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Abstract Invasive alien plants pose a significant threat to biodiversity and the agricultural economy. The invasive weed (Ammannia coccinea) competes with rice in paddy fields, potentially threatening rice production. Despite the crucial need to estimate the global geographical distribution and ecological niche dynamics of A. coccinea for effective early warning, control strategies, and global rice security, relevant research remains scarce. This study utilized the Biomod2 platform, which integrates multiple single models into ensemble model, incorporating environmental and species data to analyze the distribution range shifts of A. coccinea under current and future climate scenarios. It also quantified and analyzed shifts in the species’ ecological niche across these climate scenarios. The results indicated that the potential suitable areas for A. coccinea were mainly in Southern North America, northern and south-eastern South America, south-western Europe, the Middle East, central Africa, western Asia, south-eastern Asia, with a gradual increase in mid-high suitability habitat over time and radiation levels. While the overall ecological niche of A. coccinea remains stable, minor shifts are expected under future conditions. Temperature, precipitation, and the human impact index were the key factors influencing the future distribution of A. coccinea. Climate change contributes to the expansion of A. coccinea's highly suitable areas and shifts its ecological niche. Organizations efforts should focus on preventing the spread of A. coccinea in regions where its potential distribution overlaps with key rice production areas. The findings of this study provide critical insights into the global distribution and ecological niche dynamics of A. coccinea, aiding in the development of early warning and control strategies to mitigate its impact on biodiversity, agriculture, and particularly rice production under future climate scenarios.

Abstract Invasive pests reduce biodiversity and ecosystem service functions, thereby leading to economic and also agricultural losses. Banana skipper (Erionota torus Evans), red palm weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus), and coconut caterpillar (Opisina arenosella Walker) are invasive insect pests in the palm-growing regions and they have had serious consequences for the planting of bananas (Musa nana), palms (Trachycarpus fortune) and coconut (Cocos nucifera). Based on screened occurrence data, the present research utilized Maximum Entropy model (Maxent) to simulate the distribution dynamics of these three invasive insects in China, under current and future climate (2050s, 2070s, 2090s) in two shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs: 126 and 585) of the newly released coupled model intercomparison project phase6 (CMIP6). The results show that: (1) Under current and future climate conditions, all model groups exhibited an AUC value exceeding 0.92, which shows that the model prediction results are very good;(2) The suitable habitat area of E. torus Evans remains relatively stable with some expansion in the SSP126 of 2090s and some contraction in the SSP585 of 2090s. The suitable habitat area of R. ferrugineus showed an overall contraction, with substantial contraction in the SSP585 of 2090s.The suitable habitat area of O. arenosella has an overall expansion, with the most pronounced expansion in the SSP585 of 2070s; (3) The current centroid of suitable habitats for R. ferrugineus and E. torus Evans is located in Guangxi Province and wholely shift toward the south direction under future climate. The centroid of suitable habitats for O. arenosella is currently located in the northeastern maritime area of Hainan Province and will shift toward the north direction under future climate; (4) Temperature, precipitation and Human disturbance factors (Population density and Human influence index) were crucial variables for describing the distribution of the three species. For E. torus Evans in particular, percentage contributions of Population density was up to 31.4, which is only 0.1 different from ranked first Bio19 (Precipitation of the coldest quarter). The dynamics of habitats of these three species and the correlating driver factors proposed in this work provide essential insights into future spatial management of the three invasive insects in China. Our work is necessary and timely in identifying newly areas at high risk of expansion of the three invasive insects in the future, then suggesting strategic control measures to prevent their spread, and finally providing scientific evidence for the early prevention and rapid response to the three invasive insects.

Biodiversity is fundamental to human well-being and economic development. The Yangtze River, the largest river in China, faces biodiversity loss due to habitat degradation, climate change, and other anthropogenic threats. However, the long-term changes in the region's biodiversity remain poorly understood. Here, we constructed an optimized living planet index (LPIO) by combining Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling and Random Forest Modeling. Using data from a monitoring network of 536 sites, we observed an increasing trend in terrestrial bird diversity and functional complexity across the entire watershed from 2011 to 2020. Our findings indicate that a large-scale ecological restoration program has contributed to increases in terrestrial and aquatic bird diversity in the Yangtze River Basin. In contrast, bird diversity in the downstream area has decreased by 2.83%, largely due to a rapid decline in wetland birds. The degradation of wetland habitats and insufficient conservation measures have negatively impacted bird diversity in the downstream region. This suggests that although there have been significant improvements in terrestrial bird diversity, more effective wetland restoration is necessary for biodiversity conservation. We recommend optimizing the national large-scale biodiversity monitoring network and increasing the number of upstream monitoring sites.

Abstract Diplopoda is one of the most diverse and important groups of soil arthropods, but little research has been done on their phylogenetic relationship and evolution. Here, we sequenced and annotated the complete mitochondrial genomes of Spirobolus grahami. The total mitogenome of S. grahami was typical circular, double-stranded molecules, with 14,875 bp in length, including 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNAs, two rRNAs, and one control region. Base composition analysis suggested that the mitochondrial sequences were biased toward A and T, with A + T content of 58.68%. The mitogenomes of S. grahami exhibited negative AT and positive GC skews. Most of the 13 PCGs had ATN as the start codon, except COX1 start with CGA, and most PCGs ended with the T stop codon. The dN/dS values for most PCGs were lower than 1, suggesting that purifying selection was likely the main driver of mitochondrial PCG evolution. Phylogenetic analyses based on 13 PCGs using BI and ML methods support the classification of genus Spirobolus and Tropostreptus. Glomeridesmus spelaeus is distantly related to the other Diplopoda species.

In the context of carbon neutrality and urbanization, there is a notable research gap regarding the carbon sequestration benefits of urban forests and the identification of suitable tree species for achieving sustainable carbon sequestration. In this study, we examined the dynamics and drivers of urban forest carbon sequestration in Shanghai, one of the most urbanized cities in China. First, we compiled a comprehensive field inventory data set spanning 20 years for the Shanghai Green Belt. Second, we quantified and compared the total carbon accumulation and growth rates of six monoculture forests and two mixed forest types consisting of six common tree species. Third, we conducted drivers analysis of the effects of stand-related and anthropogenic factors on carbon accumulation and growth rates. Overall, our results revealed that each forest type exhibited a unique growth pattern of tree biomass carbon (TBC), with the Chapman–Richards growth function providing an accurate representation of carbon dynamics. During the early stages of development (within 20 years), the carbon accumulation rate of Populus L. reached 4.13 Mg ha−1 yr−1, which was approximately 127 % higher than that of broadleaf mixed forests. In late stages, the potential tree biomass carbon accumulation of broadleaf mixed forests reached 172.8 Mg ha−1, which was 34 % higher than that of Populus L. over the entire growth cycle. Forest types, stand age, canopy density class, ownership, closure management, strongly influence the accumulation rates of TBC. Overall, these findings contribute to the understanding of the advantages of mixed and monoculture plantations for carbon sequestration, and these results can be used to predict future patterns of carbon storage in urban forests in Shanghai.

The complete mitochondrial genome of Papilio elwesi was sequenced and annotated using high-throughput sequencing in the present study. The mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) is a circular molecule of 15,082 bp in length, containing 37 genes (13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, and two ribosomal RNA genes) and a putative control region. We performed mitogenomic phylogenetic analyses of 34 swallowtail species employing methods of Bayesian inference and maximum-likelihood. Our results further confirm that P. elwesi is a member of the subgenus Pterourus in Papilio sensu lato.

In recent years, invasive alien plants (IAPs) have caused serious ecological disasters and economic losses in China. This study combined three IAP species richness-related indices (species richness of IAPs, first records of IAPs, and the relative species richness of IAPs), as well as indices reflecting distribution and dispersal patterns (average similarity coefficient of IAPs) and invasiveness (average risk score of IAPs), to conduct an integrated regional-invasion risk assessment based on the principal component analysis (PCA) method. Partial least-squares (PLS) regression was conducted to explore the explanatory power of 12 environmental and anthropogenic factors on different invasion indices. The results indicated that coastal provinces and Yunnan had high IAP introduction risk, as well as high synthetic-risk scores. The dispersal of IAPs in mid-latitude provinces should be particularly prevented. For species richness of IAPs, more environmental factors with variable importance for the project (VIP) values higher than 1 were retained in the optimal model, reflecting the importance of environmental filtering on IAPs. Visitors were the most important predictor for first records of IAPs. Compared to species richness (R2 = 79.5%), first records were difficult to predict (R2 = 60.4%) and were influenced by anthropogenic factors. There was spatial distribution congruence of various families of IAPs. Generally, the correlations of the residuals of species richness were still significant, with 0.421 (p < 0.05) as the lowest Pearson correlation coefficient, which indicated that external factors could not fully explain the spatial distribution congruence. These findings could enrich the relevant research on IAP invasion mechanisms and provide suggestions for regional IAP detection and response.

A rarely seen butterfly species, the large swallowtail butterfly Papilio elwesi Leech, 1889 (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae), endemic to the Chinese mainland, has been declared a state-protected animal in China since 2000, but its genome is not yet available. To obtain high-quality genome assembly and annotation, we sequenced the genome and transcriptome of P. elwesi using the PacBio and PromethION platforms, respectively. The final assembled genome was 358.51 Mb, of which 97.59% was anchored to chromosomes (30 autosomes and 1 Z sex chromosome), with a contig/scaffold N50 length of 6.79/12.32 Mb and 99.0% (n = 1367) BUSCO completeness. The genome annotation pointed to 36.82% (131.99 Mb) repetitive elements and 1296 non-coding RNAs in the genome, along with 13,681 protein-coding genes that cover 98.6% (1348) of the BUSCO genes. Among the 11,499 identified gene families, 104 underwent significantly rapid expansions or contractions, and these rapidly expanding families play roles in detoxification and metabolism. Additionally, strong synteny exists between the chromosomes of P. elwesi and P. machaon. The chromosome-level genome of P. elwesi could serve as an important genomic resource for furthering our understanding of butterfly evolution and for more in-depth genomic analyses.

Bumblebees are important pollinators for many wild plants and crops. However, the bumblebee populations are seriously declining in many parts of the world. Hence, the bumblebee conservation strategy should be urgently addressed, and the species distribution modeling approach can effectively evaluate the potentially suitable areas for their conservation. Here, one of the most abundant and endemic species of bumblebee in China, Bombus pyrosoma, was selected to assess current and future climates’ influence on its distribution with MaxEnt. Nine high-resolution bioclimatic/environmental variables with high contribution rates and low correlations were used. Four of the nine bioclimatic/environmental variables, min temperature of the coldest month (bio_06), annual mean temperature (bio_01), precipitation of wettest month (bio_13) and radiation of warmest quarter (bio_26), were found to be the most critical factors influencing the distribution of B. pyrosoma. The modeling results showed that the areas with high and moderate suitability for B. pyrosoma covered 141,858 and 186,198 km2 under the current climate conditions. More than 85% of the sampling sites in 2019 were found to be suitable under the current scenario. Under the future A1B and A2 scenarios in 2050 and 2100, the areas with low and moderate suitability for B. pyrosoma increased. However, alarmingly, the high suitability areas decreased under the future A1B and A2 scenarios in 2050 and 2100. Furthermore, regions covering seven provinces of northern China were the most crucial for developing nature reserves for B. pyrosoma, with the following order of suitable areas: Gansu, Shanxi, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Hebei and Beijing. Our study highlights the impact of future climate changes on the distribution of B. pyrosoma, and conservation strategies should mitigate the threats posed by environmental changes, particularly in the current high suitability areas.

The spatial distribution of invasive alien species is driven by various factors, and should be comprehensively evaluated based on multiple invasion indices and different taxonomic groups. In our study, we constructed three sets of invasion indices: (1) absolute invasive alien species (AIAS) richness; (2) weighted invasive alien species (WIAS) richness; (3) relative invasive alien species (RIAS) richness. First, we used principal component analysis (PCA) and k-means clustering to distinguish the invasion risk levels of 28 provinces in China. Then, the ordinary least squares (OLS) and partial least squares (PLS) regression methods were used to explore the factors predicting the distribution patterns of three sets of invasion indices for total species, plants and animals. Finally, the residuals’ regressions of alien plant species richness on alien animal species richness were used to evaluate the effect of environmental and anthropogenic factors on spatial congruence. Results showed that 17 provinces were identified as high invasion risk regions (Liaoning, Hebei, Shandong, Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Taiwan, Hainan, Guizhou, Yunnan and Sichuan). For environmental factors, the potential evapotranspiration (PET) or actual evapotranspiration (AET) could better predict AIAS and WIAS richness, and area better predicted RIAS richness. For anthropogenic factors, the gross domestic product (GDP) or human population explained more variation in AIAS or WIAS richness, and transport volume or GDP could better explain the variation in RIAS richness. Generally, the environmental and anthropogenic factors showed identical prediction ability. The results of PLS regressions indicated that one set of predictors showed similar effects to the alien plants and animals within a model, and indicated the spatial distribution congruence of them. Removing the environmental and anthropogenic factors, to some extent, will weaken the congruence, but the congruence of plants and animals still exists for AIAS and RIAS richness. Our study provides meaningful information for the prediction and management of the biological invasions.

Many studies have found that the correlation between species richness (SR) and morphological diversity (MD) is positive, but the correlation degree of these parameters is not always consistent due to differences in categories and various ecological factors in the living environment. Based on this, related studies have revealed the good performance of using higher taxa in biodiversity research, not only by shifting the testing group scale from local communities to worldwide datasets but also by adding different taxonomic levels, such as the genus level. However, it remains unclear whether this positive correlation can also be applied to other categories or groups. Here, we evaluated the applicability of higher taxa in the biodiversity study of darkling beetles by using 3407 species (9 subfamilies, 89 tribes, and 678 genera), based on the correlation between taxa richness and morphological diversity in the tribe/genus/species. In addition, the continuous features prevalent in the tenebrionids, pronotum and elytron, were selected, and the morphological diversity of various groups was obtained by the geometric morphometric approach to quantify the morphologic information of features. This study found that genus/species richness in subfamilies Pimelinae and Stenochiinae was positively correlated with the change trend of MD, and the correlation between the MD of elytron and taxa richness gradually decreased from the tribe-level to the genus-level to the species-level test. The results confirm the stable morphology and simple function of the elytron and the applicability of tribe level in biodiversity research.

The complete mitochondrial genome of Anax parthenope was assembled from next-generation sequencing data. The circularized mitochondrial genome spans 15,306 bp with a high A + T content of 74.7% and consists of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, and 2 rRNA genes. Its gene composition and order were similar to Anax imperator. The overall base composition is 36.6% for A, 34.8% for T, 16.8% for C, and 11.8% for G. A phylogeny of 31 dragonfly species clustered this species within Odonata.

Chill tolerance plays a crucial role that allows insect species to adapt to cold environments. Two Chinese geographical populations (Laibin and Yangzhou populations) were selected to understand the chill resistance and evolutionary potential in the Ophraella communa, a biological control agent of the invasive common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia. Super-cooling point assays, knockdown tests under static low-temperature conditions and determination of glycerol content were studied. ANOVAs indicated significant differences regarding chill coma recovery time, super-cooling point, and glycerol content across populations and sexes. The narrow-sense heritability (h2) estimates of cold resistance based on a parental half-sibling breeding design ranged from 0.39 to 0.53, and the h2 value was significantly higher in the Yangzhou population than in the Laibin population. Additive genetic variances were significantly different from zero for cold tolerance. The Yangzhou population of O. communa has a strong capability to quickly gain resistance to cold. We conclude that the O. communa beetle has a plasticity that can provide cold resistance in the changing climate conditions.