Plain language summaries, Research summaries

How climate change affects carbon storage in Mediterranean pine forests

Reforestation is widely promoted as a way to mitigate climate change by capturing carbon from the atmosphere. However, its real success depends on how trees invest (allocate) the carbon they capture, that is, how much they invest to grow leaves, stems or roots, particularly under warmer and drier conditions. In this study, we analysed how climate affects carbon allocation in large-scale pine reforestations across the … Continue reading How climate change affects carbon storage in Mediterranean pine forests

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Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

Community science complements assessment of extinction risk

Understanding the probability of extinction is critical for effective management and conservation. While such assessment mainly depends on rigorous and standardized monitoring (the best of the best data), recent research from Acevedo-Charry et al (2025) features a complementary way that data gathered from volunteers can help estimate probability of extinction. A version of this post is also available in Spanish here. How do we assess … Continue reading Community science complements assessment of extinction risk

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Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

La ciencia comunitaria complementa la evaluación del riesgo de extinción

Comprender la probabilidad de extinción es fundamental para una gestión y conservación eficaces. Si bien dicha evaluación depende principalmente de un monitoreo riguroso y estandarizado (con los mejores datos disponibles), una investigación reciente de Acevedo-Charry et al (2025) presenta una forma complementaria en la que los datos recopilados por voluntarios pueden ayudar a estimar la probabilidad de extinción. Esta entrada de blog también está disponible … Continue reading La ciencia comunitaria complementa la evaluación del riesgo de extinción

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Agriculture, Human-wildlife interactions, Pollinators, Research summaries

Small fields, big benefits: But only with semi-natural habitats nearby

Pollinators, like bumblebees, are essential for agriculture, yet they’re declining due to landscape simplification and habitat loss. In this blog post, Riho Marja and colleagues tell us more about their study. Riho Marja and his team explored the effect of field size on Bumble bee populations in Austria and Hungary. They explored this by setting up 56 commercial bumblebee colonies in Eastern Austria and Western … Continue reading Small fields, big benefits: But only with semi-natural habitats nearby

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Monitoring and methods

Amidst the resplendence of Munnar’s sky islands

Madhumay Mallik from the Wildlife Trust of India recounts their experience researching grass frogs, and details what is being done to ensure that these and other frog species continue to thrive despite increasing challenges. Far away on the mountain peak were cotton clouds in restless sleep, tossing and turning. Before me, a lush pasture of smooth grass and wild flowers, blanketing a steep terrain and … Continue reading Amidst the resplendence of Munnar’s sky islands

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Conferences and events

Reclaiming Our Common Future

The pursuit of shared purpose in an age of division Reflections on a lecture given by Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland at the Grantham Institute, Imperial College, London, 29 October 2025. Gary Kass, Visiting Professor of Sustainability Science, Policy and Practice, Imperial College; Honorary Professor of Geography, University of Nottingham; Vice-President of IES and Chair of IES External Policy Advisory Group; Member of the Office of … Continue reading Reclaiming Our Common Future

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Research summaries

Scotland’s iconic Red deer threatened by invasive ‘super Sika’

Calum Brown and his team share their findings on managing native and non-native deer species in Scotland and discuss potential solutions. Scotland’s deer numbers are thought to be at an all-time high. Although estimates vary, something like a million deer currently roam the land, around double the numbers present in 1990. This growing population has serious impacts, including limiting the regeneration of our small, fragmented … Continue reading Scotland’s iconic Red deer threatened by invasive ‘super Sika’

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Research summaries

Quarries and garbage dumps inside the Galapagos National Park: How can we restore them?

Anna Calle-Loor, co-author of a new publication, shares her team’s experience assessing the survival of plant species in the Galapagos to inform decision-making amongst stakeholders. When you think of the Galapagos Islands, what comes to mind? Perhaps volcanic landscapes, giant tortoises and other unique wildlife, scenes that could easily belong in a nature documentary. But behind this iconic scenery lies a less picturesque reality: the … Continue reading Quarries and garbage dumps inside the Galapagos National Park: How can we restore them?

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Pollinators, Research summaries

Beaver wetlands create a buzz and a flutter for pollinators

Patrick Cook discusses the impacts of beaver wetlands on pollinator communities, summarising recently-published research. Can beaver wetlands create a buzz and a flutter for pollinators? That’s a question that has occupied my mind since 2022. It began one evening sat at the edge of a beaver wetland looking at Greater Spearwort and wondering what pollinators visit the yellow flowers of this gigantic buttercup! Subsequently the … Continue reading Beaver wetlands create a buzz and a flutter for pollinators

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Research summaries

Project to restore and expand Scotland’s ancient forests provides a boost to moth biodiversity

Patrick Cook and his team share their experience investigating how moths respond to a landscape-scale woodland expansion project at Mar Lodge Estate in the Scottish Highlands. Background Upland landscapes in Scotland have a low cover of native woodland yet provides an excellent opportunity to expand woodland cover for biodiversity. For instance, native pinewood now covers less than 18,000 hectares in 84 small areas and an … Continue reading Project to restore and expand Scotland’s ancient forests provides a boost to moth biodiversity

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