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#fungi #mycorrhizalfungi #mycology #ProtectTheUnderground

✨ Paper spotlight ✨

(🧵 1/6) The underappreciated roles of fog and dew on vegetation and biocrusts
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Fog and dew can play an essential role in ecosystem dynamics and are particularly important for water-stressed systems (e.g. drought conditions).

Can we use plant relatedness as a shortcut to predict root microbiomes?

In our new study, we tested this idea directly. Out now in ISME Communications.

Here we used machine learning, phylogenies, and root traits for 22 plant species covering 135 million years evolution.

doi.org/10.1093/isme...

Honored to receive the People’s Choice Poster Award at GSB 2026

Grateful to be in a room where soil life is not overlooked, but the center of every conversation.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by, asked questions, and voted.

Sixty years of plant community change in Europe indicate a shift toward nutrient-richer and denser vegetation Bioindication reveals a 60-year shift toward denser, more productive vegetation, but a weak thermophilization signal.

New Science Advances paper: 60 years of change across European plant communities reveals a widespread shift toward denser vegetation, with increasing shade tolerance across habitats. Proud to co-author this important work🍃 #ecology www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

At the Global Soil Biodiversity conference in Victoria?

I’m presenting new global maps of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, tracing how plant carbon builds hyphae and spores belowground.

Poster 16, come by if you’re around on Monday (today!)

#GSB2026 #GSB4

Spores/hyphae by @vkokkoris.bsky.social

Emergent predictability in microbial ecosystems A long-standing hypothesis of microbial ecology is that simple patterns might persist despite community complexity or even emerge because of it. However, the concept of “emergent simplicity” remains partly intuitive. Here, we defined emergent ...

Moran et al. in Science
Emergent predictability in microbial ecosystems

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Huge congrats Gustavo!

Ecological and genomic variation in ectomycorrhizal fungal exploration types Ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF) produce mycelia with variable extension and complexity, which can be classified according to soil ‘exploration types’ (ETs). ETs have received attention as one of the few.....

Very happy to see this lab paper out in @newphyt.bsky.social - we identified genomic traits & environmental drivers of ectomycorrhizal fungal mycelium exploration in the soil and on roots.

Thanks to all our co-authors and to @tommansfield.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1111/nph....

🌲Two open postdocs positions in ecosystem fluxes with @cirad.bsky.social

The positions - one focusing on carbon allocation, the other on water use efficiency - are based in Montpellier, France. Deadline for applications is 13th April 2026.

Read more: www.icos-cp.eu/about/opport...

A comprehensive dated phylogeny of China’s vascular plants reveals a hidden global biodiversity hotspot - Nature Ecology & Evolution A dated phylogeny of 16,585 vascular plant species native to China reveals three major centres of endemism, including a potential new global biodiversity hotspot.

A dated phylogeny of 16,585 vascular plant species native to China reveals three major centres of endemism, including a potential new global biodiversity hotspot 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Natural climate solutions can deliver a host of benefits for people + nature. So what’s holding them back?

A new @science.nature.org-led global study analyzed >500 projects across 137 countries to identify 46 implementation barriers.

Turns out, most aren’t scientific or ecological—they’re human!

Pilot project paves way to storing CO2 underground as minerals in arid countries Carbon dioxide has been turned into minerals in Earth’s subsurface using recirculating water flow — a viable way to sequester this greenhouse gas in water-scarce areas.

Carbon dioxide has been turned into minerals in Earth’s subsurface using recirculating water flow — a viable way to sequester this greenhouse gas in water-scarce areas

go.nature.com/4rUAH2k

Ad banner: germinating plant, Utrecht University, VACANCY: Postdoc position in Experimental & Computational Plant Biology

I am excited to announce that we have two open positions on our recently funded MYBstery M-WEAVE (NWO-DFG) project!

1) Postdoc in my team at Utrecht University (NL). www.uu.nl/en/organisat...

2) PhD in the team of @lauraragni.bsky.social at University of Freiburg (DE). (See thread)

Fully-funded PhD with me in beautiful North Wales (field work in Sumatra). From conflict to coexistence: how can new biodiversity finance approaches promote elephants and humans living in harmony? With @wwf.org.uk, @bangoruniversity.bsky.social

www.bangor.ac.uk/conservation...

Schematic overview of how the two components of biodiversity – species richness and community evenness – have a direct effect and mediating effect on ecosystem services.

Even evenness is important: the direct and mediating effects of species abundances for ecosystem services
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

#Commentary by Iris Hordijk highlighting the recent work by Zhou et al.
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/SYWZIF...

@iris-hordijk.bsky.social

Transposable elements hitchhike on Starships across fungal genomes - Nature Communications Large mobile genetic elements known as Starships act as vehicles for transferring transposable elements (TEs) between fungi. Here, Griem-Krey et al. show that these ‘hitchhiking’ TEs can drive rapid e...

Now out!
We show that TEs can be horizontally transferred between fungal species via Starships. Once transferred, these TEs can become active, changing the genome organization and affecting the lifestyle of the recipient fungus.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
@oggenfussursula.bsky.social #TEsky

Limitations of carbon markets for biodiversity conservation Nature Reviews Biodiversity, Published online: 24 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s44358-026-00150-4Nature-based carbon projects are widely promoted as delivering both climate and biodiversity benefits. However, carbon accounting requirements can diverge from the needs of biodiversity conservation. This Perspective examines challenges related to additionality, leakage, permanence and unintended social and ecological impacts, highlighting limits to the utility of carbon markets for conservation.

New online! Limitations of carbon markets for biodiversity conservation

PhD Position in Computational Modelling of Fungal Evolution How do giant mobile elements called ‘Starships’ reshape fungal plant pathogens? Help us computationally model their spread and impact in nature and agriculture!

Phd Position alert 🚨

Join our project ASTRAfun (Adaptation and Starship Traffic in Root-Associated fungi), in which we will use computational models to unveil the hidden dynamics of fungal evolution.

It’s not going to be just regular fun. It’s going to ASTRAfun. 🤓

www.uu.nl/en/organisat...

Postdoctoral scholarship (2 years) in mycorrhizal biogeography and species distribution modelling

Postdoc (2 years) in mycorrhizal fungal biogeography & species distribution modelling @umeaplantsciencecentre.se
Work with large-scale metabarcoding data and modelling.

Deadline is 30th April
www.umu.se/en/work-with...

Excited to share this new Tansley article from our lab!
We discuss how plants differentiate between different microsymbionts to ensure beneficial symbiosis outcomes, comparing nodulation and AM symbiosis.
@newphyt.bsky.social

Reporter, Nature Job Title: Reporter, Nature Location: Washington DC or New York (Hybrid Working Model) Application Deadline: March 20, 2026 About Springer Nature Springer Nature is one of the leading publishers of re...

🚨 Want to work at @nature.com with me? We have an ultra-rare opening on my team of reporters.

This reporter, based in NYC or DC, would cover physical sciences, energy, environment, Al and policy.

You'd get to work with some of the most talented editors in the biz! DM w/ any Qs.

Apply by March 20!

The billion-dollar case for sustaining palaeontology’s digital databases - Nature Ecology & Evolution The authors survey community palaeontological databases, documenting their contributions to science as well as their vulnerabilities, and provide recommendations for the future of open science databas...

The billion-dollar case for sustaining palaeontology’s digital databases 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Dowding et al survey palaeontological databases, documenting their contributions to science as well as vulnerabilities, and provide recommendations for the future of open science databases

💼 Do you want to join our team and contribute to ongoing permafrost research at @uni-hamburg.de? We are looking for a technician!

Deadline on Monday the 9th of March, see link below.
www.uni-hamburg.de/en/stellenan...

Huge congrats!