we do not have yet. In all cases, in order to improve classification models’ accuracy in real life conditions, and the chance that we can use them for monitoring purposes, we need to better understand and account for natural variability in the target populations.

News

2026. 03. 04. magyar.aniko

Reeds Over Concrete: Most People Want a Natural Lake Balaton

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Researchers from the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research and the HUN-REN Balaton Limnological Research Institute* explored what different people value at Lake Balaton and its shores.
Based on a survey of 1,500 people — including local residents, vacation homeowners, and tourists — the findings show a clear preference for a more natural Lake Balaton, with accessible shores, reed beds, and limited built infrastructure.
While Lake Balaton is Hungary’s most popular tourist destination, it is also a highly sensitive ecosystem. Respondents value not only recreation and scenic beauty, but also key ecosystem services – benefits from nature, such as clean water filtered by reed beds, shoreline protection, and habitats for plants and animals.
Most people preferred close-to-natural shorelines and strongly rejected highly built-up beaches and private resorts closed to the public. Environmental awareness proved to be the strongest factor shaping these preferences — more influential than income, education, or tourism-related work.
A clear majority opposed further intensive development: 58% rejected more hotels, 61% opposed new marinas, and 58% did not want more yachts on the lake.
Overall, the message is clear: people want a future in which nature, public access and long-term ecological health of Lake Balaton are put first.

*This research was performed together with the PAD Foundation for Environmental Justice, the National Laboratory for Water Science and Water Security, the Institute of Applied Water Science, the HUN-REN–BME Water Research Group, and Budapest University of Technology and Economics.

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2026. 03. 02. magyar.aniko

Boosting bees and other pollinators in Europe

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New recommendations for EU restoration plans

Policy Brief from the EU project RestPoll, provides recommendations on which renaturation measures are most effective in promoting pollinators, such as wild bees, in Europe.
The key messages are more high-quality, interconnected habitats and a reduction in the intensity of highly intensive land use—for example, through the use of fewer pesticides and adapted mowing and grazing systems—are needed.
The results should help EU member states to implement their nature restoration plans under the EU Nature Restoration Regulation (NRR) in an effective, practical, and verifiable manner.

Pollinating insects such as bees, bumblebees, butterflies, and hoverflies play a key role in agriculture, biodiversity, and stable ecosystems. Pollinator conservation measures ensure the yields of many crops and contribute to healthy soils, clean water, and climate protection. At the same time, their populations have been declining in many parts of Europe for years. A new policy brief from the EU Horizon Europe project RestPoll now summarizes which restoration measures, based on current scientific evidence and expert knowledge, can best contribute to the recovery of pollinator populations. The project is led by Prof. Dr. Alexandra-Maria Klein, Professor of Conservation Biology and Landscape Ecology at the University of Freiburg.

“If we want to halt and reverse the decline of pollinators in Europe by 2030, we must consistently address two key issues: the expansion and interconnection of suitable habitats, and less intensive use of intensive agricultural and green spaces,” says Klein. “It is important that measures are adapted to local conditions, developed in collaboration with practitioners, and systematically monitored.”

How the recommendations were created

The policy brief is based on a survey of experts and an overview of the literature. In the first step, 56 internationally recognized pollinator experts from 20 European countries evaluated a total of 17 possible renaturation measures in an online survey. They assessed how effective, practicable, and cost-intensive these measures are based on their professional and practical experience. These assessments were supplemented by a targeted review of the scientific literature, including the use of the Conservation Evidence platform, which systematically evaluates research findings on the effectiveness of conservation measures.

The authors specifically place their recommendations in the context of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation (NRR). Article 10 of this regulation obliges member states to reverse the decline in pollinators by 2030 and to further increase their populations thereafter. EU member states must submit their draft national restoration plans to the European Commission by September 1, 2026.

Which measures are particularly effective in protecting pollinators?

According to the analysis, pollinator protection can be effectively combined with renaturation measures in agricultural landscapes, grasslands, and urban green spaces. The most effective approach is to increase the quality, area, and connectivity of habitats for pollinators. These include species-rich (semi-)natural meadows, wildflower areas, hedges, and flowering trees and shrubs. Such structures not only improve food resources but also facilitate the spread and genetic exchange of pollinators in the landscape.

At the same time, according to the authors, it is crucial to reduce intensive farming practices—for example, by using fewer pesticides and mowing less frequently or grazing less intensively. Fallow land, on the other hand, should be used again in a gentle manner, for example, by mowing occasionally or grazing with a small number of animals to prevent the land from becoming overgrown with bushes. This would create flower-rich areas that would provide food for pollinators and support their protection and reintroduction. There is no “standard solution” here: measures are particularly successful when they are adapted to local conditions such as soil, climate, landscape structure, and target species.

The authors cite clear and measurable goals and advocate for the involvement of farmers, land managers, local authorities, government agencies, and experts. Additionally, sufficient financial and technical support and monitoring to assess whether measures are effective and need to be adjusted are prerequisites for successful implementation. „Pollinator restoration can be both ecologically sound and cost-effective, creating multifunctional landscapes that strengthen pollinator populations while delivering broader benefits for biodiversity, soil and water health, sustainable agriculture, climate mitigation, and community well-being. It can also reduce reliance on chemical inputs, supporting long-term environmental and economic resilience,“ explains Dr. Jessica Knapp, lead author of the policy brief and researcher at Lund University (Sweden).

Original publication:
Knapp, J., Dicks, L., Kranke, N., Morgan, W., Potts, S., Smith, H.G., Stout, J., Thijssen, M., Thompson, A., Klein, A.-M. (2026). Nature Restoration Plans – the most effective measures to restore pollinator populations. Policy Brief from the EU-Horizon-Europe-Project RestPoll (Grant Agreement No. 101082102). Zenodo. DOI: 5281/zenodo.18655302
The policy brief was developed as part of the EU Horizon Europe project RestPoll (funding code 101082102) with the participation of other EU Horizon Europe projects that address the role of pollinating insects in ecosystems and human well-being.

Contact:

Prof. Dr. Alexandra-Maria Klein
+49 (0) 761 203-67770
alexandra.klein@nature.uni-freiburg.de

Photo:
Pollinators ensure the yields of many crops, such as this buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) on the blossom of a sweet cherry tree. (Photo: Felix Fornoff)

News

2026. 02. 11. magyar.aniko

New species, new challenges

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Science-based popular booklet on the spread and management of invasive non-native species is now available

The large-scale and continuous introduction of non-native species poses unprecedented challenges to ecosystems, agriculture, livestock production, and human health.

In response to these challenges, the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research has published a 60-page science-based booklet entitled Új fajok, új kihívások – Az inváziós fajok terjedése és kezelési lehetőségei Magyarországon (New Species, New Challenges – The Spread and Management of Invasive Non-Native Species in Hungary). The publication was prepared within the framework of the Invasion Biology Division of the National Laboratory for Health Security.

The booklet aims to provide accessible yet scientifically sound guidance on invasion biology, while also offering practical advice on mitigating the impacts of invasive species.

invazios kiadvany borito

In a globalised world shaped by international trade and intensive human mobility, completely preventing the arrival of non-native species is unrealistic. However, biological invasions are not beyond control: the spread of species can be slowed, and their impacts reduced. Gaining time in this way is crucial, as it enables both ecosystems and human systems to develop effective responses.

The publication presents the stages of the invasion process in detail, from initial introduction through establishment and spread to large-scale expansion. It emphasises that biological invasion is not a single event but a sequence of interconnected stages — which makes early detection and rapid intervention particularly important.

invazios folyamatot bemutato abra

The impacts of invasive species extend far beyond traditional nature conservation concerns. Some species cause significant crop losses; others threaten livestock or facilitate the spread of pathogens and diseases. Managing invasions is therefore a complex societal challenge, requiring cooperation among natural and social scientists, decision-makers, landowners, practitioners, and the wider public. Effective action depends on cross-sectoral collaboration.

The booklet presents non-native and invasive species already present in Hungary, illustrating risks and management options through concrete case studies.

Its conceptual framework is rooted in the concept of One Biosecurity, recognising that invasive species may simultaneously pose ecological, economic, and public health risks. This interdisciplinary perspective integrates human, animal, plant, and environmental health in addressing biological invasions.

invazios — Pistia stratiotes Foto credit: Barbara Barta

Új fajok, új kihívások (New Species, New Challenges) seeks to raise awareness, foster dialogue, and support long-term, coordinated action against invasive species.

The publication is available online via the website of the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research. Additional resources can be found on the Virtual Bookshelf of the Invasion Biology Division.

Asclepias syriaca Foto credit: Viktor Szigeti

38 kigyofejuhalfajok — Channa Foto credit: András Weiperth

nilusi lud — Alopochen aegyptiaca Foto credit: Attila Lengyel

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2026. 01. 28. magyar.aniko

Why are some animal and human signals honest, while others are deceptive?

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A new, general theory argues it is not about costly or exaggerated show-offs but about the inherent trade-offs between investments and benefits animals (and humans) face when they signal. The work offers a clearer way to understand peacocks, people, and persuasion by accounting both for honest as well as deceptive signals.

For decades, scientists have tried to answer a simple question: why be honest when deception is possible? Whether it is a peacock’s tail, a stag’s roar, or a human’s résumé, signals are means to influence others by transmitting information and advantages can be gained by cheating, for example by exaggeration. But if lying pays, why does communication not collapse?
The dominant theory for honest signals has long been the handicap principle, which claims that signals are honest because they are costly to produce. It argues that a peacock’s tail, for example, is an honest signal of a male’s condition or quality to potential mates because it is so costly to produce. Only a high-quality birds could afford such a handicap, wasting resources growing it, demonstrating their superb quality to females, whereas poor quality males cannot afford such ornaments.
A new synthesis by Szabolcs Számadó, Dustin J. Penn and István Zachar (from the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna and HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, respectively) challenges that logic. They argue that honesty does not depend on how costly or wasteful a signal is, but rather on the trade-offs between investments and benefits, faced by signalers.
They explain that signals are not honest because they are costly, instead, honesty evolves when it is beneficial and deception is costly. Previous studies inspired by the handicap principle (refuted by the authors in the paper) misleadingly focused on only the costs of signalling. Yet biological functions, like signalling, cannot be understood in the evolutionary context without their benefits, often realized in the long run.

Fig 00 Graphical
The new theory, called Signalling Trade-Off Theory, shifts the focus from absolute cost to choice in what to invest. In biology, every organism faces competing demands: investing more in one thing means having less for another. Time spent courting cannot be spent feeding; energy put into bright feathers cannot be used for immune defence. These are trade-offs. And these are also present in economic choices for humans. Crucially, they differ between individuals. A healthy, well-fed animal can afford different choices than a weak or starving one. According to several theoretical studies, signalling trade-offs and not absolute costs define whether deception or honesty evolves.
“Signals, in theory, can be absolutely cost free in terms of immediate energy investment.” – István Zachar, one of the authors explains – “Honesty does not come from how much a signal harms you but from what kind of cost-benefit ratio you can realize with it.” And this trade-off between investments and benefits is defined by the condition of the individual.
According to theory, honest signals arise when these trade-offs respect the true quality of the individual, i.e. are condition-dependent. High-quality individuals get more return from the same investment than low-quality ones. As a result, the best strategy for a strong individual is to signal more, while the best strategy for a weak individual is to signal less. “Both are behaving optimally,” the author says, “but because their trade-offs are different, their signals end up revealing who they are.” This is how honesty is defined.
This perspective helps clear up a long-standing puzzle. An increasing number of studies show that honest signals are sometimes cheap, cost-free, or even beneficial, to produce. Under the handicap view, this was baffling, because honesty was supposed to require wasteful costs. Under the trade-off view, it is what one would expect. What matters is not whether a signal costs something in absolute terms, but whether pretending to be better than you are would push you into a worse overall outcome. Trade-offs apply to cheaters as well, and while they can increase their reproductive success by a fake message, this may severely affect their survival.
The trade-off theory also explains why deception is common. If different quality individuals face the same trade-offs, then nothing stops them from using the same signal. In those cases, mimics, bluffers, and cheats can thrive. “Dishonesty is absolutely not a failure of nature,” – Zachar notes. “It is what you get when the trade-offs that normally separate the different quality individuals disappear or become identical.”
This idea helps make sense of cases ranging from harmless butterflies mimicking poisonous ones to animals that increase their sexual displays when they are near death. In such “terminal investment,” there is little future to protect, so the usual balance between today and tomorrow is gone, and exaggerated signalling becomes worthwhile.
Why does this matter beyond biology? Because the same logic applies to human communication, from advertising to cooperation based on reputation. We all operate under trade-offs (inherited or learnt) between short-term gains and long-term consequences. Signals are reliable when those trade-offs differ across people in ways that make bluffing unprofitable.
“The real question is not ‘how costly is this signal?’” – Zachar says – “It is ‘what would it cost this person, in terms of what else they could have done, to fake it?’”
By reframing honesty in terms of trade-offs rather than waste, the new theory brings signalling back in line with a broader understanding of evolution: organisms are not rewarded for squandering resources, but for allocating them efficiently under constraints. In that light, honest communication is not a miracle. It is a natural outcome of living in a non-quantum biological world where every choice closes off another.

Reference:
A general signalling theory: why honest signals are explained by trade-offs rather than costs or handicaps
Szabolcs Számadó^1,2, István Zachar^3,4 & Dustin J. Penn⁵Published in Journal of Evolutionary Biology
https://doi.org/10.1093/jeb/voaf144

¹ Department of Sociology and Communication, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Egry J. u. 1. H‑1111 Budapest, Hungary
² CSS-RECENS “Lendület” Research Group, HUN-REN Centre for Social Science, Tóth Kálmán u. 4., H‑1097 Budapest, Hungary
³ Institute of Evolution, HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, Konkoly-Thege Miklós út 29-33., H‑1121 Budapest, Hungary
⁴ Department of Plant Systematics, Ecology and Theoretical Biology, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány P. sétány 1/C, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary
⁵ Department of Interdisciplinary Life Sciences, Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Savoynestrasse 1a, 1160 Vienna, Austria

News

2026. 01. 22. magyar.aniko

Traditional ecological knowledge without its holders: invisible stewards in global biodiversity policy

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A new global study published with the defining authorship of HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, Institute of Ecology and Botany in Conservation Biology, the leading journal in the field, highlights that many governments still do not fully recognize the contribution of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and other traditional knowledge holders to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. The researchers examined the two most recent national reports submitted by the 195 state Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, amounting to more than 400 reports in total—two reports in the case of some countries—and approximately 58,000 pages of material. Europe stood out in a negative sense: while countries frequently referred to traditional land use practices, many states considered the issues related to Indigenous Peoples and local communities and traditional knowledge to be irrelevant, due to terminological confusion. The timeliness of the study is primarily underscored by the next round of national reports due in 2026, as well as by the fact that the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework states that achieving its goals is impossible without the genuine involvement of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

Their findings underscore that biodiversity usually thrives in landscapes where communities holding local knowledge can exert real influence over land and resources, and that it often declines where their practices are ignored. Remarkable examples of community-based, careful land use generally remain hidden in official reports, such as Samoan community-managed fisheries, culturally protected forests in Liberia, and traditional hay meadows found across Europe.

“As countries prepare their next national reports due in 2026, genuinely recognizing the contributions of on-the-ground stewards to biodiversity conservation—and ensuring their meaningful involvement in implementation processes—will be crucial to achieving ambitious global biodiversity goals”, Kinga Öllerer, the study’s lead author summarizes.

Only 33 countries articulated clearly both the benefits of Indigenous Peoples and local communities and their traditional knowledge for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, and explicitly referenced contributions to cultivation and domestication in their fifth national reports. By the sixth reporting cycle, this number had nearly tripled to 80, but still representing just over 40% of Parties. Despite this increase, recognition remains low. Moreover, acknowledgment often failed to name the people behind the practices, and direct involvement of IP&LCs in reporting remained rare.

At the largest biodiversity summit ever held, COP16, which took place in November 2024 in Cali, Colombia, Indigenous Peoples and local communities achieved a breakthrough after more than three decades of sustained efforts: they secured a permanent subsidiary body within the Convention, guaranteeing their formal role in its implementation. The event brought together more than 23,000 registered delegates from nearly 200 countries, alongside over 900,000 visitors. Representatives of Indigenous Peoples and local communities from the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Oceania celebrated in traditional dresses, while European delegations included no other community representatives beyond the Sámi. They are Europe’s only officially recognized Indigenous People. At the same time, numerous traditional farming communities play a key role in maintaining Europe’s biodiversity.

cobi70205 fig 0001 m b resze — How Parties (i.e., ratifying countries) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) self-reported on the contribution of Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IP&LCs) and traditional knowledge and practices (TK) to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in their (a) fifth and (b) sixth (b) national reports (basemap source: ArcGIS 10.1 [ESRI, 2012] with World Countries Generalized). Table 1 contains scoring details.

cobi70205 fig 0002 m — How Parties (i.e., ratifying countries) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) self-reported on the contribution of Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IP&LCs) and traditional knowledge and practices (TK) to cultivation and domestication in their (a) fifth and (b) sixth national reports; (basemap source: ArcGIS 10.1 [ESRI, 2012] with World Countries Generalized). Table 1 contains scoring details.

The study’s findings mirrored the underrepresentation seen at the biodiversity summit. Europe proved to be a particularly revealing case in the analysis. Many countries documented in detail traditional land-use practices that are crucial for biodiversity—such as extensive grazing, mowing, and small-scale farming—while often denying the relevance of Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Several governments stated that Article 8(j) of the Convention, which addresses traditional knowledge, did not apply to them, arguing that their countries have no Indigenous or “traditional” communities. This was despite their recognition that the ongoing abandonment of these practices has driven biodiversity loss, including shrub encroachment and declines in species richness in grasslands and wetlands. In essence, traditional ecological knowledge is acknowledged, while its holders are rendered invisible.

The study was initiated by Kinga Öllerer under the guidance of scientific advisor Zsolt Molnár (HUN-REN CER IEB Traditional Ecological Knowledge Research Group). Senior researcher Marianna Biró, a fellow member of the group, joined the work together with scientific advisor András Báldi (HUN-REN CER IEB Lendület Ecosystem Services Research Group, group leader), and several international collaborators.

In summary, the study shows that although governments increasingly recognize that local traditional communities and their knowledge make a significant contribution to biodiversity conservation, very few actually involve them in decision-making and reporting processes. The challenge is clear: the success of global biodiversity commitments depends not only on ambitious targets but also on fully acknowledging, respecting, and supporting the knowledge, practices, and roles of Indigenous Peoples and local traditional communities—and on genuinely involving these communities in implementation processes.

Foto credit:

Hungarian traditional herders maintain vast landscapes through extensive pastoral grazing, and their knowledge, experiences and proposals are attracting growing attention, though still not the recognition they deserve. This photograph was taken by a shepherdess, the leader of the Women in Pastoralism group, about her husband and their livestock, and won third prize in a national photography competition on traditional herding (credit: Ibolya Sáfián Lászlóné).

Reference:

Global overview of progress in respecting the contributions of traditional knowledge in biodiversity governance

Kinga Öllerer, Pernilla Malmer, Marianna Biró, Noor Noor, Polina Shulbaeva, Maurizio Farhan Ferrari, Suneetha M. Subramanian, András Báldi, Zsolt Molnár First published: 06 January 2026

https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.70205

News

2025. 12. 19. magyar.aniko

Exclusion of wild ungulates is not the Holy Grail

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A recent study authored with the significant contribution of the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, Institute of Ecology and Botany was published with this title in the D1-ranked journal Journal of Environmental Management. Based on a field experiment, the authors demonstrate that under moderate ungulate density, the effect of forest management interventions on woody regeneration is stronger than the effect of ungulate exclusion per se. Over time, within fenced areas, the regeneration of the light-demanding sessile oak is hindered by faster-growing, more shade-tolerant competitors such as hornbeam, whereas outside the fences, under moderate browsing pressure, interspecific competition may be less intense. The seven-year study was initiated by Bence Tóth, Biology–Chemistry Teacher (MA) at ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, and Bence Kovács (Forest Ecology Research Group, Institute of Ecology and Botany, HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research), and was later continued by Eszter Lilla Szabó, PhD student (Doctoral School of Biology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University), under the supervision of Péter Ódor. The study highlights the importance of harmonizing forestry and game management practices to ensure the natural regenerative capacity of forests.

Managing natural regeneration in oak–hornbeam forests requires balancing light availability, competition dynamics, and herbivory pressure. Although fencing is often considered indispensable for protecting oak regeneration, our seven-year experiment shows that the influence of browsing exclusion is frequently overestimated. Silvicultural treatments, particularly those altering canopy openness, exerted a stronger effect on the early/mid-term sapling growth than fencing. Yet the study also highlights that maintaining low to moderate ungulate densities is crucial – not only for long-term regeneration success but even for sustaining the conditions under which silvicultural treatments can outperform browsing.

The researchers used the research infrastructure of the Pilis Forestry Systems Experiment to test the interactive effects of forestry and exclusion treatments. Within the framework of this experiment established in 2014, treatments of conventional rotation forestry (namely, micro clear-cutting, retention tree groups and preparation cutting) and of continuous cover forestry (gap-cutting) was compared to control plots in the closed, two-layered oak–hornbeam stand in the Pilis Mts. (Hosszú hill). For seven consecutive years, the researchers followed the browsing probability, survival, and growth of pairs of fenced and unfenced saplings selected and consolidated in the autumn of 2014.

Infografika 1

Silvicultural treatments drive early regeneration growth more strongly than browsing – but only when ungulate densities remain controlled

The applied (micro)clear-cutting (which essentially represent areas of final cutting) and artificial gaps resulted in the greatest increases in shoot growth and estimated leaf area across all tree species. This effect is primarily attributable to enhanced light availability and soil moisture conditions. In these treatments, the extent of browsing and overall ungulate impact temporarily increased – as expected given the increased food availability –; however, the survival of the selected individuals remained stable, because ungulate density in the studied landscape is moderate, largely due to the comprehensive game management practices of Pilisi Parkerdő Ltd. Under low to moderate browsing pressure, individuals outside fenced areas have a higher chance of escaping browsing pressure.

Foto

According to Bence Kovács, the corresponding author of the article, it is important to emphasize that “this balance is fragile. The finding that forestry treatments had a stronger effect on individual growth depends on a controlled ungulate population.” In regions with higher densities and browsing levels comparable to those observed here (~60% of individuals browsed) can translate into severe growth reductions or regeneration failure. “Thus, the stronger effect of the treatments observed in this study does not mean that oak regeneration is better without fencing under the current landscape structure and browsing pressure, but rather demonstrates that browsing pressure can be managed if ungulate density remains within an ecologically compatible limits”, the researcher adds.

In the case of shrubs, however, forest management treatments and ungulate exclusion had effects of similar magnitude, which on the one hand indicates their sensitivity to browsing (a substantial difference in height growth between fenced and unfenced plots) and, on the other hand, highlights their role in shaping regeneration dynamics among tree species, especially of the target tree species.

Species-specific trajectories reveal competition as a dominant force

Oaks and manna ash benefited from initial browsing protection, but these advantages diminished due to intensified competition from faster-growing and typically shade-tolerant tree species – especially from hornbeam.

Hornbeam’s rapid juvenile growth and architectural plasticity allowed it to overtop oaks in both gaps and clear-cuts, and competitive effects were amplified inside exclosures. Consequently, in fenced areas where oak regeneration or restoration is a key objective, the suppression of competitor species is necessary, an area in which Pilisi Parkerdő Ltd. already has substantial practical experience. Based on the findings of the study, controlling competition is just as important as managing herbivory, and that fencing without subsequent tending is insufficient for ensuring long-term oak success under the framework of continuous cover forestry.

Shrubs, being highly palatable (and therefore most likely to be browsed) responded most strongly to ungulate exclusion, showing the largest differences in height growth between fenced and unfenced plots. As a result, their presence can substantially reduce browsing pressure on target tree species outside fenced areas and, and – under controlled ungulate densities – can indirectly facilitate oak regeneration.

Foto 2

Gap-cutting can rival clear-cutting for oak regeneration

Medium-sized gaps (cca. 1:1 gap diameter to tree height ratio) generated microclimatic conditions that supported oak survival and growth comparable to clear-cuts. This result challenges assumptions that large openings or extensive fencing are necessary for oak regeneration and supports the feasibility of continuous cover forestry approaches. However, the success of gap-based regeneration still assumes ungulate densities low enough to prevent disproportionate browsing pressure.

Temporal shifts: from browsing limitation to competition limitation

A clear transition in growth-reducing factors emerged over the seven years:

Years 1–4: browsing and light availability shape height increment.
Years 5–: interspecific competition – especially from hornbeam – becomes the dominant constraint, particularly in fenced plots.

infografika 2

infografika 3

This reinforces that ungulate exclusion alone is insufficient; regeneration ultimately hinges on managing competition for saplings to escape herbivore reach.

Management implications

The findings support an integrated, adaptive regeneration strategy:

Ungulate population control is fundamental. Only at low to moderate densities can browsing remain compatible with successful oak regeneration and allow silvicultural treatments to dominate growth responses.
Use moderate gap sizes to provide adequate light without excessively attracting herbivores.
Employ fencing strategically and temporarily – primarily to support the earliest regeneration stages.
Conduct targeted tending to reduce overtopping by shade-tolerant competitors.
Retain or support a shrub layer in the forest matrix, which contributes to browsing dilution and enhances stand structural complexity.

“Our study demonstrates that while ungulate exclusion is not the Holy Grail, neither can natural regeneration succeed without effective ungulate population management. Silvicultural treatments exerted stronger early influence on growth, but this advantage was only possible because browsing pressure remained at ecologically compatible levels. Integrating population control, canopy management, and competition regulation provides a robust pathway for achieving resilient oak regeneration under continuous cover forestry across Central Europe.” concludes Bence Kovács.

Photo credits: Bence Tóth

2025. 12. 09. magyar.aniko

Garden ponds as potential sources of plant invasions

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As small aquatic habitats disappear at an alarming rate, private garden ponds may help compensate for the loss of natural habitats and support biodiversity in urban areas. However, as these ponds become increasingly popular, the spread of invasive species is emerging as a pressing issue.

Ponds, small (<5 ha) standing waterbodies, are among the most common freshwater habitats worldwide, but they are vanishing rapidly due to agricultural activities, urbanisation, climate change, and other human impacts. At the same time, we are creating new, secondary habitats in the form of garden ponds. These artificial ponds provide a range of ecosystem services, offering refuge for aquatic biodiversity, including protected amphibians, and supporting terrestrial species, especially during dry periods. In some regions, the number of garden ponds even exceeds that of natural waterbodies.

Yet the growing number of garden ponds may pose a new challenge for biodiversity. A wide variety of aquatic plants and animals are available through the ornamental trade, increasing the risk of invasive species introductions. Because these ponds are located on private property, researching and monitoring the species they contain, whether native or invasive, can be difficult. Citizen science, which involves the public in data collection, offers an effective way for researchers to gain access to these otherwise hidden habitats and to document their plant and animal communities.

Researchers at the Institute of Aquatic Ecology, HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research in Hungary, launched a citizen science project to uncover the hidden diversity of garden ponds — the MyPond project. Within this initiative, citizens provided information about the presence of invasive plants in their ponds. Out of 560 ponds surveyed, almost half contained at least one of the six targeted invasive plant species. Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), considered the world’s worst invasive aquatic plant due to its environmental and economic impacts, was frequently reported. Water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) and submerged species such as Elodea spp., Vallisneria spp., and Myriophyllum aquaticum were also common.

Inv novenyek

Some of these species originate from tropical regions, yet they have already established populations in several European countries. In Hungary, current climatic conditions may still limit their spread, but they can survive in thermal waters, and with climate change, the environment may become increasingly suitable for them. So far, it appears that these plants have primarily spread to natural waterbodies through human activity. However, garden ponds often attract waterbirds, which may also disperse seeds or plant fragments beyond garden boundaries.

“Most of these plants are on the EU’s list of invasive species, meaning it is illegal to keep them. Yet participants willingly reported having them,” said Barbara Barta. “Therefore, the main issue seems to be that the general public is not well informed about the threat posed by invasive species. Many people simply don’t realise that the plants they purchase are banned, and that keeping, growing, or exchanging them is an offence.”

The researchers emphasise the importance of environmental education and of engaging both buyers and sellers of aquatic plants used in garden ponds. “We need to take an active role in helping citizens make better choices for managing their ponds,” they said. “Providing a list of alternative, native plant species would be a good place to start.”

Reference:

Barta, B., Márton, Z., Szabó, B., Vad, C. F., Lukács, B. A. and Horváth Z. (2025) “Garden ponds: hidden sources of plant invasions?” Freshwater Biology, e70145. https://doi.org/10.1111/fwb.70145

DOI: 10.1111/fwb.70145

2025. 11. 18. magyar.aniko

Urban ponds: small waters with high value and hidden risks

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A new review led by researchers at the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research provides the most comprehensive overview to date of urban ponds and their ecological functions. In this work, the authors reveal that even the smallest and most overlooked types – garden ponds – can play surprisingly important roles in maintaining urban biodiversity and ecosystem services, at the same time, contributing to potential disservices.

In the article published in Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Water, one of the highest-ranked journals in its field, the researchers synthesise findings from more than 200 scientific studies. For the first time, they clearly distinguish between the ecosystem role of public urban ponds (such as park or stormwater ponds) and ponds hidden on private properties, garden ponds.

Although garden ponds are often only a few square meters in size, collectively they can form dense aquatic habitat networks within cities – and in some areas, they may represent the only available freshwater habitats for many species. “Most people think of garden ponds – and even larger park ponds – as purely ornamental,” says Dr. Zsófia Horváth, lead author of the study. “But if you add up all those tiny ponds scattered across a city, they form a vast hidden network that provides shelter and food for frogs, insects, and even bats. They are small, but together they matter enormously.”

The review also highlights that urban ponds are double-edged ecosystems: while they provide important ecosystem services such as supporting pollinators, microclimate regulation, and recreation, they can also contribute to ecosystem disservices when mismanaged. These include facilitating the spread of invasive species, increasing mosquito populations, and causing eutrophication-related problems, such as unpleasant odours and elevated greenhouse gas emissions.
Feneketlen to 3

Importantly, the authors emphasize that the ecological functioning of garden ponds remains far less understood than that of larger ponds usually situated in publicly accessible areas – both in terms of their services and their potential disservices. Although they likely exist in vast numbers globally, we still know very little about their regional occurrence and how similar or different their roles are from other urban ponds in supporting biodiversity or posing ecological risks.

“Urban ponds are not without problems,” Dr. Horváth adds. “If poorly managed, they can become ecological traps, but with proper care, they can also serve as key refuges for biodiversity and act as multi-functional ecosystems providing important ecosystem services.”

Despite the existence of millions of garden ponds worldwide, their ecological roles and risks remain poorly understood, with most studies to date coming from the United Kingdom. The authors call for citizen science initiatives and urban planning strategies that formally integrate privately owned ponds into the blue-green infrastructure of cities and promote responsible management by educational activities.

“Urban sustainability begins in our backyards,” Dr. Horváth concludes. “Recognizing the ecological importance of garden ponds could fundamentally change how we think about urban nature conservation.”

The study concludes that even the smallest water patches can hold disproportionately high ecological value – a finding that could reshape how cities approach biodiversity and sustainability in the era of climate change.

Source:

Horváth Z., Uhrin, M., Cunillera-Montcusí, D., Barta, B., Szabó, B., Hamer, A.J., Márton, Z., Huynh, T-H., Buttyán, B. & Vad, C.F. 2025. Urban ponds and the emerging role of garden ponds: ecosystem services and disservices, multifunctionality, and trade-offs. WIREs Water, DOI: 10.1002/wat2.70041

2025. 10. 07. magyar.aniko

Bats benefit from livestock farms: new research highlights ecological role of farms in supporting bat populations

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Animal farming is not only a key driver of rural landscapes and economy but also strongly influences ecosystem processes. In recent decades, traditional management practices have largely shifted toward modern industrialized systems, altering habitats and influencing the abundance and distribution of many species. A new study published in Landscape Ecology shows that livestock farms may also provide favourable conditions for bats.

The research was led by Kriszta Lilla Szabadi (Institute of Evolution) and Sándor Zsebők (Institute of Ecology and Botany), researchers at two different institutes of the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research. They carried out passive acoustic monitoring at 199 sampling points across Hungary, including 92 points from 35 livestock farms.

The objectives of the study were to (1) identify the bat species occurring on livestock farms, (2) compare bat activity at farms with other habitats—including cropland, grassland, oak and pine forests, as well as roads and green areas within settlements—and (3) assess how farm characteristics (such as livestock species and herd size) and surrounding landscape composition influence bat activity.

nyugati piszedenever Szabadi Kriszta 1200x900 1 — Fotó: Kriszta Szabadi

The most frequent bats detected on livestock farms were urban-adapted species such as the noctule bats (Nyctalus spp.) and pipistrelles (Pipistrellus kuhlii, P. pipistrellus, and P. pygmaeus), recorded at more than two-thirds of the farms. Interestingly, strictly protected forest specialists such as Barbastella barbastellus and other forest dwelling Myotis species also occurred on farms, indicating that these habitats provide foraging opportunities for a wide range of species.

The study found that the activity of several bat species and that overall bat activity was higher on livestock farms than in many other habitats although not higher than along roads or in urban green areas. This suggests that farms share certain similarities with urban environments, a pattern likely reinforced by their proximity to settlements.

Farm characteristics also mattered: P. kuhlii were significantly more active on cattle farms than on horse farms. This may reflect differences in housing and manure management, as horse stables tend to be cleaner, more closed, and more modern. Landscape context played an additional role. The proportion of green areas within the surrounding artificial environment was positively related to noctule bat activity, suggesting that vegetation patches within or near farms enhance foraging and roosting opportunities and help bats to navigate.

Beyond their ecological importance, bats may also provide ecosystem services to farms. A single individual can consume its body weight in insects per night, including hundreds of mosquitoes and other insects. By suppressing insect populations, bats may help reduce livestock stress and disease risks. However, the study also underlines the need for bat-friendly farming practices: maintaining vegetation corridors, preserving potential roosts, and minimizing risks from domestic predators such as cats are all essential.

This research emphasizes that the integration of ecological knowledge into farming practices can strengthen both agricultural sustainability and wildlife conservation.

Reference:
Szabadi K. L., Kurali A., Estók P., Görföl T., Froidevaux J. S. P., & Zsebők S. (2025).
Bats in livestock farms—effects of farm characteristics and landscape composition on bat activity. Landscape Ecology, 40:179. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-025-02196-9

Main foto: Alexas by Pixabay

News

2025. 10. 03. magyar.aniko

The breath of grasslands, or the role of different carbon sources in grassland CO2 emissions

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The ecological role of Hungarian grasslands is very diverse: they are important in maintaining biodiversity, but they also play a significant role in agricultural production, water retention, and soil protection. However, they also have a function that is perhaps not known to everyone: they have a significant carbon sequestration capacity. Although this carbon sequestration capacity is smaller than the carbon sequestration of forests per unit area, it is still very significant, especially because grasslands primarily store the sequestered carbon stock not in plant biomass, but in the organic matter content of the soil, and moreover, over a fairly long term.

How long the carbon stored in the soil is stored depends on many factors. One of the most important of these is the activity of the soil microflora, but equally important is the biological activity of the plants in the soil. On the one hand, plants emit significant amounts of CO₂ through their roots, and on the other hand, they provide organic matter to microorganisms directly attached to their roots or living in the environment of the roots (rhizosphere), thus increasing the rate of decomposition processes and the resulting CO₂ emissions. Soil respiration is made up of these main components which is one of the most significant element of the carbon cycle of ecological systems.

In a research conducted by the MATE and the Centre for ecological research, we examined the functioning of a dry pasture in Kiskunság, primarily the relationship between CO₂ taken up during photosynthesis and released through the soil. We were curious about which carbon source primarily determines the amount of carbon released from the soil, the CO₂ stored in the organic matter content of the soil, or the CO₂ which was “freshly” taken up by plants? Between 2012 and 2020, measurements were taken a total of 23 times at 78 permanent points. The special feature of the area – in addition to being a highly protected by the Kiskunság National Park – is that a measuring station (eddy-covariance micro meteorological station) has been operating here since 2002, which measures the CO₂ and water vapor currents between the surface and the atmosphere, making it suitable for measuring the amount of carbon taken up through photosynthesis.

The results of the research were somewhat surprising, as they showed that the amount of carbon actually taken up and released into the soil by plants determined the extent of soil biological activity a much greater extent than the amount of carbon stored in the soil, despite the fact that the carbon content varied in a very wide range (1.1-14%) in the sample area. The fact that photosynthetic CO₂ uptake can be just as decisive factor in soil carbon turnover and CO₂ emission as the main environmental factors (temperature, soil moisture) was little known until now and may be important information for biogeochemical models. The negligible role of soil carbon content may be explained by the microbial usability of different forms of the carbon pool, as there are fractions that are more and less easily usable by microbes, the amount of which is determined by the physical structure of the soil.

Koncz Peter talajlegzest — Péter Koncz measures soil respiration

This knowledge is extremely important for understanding the functioning of carbon turnover, especially in view of the accelerating climate change. If the soil and biomass breathe out more CO₂ than they absorb then carbon is being lost from the ecosystem. Preserving and maintaining the functions of grasslands is important from environmental, nature conservational and agricultural aspects.

János Balogh (MATE Department of Plant Physiology and Plant Ecology, balogh.janos@uni-mate.hu)
Péter Koncz (HUN-REN ÖK Restoration Ecology Research Group, koncz.peter@ecolres.hu)

Featured image: Ecosystem-scale carbon dioxide flux measuring station with the grey cattle hard in Bugac

2025. 10. 02. magyar.aniko

Fungi Set the Stage for Life on Land Hundreds of Millions of Years Earlier Than Thought

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HUN-REN researchers and collaborators use genetic “swaps” to recalibrate the fungal tree of life, revealing a deep history that predates the first land plants.

The Five Paths to a Complex World

On a planet once dominated by single-celled organisms, a revolutionary change occurred not once, but at least five separate times: the evolution of complex multicellular life. This was not simply a matter of cells clumping together; it was the dawn of organisms where cells took on specialized jobs and were organized into distinct tissues and organs, much like in our own bodies. This leap required sophisticated new tools, including highly developed mechanisms for cells to adhere to one another and intricate systems for them to communicate across the organism. This profound evolutionary innovation arose independently in five major groups: animals, land plants, fungi, and two distinct lineages of algae (red and brown algae).¹ Understanding when each of these groups emerged is fundamental to piecing together the history of life on Earth.

A Timeline Written in Stone

For most of these groups, the fossil record acts as a geological calendar, providing anchor points in deep time. Based on this evidence, a chronological picture of life’s complexity emerges.

Group	Oldest Fossil Evidence	Age	Location & Significance
Red Algae	Rafatazmia & Ramathallus	~1.6 billion years ago	India. Currently the earliest known complex multicellular life, these fossils significantly push back the timeline for eukaryotes.
Animals	Sponge-like fossils	~890 million years ago	Canada. Microscopic structures resembling modern sea sponges suggest animal life began long before the Cambrian Explosion.
Land Plants	Microscopic spores	~475 million years ago	Oman. Fossilized spores provide the first definitive evidence of plants on land, predating whole plant fossils by 50 million years.
Brown Algae	Fossil interpretations	~450 million years ago	Global. Molecular and fossil evidence points to an origin during the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event in the oceans.³

There is, however, a notable exception to this fossil-based timeline: the fungi. The fungal kingdom has long been an enigma for paleontologists. Their typically soft, filamentous bodies mean they rarely fossilize well.⁵ Furthermore, unlike animals or plants, which appear to have a single origin of complex multicellularity, fungi evolved this trait multiple times from diverse unicellular ancestors, making it difficult to pinpoint a single origin event in the sparse fossil record.⁶ This is where a new study by researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) and their collaborators makes a crucial contribution.

Reading the Genetic Clock

To overcome the gaps in the fungal fossil record, scientists use a “molecular clock.” The concept is that genetic mutations accumulate in an organism’s DNA at a relatively steady rate over generations, like the ticking of a stopwatch.¹⁰ By comparing the number of genetic differences between two species, researchers can estimate how long ago they diverged from a common ancestor.¹⁰

However, a molecular clock is uncalibrated; it can reveal relative time but not absolute years. To set the clock, scientists need to calibrate it with “anchor points” from the fossil record.¹² Given the scarcity of fungal fossils, this has always been a major challenge. The OIST-led team addressed this by incorporating a novel source of information: rare gene “swaps” between different fungal lineages, a process known as horizontal gene transfer (HGT).⁵ While genes are normally passed down “vertically” from parent to child, HGT is like a gene jumping “sideways” from one species to another. These events provide powerful temporal clues. If a gene from lineage A is found to have jumped into lineage B, it establishes a clear rule: the common ancestor of lineage A must be older than the point in time when the gene appeared in lineage B. By identifying 17 such transfers, the team established a series of “older than/younger than” relationships that helped to dramatically tighten and constrain the fungal timeline.⁵

rachel horton kitchlew FSLmk8OBhtg — Photo by Rachel Horton-Kitchlew on Unsplash

A New History for an Ancient Kingdom

This groundbreaking research was driven by a powerful collaboration between two leading Hungarian research groups from the HUN-REN network and the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) in Japan. The study was co-led by first authors Lénárd L. Szánthó from the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research and Zsolt Merényi from the HUN-REN Biological Research Centre in Szeged.⁵ Merényi is part of László G. Nagy’s group, a team renowned for its work on fungal evolutionary genomics and the evolution of multicellularity. This Hungarian expertise was combined with the cutting-edge computational approaches of the Model-Based Evolutionary Genomics Unit at OIST, led by Gergely J. Szöllősi (also affiliated with HUN-REN) and co-led by Dr. Eduard Ocaña-Pallarès.⁵

Here is what the team did:

Built a broad family tree of fungi from hundreds of conserved genes, analyzing 225 distinct markers across 110 fungal species.⁵
Dated that tree using the few available fossils plus this new, relative-age information gleaned from rare gene “swaps” between lineages, which tell us which branches must be older or younger and tighten the timeline.

The researchers asked a simple question with big consequences: when did today’s fungi start to diversify? By combining fossils with information on relative ages from rare horizontal gene transfers, their analysis points to the common ancestor of living fungi dating to roughly 1.4–0.9 billion years ago—well before land plants.⁵ That timing supports a long prelude of fungi–algae interactions that helped set the stage for life on land.

Why This Discovery Matters

Fungi run ecosystems—recycling nutrients, partnering with other organisms, and sometimes causing disease. Pinning down their timeline shows fungi were diversifying long before plants, consistent with early partnerships with algae that likely helped pave the way for terrestrial ecosystems.

This revised timeline fundamentally reframes the story of life’s colonization of land. It suggests that for hundreds of millions of years before the first true plants took root, fungi were already present, likely interacting with algae in microbial communities.⁵ This long, preparatory phase may have been essential for making Earth’s continents habitable. By breaking down rock and cycling nutrients, these ancient fungi could have been the first true ecosystem engineers, creating the first primitive soils and fundamentally altering the terrestrial environment. In this new view, plants did not colonize a barren wasteland, but rather a world that had been prepared for them over eons by the ancient and persistent activity of the fungal kingdom.

timothy dykes i qj PUmUY — Photo by Timothy Dykes on Unsplash

Publication Details

Title: A timetree of Fungi dated with fossils and horizontal gene transfers
Journal: Nature Ecology & Evolution
Authors: Lénárd L. Szánthó, Zsolt Merényi, Philip Donoghue, Toni Gabaldón, László G. Nagy, Gergely J. Szöllősi, and Eduard Ocaña-Pallarès
DOI Link: 10.1038/s41559-025-02851-z

Works cited

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Have we found the first sign of animal life on Earth? | News – CORDIS, accessed September 29, 2025, https://cordis.europa.eu/article/id/430528-trending-science-have-we-found-the-first-sign-of-animal-life-on-earth
Complex multicellularity in fungi: evolutionary convergence, single origin, or both? – bioRxiv, accessed September 29, 2025, https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/230532v1
Biogeographic calibrations for the molecular clock – PMC – PubMed Central, accessed September 29, 2025, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4614420/
pdf
Multicellular organism – Wikipedia, accessed September 29, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multicellular_organism
Weird and wonderful world of fungi shaped by evolutionary bursts, study finds | ScienceDaily, accessed September 29, 2025, https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/08/220815112817.htm
Complex multicellularity in fungi: evolutionary convergence, single origin, or both? | bioRxiv, accessed September 29, 2025, https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/230532v1.full-text
wikipedia.org, accessed September 29, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multicellular_organism#:~:text=It%20evolved%20repeatedly%20for%20Chloroplastida,slime%20molds%20and%20red%20algae.
How Molecular Clocks Are Refining Human Evolution’s Timeline – SAPIENS – Anthropology Magazine, accessed September 29, 2025, https://www.sapiens.org/biology/molecular-clocks/
Molecular clock – Wikipedia, accessed September 29, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molecular_clock
7 Molecular clock analysis – Bioinformatics – Fiveable, accessed September 29, 2025, https://fiveable.me/bioinformatics/unit-6/molecular-clock-analysis/study-guide/PDhYDw7BlzqjyI1n
Calibration of Avian Molecular Clocks | Molecular Biology and Evolution – Oxford Academic, accessed September 29, 2025, https://academic.oup.com/mbe/article/18/2/206/1079289

Beyond fossil calibrations: realities of molecular clock practices in evolutionary biology – Frontiers, accessed September 29, 2025, https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/genetics/articles/10.3389/fgene.2014.00138/full

2025. 09. 22. magyar.aniko

From forest edge to city park: how birds adapt to urban life

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City parks, often embedded in a highly altered city fabric, are sometimes the only types of natural areas within human settlements. Their importance for both city dwellers and biodiversity is well known, yet parks in Eastern-Central European cities still offer much to study, for example, how their situation within the urban matrix can affect wildlife, and which animal traits facilitate or limit the survival of certain species. A new study reveals the potential of city parks to retain bird diversity, compared to the surrounding landscapes near the cities.

The research was carried out by an international group from the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, with contributions from eight other institutes in Hungary and Romania. Published in Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, the study examines how landscape complexity and the spatial configuration of city parks affect bird community composition and functional trait variation. “We found that bird species richness in city parks was lower than in forest edges but similar to that of agricultural habitats,” explains lead author Tamás Lakatos. “This shows that while parks cannot entirely substitute for natural forests, they remain important components of urban ecosystems.”

The first author of the study, Tamás Lakatos, a PhD student, during bird survey

The researchers recorded birds in 72 city parks across 9 mid-sized cities in Hungary and Romania. In each city, eight sampling sites were delineated: two city parks located in the central part of the cities, two city parks in suburban areas, and four reference areas in the outer, less urbanised, so-called peri-urban areas. For better comparison, reference areas consisted either of forest-dominated habitat edges or primarily agricultural production areas. The team conducted bird surveys using point counts during the peak breeding season (April–May), in the early morning hours, with two repetitions. The researchers surveyed more than 3,000 birds representing 72 species, categorizing them by so called functional traits, like diet, foraging technique, nesting strategy, migratory status, body size, and feeding of nestlings. This approach allowed the team to assess how different functional traits influence birds’ ability to thrive in human-dominated settings, like city parks.

According to the findings, insect-feeding birds were less able to establish populations in urban parks due to the scarcity of suitable insect habitats. In contrast, species that nest in elevated places such as buildings often benefited, finding safe nesting opportunities away from predators like cats and dogs. “Ground-nesting birds face particular challenges in cities because of higher rates of nest predation and human disturbance,” notes Péter Batáry, the project leader and last author of the paper. “By contrast, cavity-nesting species such as tits can thrive if old trees or nest boxes are available.” Furthermore, agricultural fields provided more suitable habitats for larger-bodied birds, which require more extent foraging areas, while generalist species like blackbirds and house sparrows adapted well to urban parks also. However, the spatial configuration of parks, i.e. whether they were situated in suburban areas or in the city centres, has never played a role, meaning that their importance is consistent regardless of location. More specialised species, such as the yellowhammer or hoopoe, however, struggled to find appropriate habitats in urban environments.

The study highlights that city parks cannot maintain full bird diversity on their own, but they can significantly contribute to biodiversity conservation if managed thoughtfully. Measures such as reducing mowing frequency, planting native shrubs and trees, retaining old and dead wood, and installing nest boxes can all increase the natural value of parks for birds. “Our results emphasize that urban green spaces are not isolated patches but parts of a larger ecological network,” says Tamás Lakatos. “Sustainable city planning needs to consider this broader landscape perspective, integrating parks, farmland, and forests into a mosaic that allows most bird species to persist and ecosystem functions to be secured.”

The study is published as:
T. Lakatos, A. Báldi, R. Gallé, D. Korányi, I. Kovács, Z. László, E. Papp, J. J. Purger, K. Sándor, G. Seress, K. Szitár, E. Török, I. Urák, P. Batáry (2025). Functional trait filtering and decline in species richness in urban parks hinder ground-breeding and insectivorous birds. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 112: 128988. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2025.128988

Featured image: Forest edge near Tatabánya, Hungary

News

2025. 09. 10. magyar.aniko

Zsófia Horváth was elected for president of the European Pond Conservation Network

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Small standing waters, ponds or (temporary) pools, are among the most threatened ecosystems worldwide. They are disappearing at an alarming rate due to climate change, intensive agriculture, and other anthropogenic pressures, resulting in the extinction of their unique biodiversity.

The European Pond Conservation Network (EPCN), founded in 2004, aims to promote the conservation of ponds across Europe by linking research, conservation practice and science communication. An important part of this mission is the series of international EPCN workshops held every two years.

For the next three years, the organization has elected Zsófia Horváth, head of the Biodiversity and Metacommunity Ecology Research Group at Institute of Aquatic Ecology, as its new president.

The Pond Manifesto developed by EPCN is available in seven languages, with the Hungarian version prepared by the team of HUN-REN CER.

News

2025. 09. 05. magyar.aniko

The Hungarian Academy of Sciences has announced its ‘Momentum MSCA’ postdoctoral fellowship for the first time

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The Hungarian Academy of Sciences has announced its ‘Momentum MSCA’ postdoctoral fellowship for the first time, enabling outstanding researchers to join the work of Lendület research groups for a period of 1–3 years. The MTA-ÖK Lendület Fluvial Ecology RG received seven applications, of which two candidates were awarded postdoctoral positions for three years, starting from 1 January 2026. Ghoufrane Derhy will focus on a trait-based comparison of riverine and lacustrine food webs, while Junyao Gu will investigate the relationship between molecular-based biodiversity and ecosystem functioning (BEF) across multiple trophic levels in Danube plankton communities. We extend our congratulations to the postdoctoral researchers and the hosting lab!

https://mta.hu/english/results-announced-for-the-first-call-of-the-momentum-msca-nem-premium-postdoctoral-fellowship-programme-114612

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Silvicultural treatments drive early regeneration growth more strongly than browsing – but only when ungulate densities remain controlled

Species-specific trajectories reveal competition as a dominant force

Gap-cutting can rival clear-cutting for oak regeneration

Temporal shifts: from browsing limitation to competition limitation

Management implications

News

HUN-REN researchers and collaborators use genetic “swaps” to recalibrate the fungal tree of life, revealing a deep history that predates the first land plants.

The Five Paths to a Complex World

A Timeline Written in Stone

Reading the Genetic Clock

A New History for an Ancient Kingdom

Why This Discovery Matters

Works cited

News

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