#Mites of the #Histiostomatidae live in #darkness in their #ephemeral #microhabitats. The distinctive deutonymphs are the #dispersal stage, being transported by insects. #Adults, however, live freely and #communicate via complex #olfactorysignals. An important #glandularcomplex is located on the dorsal body side. I participated in a study about the #geranial-rich glandular #secretions (2012).

© #StefanFWirth 24 Dec. 2025

Ref

https://doi.org/10.1080/01647954.2012.662247

#SEM #pics

©S.F. Wirth, Histiostoma sp.

My #introduction keywords: #academic #modelling #evolution #cooperation #gameTheory #ecology #appliedMathematics

I'm a #postdoc specialising in evolutionary and ecological modelling, currently at #QUT and #GriffithUni in #Australia

Previous work: #evolutionOfCooperation, estimating undetected #extinctions, #qualitativemodelling, migratory #phenology, #foodweb #modelling, local #adaptation, #carryover effects, #dispersal.

My blog: https://nadiah.org/

RE: https://mastodon.social/@sflorg/115729303412817454

This is an interesting article (linked below) about #biodiversity and #populationdynamics of #microscopic #seafloorfauna elements, and their presumed modes of #dispersal and ability to adapt to far away #ecologically different conditions. It focuses on the nematode genus #Halalaimus.
I want to point out that even terrestrial nematodes are masters of interesting #dispersalstrategies, evolved based on their small sizes and limited distance #mobility.

This text by #StefanFWirth, Berlin, 2025

#Ascospores are the result of the sexual reproduction of #Ascomycota #fungi, being single celled or #septate. There are different ways of #dispersal. One option is obligatory or accidental transport via animals, such as #mites. The photos show mating mites of #Histiostoma sp. seemingly covered with 4 chambered ascospores. J. Karakehian et al. (2021) studied "Methods for observing, culturing, and studying living ascospores".

© #StefanFWirth 2025

Ref
https://doi.org/10.5943/ajom/4/2/1

#SEM
©S.F.Wirth

The #treeofheaven #Ailanthus #altissima is a #tree originally native to Asia. It arrived in #Europe as ornamental plant in the #18thcentury and increasingly #naturalized due to its high #adaptability to difficult #ecologicalconditions and its efficient #dispersal. #Globalwarming is further facilitating its current spread. J. Soler & J. Izquierdo (2024) highlight the modern situation of this #invasivespecies.

© #StefanFWirth #Berlin 2025

Ref
https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13070931

#Photos
© S.F. Wirth

Dew and Dehiscence.

#seed #dispersal #plant #dew #morning #nature #photography

🪧 2 new articles from #TheGrackleProject!

🔍 Grackles who were #trained to be more #flexible were more #exploratory after the training than untrained grackles. This indicates that the more an individual investigates a novel object, the more it can learn and adapt its #behavior accordingly

✈️ Grackles in an edge #population disperse farther than those in a more central population. This suggests that the rapid geographic range expansion of great-tailed grackles is associated with individuals differentially expressing #dispersal behaviors

🗺️ These results suggest that flexibility, exploration, and dispersal are key traits involved in this species’ rapid expansion into new areas

💪 They started as #RegisteredReports @ #PCIEcology @PeerCommunityIn years ago! After lots of hard work from many collaborators (including @DieterLukas) they are now at the #diamondOA @PeerCommunityJournal 🎉

📰 Press release: https://www.mpg.de/25179774/0811-evan-exploration-and-dispersal-150495-x
📎 Articles: https://doi.org/10.24072/pcjournal.593 and https://doi.org/10.24072/pcjournal.591