Wadi Al-Dabab, located within the central highlands of Yemen, represents an ecologically important component of the Arabian Peninsula’s arid mountain ecosystems. This study investigated its floristic composition and long-term vegetation dynamics through comprehensive field surveys integrated with multi-temporal NDVI analysis over a 25-year period (2000–2024). The floristic survey documented 354 vascular plant species representing 233 genera and 66 families, including 21 monotypic families, eight endemic species, and 21 near-endemic taxa, highlighting the conservation and phytogeographical significance of the study area. The occurrence of pteridophytes, endemic succulents, and Afro-Arabian floristic elements reflects the diversity of habitats and microhabitats within the Yemeni central highlands and the transitional phytogeographical position of the region between paleotropical lowland and Afro-montane floristic zones. Five confirmed invasive alien species were recorded, together with several disturbance-associated taxa occurring particularly along modified drainage channels and cultivated margins. Multi-temporal NDVI analysis revealed an overall increase in vegetation cover between 2000 and 2024, characterized by a decline in sparse vegetation and increases in moderate and cultivated vegetation. However, this apparent greening should not necessarily be interpreted as ecological recovery, as it may reflect interacting effects of altered water availability and drainage patterns, agricultural expansion, anthropogenic disturbance, biological invasion, and potentially regional climatic variability. The findings demonstrate that remotely sensed increases in vegetation cover alone may provide an incomplete indication of ecosystem condition and emphasize the importance of integrating remote sensing with field-based floristic assessments for effective biodiversity conservation and long-term monitoring in arid mountain ecosystems.
Yunnan lies at the junction of the Tibetan Plateau, southern China, and mainland Southeast Asia and has long connected populations, farming traditions, and domestic animals moving between East and Southeast Asia. As the first domesticated animal to accompany humans widely across prehistoric landscapes, dogs preserve genetic records of human mobility, exchange, and settlement. Ancient-human genomic and archaeological records document repeated population movements across this region, but ancient-DNA evidence for domestic animals remains scarce, and no ancient dog genomic data have previously been reported from southwestern China. We investigated four dogs from the late-Neolithic Dadunzi site to characterize their maternal diversity and assess how Yunnan relates to the East Asian lineages associated with dogs in Island Southeast Asia and the Pacific. The dogs carried three distinct maternal lineages: DDZ4 belonged to A2a, DDZ7 to A5, and DDZ9 and DDZ11 to A1a1, revealing substantial diversity at a single southwestern Chinese site. Phylogenetic analysis placed DDZ4 on an early-diverging mainland branch related to, but outside, the sampled Pacific-associated cluster. Divergence dating separated this lineage and the Australia–New Guinea cluster from the later radiation of Pacific-associated lineages, providing a temporal framework for the proposed multi-stage dispersal history. The Dadunzi dogs document substantial maternal-lineage diversity in Neolithic Yunnan and provide an ancient southwestern Chinese reference for the deeper maternal history of dogs associated with Island Southeast Asia and the Pacific. We propose a multi-stage dispersal model in which related dog lineages may have moved southward from East Asia through Yunnan and mainland Southeast Asia before a later dispersal through Island Southeast Asia into Remote Oceania.
The black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) is key to the circular bioeconomy, but intensive mass-rearing risks genetic drift and inbreeding depression. While early domestication causes rapid genetic erosion, long-term colonies often persist without collapsing, potentially due to the purging of deleterious alleles. Whether highly domesticated strains retain susceptibility to residual inbreeding depression remains unclear. This study evaluated how acute full-sib mating impacts life-history, physiological, and reproductive traits in a laboratory strain colonized for over 64 generations. Full-sib mating triggered no severe phenotypic declines or compromise growth curves. Developmental durations differed significantly across most ontogenetic stages, but absolute variations were marginal and remained within 1.2 days. Inbred larvae exhibited higher substrate reduction and lower feed conversion efficiency (ECI), indicating elevated metabolic costs. Final larval and adult weights were reduced in the inbred group, although natural sexual dimorphism remained the primary driver of body weight variance. Reproductive parameters and fecundity did not exhibit significant differences between groups. Clutch sizes and oviposition patterns only differed descriptively. In contrast, adult survival was severely impacted; inbred flies showed reduced lifespans and an earlier median lethal time (LT50) in females. Acute inbreeding does not cause an immediate production collapse in long-term domesticated strains, demonstrating phenotypic resilience that is highly valuable for managing sudden population bottlenecks. Nevertheless, metabolic inefficiencies and reduced adult longevity indicate that residual inbreeding depression persists and can compromise survival and resource utilization. These findings provide a foundational population biology perspective for optimizing the genetic management and long-term stabilization of industrial insect rearing systems.
Scute anomalies in turtles are commonly interpreted as developmental responses to environmental stressors. However, previous studies indicate that these traits may also reflect underlying genetic variation. The present study investigates the genetic and environmental influences on carapacial scute variation in captive-bred loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) hatchlings with known parental lineage, using a long-term dataset. By integrating paternity assignments from eight microsatellite loci with incubation duration as a proxy for thermal exposure, the effects of maternal and paternal identity, incubation duration, and bilateral asymmetry on scute count variation were evaluated. Comparisons among half-siblings revealed parental influences on marginal, costal, and nuchal scute counts, whereas successive full-sibling clutches showed that incubation duration alters anomaly frequency. Generalized linear mixed models indicated a threshold-like expression pattern in scute count variation, with parental identity and incubation duration significantly predicting scute variation. Scute anomalies were not associated with hatchling body size, suggesting that scute count is not simply a function of overall growth. Together, these results support a threshold model in which scute anomalies represent polymorphic traits shaped by probabilistic inheritance and thermal conditions. This framework complements the traditional classification of scute anomalies by considering them as naturally occurring polymorphisms, rather than entirely pathological conditions. Recognizing scute variation as a natural polymorphism has important relevance to sea turtle conservation, particularly under climate change, as rising incubation temperatures are likely to influence trait expression through interacting with underlying genetic and developmental variation.
Abstract Mathematical modeling in ecology is indispensable for deciphering ecological complexity and guiding sustainable resource governance, yet its explicit alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remains insufficiently quantified. Instead of conducting an unrestricted meta-synthesis of the entire field of quantitative biology, this work offers a detailed scientometric and thematic audit of 229 peer-reviewed journal papers indexed in Scopus from 2005 to 2025 (until August 6, 2025) dealing with the explicit formalization of the link between mathematics and ecology. Integrating bibliometric profiling, keyword network co-occurrence, and automated SciVal SDG classification, the analysis delineates three core thematic architectures: biological foundations and experimental calibration, epidemiological and human dimensions, and theoretical mathematical dynamics. Empirical mapping reveals that 116 articles directly align with UN targets, exhibiting heavy concentration in Good Health and Well-being (SDG 3, 40%), Life on Land (SDG 15, 26%), and Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8, 16%). In contrast, there is a continuing presence of target deficiencies at the techno-ecological interface, including in circular bioeconomies, industrial footprints, and clean energy transitions. This study defines methodological strengths, thematic deficits, and a multi-level framework for the implementation of quantitative ecological modeling and transformation to policy mechanisms under the UN 2030 Agenda.
