Science
Review

2016

Compiling the year’s research uses ofdata accessed through the
Global Biodiversity Information Facility

2Foreword
The phrase ‘free and open access to biodiversity data’ that appears on GBIF.org
is more than a slogan.
Making data open and accessible to users without
them having to ask for permission dramaticallyreduces the “transaction costs” associated withaccessing data. Rather than negotiating withmultiple data providers, a researcher can simply
get the data and explore it. Such an exploration
might lead to a dead end, but the cost of failure islow, because we haven’t wasted time negotiating
access for something that ultimately didn’t workout. The fewer obstacles we put in the way of
researchers, the more varied and innovative theuses that are likely to emerge.
This is reflected in this year’s Science Review,which documents a growing body of research that
hinges on free and open access to biodiversity
data from the GBIF network. The 57 additional
papers in 2015 represent a 17 per cent annual
increase, amounting to an additional peerreviewed use of GBIF-mediated data each week.
As befits a global organization, the geographic
diversity of authors using GBIF-mediated data has
broadened. Based on authors’ host institutions,the number of papers produced by researchers
working in China, Mexico, Spain, Brazil andColombia now nearly matches and sometimes
exceeds the output from their peers in Germany,
Australia, France and Switzerland. The regional
totals support the notion that these are generaltrends, with researchers from Asia (+44), North
America (+51) and Latin America (+57) eachco-authoring dozens more papers than in 2014.
One hopes that activities to fill data gaps like thedata mobilization projects supported by the EUfunded Biodiversity Information for Development
programme (BID) will see returns in more active
use by researchers in Africa, the Caribbean and
the Pacific.

A major use of GBIF-mediated data is modelling
species distributions, which is to be expected
given the nature of the data. Estimating current
distributions, and predicting how they mightchange in the future, is a staple of GBIF-based
science and has obvious practical applications toareas such as invasive species, vectors of humandisease, and food crops.
GBIF-mediated data also underpins basic,
curiosity-driven research. Increasingly we arealso seeing meta-analyses of biodiversity data,such as the paper included here, “Synthetic
datasets and community tools for the rapid
testing of ecological hypotheses”, whose authors
include Miguel Araújo, a past winner of GBIF’s
Ebbe Nielsen Prize. The abstract is worth quoting:

The increased availability ofboth open ecological data, andsoftware to interact with it, allows
the fast collection and integrationof information at all spatial andtaxonomic scales. This offers
the opportunity to address
macroecological questions ina cost-effective way.
In other words, “free and open access tobiodiversity data” enables approaches to thestudy of diversity that are not otherwise possible.
The publications gathered here are a testimony
to the benefits of open data.

ROD PAGE
Chair, GBIF Science Committee
Vice Chairs : Mark Costello, Anders G. Finstad &Philippe Grandcolas
Members: Elizabeth Arnaud & Guy Cochrane

3

About the Science Review
The GBIF Science Review provides an annual survey
drawn from the Secretariat’s ongoing literature
tracking programme, which identifies researchuses and citations of biodiversity information
accessed through GBIF’s global infrastructure. The
peer-reviewed articles summarized in the following
pages offer a partial but instructive view of research
investigations enhanced and supported by free open
access data that the GBIF network of members andpublishers make available.
This year, we introduce two new conventions. The firstis to identify open-access scientific articles using thesymbol a. We think this step is both valuable andpractical for those interested in reading the researchat a time of institutional journal subscriptions.
In addition, to keep pace with the ever-expanding
bibliographic tables (and reduce printing costs), we

have decoupled the comprehensive list of the year’suses, publishing them instead in a companion Science
Review Sourcebook, available at gbif.org/sciencereview-sourcebook-2016.
As in previous years, the categories used here areintended to help readers navigate the major subject
areas of GBIF-assisted research, despite the factthat some papers may cut across multiple topics.
For clarity’s sake, articles appear under only one
category in the Review. Countries assigned to authors
are based on the location of the institutions identified
in the author information, while funding information
included for the highlighted papers draws upon thepapers’ acknowledgements.
Those interested in sharing research uses thathave escaped our attention can write to us atcommunication@gbif.org.

CONTENTS
Uses and trends����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 4
Invasive alien species������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 6
Impacts of climate change�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13
Species conservation and protected areas���������������������������������������������������������������� 19
Biodiversity and human health������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 22
Food, farming and biofuels ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 25
Advancing biodiversity science������������������������������������������������������������������������������������29
Data management���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 37

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Uses and trends
These visualizations of the use of GBIF-mediated data serve to show not just the growing number ofpeer-reviewed publications appearing each year, but also the increasing number of countries, islands
and territories whose institutions host authors who apply the data in their research articles. Eachtrend highlights the GBIF network’s widening sphere of influence and impact on scientific research
related to the biological domain.

ANNUAL NUMBER OF PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLES USING GBIF-MEDIATED DATA
2015

 407

2014

 350

2013

 249

2012

 229

2011

 169

2010

 148

2009

 89

2008

 52

5

NUMBER OF ARTICLES WITH AUTHORS BY COUNTRY/ISLAND/TERRITORY
163

United States

59

United Kingdom

44

Germany

38

Australia

36

China

33

Mexico

32

Spain

30

Brazil24

France23

Colombia

22

Switzerland

19

Belgium

17

Canada16

Netherlands

15

Sweden14

Chile • Denmark • Italy

12

Norway10South Africa

9

New Zealand

8

Austria • India • Russian Federation

7

Argentina

6

Peru • Poland • Portugal • Singapore

5

Costa Rica • Czech Republic • Thailand

4

Benin • Bolivia • Ecuador • Japan • Panama • Saudi Arabia

3

Iran • Kenya • Pakistan • Taiwan • Ecuador • Zimbabwe

2

Estonia • Greece • Hungary • Iceland • Indonesia • Israel • Nigeria • South Korea

1

Bahamas • Bangladesh • Belize • Bulgaria • Burkina Faso • Cameroon • Croatia
Dominican Republic • French Guiana • Ghana • Greenland • Ireland • Kuwait
Luxembourg • Malaysia • Namibia • Nepal • Oman • Philippines • Puerto Rico
Romania • Rwanda • Slovenia • Slovakia • Suriname • Uganda • Uruguay • Venezuela

GBIF Regions

countries, islands &territories with authors who
used GBIF-mediated datain peer-reviewed papers
published in 2015

81

41+23+171063K
47 28

82

Asia

Proportion and numberof papers by authors 327
136 within GBIF regions

AfricaEurope182

Latin America

North America

Oceania

6

Invasive alien species

MANGROVE FOREST, ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA. ADHIKARI, TIWARY & BARIK (2015) IDENTIFY BOTH THE ANDAMANS AND INDIA’S MANGROVES AS LIKELYINVASION HOTSPOTS. CC BY-NC 2007 AMRE https://flic.kr/p/3frJfX

INVASIVE HOTSPOTS OF INDIAa Adhikari D, Tiwary R & Barik SK (2015) Modelling
Hotspots for Invasive Alien Plants in India. PLoS ONE 10(7):e0134665. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0134665
Author country: India

Identifying areas vulnerable to invasive alien species(IAS) is a prerequisite to controlling invasion. This
study combines bioclimatic data with GBIF-mediatedoccurrences to model climatic niches for 155 invasive
alien plants in India. After using the models togenerate climatic suitability maps, the researchers
overlaid terrestrial ecoregions and anthropogenic
biomes. The resulting ‘IAS hotspots’ represent places
where more than 50 per cent of an ecoregion overlaps
with climatically suitable areas for multiple invasive
species containing at least three anthropogenic
biome types. These hotspots occur in 19 of 47 Indian
ecoregions and coincide with major biodiversity
hotspots such as Western Ghats, Indo-Burma, andEastern Himalaya along with other forest reserves,
islands, and coastal mangrove forests.

DISTRIBUTION VS. ABUNDANCE
Bradley BA (2016) Predicting abundance with presenceonly models. Landscape Ecology 31(1): 19-30. doi:10.1007/
s10980-015-0303-4
Author country: United States
Research funding: National Institute of Food and Agriculture,

USDA, Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station,
Massachusetts Department of Environmental Conservation

This study examines 15 invasive plants in the US toargue that models based on occurrence data alone
may be good indicators of species distribution, butpoor predictors of species abundance. The author
suggests that the latter instead requires abundance
surveys as these data are effective predictors ofspecies abundance.

PREDICTING THE RANGE OF AN INVASIVE MARINESPECIESa Byers JE, Smith R, Pringle J et al. (2015) Invasion
Expansion: Time since introduction best predicts global
ranges of marine invaders. Scientific Reports 5: 12436.
doi:10.1038/srep12436
Author countries: United States, Australia, New ZealandResearch funding: Macquarie University; University of New
South Wales; U.S. National Science Foundation

What’s the best way of predicting the range of aninvasive marine species? This study points to thesimplest of explanations: time since introduction.
Researchers compiled a database of GBIF-mediatedoccurrences as well as traits and environmental
variables for 138 invasive, coastal marine
invertebrates in either Australia, New Zealand, or
the United States. Estimating the total length ofcoastal range for each species, they found time since7

PLANT REPRODUCTIVE STRATEGIES AND NICHE
DYNAMICS

introduced as ornamentals, but now more than a thirdof the naturalized plants are classified as weeds.
The overall results indicate a long-term shift in theplants’ origins and uses, starting from food originatingin Europe, through food and ornamentals from North
America, to ornamental and accidental species
from South Africa. Despite these changes, species
introduction has remained more or less constant at
the rate of around 20 species per year since 1880.

a Dellinger AS, Essl F, Hojsgaard D et al. (2016) Niche
dynamics of alien species do not differ among sexual andapomictic flowering plants New Phytologist 209(3): 13131323. doi:10.1111/nph.13694
Author countries: Austria, Germany, Czech Republic
Research funding: DFG; Austrian Science Fund (FWF); Centreof Excellence PLADIAS; Czech Science Foundation; Czech
Academy of Sciences

By way of understanding the mechanics of the nicheshifts common to many plant invasions, this study
investigates whether the different reproductive
strategies used by alien plants affect their ability to
expand their individual niches. Using GBIF-mediatedoccurrences as well as climate data, researchersmodeled the niche dynamics of 13 flowering plantsthat rely on sexual reproduction and compared themwith plants that rely on asexual reproduction. The
matched plants were either from the same genus ortribe. Surprisingly, they find no significant differences
between the two groups. The assumption that sexual
reproduction and the genetic recombination involvedin this process would allow for more pronounced
changes in niche dynamics does not hold up. In fact,
their results indicate that adaptive evolution is not the
predominant driver of niche dynamics.

DOES GLOBALIZATION INCREASE SPECIESNATURALIZATION?
Dodd AJ, Burgman MA, McCarthy MA & Ainsworth N (2015)
The changing patterns of plant naturalization in Australia.
Diversity and Distributions 21(9): 1038-1050. doi:10.1111/
ddi.12351
Author countries: Australia
Research funding: Australian Research Council

This study identified all invasive plants in Australia,
using GBIF-mediated occurrences to map theirdistributions prior to introduction ‘down under’. Using
the purpose and pathway of introduction to identify
patterns in naturalization, their results show that
12% of total Australian flora is naturalized—but justtwo families account for more than a third. Originating
mainly from Europe (47.4%), 65% of the plants were

EPACRIS LONGIFOLIA, CC BY-NC 2015 ERI HTTP://WWW.INATURALIST.ORG/
PHOTOS/2028647

ASSESSING TRANSFERABILITY OF SPECIESDISTRIBUTION MODELSa Fernández M & Hamilton H (2015) Ecological nichetransferability using invasive species as a case study. PLoS
ONE 10(3): e0119891. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0119891
Author country: United States
Research funding: Russell E. Train Education for Nature
Fellowship

Anticipating and responding to the spread ofinvasive species in new environments often hinges
on analyses of species distribution models. The
authors begin by noting cases where convenientmethodological assumptions have oversimplified
and distorted the consistency with which species
invade environments that resemble their preferred
native habitats—a concept known as ‘ecological nichetransferability’. Building their models with a range of
bioclimatic variables and GBIF-mediated data for 13
well-documented invasives, the authors compare theobserved ranges for the species in both their nativeand invaded habitats with modelled predictions. Theirresults highlight the invaders’ varied responses andinvasives

introduction to be the most important variable inpredicting the range. On average, invasive species
expand their range at about 400 km per decade. But
since time after introduction can only be measured
after an invasion occurs, the calculation doesn’t help
in avoiding or managing invasions. The message isclearly that identifying vulnerable areas is the bestmeans of protecting against invasion.

invasives

8

broadly suggest that niche transferability depends
largely on the dynamics of species interactions in agiven region. This finding emphasizes the importanceof preventative controls while calling attention to thevalue of modelling niche transferability to guide postinvasion management measures.

COLLECTING AND SHARING (DATA ON) INVASIVE
AQUATIC SPECIESa Fuller P & Neilson ME (2015) The U.S. Geological Survey’s
Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database: over thirty yearsof tracking introduced aquatic species in the United States(and counting). Management of Biological Invasions 6(2):159-170. doi:10.3391/mbi.2015.6.2.06
Author country: United States
Research funding: U.S. Geological Survey; U.S. Fish andWildlife Service; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; U.S.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

The US Geological Survey’s Nonindigenious Aquatic
Species (NAS) program has monitored, recorded, andanalysed occurrences of alien freshwater organisms
in the United States since the 1980s. The records draw
from a number of sources, including 12,000 records
from the GBIF network, all maintained in a publicly
accessible online database (http://nas.er.usgs.gov)
where users can search, display and map species bystate, temporal range or other variables. The databasehas been used in a number of different studies, anddistribution maps have appeared in many publications
and news outlets. USGS also publishes the 260,000
records of the NAS database as a dataset on GBIF.org(see doi:10.15468/ijccz9).

HOW DOES THE HUMAN FOOTPRINT AFFECTDISTRIBUTION OF INVASIVE SPECIES?
a Gallardo B, Zieritz A & Aldridge DC (2015) The importanceof the human footprint in shaping the global distribution of

SCOTS PINE (PINUS SYLVESTRIS). CC BY-SA 2015 SHINYPHOTOSCOTLAND
https://flic.kr/p/ruCxnx

terrestrial, freshwater and marine invaders. PLoS ONE 10(5):e0125801. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0125801
Author countries: United Kingdom, Spain
Research funding: European Union; Spanish Ministerio de
Economía y Competitividad

By focusing on a portion of Europe that includes
Great Britain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands,
this study examines the influence of environmental
and anthropogenic factors on global distributionof invasive species. Researchers created species
distribution models (SDMs) of 72 invasive species(terrestrial plants and animals as well as freshwaterand marine organisms), using GBIF-mediatedand climatic data, geophysical variables, and fiveanthropogenic variables as proxies of the humanfootprint. They found temperature to be the mostimportant overall factor, accounting for about half the
distribution in the terrestrial and freshwater species.
However, human footprint measures like closenessto ports or roads explained as much as a quarter ofthe distribution. All models showed a consistently
correlation to human habitat use and identified urban
areas close to major ports as hotspots for potential
invasion.

ONCE AN INVADER, ALWAYS AN INVADER?
Gallien L, Saladin B, Boucher FC, Richardson DM &Zimmermann NE (2016) Does the legacy of historicalbiogeography shape current invasiveness in pines? New
Phytologist 209(3): 1096-1105. doi:10.1111/nph.13700
Author countries: Switzerland, South Africa
Research funding: National Research Foundation, South
Africa; Swiss National Science Foundation

How does the long-term history of species relate theircurrent invasiveness? This study tries to answer
that question by examining closely the genus Pinus,
as it is one of the best-studied invasive clades. The
researchers initially construct a new phylogeny of thewhole genus, and use Pine distribution data based
among others on GBIF mediated occurrences, tocreate a biogeographic history of all the Pinus species.
The researchers find that invasive pines belong tolineages that had a tendency to colonize more regionsin the past than non-invasive pines. The colonization
history and thus invasiveness is, however, notcorrelated with any specific morphological trait. In
fact, the researchers found no evidence that invaders
had higher tolerance to e.g. extreme climates than
non-invaders. However, they do show that lineages
that moved most across biogeographical regions had
faster rates of niche evolution.

9

a Januario SM, Estay SA, Labra FA & Lima M (2015)
Combining environmental suitability and population
abundances to evaluate the invasive potential of thetunicate Ciona intestinalis along the temperate SouthAmerican coast. PeerJ 3: e1357. doi:10.7717/peerj.1357
Author country: Chile
Research funding: FONDECYT; CONICYT

continents by area are Australasia and Pacific Islands,
and the major donors are the temperate regionsof Europe and Asia. The study suggests that plantinvasions overall have been a Northern-to-Southernhemisphere phenomenon rather than one from the Old
World to the New.

Ciona intestinalis is a highly successful invasive
marine invertebrate that originated in Northern
Europe, but has spread to all over the world. Recently,
the genetic complex known as C. intestinalis has beenfound to correspond at least two distinct species. In
Chile, the species is restricted to northern regionsof the country, but may eventually find its way toimportant aquaculture centres in the south. Using
GBIF-mediated occurrences and climate data, theresearchers modeled ecological niches and foundsuitable habitats in both central and southern regions.
They also did field sampling to validate the models,and indeed verified that southern regions of Chile
had already been invaded. Their results also indicatethat not only are there genetically distinct subgroupsof C. intestinalis, but these also have different
environmental preferences.

TRACKING NATURALIZED PLANTS WORLDWIDE
van Kleunen M, Dawson W, Essl F et al. (2015). Global
exchange and accumulation of non-native plants. Nature
525(7567): 100-103. doi:10.1038/nature14910
Author countries: Germany, Australia, Czech Republic,
United States, Russia, New Zealand, Spain, Colombia, Costa
Rica, Switzerland, South Africa, Portugal, Belgium, Chile,
India, Brazil, Uruguay, Belize, Oman, Thailand, China, Saudi
Arabia, Netherlands
Research funding: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft;
Austrian Climate and Energy Fund; Czech Science
Foundation; Czech Academy of Sciences; Ministry of Science
and Culture of Lower Saxony; VW-Foundation; Flora deGuinea Ecuatorial; King Saud University

Combining GBIF-mediated occurrences with datafrom a novel database, the Global Naturalized Alien
Flora (GloNAF), this study seeks to identify andquantify the spread and distribution of naturalized
plant species worldwide. The researchers present
an analysis of 13,168 naturalized vascular plants in
843 non-overlapping regions covering 83 per centof the Earth’s land surface. They determine numberof native species per continent, and find that atleast 3.9 per cent of all known vascular plants havebeen naturalized outside their native ranges. The
biggest recipients of naturalized species from other

COMMON RAGWEED (AMBROSIA ARTEMISIIFOLIA). CC BY-NC-SA 2014
DENDROICA CERULEA https://flic.kr/p/oLiKdK

DISTRIBUTION OF RAGWEED
Leiblein-Wild MC, Steinkamp J, Hickler T & Tackenberg O(2016) Modelling the potential distribution, net primary
production and phenology of common ragweed with aphysiological model. Journal of Biogeography 43(3): 544554. doi:10.1111/jbi.12646
Author country: Germany
Research funding: Hesse Ministry of Higher Education,
Research, and the Arts

Common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) is aninvasive species that causes allergies in 10-20 per
cent of humans and thus presents a significant publichealth challenge. This study’s physiological model
performs well, with the plant’s potential distribution
corresponding with GBIF-mediated occurrences inboth the native North American range and the invasive
range in Europe. However, the model also predicts
a much larger potential range for ragweed thancurrently observed, in part due to improved estimateson the amount and timing of pollen release.

invasives

DIFFERENT GENES, DIFFERENT NICHESinvasives

10

STOWAWAY INVADERS
Leidenberger S, Obst M, Kulawik R et al. (2015) Evaluating
the potential of ecological niche modelling as a component
in marine non-indigenous species risk assessments.
Marine Pollution Bulletin: 97(1-2): 470-87. doi:10.1016/j.
marpolbul.2015.04.033
Author countries: Sweden, Germany, United Kingdom
Research funding: Swedish Research Council, European
Union

Cargo ships transport an estimated 10,000 marine
species in ballast water worldwide. This study uses
22,550 GBIF-mediated occurrences to predict the
spread of 18 non-indigenous species (NIS) along
shipping routes and weigh the factors that mightmake potential habitat suitable for them in the Baltic
Sea and Northeast Atlantic. The study finds thattemperature and sea-ice concentration determine
habitat suitability for 61 per cent of species, whilesalinity surprisingly accounts for only 11 per cent.
This finding cuts against current practices for ships
exchanging ballast water, where salinity remains thestandard parameter for assessing NIS risk. The study
also identifies potential NIS hotspots in shallow partsof the Baltic, where ships should avoid exchanging
ballast water, pointing instead to the middle of theNorth Sea as a “cold spot” more suitable for ballastwater discharge with lower risk for spread of NIS.

INVADERS IN AQUARIUMS
Mendoza R, Luna S & Aguilera C (2015) Risk assessment of
the ornamental fish trade in Mexico: analysis of freshwater
species and effectiveness of the FISK (Fish Invasiveness
Screening Kit). Biological Invasions 17(12): 3491-3502.
doi:10.1007/s10530-015-0973-5
Author country: Mexico
Research funding: Mexican National Fisheries Institute,
Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon

One billion ornamental fish from more than 5,000
species are traded around the world every year. In
Mexico, 60 per cent of native fish extinctions correlatewith the presence of non-native species, so this study
sought to identify high-risk ornamental fish to prevent
future invasions. Using GBIF-mediated occurrences
along with other data researchers employed a risk
analysis method called Fish Invasiveness Screening
Kit (FISK) and calibrated it for use with analysed 368
species of freshwater aquarium fish. Their results
identify the top 30 invasive species—classifying
17 of them as high-risk invaders—and highlight theimportance of identifying high-risk species to inform
policy makers, implement monitoring programs andeducate traders and pet-shop owners.

GREEN FROG (LITHOBATES CLAMITANS). CC BY-NC 2013 REIGH LEBLANC
https://flic.kr/p/gf4GLV

CLIMATE IS NOT THE ONLY PREDICTOR OF
INVASION
Murray RG, Popescu VD, Palen WJ & Govindarajulu P(2015) Relative performance of ecological niche andoccupancy models for predicting invasions by patchilydistributed species. Biological Invasions 17(9): 2691-2706.
doi:10.1007/s10530-015-0906-3
Author country: Canada
Research funding: Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation;
Natural Science and Engineering Research Council

Examining two anuran invasions of wetlands in
British Columbia, Canada, this study evaluates theperformance of occupancy models versus ecologicalniche models (ENMs) for predicting invasive ranges.
The researchers used GBIF-mediated occurrences
for both the green frog (Lithobates clamitans) andAmerican bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) to build
the distribution models and compared them withoccupancy models. They discovered that while ENMs
perform well in predicting the invasive ranges of aclimate-driven species like the green frog, they areless reliable with habitat specialists such as theAmerican bullfrog, for which the occupancy model
performs better. The researchers conclude by pointing
out that relying on climate data can be helpful for
predicting occurrences of invasive species, it might
not tell the whole story.

11

invasives

CLOSE RELATIVES ARE BETTER INVADERS
Park DS & Potter D (2015). Why close relatives make badneighbours: phylogenetic conservatism in niche preferencesand dispersal disproves Darwin’s naturalization hypothesisin the thistle tribe. Molecular Ecology 24(12): 3181-3193.
doi:10.1111/mec.13227
Author country: United States
Research funding: U.S. National Science Foundation

eastern India. Models under future climate scenarios
predict that these regions will be even more prone toinvasion, highlighting the country’s need to control
this noxious species.

The number of exotic plants naturalized in the
United States far exceeds that of any other groupof organisms. In this study of Cardueae thistles,
researchers used GBIF-mediated occurrences to do
ecological niche modelling of non-native species in
the California Floristic Province. Results showed thatthe more closely related introduced thistles are tonative species, the more likely they are to be invasive.
Successful invaders also showed greater levels ofniche overlap with native thistles than non-invasive
species. The study also examined traits related todispersal properties, finding that invasive thistles
have longer bristles, and shorter and lighter seed than
non-invasive counterparts. The conclusions makea case against Darwin’s naturalization hypothesis,
supporting the idea instead that plant invaders closely
related to native species are not at a disadvantage.

a Silva-Rocha I, Salvi D, Sillero N, Mateo JA & Carretero MA(2015) Snakes on the Balearic islands: an invasion tale with
implications for native biodiversity conservation. PLoS ONE
10(4): e0121026. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0121026
Author countries: Portugal, Spain
Research funding: Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento
Científico e Tecnológico

INVADING AT A SNAIL’S PACEa Rekha Sarma R, Munsi M & Neelavara Ananthram A(2015) Effect of Climate Change on Invasion Risk of Giant
African Snail (Achatina fulica Férussac, 1821: Achatinidae)
in India. PLoS ONE 10(11): e0143724. doi:10.1371/journal.
pone.0143724
Author country: India
Research funding: India Department of Science andTechnology

In this study, researchers used GBIF-mediatedoccurrences to create an ecologicalniche model that maps the current
and future patterns in India of the
giant African snail (Achatina fulica),
considered one of the world’s
worst invasive species. Native toEast Africa, the snail is known toconsume 50 species of plants,
regularly outcompetes nativesnails, and carries pathogens thatcause disease in humans. 60 per
cent of India faces invasion, andthis study revealed three high-risk
invasion hotspots: western India,
parts of peninsular India, andGIANT AFRICAN SNAIL (ACHATINA FULICA)
FEEDING ON A SURINAM CHERRY (EUGENIAUNIFLORA). CC BY 2015 SCOT NELSON
https://flic.kr/p/rvqRjC

SERPENTS’ TALES: ASSESSING INVASION RISK OF
INTRODUCED SNAKES IN THE BALEARIC ISLANDS

Although the long chequered history of humaninteraction with the Balearic Islands has presented
countless opportunities for biological invasion, thispaper focuses on four recently introduced species:
the horseshoe whip snake (Hemorrhois hippocrepis),
the Montpellier snake (Malpolon monspessulanus),
the false smooth snake (Macroprotodon mauritanicus)
and the ladder snake (Rhinechis scalaris).
The authors analysed mitochondrial DNA from tissue
samples to understand the snakes’ origins andinvasive pathways. Then, relying primarily on GBIFmediated data to understand the native distribution ofeach species, they estimated their current and future
habitat suitability in this Mediterranean archipelago.
These combined molecular and ecological analyses
suggest that the nursery trade in olive trees may be
the sole source of each invasion, and that climatechange might improve conditions for these alreadywidespread alien species.

invasives

12

ASSESSING WEED RISK ASSESSMENTS

ARCTIC INVASION THREATS FROM BALLAST WATERa Smith L, Tekiela D & Barney J (2015) Predicting biofuel
invasiveness: a relative comparison to crops and weeds.
Invasive Plant Science and Management 8(3): 323-333.
doi:10.1614/IPSM-D-15-00001.1
Author country: United Statesa Ware C, Berge J, Jelmert A et al. (2016) Biologicalintroduction risks from shipping in a warming Arctic.
Journal of Applied Ecology 53: 340-349. doi:10.1111/13652664.12566
Author countries: Norway, Australia, Denmark, Switzerland,
Russian Federation, Poland
Research funding: Tromsø University Museum, theUniversity Centre on Svalbard, Svalbard Environmental
Protection Fund, the Fram Centre, the Norwegian Polar
Institute, the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Authorities often rely on weed risk assessments(WRAs) to determine the invasive potential
when considering a non-native plant species for
introduction. The parameters and limits of the models
used differ between countries, and in this study,
researchers used 40 species of crops and invasive
species to compare the WRAs used in the UnitedStates and Australia. Both models failed to distinguishweeds from crops, judging major crops like barley,
rice, canola, and alfalfa to be high-risk. In one model,
cereal rye scored higher than kudzu, a prodigious
invader in the Southeastern U.S. The results reveal
serious weaknesses in the WRAs and recommend
caution in applying these models. The authors
suggest additional screening such as field testing as acomplementary method for assessing invasion risk.

Ships transport myriad marine organisms around theworld in ballast water that may, when exchanged,
introduce foreign species that become invasive insuitable areas. This study surveyed ballast waterof eight foreign ships landing at the Norwegianarchipelago of Svalbard, carrying out morphologicaland molecular analyses of the organisms on board.
GBIF-mediated data provided information on the
global distribution of the identified species and, in
combination with climatic data, served to predictwhether suitable niches exist around Svalbard. Whilethese results showed that only one of 23 species had
invasive potential, future climate scenarios increase
the ranks of likely invaders to six species.

WATERS OF SVALBARD IN THE NORWEGIAN ARCTIC, CC BY-NC-ND 2014 NEIL MORALEE HTTPS://FLIC.KR/P/M9JGQC

See all invasive alien species citations in the Science Review Sourcebook, p.4

13

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0132054
Author country: United States
Research funding: University of Alaska Fairbanks

PLATYRRHINUS LINEATUS, CC BY-SA 2010 DESMODUSHTTPS://COMMONS.WIKIMEDIA.ORG/WIKI/FILE:PLATYRRHINUS.JPG

THE EFFECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE BATS OF
THE BRAZILIAN CERRADO
a Aguiar LMS, Bernard B, Ribeiro V, Machado RB & Jones
G (2016) Should I stay or should I go? Climate change
effects on the future of Neotropical savannah bats.
Global Ecology and Conservation 5: 22-33. doi:10.1016/j.
gecco.2015.11.011
Author countries: Brazil, United Kingdom
Research funding: CNPq

Covering more than two million square kilometers
and nearly a quarter of Brazil, the tropical ecoregion
known as the Cerrado biome is the most biologicallydiverse savannah in the world and home to more than
250 species of mammals, including many bats. In thisstudy, researchers combined more than 13,000 GBIFmediated records with present and future climate data
to model distributions for 116 of the Cerrado’s bats.
Their results suggest that unless these species canmove to new suitable areas, climate change will cause
36 different species to lose more than 80 per cent of
their suitable habitat. If, on the other hand, the batsof the Cerrado migrate into newly suitable areas, asmany as two thirds of them will lose less than 20 per
cent. Overall, the models predict that future habitat
shifts of an average 281 km, mainly to the southeast.

PREDICTIONS TO INFORM CONSERVATIONPLANNING IN ALASKA
a Baltensperger AP & Huettmann F (2015) Predicted Shifts
in Small Mammal Distributions and Biodiversity in the Altered
Future Environment of Alaska: An Open Access Data andMachine Learning Perspective. PLoS ONE 10(7): e0132054.

This study uses GBIF-mediated occurrences to create
bioclimatic distribution models of 17 small mammals
across Alaska. Combining the models with climate
scenarios for the year 2100, the researchers predicted
an average loss of suitable habitat of about 20 per
cent and a northward shift of 111 km for species living
in cold-climate, northern and interior regions. Species
in the continental and southern regions, however, areto gain on average about 30 per cent more habitat.
Their shifts are mixed with about half moving northand the other half moving south. The study predicts
that Alaskan biodiversity hotspots in general will shiftnorthward, inland, and upward—critical findings for
future management strategies that also highlight thesignificance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions tohalt climate change.

CLIMATE CHANGE MAY ALREADY AFFECT BIRDS
Bateman BL, Pidgeon AM, Radeloff VC et al (2015) The
pace of past climate change vs. potential bird distributions
and land use in the United States. Global Change Biology.
doi:10.1111/gcb.13154
Author countries: United States, Australia
Research funding: U.S. National Aeronautics and Space
Administration; James Cook University

Researchers analysed 60 years of GBIF-mediatedoccurrence across 285 land-bird species in thecontiguous United States (excluding Alaska and
Hawaii). More than five million records were crossreferenced with data on weather conditions from thesame period, creating models predicting how changes
in climate affect breeding-bird distributions. The
results showed that these distributions are shifting at
an average speed of 1.27 km/year, double the global
estimates. Surprisingly, the direction of these shifts
is not just northward, but also westward in 27.4%of species. While average temperature is the mostimportant factor in long-term changes, short-term
precipitation and extreme conditions also influence
many species. Predicted increases in species richness
in the Midwest and East hinge on whether these areas
can sustain the affected species in the future in lands
continuously developed by humans.

climate change

Climate change

14

climate change

PREDICTING THE FATE OF EUCALYPTS
a Booth TH, Broadhurst L, Pinkard E et al. (2015) Native
forests and climate change: Lessons from eucalypts.
Forest Ecology and Management 347:18-29. doi:10.1016/j.
foreco.2015.03.002
Author countries: Australia
Research funding: CSIROThis review analyses studies on the potential effectof climate change on natural stands of eucalypts ofAustralia. The genus Eucalyptus includes 100 species,
none of which have been listed as extinct since theearly 20th century, though 50 are now consideredvulnerable or endangered. Climate change will maketrees like eucalypts less likely to evolve or disperse,
so predicting their ability to tolerate new climaticconditions is key to understanding their future.
The authors analysed numerous studies and used
global occurrence data accessed via GBIF in BIOCLIM
and MAXENT models that highlight the importance ofconsidering not only natural distributions but also
climatic adaptability. They conclude that changing
climates will make prediction of species interactions,pest and diseases particularly challenging.

PREDICTING CHANGES TO PLANT RICHNESS AND
DIVERSITY IN MADAGASCARa Brown KA, Parks KE, Bethell CA, Johnson SE & Mulligan
M (2015) Predicting plant diversity patterns in Madagascar:
understanding the effects of climate and land cover change
in a biodiversity hotspot. PLoS ONE 10(4): e0122721.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0122721
Author countries: United Kingdom, Canada
Research funding: Madagascar National Parks, Madagascar
Institute pour la Conservation des Ecosystèmes Tropicaux,Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Environments,
Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership

Climate and land cover changes have the potential,
both alone and together, to reshape terrestrial plantcommunities in tropical settings like the megadiverse
island nation of Madagascar. Hoping to distinguishthe combined and individual impacts of these two
major drivers of changes, the authors modelled future
shifts in species richness based on GBIF-mediateddata for 828 genera and 2,186 species of plants in
Madagascar, then quantified the changes by elevation
and within the country’s major ecoregions.
The results show that climate and land cover shifts
will produce large-scale impacts on species diversity
and richness, but with heterogeneous effects that
forecast gains in certain regions. What seems
worryingly consistent, though, is that the highaltitude ericoid thickets of Madagascar’s four major
mountains, with their high levels of endemism, will behighly vulnerable under any and all scenarios.

THE VULNERABILITY OF AUSTRALIAN SKINKS
Cabrelli AL & Hughes L (2015) Assessing the vulnerability ofAustralian skinks to climate change. Climatic Change 130(2):223-233. doi:10.1007/s10584-015-1358-6
Author country: Australia
Research funding: Macquarie University

This study introduces a framework for assessing
species’ vulnerability to climate change, using
Australian skinks as a case study to integrate
projections of environmental niche models withindices of vulnerability. Skinks represent the largest
group of reptiles in Australia, numbering almost
400 species. The researchers found that by 2050,
more than 70 per cent of the skinks are projected
to experience significant contractions in habitat,and 21 species stand to lose all suitable habitat.
However, when assessing overall vulnerability, theresearchers discovered that many species expected
to lose habitat possess traits that make them very
resilient to environmental changes. Other species
less affected by habitat loss lack the same traits andmay actually be more threatened. Those few species
projected to lose nearly all habitat and with limited
resilience to changes emerge as the primary focus forconservation efforts.

ANCIENT HOLLOW OAKSEASTERN SHINGLEBACK (TILIQUA RUGOSA). CC BY-NC 2015 JOHN SULLIVANHTTP://WWW.INATURALIST.ORG/PHOTOS/2664222

a Gough LA, Sverdrup-Thygeson A, Milberg P et al.
Specialists in ancient trees are more affected by climate
than generalists. Ecology and Evolution 5(23): 5632-5641.
doi:10.1002/ece3.1799
Author countries: Norway, United Kingdom, Sweden
Research funding: Norwegian Environment Agency

15

BUMBLEBEES AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Kerr JT, Pindar A, Galpern P et al. (2015) Climate change
impacts on bumblebees converge across continents.
Science 349(6244): 177-180. doi:10.1126/science.aaa7031
Author countries: Canada, United Kingdom, Belgium,
Germany, United States
Research funding: Natural Sciences and Engineering
Research Council of Canada; University of Ottawa

BUFF-TAILED BUMBLEBEE(BOMBUS TERRESTRIS), CC BY 2012 DAVE YOUNGHTTPS://WWW.FLICKR.COM/PHOTOS/DCYSURFER/6650123517

Ancient hollow oak trees are one of the most important
habitats for insect biodiversity in Europe and North
America. The old trees support numerous beetle
species, and this study investigates how climatechange will affect this community. Researchers
surveyed 300 hollow oaks at 100 sites, grouped
observed species as generalists or specialists, andused GBIF-mediated occurrences to cluster the
species identified by geographical distribution. They
then created models to predict the effects of futureclimate scenarios, finding that specialist beetles will
be far more affected by changes in temperature andprecipitation than generalists, indicating that halting
the decline of hollow-oak habitats may be important tocounter the effects of climate change.

INSECT INFESTATIONS OF SWEDISH FORESTS
Hof AR & Svahlin A (2015) The potential effect of climatechange on the geographical distribution of insect pest
species in the Swedish boreal forest. Scandinavian Journalof Forest Research 31(1): 29-39. doi:10.1080/02827581.20
15.1052751
Author country: Sweden

The forest industry in Sweden sustains large financial
losses every year due to insect infestations. Since
climate change may increase the range of certain pest
species, this study aimed to predict potential outbreakcandidates. Using GBIF-mediated occurrences theresearchers created models of potential distribution of
30 prospective pest species in the year 2070, which
predict significant expansions of the distribution
ranges across most species. Certain insects are likely
to increase their geographic range by more than 90
per cent, and only a single species expects to see

Bumblebees are important global providers of
ecological services. This study used more than
360,000 GBIF-mediated occurrence records from
Europe and North America to evaluate the impacts ofclimate change on the future of the bumblebee. The
researchers found rapid losses of habitats in southernareas, but without any corresponding northward
expansions. They tested whether these changes
were associated with either pesticide or land-use
changes, but find evidence that neither relate to shifts
in bumblebee ranges. The study suggests assisted
relocation of bumblebee colonies to new areas toalleviate the range losses caused by climate change.

RECEDING HARE LINES: CLIMATE CHANGE
IMPACTS ON LAGOMORPHS
a Leach K, Kelly R, Cameron A, Montgomery WI & Reid N(2015) Expertly Validated Models and PhylogeneticallyControlled Analysis Suggests Responses to Climate Change
Are Related to Species Traits in the Order Lagomorpha. PLoS
ONE 10(4): e0122267. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0122267
Author country: United Kingdom
Research funding: Queen’s University Belfast

Species distribution models are frequently used to
predict the impact of climate change on individual
species’ bioclimatic niches, but this study uses anovel framework to assess the bioclimatic future ofan entire mammalian order (Lagomorpha) comprisinghares, rabbits and pikas. Using a total of 139,000
occurrences mostly from the GBIF network, theymodelled future distributions for 58 species, findingthat by 2080, nearly one third of the Earth’s area will
experience loss of lagomorph species. On average,
all three families will exhibit 1.1° shifts towards thepoles and 165-meter increases in elevation by 2100.
With their limited ability to move, species living on
islands or in high altitudes are likely to suffer greater
impacts. The study finally calls for minimizing gaps in
our knowledge of Lagomorpha in order to predict andpossibly prevent future extinctions.

climate change

its range contract. These results combined with thepotential stressor of a warmer climate points to bleak
prospects for present-day Swedish trees and forests.

climate change

16

MONARCH BUTTERFLY (DANAUS PLEXIPPUS). CC BY-NC 2010 EPICNOM
https://flic.kr/p/8m4uFVUSING MILKWEED TO PREDICT THE FUTURE OF THE
MONARCHa Lemoine NP (2015) Climate change may alter breeding
ground distributions of eastern migratory monarchs(Danaus plexippus) via range expansion of Asclepias hostplants. PLoS ONE 10(2): e0118614. doi:10.1371/journal.
pone.0118614
Author country: United States
Research funding: Smithsonian Institution; Florida
International University

The monarch, perhaps the most familiar North
American butterfly, relies exclusively on milkweed
plants (Asclepias spp.) for food in its larval stages.
This study investigates the effects of climatechange on the host plants and, consequently, thebutterfly. Combining climate projections with 24,000
occurrences, including records from the GBIF network,
the study’s author modelled future distributions of
milkweed and monarchs in the eastern United States,
showing that optimal habitat for milkweed will shiftnorth. What remains uncertain is whether monarchs
will follow. Many factors, including genetics, control
their migratory patterns, so this vegetation shift
may present longer migration distances that could
negatively impact the species.

tundra ecosystems between 1,400 and 4,700 meters
above sea level in Colombia, Ecuador and northeastern
Peru. Using GBIF-mediated occurrences, researchersmodelled the tapir’s distribution in Ecuador, evaluating
the effects of future climate change scenarios on its
habitats. The results reveal a general pattern of shifts
toward higher elevations, reductions in area occupiedby the animals, and, in some cases, complete loss ofsuitable habitat, and human activities may further
imperil T. pinchaque. This study highlights theimportance of informing the designation of protectedareas that conserve unique and irreplaceable natural
habitats.

WHICH MARINE SPECIES WILL COPE WITH RISINGTEMPERATURES?
Stuart-Smith RD, Edgar GJ, Barrett NS, Kininmonth SJ &Bates AE (2015) Thermal biases and vulnerability to warmingin the world’s marine fauna. Nature 528: 88-92. doi:10.1038/
nature16144
Author countries: Australia, Sweden, United Kingdom
Research funding: Australian Research Council; Institute forMarine and Antarctic Studies; Marine Biodiversity Hub; Ian
Potter Foundation; CoastWest; National Geographic Society;
Conservation International; Wildlife Conservation Society
Indonesia: The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust; AustralianAmerican Fulbright Commission; ASSEMBLE Marine

What do we know about the thermal needs andbiases of marine animal communities? This study
used nearly 400,000 GBIF-mediated occurrences toanalyse and model thermal distributions of 3,900
species of shallow-water marine fish and mobile
macro-invertebrates. After compiling community
temperature indices (CTIs) that test for thermalbias of marine communities against environmental
temperatures, the researchers’ results showedthat CTIs of most communities are either higher

TWO FOR ONE: PROTECT MOUNTAIN TAPIRS BY
PROTECTING CLOUD FORESTa Ortega-Andrade HM, Prieto-Torres DA, Gómez-Lora I &Lizcano DJ (2015) Ecological and geographical analysis of
the distribution of the mountain tapir (Tapirus pinchaque) in
Ecuador: importance of protected areas in future scenariosof global warming. PLoS ONE 10(3): e0121137. doi:10.1371/
journal.pone.0121137
Author countries: Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela, Spain
Research funding: Ecuadorian Ministry of Environment

The critically endangered mountain tapir (Tapirus
pinchaque) is restricted to cloud forest and alpine

MOUNTAIN TAPIR (TAPIRUS PINCHAQUE),CC BY 2009 DAVID SIFRY
https://flic.kr/p/6AhWaK

17
ALCHORNEA ANAMARIAE SECCO SPECIMEN. FIELD MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY SEED PLANT
COLLECTION HTTP://WWW.GBIF.ORG/OCCURRENCE/1228550788

climate change

or lower than compared to the mean sea surface
temperatures—meaning that some communities
can likely handle increasing temperatures without
significant loss of species, while others may be morethreatened. The study identifies three ecoregions—
the Gulf of Thailand, southwestern Caribbean, andNorth Cape of New Zealand—where warming is
expected to exceed the upper limit of 50 per centof the present species by 2025. Importantly, thelocations with highest predicted loss of species alignnot with locations of greatest warming, but rather withareas of the highest level of thermal bias.

SPECIES TRAITS, WARMING OCEANS AND RANGESHIFTS IN MARINE SPECIESa Sunday JM, Pecl GT, Frusher S et al. (2015) Species traits
and climate velocity explain geographic range shifts in an
ocean-warming hotspot. Ecology Letters 18(9): 944-53.
doi:10.1111/ele.12474
Author countries: Canada, Australia, United Kingdom
Research funding: Australian National Network in Marine
Science; NSERC; Australian Research Council; National
Environmental Research Program, Australia; Fisheries
Research and Development Corporation; Marie Curie
International Incoming Fellowship; European Union

Increasingly strong currents in the coastal watersof eastern Australia have produced temperature
increases three to four times greater than the
global average in the region, triggering many range
extensions. In this study, researchers test thetheory that the traits related to invasion successare also predictors of range extensions. GBIFmediated occurrences of 50 regional fish and 53
invertebrate species helped the researchers estimate
the latitudinal range sizes. Analysing the changes
alongside climate data and five other traits, theyfound that, although climate explains 23 per cent of
the variation in range shifts, taking species traits
into account increases this by 2.5 times, highlighted
by the fact that the most rapid range extensions
occur in omnivores with high adult mobility and large
latitudinal range.

IS CLIMATE CHANGE THE MOST IMPORTANT CAUSE
OF BIODIVERSITY LOSS?
a Tejedor Garavito N, Newton AC, Golicher D & Oldfield
S (2015) The Relative Impact of Climate Change on theExtinction Risk of Tree Species in the Montane Tropical
Andes. PLoS ONE 10(7): e0131388. doi:10.1371/journal.
pone.0131388
Author country: United Kingdom
Research funding: Bournemouth University; Franklinia
Foundation

What is the relative impact of climate change on
extinction risk compared to other threats? This
study tries to answer this by using GBIF-mediatedoccurrences to model the distributions of 129 tree
species endemic to the upper montane tropical Andes,
and project these into future climate scenarios. Theirresults indicate that by the year 2080, reductions in
the population size of between 36 and 46 species will
qualify them as threatened. Compared against othercriteria considered in IUCN Red List assessments,
climate change increases the risk of extinction by
15 per cent—a finding that contradicts previous
suggestions that climate change is the mostimportant cause of biodiversity loss. This conclusion
highlights the need to consider other threats whendeveloping conservation strategies.

ARCTIC WARMING TO ENABLE TRANSOCEANICSPECIES EXCHANGE
Wisz MS, Broennimann O, Grønkjær P et al. (2015) Arctic
warming will promote Atlantic–Pacific fish interchange.
Nature Climate Change 5: 261-265. doi:10.1038/
nclimate2500
Author countries: Denmark, Greenland, Switzerland, France
Research funding: Danish Agency for Science, Technology
and Innovation; European Union; NAACOS (Denmark); Canada
Excellence Research Chair

The Atlantic and Pacific are connected by theNortheast and the Northwest Passage, but unsuitableconditions above the Arctic Circle have thus far
prevented the interchange of marine biota between
oceans. The present study simulates the spread of
species under future climate conditions, creating

climate change

18

LINGCOD (OPHIODON ELONGATUS), CC BY 2012 ED BIERMAN https://flic.kr/p/dqjMBG

ecological niche models for 515 fish species based on
GBIF-mediated occurrences and climate projections.
In the most conservative simulation, results showedthat by 2100, 13 species from the Pacific will havereached the Atlantic, whereas 16 species will have
traveled the other way, with the vast majority finding
suitable passage through the Northeast Passage.
Though the consequences of these exchanges are
difficult to predict, it is likely that they will increasebeyond the year 2100 due to continued warming in the
Arctic.

SEEDS OF CHANGE: CHANGING PLANT RANGES IN
ALBERTA
Zhang J, Nielsen SE, Stolar J, Chen Y & Thuiller W (2015) Gains
and losses of plant species and phylogenetic diversity fora northern high-latitude region. Diversity and Distributions
21(12): 1441-1454 doi:10.1111/ddi.12365
Author countries: Canada, Denmark, France
Research funding: Climate Change and Emissions
Management Corporation; Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring
Institute; Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance; European
Research Council; TEEMIOIn this study, researchers used 160,000 occurrences(27,000 from the GBIF network) to model ecologicalniches of 1,500 seed plants in the Canadian provinceof Alberta. When combined with future climate data,
they found that by the 2080s, 24 per cent of species
may lose more than 80 per cent of their habitat, but 35
per cent may double their suitable range. But overall,they predict that species richness and phylogenetic
diversity will increase in most areas, except for the
Rocky Mountains. The study suggests that analysisof the evolutionary history of species may offer newopportunities when prioritizing conservation efforts.

See all climate change citations in the Science Review Sourcebook, p.7

19Species conservation and protected areas
GROUNDWORK: TOWARDS A GLOBALUNDERSTANDING OF AT-RISK PLANTS
a Brummitt NA, Bachman S, Griffiths-Lee J et al. (2015)
Green Plants in the Red: A Baseline Global Assessment for
the IUCN Sampled Red List Index for Plants. PLoS ONE 10(8):e0135152. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0135152
Author countries: United Kingdom, South Africa
Research funding: Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust; Esmé
Fairbairn Foundation; Rio Tinto; UK DEFRA; World Collections
Programme; Natural History Museum, London; Royal Botanic
Garden, Kew

While global assessments of extinction risks for birds,
mammals, amphibians and other groups are available
to help guide their conservation, no similar baseline
has existed for plants, despite the fundamental role
they play in the biosphere. The IUCN Sampled Red List
Index unveiled here offers the first accurate view of
how threatened plants are around the world.
Drawing on specimen collections from the world’s
herbaria, including records accessed through GBIF,
the authors assessed a 7,000-species sample fromfive major plant groups to represent the world’s nearly
380,000 described plant species. Reaching theconclusion that more than one in five plants alreadyfaces the threat of extinction - a risk that is generally
twice as high in the tropics - the authors argue thatthe world cannot afford this scale of loss, and that wemust all work together to conserve what we have.

importance of each dam in contribuing to recovery of
eel habitats. They concluded that making just 12 dams
permeable to eels could restore access to 40 per centof the animals’ historic range, while modifications to 76
dams could achieve an 80 per cent recovery.

PROTECTING MESOAMERICAN FORESTS
de Albuquerque FS, Benito B, Beier P et al. (2015)
Supporting underrepresented forests in Mesoamerica.
Natureza & Conservação 13(2): 152-158. doi:10.1016/j.
ncon.2015.02.001
Author countries: United States, Denmark, Spain
Research funding: Fundación BBVA

Mesoamerica is home to almost 5,000 endemic plants
and 8 per cent of the world’s biodiversity, but how wellare protected areas safeguarding the region’s different
forest types? Using species distribution models
for 1,224 native tree species in Mesoamerica using
742,000 GBIF-mediated occurrences, this study foundthat about a quarter of Mesoamerican forest types are
represented in protected areas, but only 5 per centof its imperiled dry forests. They identified several
novel high-value forest conservation areas (FCAs) thathave regrettably little overlap with existing protectedareas—in fact, more than half of the identified FCAs
fall outside protected areas, particularly in Mexico’s
dry and coniferous forests and Panama’s moist forest.
Researchers hope the study’s findings can guide
expansion of the region’s network of protected areas.

USING HISTORICAL DATA TO SAVE THE EUROPEAN EELClavero M & Hermoso V (2015) Historical
data to plan the recovery of theEuropean eel. Journal of Applied Ecology
52(4): 960-968. doi:10.1111/13652664.12446
Author countries: Spain, Australia

The IUCN Red List lists theEuropean eel (Anguilla anguilla) as
critically endangered, with habitat
restrictions from dam building citedamong the causes of the species’
collapse. By combining GBIFmediated data with 16th- and 19thcentury records on freshwater fishin Spain, the authors created current
and historical distribution models for
the Iberian Peninsula. After locating
the region’s dams in the distribution
models, the authors calculated the

EUROPEAN EEL (ANGUILLA ANGUILLA), PUBLIC DOMAIN VIA THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF THE
NETHERLANDS HTTP://J.MP/2DMPEBN20IDENTIFYING VULNERABLE SPECIES OF EASTERNMEXICO’S MONTANE CLOUD FOREST

species conservation

Esperón-Rodríguez M & Barradas VL (2015) Comparing
environmental vulnerability in the montane cloud forest ofeastern Mexico: A vulnerability index. Ecological Indicators
52: 300–310. doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.12.019
Author country: Mexico
Research funding: Universidad Nacional Autónoma deMéxico; CONACyT-México

In this study, researchers combined physical traits,
climate variables and potential distributions of 11
tree species to create a vulnerability index for species
in the montane cloud forest of Mexico. Their results
identify the most vulnerable species as American
sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) and the least
vulnerable, Persea longipes.

REFLECTING LOCAL ADAPTATIONS IN SPECIESDISTRIBUTION MODELS
Hällfors MH, Liao J, Dzurisin JDK et al. (2016) Addressing
potential local adaptation in species distribution models
implications for conservation under climate change. EcologicalApplications 26(4): 1154-1169. doi:10.1890/15-0926.1
Author countries: Finland, United States
Research funding: LUOVA; U.S. National Science Foundation;
U.S. National Park Service

This paper develops case studies of two butterflies
to address uncertainty surrounding local adaptationin species distributions models. Using GBIF-mediatedoccurrences for the Karner blue butterfly (Lycaeides
melissa samuelis) and the Siberian primrose (Primulanutans), researchers built population-based models
and whole-species models. The modelled results
differed significantly, suggesting that important
population-specific climatic conditions may be lostin whole-species models. The authors interpret theirfindings to recommend using population-basedmodels rather than whole-species models whereexperimental studies suggest the presence of local
adaptations. Failing to do so may lead to conservation
management mistakes.

INTEGRATING EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY INTOCONSERVATION PLANNING

KARNER BLUE BUTTERFLY (LYCAEIDES MELISSA SAMUELIS), CC BY 2011
USFWSMIDWEST https://flic.kr/p/9gp9ec

human impact, but not all species are equally affected.
In this study, researchers used GBIF-mediated dataand other sources to perform extinction analyses
based on phylogenetic metrics and geographicaldistributions. Their results showed the highest
proportion of threatened species in the most speciesrich ecoregions, but threat to these regions is bufferedby their evolutionary redundancy. So despite thecomparative threat proportion, such areas faceminimal loss of phylogenetic diversity—highlighting
the need for integrating evolutionary history into
conservation planning

GLOBAL IMPACT OF NATIONAL EFFORTS TO
PROTECT VERTEBRATE DIVERSITY IN BRAZILa Huang D & Roy K (2015) The future of evolutionary
diversity in reef corals. Philosophical Transactions of theRoyal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences
370(1662): 20140010. doi:10.1098/rstb.2014.0010
Author countries: Singapore, United States
Research funding: Wildlife Reserves Singapore; U.S. National
Science Foundationa Jenkins CN, Alves MAS, Uezu A & Vale MM (2015)
Patterns of Vertebrate Diversity and Protection in Brazil.
PLoS ONE 10(12): e0145064. doi:10.1371/journal.
pone.0145064
Author country: Brazil
Research funding: Ciência Sem Fronteiras; Conselho
Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico
(CNPq); Fundação Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo à Pesquisa
do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ); MCTIOne third of the world’s reef-building corals faceheightened extinction risks due to climate change andAs one of the world’s megadiverse countries, Brazil has
great importance for global conservation. Researchers

21

species conservation

relied on data from a number of sources, including
GBIF.org, to map the vertebrate diversity of Brazil. The
study attributes the highest values to the Amazon and
the Atlantic Forest and finds that these regions arehome to most threatened bird and mammal species.
Endemics peak in the Atlantic Forest, and the authors
recommend expanding protection and restoration
efforts in the region. They also highlight a lack ofoccurrence data in certain regions of Brazil, urging
wider support of initiatives that improve the collection
and sharing of free and open biodiversity data.

ENDANGERED AMPHIBIANS OF THE MEXICANMONTANE CLOUD FORESTa Meza-Parral Y & Pineda E (2015) Amphibian diversity andthreatened species in a severely transformed neotropicalregion in Mexico. PLoS ONE 10(3): e0121652. doi:10.1371/
journal.pone.0121652
Author country: Mexico
Research funding: Instituto de Ecología, Mexico

The tropical montane cloud forest of Veracruz, Mexico,
is home to several range-restricted endangered
amphibians. Conducting ten field studies in theregion, researchers recorded 895 observations of
16 species, half of which are under extinction threat.
Based on their analysis on past records (including
GBIF-mediated data), the authors calculate that theirobservations represent only 37% of the 43 amphibian
species historically recorded in this now highly
fragmented region.

HUMANS PRESSURE LAGOMORPHS
Verde Arregoitia LD, Leach K, Reid N & Fisher DO (2015)
Diversity, extinction, and threat status in Lagomorphs.
Ecography 38(11): 1155-1165. doi:10.1111/ecog.01063
Author countries: Australia, United Kingdom
Research funding: Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología(CONACYT); Queen’s Univ. Belfast; Natural Heritage ResearchPartnership; Northern Ireland Environment Agency;
Australian Research Council

One quarter of all Lagomorpha—the taxonomicorder that includes pikas, rabbits, hares andjackrabbits—are threatened with extinction. This
study examined the phylogeny of lagomorphs and,combined with GBIF-mediated occurrences, attempted
to draw parallels between evolutionary properties
and patterns of diversity and extinction risk. But
researchers found no apparent evolutionary traits
associated with extinction risk, and no link between
either climate or range size and number of species
per genus. Instead, the discovery that the strongest

SWAMP RABBIT (SYLVILAGUS AQUATICUS), CC BY -NC 2016
DONNA POMEROY HTTP://WWW.INATURALIST.ORG/PHOTOS/3449961

predictor of extinction risk is habitats with high humanpopulation densities led them to conclude that severe
man-made pressures override ecological, biological,
and geographic variation in present lagomorphs.

USE OF PESTICIDES IN SPECIAL AREAS OF
CONSERVATION
Wagner N, Mingo V, Schulte U & Lötters S (2015) Risk
evaluation of pesticide use to protected European reptile
species. Biological Conservation 191: 667-673. doi:
10.1016/j.biocon.2015.08.002
Author country: Germany
Research funding: German Research Foundation

The European Union created Special Areas ofConservation (SACs) to protect 900 named species
on sites managed to support their ecological needs.
However, agricultural land use is permitted in theseareas, raising the question of pesticide impact on theprotection targets. Based on data from GBIF and othersources, researchers created a species-specific risk
index for the reptiles that inhabit SACs and evaluatedoccurrence probability, physiology, and life-history
aspects. The results showed that half of the species atabove-average risk by pesticide use are already on the
IUCN Red List and that all SAC turtle species are at highrisk—findings that argue for the inclusion of pesticide
risk assessments in future SAC management plans.

See all species conservation and protected area citations in the Science Review Sourcebook, p.9

22

Biodiversity and human health
MONITORING SHIFTING MOSQUITO RANGES TO
REDUCE MALARIA INCIDENCE

TAKING MALARIA TREATMENT AND PREVENTION TO
TRANSMISSION AREAS

a Alimi TO, Fuller DO, Qualls WA et al. (2015) Predicting
potential ranges of primary malaria vectors and malaria
in northern South America based on projected changes
in climate, land cover and human population. Parasites &Vectors 8: 431. doi:10.1186/s13071-015-1033-9
Author countries: United States, Colombia, Brazil
Research funding: U.S. National Institutes of HealthGwitira I, Murwira A, Zengeya FM, Masocha M & Mutambu
S (2015) Modelled habitat suitability of a malaria causing
vector (Anopheles arabiensis) relates well with humanmalaria incidences in Zimbabwe. Applied Geography 60: 130138. doi:10.1016/j.apgeog.2015.03.010
Author country: Zimbabwe

The countries of northern South America have taken
effective public-health measures recently to control
malaria in the region. But a changing climate combinedwith the continued growth of human populations
will continue to provide environments conducive toAnopheles darlingi and Anopheles nuneztovari s.l., twomosquitos among the area’s most dominant disease
vectors.
By modeling GBIF-mediated and other mosquito
occurrence data and malaria incidence under futureclimate scenarios, this study unpacks how and where
the disease vectors’ ranges may expand even if
infections continue to decline. Both mosquitos thrive
in altered environments—An. nuneztovari s.l. on thefringes of disturbed land, An. darlingi wherever humanblood meals go—so ongoing monitoring of disease
vectors and incidence could help those planning andmanaging public health initiatives quickly target
potential and emerging high-risk areas.

POTENTIAL OF SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN PLANTSAGAINST HIV
Chingwaru W, Vidmar J & Kapewangolo PT (2015) The potentialof sub-Saharan African plants in the management of Human
Immunodeficiency Virus infections: a review. Phytotherapy
Research 29(10): 1452-1487. doi:10.1002/ptr.5433
Author countries: Zimbabwe, Slovenia, Namibia

In hope of contributing to better, more effective
strategies for controlling of malaria, the authors
developed a habitat suitability model for Anopheles
arabiensis, one of the disease’s vectors, using
occurrence records from GBIF.org and other sources.
The results showed a positive if weak correlation
between suitable habitat for A. arabiensis and disease
incidences recorded by Zimbabwean health facilities,
suggesting the model’s potential utility as an indicatorin prioritizing disease prevention or treatment efforts.

ANTICIPATING RANGE SHIFTS IN MOSQUITO-BORNE
ARBOVIRUSES
a Kraemer MUG, Sinka ME, Duda KA et al. (2015) The global
distribution of the arbovirus vectors Aedes aegypti and Ae.
albopictus. eLife 4: e08347. doi:10.7554/eLife.08347
Author countries: United Kingdom, United States, Brazil,
Sweden, Belgium, Indonesia, Chinese Taipei
Research funding: German Academic Exchange Service;
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; the Rhodes Trust; U.S.
NASA; U.S. National Institutes of Health; the Wellcome Trust;
VBORNET; European Commission; University of Oxford; U.S.
Department of Homeland Security.

Dengue and chikungunya are mosquito-borne viral
infections that have become increasingly widespread
public health threats over the past 50 years. Using
GBIF-mediated records to remove sampling bias, thisPlant products are frequently the source of new drug
discoveries, providing 25 per cent of all traditional
drugs. In 2015, about 5,700 people worldwide
contracted HIV each day, two thirds of whom live in
sub-Saharan Africa, where traditional herbal medicine
plays an integral public health role. This paper reviews
the HIV-inhibitory potential of Sub-Saharan African
plants, highlighting the importance of additional
research to identify and validate candidates for HIV
treatment and prevention, using GBIF-mediated data
to verify the occurrence of plants in the region.
TIGER MOSQUITO (AEDES ALBOPICTUS), CC BY-NC-ND 2010 AFPMB
https://flic.kr/p/8uLqBa

23

study updated known and predicted distributions ofAedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus, the species most
responsible for transmitting arboviruses to humans.
By showing that both now inhabit all continents—andmay yet have room to expand their ranges further,
particularly Ae. albopictus—these findings provide
a baseline understanding of the factors in theirgeographical spread and health-planning measuresthat might help control it.

results show the potential for the parasite to occur in
91.2 per cent of Mexico, exposing almost 100 million
Mexicans to at least one of the vector species. Basedon a parasite transmission model, they conclude thathuman communities in nine out of 32 states in Mexico
are at risk of infection. As many as 2 million Mexicans
are currently infected, and the study suggests thatwithout immediate actions on public health, thosenumbers will only rise.

ASSESSING RISK OF LASSA FEVER IN WEST AFRICAa Mylne AQN, Pigott DM, Longbottom J et al. (2015)
Mapping the zoonotic niche of Lassa fever in Africa.
Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine andHygiene 109(8): 483-92. doi:10.1093/trstmh/trv047
Author countries: United Kingdom, United States
Research funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; theRhodes Trust; University of Oxford; the Wellcome Trust; U.S.
Department of Homeland Security; U.S. National Institutes of
Health; European Commission

Combining the model with known locations of Lassa
infection in humans and animals, the results highlight
an at-risk population of 37.7 million people in 14 West
African countries—including four that have yet toreport any cases—where conditions are suitable fortransmission of the fever. This concluding paper ina series that also mapped the zoonotic niche of theEbola, Marburg and Crimean-Congo viruses offers aspatial guide for future surveillance, diagnosis andtreatment of Lassa fever, potentially enabling more
rapid public health responses in the sub-Saharanregions susceptible to this acute viral illness.

MAPPING THE NICHE OF CHAGAS PARASITEa Ramsey JM, Peterson AT, Carmona-Castro O et al. (2015)
Atlas of Mexican Triatominae (Reduviidae: Hemiptera) and vectortransmission of Chagas disease. Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo
Cruz 110(3): 339-52. doi:10.1590/0074-02760140404
Author countries: Mexico, United States

All 31 species of assassin bug (subfamily Triatominae)
found in Mexico are known carriers of Trypanosoma
cruzi, the parasite responsible for Chagas disease in
humans. In this study, researchers used occurrence
data from sources including GBIF to model the 19 mostabundant triatomine species as well as T. cruzi. The

human health

Lassa fever is a difficult-to-diagnose viral illness thatclaims an estimated 5,000 lives annually in West
Africa. With previous research having pinpointed theNatal multimammate mouse (Mastomys natalensis)
as the virus’ animal host, the authors used more than
2 million GBIF-mediated records for all members of thefamily Muridae to model the host species’ distribution.

DATES ON DATE PALM (PHOENIX DACTYLIFERA), CC BY-NC 2006MARTIN LABAR https://flic.kr/p/abWeW

FEEDING THE WORLD WITH DATES?
Shabani F, Kumar L, Nojoumian AH, Esmaeili A & Toghyani
M (2015) Projected future distribution of date palm and its
potential use in alleviating micronutrient deficiency. Journalof the Science of Food and Agriculture 96(4) 1132-1140.
doi:10.1002/jsfa.7195
Author countries: Australia, IranWorldwide, billions of people are suffering frommicronutrient deficiencies with serious health effects.
100 grams of date flesh could meet half their dietary
micronutrient requirements. Using GBIF and othersources for data on date palm (Phoenix dactylifera),
this study predicts that regions suffering most fromsuch deficiencies may become highly suitable for datepalm cultivation in the near future.

human health24

DEER MOUSE (PEROMYSCUS MANICULATUS), CC BY 2010 USFWS https://flic.kr/p/aNW87t

MODELING THE NICHE OF PLAGUEa Walsh M & Haseeb MA (2015) Modeling the ecologic
niche of plague in sylvan and domestic animal hosts todelineate sources of human exposure in the western UnitedStates. PeerJ 3:e1493. doi:10.7717/peerj.1493
Author country: United States

Yersinia pestis, the bacterium responsible for bubonicand pneumonic plague in humans, also causes diseasein rodents like deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus).
The western United States has one of the largest
concentrations of plague in the modern world, and thisstudy set out to model Y. pestis infections occurringin the region not only in the wild but also domestic
animals. Using 95,000 GBIF-mediated occurrences
combined with confirmed animal plague cases,
researchers created models of potential disease
reservoirs and found that the most important factors
in predicting infection outbreaks are the presenceof deer mouse, altitude, precipitation and proximity
to developed land. These results may prove usefulin highlighting geographic areas at high risk fortransmission of plague from animals to humans.

SNAKES BITING THEIR WAY FURTHER NORTH AND
SOUTH
Yañez-Arenas C ,Peterson AT, Rodríguez-Medina K & Barve
N (2016) Mapping current and future potential snakebite
risk in the new world. Climatic Change 134(4): 697-711.
doi:10.1007/s10584-015-1544-6
Author country: United States
Research funding: CONACYT

This study used GBIF-mediated occurrences to predict
future snakebite risk from 90 venomous snake taxa
across the Americas, where 300,000 bites occur eachyear. The study forecasts that climate change will
expand areas of snakebite risk northward to Canada
and southward to Argentina and Chile, the latter acountry not yet inhabited by venomous snakes.

See all biodiversity and human health citations in the Science Review Sourcebook, p.10

25

Food, farming and biofuels
HEY, JOE: THE FUTURE OF COFFEEa Bunn C, Läderach P, Pérez Jimenez JG, Montagnon C &Schilling T (2015) Multiclass Classification of Agro-EcologicalZones for Arabica Coffee: An Improved Understanding of the
Impacts of Climate Change. PLoS ONE 10(10): e0140490.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0140490
Author countries: Colombia, Nicaragua, United States
Research funding: World Coffee Research; Texas A&M University

Coffea arabica, or Arabica coffee, accounts for
75-80 per cent of the world’s production of coffee.
Previous studies estimate that suitable areas forcoffee production will reduce by 50 per cent by 2050.
This study maps the current locations of Arabica
production using GBIF-mediated occurrences alongwith known locations of coffee farms, and then, using
current climate data, models Arabica production onto
so-called agro-ecological zones (AEZs). Combined with
global climate models the researchers identify novel
areas suitable for coffee production, and suggest
alternative sites within AEZs that might be morerobust in future climates. They also seek to inform
coffee variety trials and to suggest providing farmers
with guidelines on likely shift of AEZs from one type toanother type in the future.

PLANNING CONSERVATION OF WILD RELATIVESPECIES OF POTATO
Castañeda-Álvarez NP, de Haan S, Juárez H et al. (2015) Ex
situ conservation priorities for the wild relatives of potato(Solanum L. Section petota). PLoS ONE 10(4): e0122599.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0122599
Author countries: Colombia, United Kingdom, Peru,
Netherlands, United States
Research funding: Government of Norway; Global Crop
Diversity Trust; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; CGIARThis study assessed 73 wild relative species of potato
in order to identify species and geographic areas inneed of conservation efforts. Using 50,000 records
including GBIF-mediated occurrences, it classifies 32
species as high priority and identifies Peru as having
the highest count of such species.

A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR THE PEACH PALM?
a Galluzzi G, Dufour D, Thomas E et al. (2015) An Integrated
Hypothesis on the Domestication of Bactris gasipaes. PLoS
ONE 10(12): e0144644. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0144644
Author countries: Colombia, Costa Rica
Research funding: Amazon Initiative; CGIARThis study examines the domestication and dispersal

ARABICA COFFEE (COFFEA ARABICA), CC BY 2011 MALCOLM MANNERS
https://flic.kr/p/ivaMdm

patterns of the peach palm (Bactris gasipaes). Usinga combination of genetic analysis and distribution
models based on GBIF-mediated occurrences,
researchers provides new insights into the historyof this important native staple. Their results suggestthat the peach palm evolved from a wild species,
with domestication taking place in southwestern
Amazonia. Though models do predict an increase insuitable habitat for peach palm with very few losses,
the authors do single out a number of priority areas forconservation of genetic and phenotypic diversity.

CONSERVATION TARGETS FOR CROP WILDRELATIVES OF SWEET POTATOKhoury CK, Heider B, Castañeda-Álvarez NP et al. (2015)
Distributions, ex situ conservation priorities, and genetic
resource potential of crop wild relatives of sweetpotato[Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam., I. series Batatas]. Frontiers in
Plant Science 6: 251 doi:10.3389/fpls.2015.00251
Author countries: Colombia, Netherlands, Peru, United
Kingdom, United States
Research funding: CGIARThis study analysed 14 wild-relative species of sweet
potato (Ipomoea batatas) in order to identify targets
in need of conservation. Using 5,600 records provided
through GBIF and other sources, they classify 11 of
the species as high priority and point to a need for
improving technologies for conserving germplasm.

food, fuel & fiber

26

COMMON BEANS (PHASEOLUS VULGARIS), CC BY 2013 ICIPE https://flic.kr/p/pDLe6J

DIVERSITY OF WILD YAMSBEANS ARE MOVING NORTH

Magwé-Tindo J, Zapfack L & Sonké B (2015) Diversity ofwild yams (Dioscorea spp., Dioscoreaceae) collected incontinental Africa. Biodiversity and Conservation 25(1): 7791. doi:10.1007/s10531-015-1031-4
Author country: Cameroon

Ramirez-Cabral NYZ, Kumar L & Taylor S (2015) Crop nichemodeling projects major shifts in common bean growing
areas. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology 218-219: 102113. doi:10.1016/j.agrformet.2015.12.002
Author countries: Australia, Mexico
Research funding: Australian National Research Institute for
Forestry, Agriculture and Livestock; University of New England(Australia); Australian Agency for International Development

Since crop wild relatives constitute critical genetic
sources for breeding potentially useful properties likepest resistance and temperature tolerance into staple
crops, this study sets out to describe the diversity ofwild yams (Dioscorea spp.) in Africa. The wild species
are under risk of extinction due to factors such as
habitat destruction and climate change. Analysing
4,000 occurrences from GBIF and other sources,
researchers identified 43 species, five subspecies,
four varieties and seven morphospecies, locating thehighest levels of yam diversity in a contiguous belt
stretching across Africa from Sierra Leone to Tanzania.
They also point to a number of potential sites forconserving wild yams in Africa.

The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is the main
source of protein and nutrients in both Africa and Latin
America. This study focused on assessing the impact
of climate change and how future climatic scenarios
might intensify stress in the plant’s development.
Using mainly GBIF-mediated occurrences, researchers
created an ecological niche model to describe current
and future bean distributions. The model predictedthat by 2100, the Southern Hemisphere might nolonger be suitable for bean cultivation, whereas theNorthern Hemisphere stands to increase its potential
climatic suitability. These findings are essential tostrategic planning, especially in developing countries
now reliant on beans as a staple crop that are likely tolose the ability to grow it in the future.

See all food, fuel & fiber citations in the Science Review Sourcebook, p.11

27

Advancing biodiversity science
LEVIATHAN IMPACTS: THE
ONCE—AND FUTURE?—
PRESENCE OF THE ATLANTICGRAY WHALE
Alter SE, Meyer M, Post K et al. (2015)
Climate impacts on transocean
dispersal and habitat in gray whales
from the Pleistocene to 2100.
Molecular Ecology 24(7): 1510-1522.
doi:10.1111/mec.13121
Author countries: United States,
Germany, Australia, United Kingdom,
Netherlands
Research funding: Max Planck Society,
Packard Foundation, European
Research Council
GRAY WHALE (ESCHRICHTIUS ROBUSTUS) TAIL FIN, CC BY-NC-ND 2013 KAREN https://flic.kr/p/e42AYM
The extirpation of the gray whale(Eschrichtius robustus) from theAtlantic Ocean is often attributed to overharvestingbiogeography. The results shed light on differencesby the early modern whaling industry. But thisin plant diversity between tropical and non-tropicalhypothesis fails to explain the lack of catch records
regions, as well as between the tropical regions ofwhile overlooking possible connections with the
Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Examining more than
population that inhabits the Pacific today.
27,500 species of flowering (angiosperm) plants
in the last 60 million years, the authors found noThis study combines DNA analysis of present-day
difference in speciation and extinction rates between
Pacific gray whales and fossils—including newly
tropics and non-tropics, implying that another model
reported specimens from the North Sea—withmight be needed to explain the so-called latitudinal
predictive habitat models built on occurrence data
diversity gradient. Their findings also noted significant
that includes 162 GBIF-mediated records. The
differences between the world’s three tropical regions,
results indicate that three historic Atlantic lineages
as a massive spike in emigration shifts out of America
intermingled with Pacific populations as and whenaround 57 million years ago suggests that this region
sea level and ice cover declined earlier in the
became a “species pump” for the rest of the world.
(present) Holocene era to provide them with highlatitude feeding grounds—insights that suggest the
UNRAVELLING THE ORIGIN OF LEISLER’S BAT
usefulness of keeping watch for future climate-driven
Boston ESM, Ian Montgomery W, Hynes R et al. (2015) New
dispersals of this Arctic sentinel species.

AMERICA: “SPECIES PUMP” TO THE PLANT WORLDa Antonelli A, Zizka A, Silvestro D et al. (2015) An engine
for global plant diversity: highest evolutionary turnover andemigration in the American tropics. Frontiers in Genetics 6:
130. doi:10.3389/fgene.2015.00130
Author countries: Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Colombia
Research funding: Swedish Research Council; European
Research Council; Carl Tryggers and Wennergren stiftelse;
University of Liege

In this study, researchers used almost 25 million
GBIF-mediated records alongside 9,000 fossil records
and a single dated phylogenetic tree to provide
insights into patterns of plant diversification andinsights on postglacial colonization in western Europe:
the phylogeography of the Leisler’s bat (Nyctalus leisleri).
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
282(1804): 20142605. doi:10.1098/rspb.2014.2605
Author countries: United Kingdom
Research funding: U.K. Department of Education and LearningThis study uses a combination of DNA markers andpaleoclimatic species distribution modelling (poweredby GBIF-mediated data) to assess the origin andphylogeography of Leisler’s bat (Nyctalus leisleri). The
results suggest two distinct mitochondrial lineages
and identify novel suitable habitats during the lastglacial maximum 20,000 years ago that may also
apply to other species.

28

STINGLESS BEES OF THE ATLANTIC FOREST
Carvalho AF & Del Lama MA (2015) Predicting priority areas
for conservation from historical climate modelling: stinglessbees from Atlantic Forest hotspot as a case study. Journalof Insect Conservation 19(3): 581-587. doi:10.1007/s10841015-9780-7
Author countries: Brazil, United States
Research funding: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do
Estado de São PauloIn this study, researchers used GBIF-mediatedoccurrences to model the potential distribution of 19
species of stingless bees during different periods ofclimatic extremes ranging from the Late Quaternary
to the present. The results identify three climaticallystable refuges that are important to the conservationof stingless bees in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest.

study relies in part on GBIF-mediated data to examine
plant trait variations at a global scale and draw aquantitative picture of functional diversity in 46,000
vascular plant species. Placing the plants into a
six-dimensional trait matrix, the authors reveal how
highly correlated and strongly constrained traits are,suggesting that a only small set of trait combinations
are successful. Overall, the study presents ageneralized backdrop for understanding plant biology
and a global model for mapping the evolution ofindividual trait variations.

REPEATED EVOLUTION OF ANT-PLANT
MUTUALISMS
Chomicki G & Renner SS (2015) Phylogenetics and molecular
clocks reveal the repeated evolution of ant-plants after thelate Miocene in Africa and the early Miocene in Australasia
and the Neotropics. The New Phytologist 207(2): 411-425.
doi:10.1111/nph.13271
Author countries: Germany

biodiversity science

This study compiled a comprehensive database of
681 known ant-associated plant species. A model
relying on GBIF-mediated occurrences estimates
the real number of species at 1,140. An analysis of
one type of ant-plant mutualism, in which plants
have structures that hosts ants (domatia), suggests
it may have evolved repeatedly due to parasitic
relationships with scale insects. This adaptation may
have started as early as the Miocene epoch, later thanpreviously thought. The data also suggest that antplant symbioses have no straightforward effect ondiversification rates in the host plants.

WHAT TRAITS ARE ESSENTIAL FOR PLANTS TO BE
SUCCESSFUL ON EARTH?
Díaz S, Kattge J, Cornelissen JHC et al. (2016) The global
spectrum of plant form and function. Nature 529: 167-171.
doi:10.1038/nature16489
Author countries: Argentina, Germany, Netherlands, Australia,
France, Colombia, United Kingdom, United States, Panama,
Russian Federation, French Guiana, Italy, Canada, Costa Rica
Research funding: Universidad Nacional de Córdoba;
CONICET; FONCyT; and SECyT (Argentina); The Leverhulme
Trust; Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research;
U.S. National Science Foundation

The form and function of plants are immensely varied.
But how constrained are traits when it comes toevolutionary viability and success? This massive

ASIAN BLACK BEAR (URSUS THIBETANUS), CC BY 2014 MIKE PRINCE
https://flic.kr/p/nTcpUY

REFINING A NICHE MODEL FOR ASIATIC BLACK
BEAR WITH NIGHTTIME LIGHTING IMAGERY
Escobar LE, Awan MN & Qiao H (2015) Anthropogenic
disturbance and habitat loss for the red-listed Asiatic black
bear (Ursus thibetanus): Using ecological niche modelingand nighttime light satellite imagery. Biological Conservation
191: 400-407. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2015.06.040
Author countries: United States, Pakistan, China
Research funding: U.S. Armed Forces Health Surveillance
Branch; National Natural Sciences Foundation of China

Despite its broad range across eastern Russia,
northern India and northeastern China, the Asiatic
black bear (Ursus thibetanus) is globally Red Listed asvulnerable, and its declining population faces rising
conflict with humans over habitat and resources.
A unique research team from the US, Pakistan and
China modeled the bear’s ecological niche—testing
it against data accessed through GBIF, VertNet
and other sources—and then looked to refine theresulting measures of long-term suitable habitat.
Using data for artificial nighttime lighting as a proxyfor human occupancy, the results account for human29

disturbance while highlighting more appropriate (andless disturbed) regions for long-term conservationand protected area planning.

A NETWORK OF TICKS
a Estrada-Peña A, de la Fuente J, Ostfeld RS & CabezasCruz A (2015) Interactions between tick and transmitted
pathogens evolved to minimise competition throughnested and coherent networks. Scientific Reports 5: 10361.
doi:10.1038/srep10361
Author countries: Spain, United States, France
Research funding: European Union

In this study, researchers used a network approachto systematically describe ecological relationships
between ticks, their hosts, and the pathogens they
carry. More than 3 million GBIF-mediated occurrences
Some into
exampleswent
mapping habitats of 276 vertebrate hosts;
combining these with phylogenetic trees and asystematic review of species interactions, the authors
produced a clustered network of relationships. This
novel application revealed a highly connected androbustly structured network and, in a noteworthy
finding for parasitic ecology, shows that 70 per centof ticks share hosts related only by environment, notgenetics. The authors conclude that this framework is
readily adaptable to similar scientific problems.

THE FATE OF MEDITERRANEAN SAWFISHa Ferretti F, Verd GM, Seret B, Šprem JS & Micheli F (2015)
Falling through the cracks: the fading history of a large iconic
predator. Fish and Fisheries. doi:10.1111/faf.12108.
Author countries: United States, Spain, France, Croatia
Research funding: Lenfest Ocean Program

In this study, researchers compile a database of allavailable sawfish records, including GBIF-mediatedoccurrences and other historical records, to shed lighton its waxing and waning presence—and possible

THE EVOLUTION OF THE COMMON MOLE
Feuda, R, Bannikova AA, Zemlemerova ED et al. (2015)
Tracing the evolutionary history of the mole, Talpa europaea,
through mitochondrial DNA phylogeography and species
distribution modelling. Biological Journal of the Linnean
Society, 114(3): 495-512. doi:10.1111/bij.12459
Author countries: Italy, United States, Russia, Germany
Research funding: Russian Foundation for Basic Research

The effect of climatic changes on subterraneanmammals during the Pleistocene epoch is largely
unknown. In this study, researchers examine theevolutionary history of the common mole (Talpa
europaea) by combining molecular analysis withspecies distribution models using GBIF-mediatedoccurrences. Their results reveal three different
lineages with specific ranges in Spain, Italy, and therest of Europe, respectively. The phylogeographicalstructure of the latter two lines suggests a distinct
break from the last Pleistocene glaciation. Duringphases when most of the current ranges were
unsuitable, the mole appears to have been confined to
refuges in southern Europe.

USING LEGACY LITERATURE FOR STUDIES OF
BIODIVERSITY
a Groom Q (2015) Using legacy botanical literature
as a source of phytogeographical data. Plant Ecology
and Evolution 148(2): 256–266. doi:10.5091/
plecevo.2015.1048
Author country: Belgium
Research funding: European Union

Although the GBIF network has mobilized hundredsof millions of occurrence records, a massive amountof data remains available only in undigitized form.
By reviewing two data-mobilization case studies,
the author explores how much information can beextracted from legacy literature and how usefulit might be. And while the quantity of information
retrieved from such documents can be considerable,
records rarely have precise dates and are often notgeoreferenced. The study concludes with a testing
effort to gather all existing records for stinking
goosefoot (Chenopodium vulvaria), estimatingthat legacy literature contributes 20 per cent of allavailable observations.

biodiversity science

ILLUSTRATION OF COMMON SAWFISH (PRISTIS PRISTIS), CC BY 2012
BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY https://flic.kr/p/bQeTWg

extinction—in the Mediterranean. They describe 48
independent accounts of occurrences, including 24
documented catches, concluding that sawfish species
most likely went extinct in the Mediterranean in the
1960s or ‘70s.

30

biodiversity science

GAMBIAN EPAULETTED BATS (EPOMOPHORUS GAMBIANUS), CC BY-NC 2008 STEPHEN C SMITH https://flic.kr/p/aP1kZx

CRACLE: INFERRING CLIMATE FROM VEGETATION

DISTRIBUTION AND DIVERSITY OF AFRICAN BATS

Harbert RS & Nixon KC (2015) Climate reconstruction
analysis using coexistence likelihood estimation (CRACLE):
A method for the estimation of climate using vegetation.
American Journal of Botany 102(8): 1277-89. doi:10.3732/
ajb.1400500
Author country: United Statesa Herkt KMB, Barnikel G, Skidmore AK & Fahr J. A
high-resolution model of bat diversity and endemism
for continental Africa. Ecological Modelling 320: 9-28.
doi:10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2015.09.009
Author countries: Germany, Netherlands.
Research funding: German Federal Ministry of Education andResearch; University of Twente

Correlations between plant distributions and theclimate and environmental conditions to which
species have adapted are well known, and models
can predict distributions accurately based on
occurrences and climate. This study describes a novel
approach for estimating climate from vegetation.
Researchers created climate tolerance profiles formore than 4,300 species by pairing 3.75 million GBIFmediated occurrences with climate data, then using
the presence of the same plants in 165 survey sites
to predict the local climate. The CRACLE method—‘climate reconstruction analysis using coexistence
likelihood estimation’—returned results with a strong
linear correlation with actual climate and, whencompared to other methods, yields lower error rates
in estimating variables such as temperature andprecipitation.

Bats’ nocturnal habits and life on the wing limit ourknowledge of the group’s distribution and diversity.
In this study, researchers create state-of-the-art
distribution models of 250 African bat species using
an unparalleled amount of occurrence data (including
GBIF-mediated records). Stacking the models, they
conclude that bat diversity generally increases
towards the equator but varies substantiallywithin the equatorial zone. They identify centres ofendemism in areas characterized by substantial
elevation ranges, and hotspots of species richness
including an area on the Semliki River southwest of
Lake Albert, home to no fewer than 84 bat species. The
study’s conclusion presents a very high-resolution
view of mammalian biodiversity data that covers avast geographic and taxonomic scope.

31

VISUALIZING A COMPREHENSIVE
VIEW OF LIFE PAST AND PRESENTa Hinchliff CE, Smith SA, Allman JF
et al. Synthesis of phylogeny andtaxonomy into a comprehensive treeof life. Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences of the UnitedStates of America 112(41): 201423041.
doi:10.1073/pnas.1423041112
Author countries: United States
Research funding: U.S. National Science
Foundation

This study represents the first
automated process for assembling
published phylogenies andtaxonomic classifications intoa single, complete tree of life.
By merging the GBIF taxonomic
backbone with numerous
other taxonomic sources andphylogenies, researchers are able
to produce a state-of-the-art, allinclusive tree containing 2.3 million
tips they dub the Open Tree of Life.

CLIMATE SECRETS FROMANCIENT TASMANIAN PLANTS

MICROCACHRYS TETRAGONA IS PART OF A TASMANIAN CONIFER CLADE ESTIMATED TO BE 130 MILLIONYEARS OLD. CC BY-NC-SA 2009 NATALIE TAPSON https://flic.kr/p/6UCB54

Jordan GJ, Harrison PA, Worth JRP,
Williamson GJ & Kirkpatrick JB (2015) Palaeoendemic plants
provide evidence for persistence of open, well-wateredvegetation since the Cretaceous. Global Ecology and
Biogeography. doi:10.1111/geb.12389
Author countries: Australia, Japan
Research funding: Australian Research Council

PREDICTING THE FUTURE FROM PREVIOUS
CLIMATE-INDUCED CHANGES IN PISTACIA
Kozhoridze G, Orlovsky N, Orlovsky L, Blumberg DG & GolanGoldhirsh A (2015) Geographic distribution and migration
pathways of Pistacia - present, past and future. Ecography
38: 1-14. doi:10.1111/ecog.01496
Author country: Israel
Research funding: Albert Katz International School for Desert
Studies; European Commission; U.S.-Israel Cooperative
Development Research Program; Bureau for Economic Growth,
Agriculture and Trade; U.S. Agency for International Development

WHERE THE WILD OATS GROW
Loskutov IG, Melnikova SV & Bagmet LV (2015) Ecogeographical assessment of Avena L. wild species at the VIR
herbarium and genebank collection. Genetic Resources andCrop Evolution. doi:10.1007/s10722-015-0344-1
Author country: Russian Federation
Research funding: Russian Scientific Foundation

This study analyses the habitats of wild oat species
based on genetic records and herbarium records
accessed through GBIF. The resulting distributions

biodiversity science

This study identifies 51 paleoendemic plants in
Tasmania, relying on occurrence data from both GBIF
and the Atlas of Living Australia to find that these
species tend to cluster in open areas with globally rare
wet climates and lack extreme temperature variations.
The results of the study suggest that the region has
had open vegetation in moist areas with moderatetemperatures since the Cretaceous period.

In hope of gaining a longer-term perspective of
how diverse climatic conditions have previously
affected species distributions, this study used therelatively genetically closely related species fromthe genus Pistacia as a case study. 125,000 GBIFmediated records formed the basis for distribution
models for ten Pistacia species combining it withclimate, landscape and soil data to predict probabledistributions from 121,000 years ago to 2100.
Results suggest that deciduous species have greater
tolerance to extreme temperatures than evergreens,and that the genus may have originated in boreal
forests before migrating in response to climatechange.

32

show that most wild oat species prefer mountainsoil conditions in moderately hot, semi-arid and dry
climates.

ANDES UPLIFT AND ANURAN DIVERSITY
Mendoza ÁM, Ospina OE, Cárdenas-Henao H & García-R JC(2015) A likelihood inference of historical biogeography
in the world’s most diverse terrestrial vertebrate genus:
Diversification of direct-developing frogs (Craugastoridae:
Pristimantis) across the Neotropics. Molecular Phylogenetics
and Evolution 85: 50-58. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2015.02.001
Author countries: Colombia, Puerto Rico, New ZealandResearch funding: Universidad del Valle

Research Council (DFG), U.S. National Science Foundation,
Yale University, University of Göttingen

The Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) Aichi
Target 19 provides a specific mandate for developing
and sharing an advanced biodiversity knowledge
base. While the GBIF network has collected hundredsof millions of records, gaps and biases do remain. This
study assessed nearly 200 million GBIF-mediatedoccurrences of terrestrial vertebrates to identify
such gaps and biases. The results show that Asia,
Africa, and South America have large areas with norecords. By superimposing the occurrences on expertcurated maps, the researchers estimate the level ofcompleteness and find that this is highly correlatedwith record density, except in very species-richareas such as the American and African tropics. The
strongest limiting factor of data completeness isrelated to digitization and mobilization rather thanactual collection. National research funding and
GBIF participation are consistently strong factors indetermining completeness.

SEEKING THE ORIGINS OF TROPICAL PLANT
DIVERSITY

biodiversity science

W RAINFROG (PRISTIMANTIS W-NIGRUM), CC BY-NC 2013 KOVASKA
HTTP://WWW.INATURALIST.ORG/PHOTOS/259592

The landscape of the American tropics has been
continuously modified during the last 50 million
years, and creation of barriers and connections has
shaped the wildlife occupying the region. This study
explores the role that the forming of the Andes playedin the evolution and diversification of Pristimantis
frogs. Using DNA sequencing and GBIF-mediatedoccurrences, researchers have produced a new
phylogenetic tree and reconstructed ancestralranges for the genus. Their results pinpoint the
middle elevation band in the northwestern Andes as a
hotspot for the origin and radiation of Pristimantis, andsuggest that the paleogeological changes there acted
as the main driver of speciation in the genus.

PRIORITIZING GAPS AND BIASES IN BIODIVERSITYDATA
a Meyer C, Kreft H, Guralnick RP & Jetz W (2015) Global
priorities for an effective information basis of biodiversity
distributions. Nature Communications 6: 8221. doi:10.1038/
ncomms9221
Author countries: Germany, United States
Research funding: Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt(DBU), German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), German

Moonlight PW, Richardson JE, Tebbitt MC et al. (2015)
Continental-scale diversification patterns in a megadiverse
genus: the biogeography of Neotropical Begonia. Journal of
Biogeography 42(6): 1137-1149. doi:10.1111/jbi.12496
Author countries: United Kingdom, Colombia, United States,
Singapore, China, Chinese Taipei
Research funding: Academica Sinica; Scottish Government’s
Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division

Why are the tropics such a hotbed of plant diversity,and what mechanisms are most responsible forshaping these evolutionary patterns? This study
sought to tackle ‘one of the most intriguing questions
in modern biogeography’ by exploring the origins andspread of the genus Begonia. Pairing genetic analysisof around 1,600 Andean-centered Begonia species
with a reconstruction of their ancestral ranges that
relies on 22,374 GBIF-mediated records, the findings
highlight Begonia’s numerous radiation events andthe importance of chance in regional and continentalscale dispersals of species.

SEA STARS OF THE SOUTHERN OCEAN
a Moreau CVE, Aguera A, Jossart Q & Danis B (2015)
Southern Ocean Asteroidea: a proposed update for theRegister of Antarctic Marine Species. Biodiversity Data
Journal 3: e7062. doi:10.3897/BDJ.3.e7062
Author country: Belgium
Research funding: Belgian Science Policy Office33

Using more than 13,000 occurrences records
aggregated from different sources including the GBIF
network, the authors of this study propose an updated
version of the checklist of Southern Ocean Asteroidea(sea stars) species. The finalized list has been
provided as an update to the Register of Antarctic
Marine Species and published through GBIF.org.

PARENCHYMA TISSUE COMPOSITION IN SEEDPLANTS
Morris H, Plavcová L, Cvecko P, et al. A global analysis ofparenchyma tissue fractions in secondary xylem of seedplants. New Phytologist. doi:10.1111/nph.13737
Author counties: Germany, Canada, United States, Australia,
China
Research funding: German Research Foundation (DFG),
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Ulmer Universität,
Ulmer Universitätsgesellschaft, Special Fund for Forest
Scientific Research in the Public Welfare (China)

Parenchyma is an important tissue in seed plants,
consisting of cells of different types, but very little is
known about the composition. This study used GBIFmediated occurrences to present a global analysis ofthese cellular fractions, concluding that temperatureand growth form are predictors of total parenchyma
tissue composition.

TESTING ECOLOGICAL HYPOTHESES USING‘SYNTHETIC’ DATASETS
Poisot T, Gravel D, Leroux S, et al. Synthetic datasetsand community tools for the rapid testing of ecologicalhypotheses. Ecography 39(4): 402-408. doi:10.1111/
ecog.01941
Author countries: Canada, United States, New Zealand, Spain
Research funding: Canadian Institute of Ecology and Evolution,
Université de Montréal, Natural Sciences and Engineering
Research Council of Canada, Royal Society of New Zealand

ECOLOGICAL NICHE DIVERGENCE INCARNIVOROUS PITCHER PLANTS
a Schwallier R, Raes N, de Boer HJ, Vos RA, van Vugt
RR, Gravendeel B (2016) Phylogenetic analysis of niche
divergence reveals distinct evolutionary histories andclimate change implications for tropical carnivorous
pitcher plants. Diversity and Distributions 22(1): 97-110.
doi:10.1111/ddi.12382
Author countries: Netherlands, Sweden, Norway
Research funding: Netherlands Research Council

This study explores the relationship between
genetic proximity and ecological niche divergence incarnivorous pitcher plants (Nepenthes genus) in the
Malay Archipelago. Building from 735 GBIF-mediatedrecords on 69 species, the results highlight distinct
phylogenetic signals from highland and lowland
species, suggesting that the groups reflect divergent
evolutionary histories and may tolerate and responddifferently to future climatic conditions.

biodiversity science

Large data networks provide researchers withnew means of addressing a large number ofmacroecological questions without having to collectnew data. This study reviews common methods
and principles, identifies bottlenecks and provides
clear recommendations for using these approaches.
The authors created a case study on a pine-marsh
food-web structure based on interactions from avariety of database sources and species distribution
models created using GBIF-mediated occurrences.
They demonstrate that synthetic datasets like thesecan support large-scale qualitative predictions
while identifying gaps in our knowledge of biologicalsystems. The results describe methods that can aid in
identifying high-priority areas for fieldwork.

RAFFLES’ PITCHER PLANT (NEPENTHES RAFFLESIANA), CC BY-SA 2014
BERNARD DUPONT https://flic.kr/p/q2GUdF

34

USING BIOGEOGRAPHICAL DATA TO EXPLORE THE
PHYLOGENY OF RANGE AND NICHE
Spalink D, Drew BT, Pace MC et al. (2016) Evolutionof geographical place and niche space Patterns ofdiversification in the North American sedge (Cyperaceae)
flora. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 95: 183-195.
doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2015.09.028
Author countries: United States, China
Research funding: U.S. National Science Foundation;
University of Wisconsin-Madison

EULAEMA NIGRITA LEPELETIER ON A PERIANDRA MEDITERRANEA FLOWER.
CC BY 2008 ALEX POPOVKIN HTTP://BIT.LY/2DZYZTJ

CLIMATE, NOT HOSTS, AFFECTS DISTRIBUTION OF
NEST-STEALING BEES

biodiversity sciencea Silva DP, Varela S, Nemésio A & De Marco P Jr (2015)
Adding Biotic Interactions into Paleodistribution Models:A Host-Cleptoparasite Complex of Neotropical Orchid
Bees. PLoS ONE 10(6): e0129890. doi:10.1371/journal.
pone.0129890
Author countries: Brazil, Germany
Research funding: Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento
Científico e Tecnológico

Orchid bees are colourful pollinators foundexclusively in the Neotropics. Some species are
cleptoparasites that hijack nests from host species.
In this case, researchers evaluated the inclusion ofa host bee species, Eulema nigrita, in modelling of
distributions of the orchid bee Aglae caerulea. Using
GBIF-mediated occurrences, researchers created
distribution models for the parasite, combining themwith historical climate data and the presence of E.
nigrita. Surprisingly, the results showed that thehost-parasite interaction complex did not improvethe models. Instead, the ranges of A. caerulea appear
mainly constrained by climatic factors, not thepresence of the host.

To understand what role geography and ecologicalniches play in evolutionary processes of species, thisresearch team downloaded and used 200,000 GBIFmediated occurrences for a case study of Cyperaceae(sedges) species in North America. By constructing
a quadrat map they identified six regions withexceptional species richness. When combined withmore than 20,000 base pairs of genetic data, theyfound support for the hypothesis that diversificationof the sedge flora is associated with the evolutionof species distributions and climatic niches. The
study offers a novel approach for making iterative
improvements to the use of biogeographical data
within a phylogenetic context.

WHAT CAUSED THE LATITUDINAL DIVERSITYGRADIENT?
Spano CA, Hernández CE & Rivadeneira MM (2015)
Evolutionary dispersal drives the latitudinal diversity
gradient of stony corals. Ecography 39(9): 836-843.
doi:10.1111/ecog.01855
Author country: Chile
Research funding: FONDECYT; CONICYTThe ‘latitudinal diversity gradient’ is the name given
to the upsurge in species richness from the poles
to the equator. The evolutionary forces that drive
the gradient are still poorly understood. This study
examines stony corals (order Scleractinia), as
they have one of the clearest and most exemplary
gradients of all clades. Based on analyses of historicaloccurrences accessed through GBIF and othersources, the researchers concluded that the gradientdemonstrated in stony corals is rather young,originating only after the end of the Cretaceous mass
extinction. As a result, the evolutionary force behind
the gradient pattern fails to meet the predictionsof the so-called ‘out of the tropics’ (OTT) model, as
it doesn’t show an origin in the higher tropics, butinstead demonstrates a far greater tendency for
migration towards the tropics.

35

HUMAN IMPACT OUTPACES CLIMATE IN ABACOSteadman DW, Albury NA, Kakuk B, et al. Vertebrate
community on an ice-age Caribbean island. Proceedingsof the National Academy of Sciences of the UnitedStates of America 112(44): E5963-E5971. doi:10.1073/
pnas.1516490112
Author countries: United States, Bahamas
Research funding: U.S. National Science Foundation;
National Geographic Society; University of Florida; American
Museum of Natural History

This study presents the recovery of more than 5,000
fossils of 95 vertebrates in the flooded cave called
Sawmill Sink on Abaco in the Bahamas. Aided bypresent-day models built on GBIF-mediated data, theanalysis of this set of late Pleistocene fossils revealed
that 17 species succumbed to climate changes
between nine and 15 thousand years ago, but as
many as 22 species have gone extinct as a direct
result of the past 1,000 years of human presence.

WITH TIME COMES DIVERSITY
Tanentzap AJ, Brandt A, Smissen R et al. (2015) When do plantradiations influence community assembly? The importanceof historical contingency in the race for niche space. The New
Phytologist 207(2): 468-79. doi:10.1111/nph.13362
Author countries: United Kingdom, New Zealand, United States
Research funding: Royal Society of New ZealandThis paper tests the mechanisms by which plant
evolutionary radiations emerge and influence
ecological dynamics with focus on 16 species-rich
genera in the alpine zone of New Zealand. Occurrencesfrom GBIF aided reconstruction of the niche spacethat each genus has occupied over the last 20 million
years, along with ambitious steps like calculating
sea-surface temperatures through the Cenozoic fromisotopic measurements of foraminifera deposited inmarine sediment cores, then using these to estimate
past land temperatures. Their results suggestthat genera that colonized New Zealand earlier
encountered more ‘vacant’ environmental space,which promoted species diversification and further
occupancy of the environment. Thus time not only
explains why diversity arises, but how this diversity
influences ecological dynamics.

DIVERSIFICATION OF THE TANAGERS
Title PO & Burns KJ (2015) Rates of climatic niche evolution
are correlated with species richness in a large andecologically diverse radiation of songbirds Ecology Letters
18(5): 433-440. doi:10.1111/ele.12422
Author countries: United States
Research funding: U.S. National Science Foundation

What causes certain groups of organisms to havemore species than others? This study seeks ananswer by examining the relationship between
ecological niche evolution and diversification in thelargest family of songbirds, the tanagers (Thraupidea).
Researchers compiled distributions using GBIFmediated data and other sources, then constructed
niche models using 19 bioclimatic variables.
Phylogenetic analysis divided the family into clades,
scoring them according to climatic niche evolution.
These scores correlate strongly with species richness,
which correlate further with niche volume clade age
and geographical area. The authors suggest that the
study provides a replicable method for analysing
niche evolution in large, widespread clades.

biodiversity science

GALAXEA SP. OF THE STONY CORAL ORDER (SCLERACTINIA). CC BY-NC-SA
2014 PATRICK RANDALL https://flic.kr/p/mbc2ks

MASKED CRIMSON TANAGER (RAMPHOCELUS NIGROGULARIS). CC BY-NC
2016 SAINTCHARLES HTTP://WWW.INATURALIST.ORG/PHOTOS/4396470

36

SPECIES RICHNESS IS SHAPED BY CLIMATEa Velasco JA, Martínez-Meyer E, Flores-Villela O et al.
(2016) Climatic niche attributes and diversification in
Anolis lizards. Journal of Biogeography 43(1): 134-144.
doi:10.1111/jbi.12627
Author countries: Germany, Mexico, United Kingdom, Colombia
Research funding: U.S. National Science Foundation

In this study, researchers relied on 13,500 records
mainly accessed through GBIF to test the link between
climatic niche dynamics and species diversificationin the species-rich genus of Anolis lizards. Having
found significant association between niche position
breadth and diversification, the findings provide
evidence to suggest that climate plays a strong role inshaping species richness.

CLOSE BUT THOUSANDS OF YEARS APART
Wasof S, Lenoir J, Aarrestad PA et al. (2015) Disjunctpopulations of European vascular plant species keep thesame climatic niches. Global Ecology and Biogeography24(12): 1401-1412. doi:10.1111/geb.12375
Author countries: France, Norway, United States, United
Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Switzerland,
Iceland, Finland, Belgium, Estonia
Research funding: European Research Council; Swedish
Research Council; Norwegian Research Council; Stockholm
University

To assess whether species’ climatic niches areconstant in space and time, researchers used datafrom GBIF and other sources to examine two longseparated populations of 888 alpine plants that occur
in both the Alps and Fennoscandia. The research used
two approaches to quantify niche dynamics confirmedthat climatic niches are in fact generally conserved
between the two groups.

biodiversity science

DYNAMICS OF SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIPSa Werner GDA, Cornwell WK, Cornelissen JHC & Kiers ET(2015) Evolutionary signals of symbiotic persistence in thelegume–rhizobia mutualism. Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 112(33):201424030. doi:10.1073/pnas.1424030112
Author countries: Netherlands, Australia
Research funding: Netherlands Organisation for Scientific
Research Grants; European Research Council; DIVERSITAS/
Future Earth; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity
Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig

Symbiotic relationships are an important driver ofdiversification of organisms. The connection between
legumes and nitrogen-fixing bacteria, for example, isancient—but why is this relationship sometimes lost,when in other cases it plays a crucial role in evolution?
In this study, researchers used more than three
million GBIF-mediated legume occurrences in hopeof shedding light on this mystery, testing whether
certain traits or ecological factors might lead topersistence of symbiosis. The results showed that half
the species analysed remain highly likely to maintainthe symbiotic relationship over time, even if it isn’t
absolutely necessary. Such species tend to have highnitrogen and phosphorus leaf content and are locatedin climates with low mean annual temperatures.

BUILDING THE LOCAL ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINTINGTOOL (LEFT)
Willis KJ, Seddon AWR, Long PR et al. (2015) Remoteassessment of locally important ecological features acrosslandscapes: how representative of reality? EcologicalApplications 25(5): 1290-1302. doi:10.1890/14-1431.1
Author countries: United Kingdom, Norway
Research funding: Statoil; Operation Wallacea; Oxford
University

BETA-DIVERSITY MAPS FOR MAHAMAVO, MADAGASCAR, COMPUTED USINGLEFT SOURCED WITH GLOBAL ONLINE DATABASES (A) AND COMPUTEDUSING LOCAL FIELD DATA (B).

In this project, researchers developed an automatedweb-service known as the Local Ecological
Footprinting Tool or LEFT, to carry out environmental
impact assessments quickly and easily witha minimum of user input. Based on measuresof biodiversity, vulnerability, fragmentation,connectivity, and resilience, the service uses
freely available data from GBIF and other sources
to output a map and report of ecological featuresand risks. To test the performance of the tool, theresearchers compared results from an automatedreport with biological field study data for a number ofvalidation sites and found that the tool provides very
robust results. However, regional gaps in biologicaloccurrence data can have the effect of adding to theresults’ uncertainty.

See all biodiversity science citations in the Science Review Sourcebook, p.12

37

Data management
THE FUTURE OF BIOLOGICAL RECORDING IS HERESURVEY OF DATA JOURNALS

August T, Harvey M, Lightfoot P et al. (2015) Emerging
technologies for biological recording. Biological Journal of
the Linnean Society 115(3): 731-749. doi:10.1111/bij.12534
Author country: United Kingdom
Research funding: Joint Nature Conservation Committee;
Natural Environment Research Council

Candela L, Castelli D, Manghi P & Tani A (2015) Data journals:
A survey. Journal of the Association for Information Scienceand Technology 66(9): 1747-1762. doi:10.1002/asi.23358
Author country: Italy
Research funding: OpenAIREplus; iMarine

Rapid technological changes have always had an
impact on the biological sciences from the inventionof the microscope to the use of smartphone apps inresearch today. This paper systematically reviews
past, present and potential future technologies forbiological data recording, concluding that despite thechallenges that adopting these technologies present
to some, they will lead to better, more open andreliable scientific data.

RETHINKING GEOSPATIAL PROCESSING
Authmann C, Beilschmidt C, Drönner J, Mattig M & Seeger B.
VAT: A system for visualizing, analyzing and transforming
spatial data in science. Datenbank-Spektrum 15(3): 175-184.
doi:10.1007/s13222-015-0197-yAuthor country: Germany
Research funding: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft;
Bundesministerium für Bildung und ForschungIn this study, researchers propose a general systemfor visualization, analysis and transformation (VAT) of
spatial data in research. They validated their systemusing GBIF-mediated occurrences and concluded
that VAT outperforms other systems on speed andgraphical performance.

HOW OPEN IS OPEN DATA?
Campbell J (2014) Access to scientific data in the 21st
century: Rationale and illustrative usage rights review. Data
Science Journal 13: 203-230. doi:10.2481/dsj.14-043
Author country: United States

Numerous online data repositories claim to provide
open access to scientific data, but specific usage
conditions often apply, and no consensus exists
on what “open” exactly means. This paper lists andreviews 49 scientific data repositories and theirusage rights, concluding that in order to make data
truly open, repositories should apply recognized
and standardized data licences like those provided
through Creative Commons.

This overview of more 100 journals that accept data
papers describes various approaches for handlingand preparing peer-reviewed metadata. Automatedmanuscript preparation, a functionality that GBIF’s
Integrated Publishing Toolkit (IPT) provides, isincluded in the survey.

TAXONOMIC CATALOGS FOR THE FUTURE
a Dikow T & Agosti D (2015) Utilizing online resources fortaxonomy: a cybercatalog of Afrotropical apiocerid flies(Insecta: Diptera: Apioceridae). Biodiversity Data Journal 3:
e5707 doi:10.3897/BDJ.3.e5707
Author countries: United States, Switzerland
Research funding: Encyclopedia of Life; Field Museum of
Natural History; U.S. National Science Foundation

This paper describes the creation of a taxonomic
cybercatalog of Afrotropical apiocerid flies. Althoughsmall in scope, this catalog relies on open-accessonline repositories like GBIF.org, and demonstrates
the potential of using linked data to develop other
online resources.

INTEGRATING FRESHWATER DATA TO ANALYSE
SPECIES RICHNESS
González Vilas L, Guisande C, Vari RP et al. (2015) Geospatial
data of freshwater habitats for macroecological studies:
an example with freshwater fishes. International Journal of
Geographical Information Science 30(1): 126-141. doi:10.10
80/13658816.2015.1072629
Author countries: Spain, United States, Colombia

This study demonstrates the use of the ModestR
package to bring together a massive freshwater
habitat dataset that includes GBIF-mediatedoccurrences of freshwater fishes. While focusedon an assessment of species richness in different
habitat types, the study also underlines the impact ofcontinental-scale data biases for freshwater.

data management

38

INTEROPERABILITY RUNS ON GLOBALLY UNIQUE
IDENTIFIERS
Guralnick RP, Cellinese N, Deck J, et al. (2015) Community
next steps for making globally unique identifiers work forbiocollections data. ZooKeys 494: 133-54. doi:10.3897/
zookeys.494.9352
Author countries: United States, Bulgaria, Germany,
Switzerland
Research funding: U.S. National Science Foundation,
Genomic Standards Consortium, European Union

The generation and preservation of Internet links(such as DOIs used in GBIF) are crucial to assembling,tracking and linking large online biological datasets.
This review recaps the results of a workshop of
informatics experts and stakeholders held in
Stockholm, Sweden in October 2014, and summarizes
the consensus views of the participants.

TO UNDERSTAND BIAS IS TO KNOW IT
Isaac NJB & Pocock MJO, (2015) Bias and information in
biological records. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society
115(3): 522-531. doi:10.1111/bij.12532
Author country: United Kingdom
Research funding: Joint Nature Conservation Committee;
U.K. Natural Environment Research Council

This study describes some of the biases potentiallypresent in biological recording datasets. While
stressing how critical it is to understand thesources of biases when using data, the authors also
specifically highlight the value that species checklists
from citizen-science projects and targeted surveys
would have when records are shared with the UK
National Biodiversity Network Gateway and GBIF.

WEB-BASED COLLECTING AND CLEANING OF GBIFMEDIATED DATA
Kong X, Huang M & Duan R (2015) SDMdata: A WebBased Software Tool for Collecting Species Occurrence
Records. PLoS ONE 10(6): e0128295. doi:10.1371/journal.
pone.0128295
Author country: China
Research funding: National Natural Science Foundation ofChina; China Postdoctoral Science Foundation

NATURALIS’ DIGITIZATION PROCESSES ARE DESIGNED TO PROVIDEMAXIMUM EFFICIENCY FOR EACH TYPE OF COLLECTION OBJECT.

INDUSTRIAL-STRENGTH DIGITIZATION OF MUSEUMSPECIMENS
Heerlien M, Van Leusen J, Schnörr S et al. (2015) The Natural
History Production Line. Journal on Computing and Cultural
Heritage 8(1). doi:10.1145/2644822
Author country: Netherlands
Research funding: Dutch Fund for Economic StructureThis paper provides an overview of digitization at theNetherlands’ Naturalis Biodiversity Center, one of theworld’s five largest natural history collections. The
authors describe decision-making processes andmethods for maximizing the impact of a €13 million
grant, which funds a project aimed at making 7 of their
37 million specimens digitally available through GBIF.
org among other sources.

High-quality occurrence data is key to creating
robust species distribution models. In this paper, theauthors present a simple yet robust web app thatuses the GBIF API to help researchers verify speciesnames, collect occurrences and automatically crosschecking the data for errors. After processing, users
can download a cleaned set of occurrences for theirresearch purposes.

WORKFLOWS FOR USE IN LARGE DIGITIZATIONPROJECTS
Nelson G, Sweeney P, Wallace LE et al. (2015) Digitization
Workflows for Flat Sheets and Packets of Plants, Algae,
and Fungi. Applications in Plant Sciences 3(9): 1500065.
doi:10.3732/apps.1500065
Author countries: United States
Research funding: U.S. National Science Foundation

The authors present a comprehensive view of theworkflows currently employed by more than 30 U.S.
herbaria to digitize flat sheets and packets. The
community-vetted workflows cover all steps from predigitization to curation and publication, and the freeto-download modules are fully customizable for theneeds and practices of local institutions elsewhere.

See all data management citations in the Science Review Sourcebook, p.21

39

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