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Questions: The floristic distinctiveness of ancient woodland relative to recent woodland is commonly measured by Ancient Woodland Indicator (AWI) species richness. However, focussing on a pre‐defined subset of species means that wider community‐level differences may be overlooked. Can ancient semi‐natural, ancient replanted, and recent woodland herb layer communities be distinguished by alpha, beta, and gamma diversity? How are any differences partitioned across AWI and non‐AWI species communities? Location: Cotswolds, southwest UK. Methods: To quantify AWI and non‐AWI responses to stand history in ancient semi‐natural, ancient replanted, and recent woodland, we conducted floristic surveys of 45 sites. Using a modelling approach, we tested the relative and additive contribution of alpha‐scale AWI and non‐AWI species richness to woodland distinctiveness. Ordination was applied to analyse beta species composition distinctiveness, and multilevel pattern analysis was used to examine which species were significant contributors to gamma‐scale richness differences. Results: AWI species richness models significantly distinguished ancient semi‐natural woodland from both ancient replanted and recent woodland at the alpha scale. For the classification of ancient semi‐natural woodland and recent woodland, the hierarchical inclusion of non‐AWI alpha richness resulted in a superior and more significant model. AWI gamma richness was numerically similar for all three woodland categories, whereas non‐AWI was more varied. AWI and non‐AWI species composition showed significant beta diversity differences among all woodland types, with six species being significant drivers of differences. Conclusions: Our results have revealed previously undetected complexity in the contributions of AWI and non‐AWI species to floristic distinctiveness of ancient woodland. In addition to traditional AWI species, the non‐AWI assemblage also exhibited a sensitivity to habitat continuity that: (a) adds weight to the argument that ancient woodland is floristically distinct from recent woodland; and (b) provides a useful measure of success for ancient replanted woodland restoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although declining political engagement has been identified as a key problem for advanced liberal democracies, this article suggests that a more profound tension needs to be addressed. Specifically, it identifies interdependences between growing political pressures on national governments, and the tendency to delegate decisions away from control by elected politicians. These processes of “hyper-democracy” and “hyper-depoliticization” arguably create and re-enforce political tensions, magnifying a risk of central government “overload.” Through analyzing the arguments of prominent scholars of democracy, the article picks apart these interdependencies and argues for a more balanced approach to democratic governance. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

• Invasive crayfish may spread to new habitats by walking over land. • Both signal and red swamp crayfish leave the water to a similar degree. • The terrestrial walking speed of both signal and red swamp crayfish was similar. To disperse between isolated waterbodies, freshwater organisms must often cross terrestrial barriers and many freshwater animals that are incapable of flight must rely on transport via flooding events, other animals or anthropogenic activity. Decapods such as crayfish, on the other hand, can disperse to nearby waterbodies by walking on land, a behaviour that has facilitated the spread of invasive species. Overland movement could play a key role in the management of non-native crayfish, though to what extent terrestrial emigration occurs in different species is poorly understood. Here, we directly compared the terrestrial emigration tendency of two non-native crayfish species in Great Britain; red swamp (Procambarus clarkii) and signal (Pacifastacus leniusculus) crayfish. We found that both species emigrated from the water and that there was no significant difference in terms of their terrestrial emigration tendency, suggesting that there is a risk both of these species will migrate overland and disperse to new habitats. This study shows that terrestrial emigration is an important behavioural trait to consider when preventing the escape of crayfish from aquaculture and further spread of invasive species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]