Search

Stomatal anatomy and behaviour are key to managing gas exchange fluxes, which require coordination with the plant vascular system to adequately supply leaves with water. Stomatal response times and regulation of water loss are generally understudied in ferns, especially across habits (i.e. epiphytic and terrestrial) and habitats (i.e. wet mesic and dry xeric environments). Our objectives were to (i) determine if hydraulic and anatomical traits that control water use are correlated with their habitats (i.e. xeric, mesic) and habits (i.e. epiphytic, terrestrial) for ferns and lycophytes across taxa, and (ii) explore how those traits and others like average leaf water residence time correlate with stomatal function using a subset of closely related species. Epiphytic species had lower vein densities than terrestrial species, while xeric species had higher vein densities than mesic species. Xeric ferns also had smaller stomata than mesic ferns but had similar stomatal densities. Further, in a subset of mesic and xeric ferns, the xeric ferns had higher maximum stomatal conductance and water content, as well as shorter average stomatal opening responses to light intensity, but stomatal closing times did not differ. Finally, shorter stomatal opening and closing responses were correlated with shorter water residence time. Our study highlights anatomical and physiological differences between ferns and lycophytes, which may partially explain habitat preference based on their optimization of light and water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Publications are the mainstay of academic success, yet scientific writing requires consistent feedback and practice to build and maintain skills. In this study, we surveyed 342 environmental biology trainees (i.e., graduate students and postdoctoral scholars) about their writing habits. Our objective was to explore whether trainee writing habits align with suggestions from scientific writing guide books and articles, and how individual habits and attitudes may impact writing output. We found that the majority of respondents (>65%) felt negatively about writing and publishing, and few adhered to established advice such as scheduling writing time, setting attainable goals, or joining a writing accountability group. Our results show that trainees who dedicated more hours to writing each week and individually tracked their writing progress had more first‐author publications. In particular, graduate students who regularly scheduled writing time during the week and participated in writing groups also had more first‐author publications. Conversely, trainees who felt negatively about writing, wrote mainly before deadlines, and relied on "check‐ins" with advisors or writing groups to monitor writing progress had fewer first‐author publications. We describe ways that individuals, advisors, and institutions could improve trainee writing habits and assist them in developing more positive attitudes toward writing to ultimately help trainees achieve their writing goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]