A study examining heat tolerance in alien and indigenous springtails, which are soil arthropods that influence ecosystem function, finds that tolerance of warming, such as that associated with climate change, is on average more pronounced in the alien species than in their indigenous counterparts, with little scope for adjustment through evolutionary change or phenotypic plasticity, underscoring the link between climate change and the impacts of biological invasions on soil systems.
Article #17-15598: "Basal resistance enhances warming tolerance of alien over indigenous species across latitude," by Charlene Janion-Scheepers et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Steven L. Chown, Monash University, Melbourne, AUSTRALIA; tel: +61-3-990-50097; e-mail: <steven.chown@monash.edu>
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