National Museums Scotland

The Danube Clouded Yellow (Colias myrmidone) is one of the most endangered butterfly species in Europe. Despite growing knowledge about habitat requirements and major threats, little is known about its natural enemies, particularly parasitoids. To fill this gap, we undertook field studies on the last Central European C. myrmidone population which inhabits the Knyszyn Forest (north-eastern Poland). Reared parasitoids were identified based on morphological features and were further DNA-barcoded. At the adult stage, we documented only four cases of predation, all caused by spiders: Araneus quadratus, Argiope bruennichi and Misumena vatia. Egg mortality was primarily due to parasitism by Trichogramma evanescens (Trichogrammatidae), a common parasitoid of Lepidoptera, which is also used for pest control. Surprisingly, larval parasitism was rare, with only a few individuals affected by Cotesia ancilla (Braconidae: Microgastrinae), a regular parasitoid of Colias species. Cases of pseudohyperparasitism by Lysibia nanus (Ichneumonidae: Phygadeuontinae) were recorded. Pupal mortality was considerably higher, and the most common was the solitary parasitoid Brachymeria femorata (Chalcididae: Chalcidinae). Additionally, we reared the gregarious Blapsidotes vicinus (Ichneumonidae: Phygadeuontinae). Both species are widespread and regular parasitoids of exposed butterfly pupae. Furthermore, we obtained Hoplocryptus murarius (Ichneumonidae: Cryptinae) from two chrysalises, which was unexpected due to its usual association with Auplopus carbonarius (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae). Aside from pupal parasitism, we recorded a single case of pupal predation by a Polistes wasp (Vespidae: Polistinae). These findings provide crucial insights for the conservation of C. myrmidone, highlighting potential risks posed by natural enemies, including those manipulated against crop pests.

Agroforestry is promoted as a sustainable agricultural practice that enhances biodiversity and ecosystem services, including natural pest control. However, its effects on arthropod communities, particularly across different trophic groups and seasonal dynamics, remain poorly understood. In this study, we assessed the impact of a Mediterranean alley-cropping agroforestry system on the abundance, diversity, and community composition of eight arthropod trophic groups, in Southern France. Using pan traps and pitfall traps, we sampled arthropods in agroforestry alleys and tree rows at three dates in spring 2023 (April, March and May), comparing them to monocultures and tree plantations. After identification, invertebrate taxa were classified into eight trophic groups based on current ecological knowledge. Agroforestry influenced arthropod abundance and diversity, though responses varied among trophic groups. Community composition, as reflected through a Principal Coordinates Analysis, was primarily structured by phenology rather than habitat type, with pronounced seasonal shifts across most trophic groups. Effect size analysis showed that tree rows supported a higher abundance of certain beneficial arthropods, emphasizing their role in agroforestry system function. Further research on multi-trophic interactions and long-term dynamics is needed to optimize agroforestry as a strategy for ecological intensification.

Abstract Leading biomedical resources rely on genome variation in Britain 1–3 , but the historical processes that shaped present-day fine-scale diversity remain debated 4–13 . Here we sequenced 1039 ancient shotgun genomes from Britain (median 1.4-fold coverage), primarily dating to the first millennium CE. We imputed ∼660 million variants in the UK Biobank 14–16 and employed genealogy-based ancestry reconstruction. We found an association between Iron Age consanguinity and matrilineal burial practices 17 , later disrupted following the Roman Conquest. Despite this societal impact, only 20% of Roman-period individuals carried detectable ancestry from outside Britain. In contrast, from the 6th century CE we detect widespread influx of ancestry in over 70% of individuals in southern’Anglo-Saxon’ Britain, with limited local admixture. We find previously underappreciated heterogeneity, with ancestries associated with Central and Southern Europe rising in prevalence from the 7th century CE. We demonstrate distinct Scandinavian-related ancestry in many Viking-associated contexts, but show that the population-level impact of the Viking Age in Britain was limited. Finally, we detect pre-medieval selection on variants linked with key immunity genes TLR10-TLR1 and IRF8 . These results identify population-level and selective processes that shape variation and disease risk in Britain today.

Abstract Models of how the European Neolithic transitioned to the Copper or Bronze Age have often emphasised changes in burial practices, and these changes have traditionally been seen as simple, decisive shifts. In peninsular Italy, this transition is often described in terms of a straightforward shift from single burial to multiple burial in collective tombs. This paper questions that view, presenting a systematic statistical analysis of all known Neolithic (6000–3800 BCE) burials from across southern Italy. Tracking changes in aspects of funerary practices across these millennia from over 100 sites and almost 700 individuals, we show that neither abrupt stadial change nor a model of continuous gradual change describes the evidence well. Instead, all periods of the Neolithic featured multiple depositional practices, many of which continued throughout the entire timespan; what changed was their relative frequencies and the ways they were combined. This suggests, in turn, that change originated mostly in a process of local bricolage, not from large or external causal factors.