15th Anniversary of Diversity—Biodiversity, Conservation and Ecology of Animals, Plants and Microorganisms

A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2025 | Viewed by 2412

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Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement, UMR 5245 (CNRS-UPS-INPT) Batiment IVR1/Université Paul Sabatier, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse CEDEX 9, France
Interests: molecular evolution; dynamic of communities and populations; plant–insect interactions, ecology; tools: mitochondrial DNA; ISSR; cuticular hydrocarbons; field ecology; model organisms: lepidoptera; diptera; spiders
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School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore, QLD 4558, Australia
Interests: microbial ecology and diversity; microbial systematics; biodiscovery; microbial biotechnology applied; environmental and industrial microbiology; marine microbiology; biological control; actinomycetology; bacteriophages
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1. Taxonomy and Systematics Group, Naturalis Biodiversity Center, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands
2. Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
Interests: stony corals; coral-associated fauna; coral reef conservation; coral taxonomy; coral trade; tropical marine biodiversity; marine invertebrates; marine biogeography; phylogeny reconstructions; marine invasives
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Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 329, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
Interests: phytochemistry; molecular pharmacology of medicinal and toxic plants; alkaloids; evolution; chemical ecology; ornithology; phylogeny and evolution
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The year 2024 marks the 15th anniversary of Diversity. We would like to take this opportunity to express our sincerest thanks to our readers, innumerable authors, anonymous peer reviewers, editors, and all the people working in some way for the journal who have made substantial contributions to our development for years. Without your support, we would never have made it this far. We are delighted and proud to celebrate this milestone with a series of Special Issues and events.

A Special Issue, entitled “15th Anniversary of Diversity—Biodiversity, Conservation and Ecology of Animals, Plants and Microorganisms”, will be launched as part of this celebration. This is intended to be a collection of high-quality research articles and reviews focusing on biodiversity concepts and applications, biodiversity assessment, and biodiversity preservation of animals, plants and microorganisms.

Submissions include, but not are limited to, the following topics:

  • Evolution and ecology;
  • Environmental DNA;
  • Systematics, taxonomy and phylogeny;
  • Microbial genetic resources;
  • Biodiversity conservation and reservation.

We aim to publish significant contributions in this collection.

Prof. Dr. Luc Legal
Dr. Ipek Kurtboke
Prof. Dr. Bert W. Hoeksema
Prof. Dr. Michael Wink
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Diversity is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • plant diversity
  • plant species
  • animal biodiversity and conservation
  • evaluation and population

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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15 pages, 17059 KiB  
Article
Halomonas kashgarensis sp. nov., a Novel Species Isolated from the Rhizosphere Soil of Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud in Kashgar County, Xinjiang, China
by Zhen-Pu Liang, Yi Wang, Xiao-Yue Chen, Rui Wang, Yan Xu, Jin-Ping Dai, Deepali Singh and Xiao-Xia Zhang
Diversity 2025, 17(2), 98; https://doi.org/10.3390/d17020098 - 29 Jan 2025
Viewed by 292
Abstract
A novel Gram-negative, orange-colored, rod-shaped, oxidase and catalase-positive, non-spore-forming bacterium, designated as zp-37T, was isolated from the rhizosphere soil of Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud in Kashgar County, Xinjiang, China. The phylogenetic analysis, based on the 16S rRNA genes, revealed [...] Read more.
A novel Gram-negative, orange-colored, rod-shaped, oxidase and catalase-positive, non-spore-forming bacterium, designated as zp-37T, was isolated from the rhizosphere soil of Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud in Kashgar County, Xinjiang, China. The phylogenetic analysis, based on the 16S rRNA genes, revealed that strain zp-37T belongs to the genus Halomonas. Growth of strain zp-37T was observed at 10–43 °C, pH 6.0–11.0, and 0–20% NaCl (w/v). The principal fatty acids of strain zp-37T were summed feature 8 (C18:1ω7c and/or C18:1ω6c, 55.67%) and summed feature 3 (C16:1ω7c and/or C16:1ω6c, 20.16%). The polar lipid profile contained diphosphatidylglycerol (DPG), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), unidentified phospholipids (UPL 1–3), unidentified aminophospholipids (UAPL 1–2), and unidentified lipid (UL). Its main respiratory quinone was ubiquinone Q-9 (100%). The genome of strain zp-37T was 3,489,967 bp in size, containing two plasmids with lengths of 18,112 bp and 4364 bp, respectively. The genomic DNA G+C content of strain zp-37T was 59.3%. By the genome annotation, various genes related to the function of saline-alkaline stress tolerance and plant growth promotion were predicted. The average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA–DNA hybridization (dDDH) values between strain zp-37T and its five closely related strains were 72.64–75.59% and 19.70–20.40%, respectively, which were lower than the threshold for species delineation (ANI: 95–96%, dDDH: 70%). Based on the phylogenetic, phenotypic, and chemotaxonomic analyses and genomic comparisons, strain zp-37T was suggested to represent a novel species within the genus Halomonas, for which the name Halomonas kashgarensis sp. nov. is proposed. The strain type was designated zp-37T (=CGMCC 1.62213T = JCM 37305T). Full article
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15 pages, 2148 KiB  
Article
The Richness, Similarity, and Conservation Status of the Herpetofauna of the Balsas Basin Biogeographic Province of Mexico
by Julio A. Lemos-Espinal and Geoffrey R. Smith
Diversity 2025, 17(1), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/d17010044 - 10 Jan 2025
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Abstract
The Balsas Basin (BB) is a biogeographic province in south-central Mexico that straddles the Mexican Transition Zone and the Neotropical region. We provide a list of the amphibian and reptile species of the BB based on a detailed review and update of recent [...] Read more.
The Balsas Basin (BB) is a biogeographic province in south-central Mexico that straddles the Mexican Transition Zone and the Neotropical region. We provide a list of the amphibian and reptile species of the BB based on a detailed review and update of recent species lists of its constituent states. The BB is home to 51 native amphibian and 155 native reptile species, which represent 14.7% of the herpetofauna of Mexico. No amphibian and six reptile species are endemic to the BB. Six species of amphibians and seven of reptiles are categorized as being of conservation concern status (vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered) on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List. The main threat these species face is habitat loss due to urbanization, agriculture, and pollution. The herpetofauna of the BB shows significant overlap with neighboring provinces. The composition of amphibian species in the BB is closest to that of the Pacific Lowlands, whereas the composition of reptile species is closest to the Sierra Madre del Sur and the Transvolcanic Belt. These findings suggest that while the BB supports significant amphibian and reptile diversity, its conservation importance may be limited due to the low levels of endemism and the relatively small proportion of species at risk. Full article
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15 pages, 6327 KiB  
Article
Biodiversity of Non-Apis Bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) in the Potohar Region of Pakistan
by Sumera Aslam, Muhammad Naeem, Sabir Hussain, Maryam Riasat, Muhammad Ather Rafi, Ahmed Zia, Muhammad Khalid Rafique, Nawaz Haider Bashir and Huanhuan Chen
Diversity 2025, 17(1), 4; https://doi.org/10.3390/d17010004 - 24 Dec 2024
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Abstract
Bees are essential for providing ecosystem services such as pollination to many crops worldwide. However, there is growing concern over the decline of bee populations, which threatens agricultural productivity. Despite the known importance of bees, including non-Apis bees, in crop pollination, their diversity [...] Read more.
Bees are essential for providing ecosystem services such as pollination to many crops worldwide. However, there is growing concern over the decline of bee populations, which threatens agricultural productivity. Despite the known importance of bees, including non-Apis bees, in crop pollination, their diversity and distribution remain understudied in the Potohar region of Pakistan. The current study addresses this gap by assessing the biodiversity of non-Apis bees across five districts of the Potohar region, Pakistan: Attock, Chakwal, Jhelum, Rawalpindi, and Islamabad. The objective was to evaluate the species richness, diversity, and evenness using various richness and diversity indices. A total of 2005 specimens, representing 27 species from 13 genera and five families (Apidae, Halictidae, Colletidae, Megachilidae, and Andrenidae), were collected over 24 surveys conducted between 2012 and 2015. Two richness indices, Shannon’s Species Richness Index and Margalef’s Richness Index, showed moderate to high species richness across localities, with values ranging from 2.378 to 4.186 and 1.508 to 2.711, respectively. Simpson’s Index and Simpson’s Reciprocal Index exhibited dominance and high diversity across sites, with values ranging from 0.094 to 0.880 and 4.446 to 11.315, respectively. Additionally, the Shannon–Wiener and Shannon Equitability indices indicated fairly even species distributions across localities. A correlation analysis revealed strong positive relationships between most indices, except for Simpson’s Reciprocal Index, which showed negative correlations with the other indices. These findings provide crucial insights into the biodiversity of non-Apis bees in the Potohar region and underscore the importance of maintaining diverse pollinator communities to support sustainable agriculture in the area. Full article
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23 pages, 5018 KiB  
Data Descriptor
Biology of Blattodea and Dermaptera in the Continental Biogeographical Region and Adjacent Areas of European Russia
by Victor V. Aleksanov, Alexander B. Ruchin, Nikolai V. Shulaev, Inessa O. Karmazina, Sergey V. Lukiyanov, Evgeniy A. Lobachev, Anna M. Nikolaeva and Mikhail N. Esin
Diversity 2025, 17(1), 66; https://doi.org/10.3390/d17010066 - 18 Jan 2025
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Abstract
(1) Background: Blattodea and Dermaptera in the temperate forest zone include a limited number of species, some of which are widely distributed and common. However, digital data on their biology remains insufficient. (2) Methods: The surveyed area extends from Kaluga Oblast to Tatarstan [...] Read more.
(1) Background: Blattodea and Dermaptera in the temperate forest zone include a limited number of species, some of which are widely distributed and common. However, digital data on their biology remains insufficient. (2) Methods: The surveyed area extends from Kaluga Oblast to Tatarstan and from Vladimir Oblast to Voronezh Oblast. Insects were sampled from 736 plots using various methods, including pitfall traps, beer traps, window traps, pan traps, and sweep nets. (3) Results: The dataset contains 2149 occurrences comprising 18,362 specimens belonging to 5 species of Blattodea and 4 species of Dermaptera. For most occurrences, we recorded the developmental stage (nymph or adult) and the sex (male or female for adults) of the specimens. (4) Conclusions: Three non-synanthropic species are widely distributed and common: Ectobius lapponicus, E. sylvestris, and Forficula auricularia. Ectobius sylvestris is characterized as a true forest species, while E. lapponicus inhabits both forest and grassland habitats. In contrast, F. auricularia is associated with gardens, urban habitats, and some meadows. Ectobius sylvestris exhibits a more pronounced sexual dimorphism concerning the effectiveness of different sampling methods compared to E. lapponicus. Seasonal dynamics of cockroaches and earwigs are described and discussed. Full article
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