@sarammendes
Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Göttingen | PhD in Ecology | Ecologist with interest in #communityecology, #ecologicalnetworks, #restoration and on how #globalchange impact #interactions | #seeddispersal
Although the next conference is still a way off, we’ve created this account to share updates on venue and dates, as well as news and publications on FRUGIVORES & SEED DISPERSAL
Artwork: María León Ilustración
Today I started a new postdoc adventure at the beautiful and snowy University of Göttingen (Germany) as a Dorothea Schlözer Fellow 🤗
I’m really happy to begin this new chapter with the Biodiversity, Macroecology and Biogeography group 🌳🏝️
Honoured to receive the Young Researcher Award from the University of Coimbra, funded by Fundação Santander.🥰
A great way to close a year full of personal and professional achievements, and an extra motivation to keep doing what I love! 🌱
Grateful to everyone who has supported me on this journey ✨
A screenshot of some text of a paper, with the following sentence highlighted: "One July evening last summer, while engaged in wheeling the baby (another one this time) through some tall grass in the corner of my yard, I noticed..." It continues "an Ammophila attached to a grass-stem in the peculiar..."
I love the way science used to be written. Is it necessary to know that the author was pushing his baby in a pram while making observations of insects? Perhaps not, but it provides delightful context, while assuming the reader is familiar with his previously published baby-wheeling-related work.
What is the cost of wildfire, windthrow and bark beetles for Europe’s forestry? We estimate that disturbances reduce Europe’s forest value by €115 bn, more than doubling to €247 bn under severe climate change. Led by @johannesmohr.bsky.social, out in @natclimate.nature.com doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Had a wonderful time at #EcoNet2025 in Newcastle 🇬🇧! It was a pleasure to share my work, reconnect with friends and colleagues, and meet so many new people. ✨ Already looking forward to the next meeting in Brazil 🇧🇷🪻🌱🫐🐜🐝🦊🐦⬛
New R-package alert! 🚨
With tabs it has never been easier to reconstruct altitudinal shifts of biogeographical systems over time. Whether in the ocean 🏝️, shallow seas 🪸 or mountains ⛰️; tabs can project spatial configurations shaped by climatic conditions.
➡️ doi.org/10.21425/fob...
A common type of ant in Europe breaks a fundamental rule in biology: its queens can produce male offspring that are a whole different species
go.nature.com/4mOb5T9
Looks like #EcoNet2025 has started early at the City Tavern. Welcome to the Toon @sciencesncl.bsky.social
The final version of this paper is now published @newphyt.bsky.social
The onset of phenological plant response to climate warming
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Long-term databases as an antidote to the shifting baseline syndrome in global change.
🧪🌎🌿🌐🌳 🍁 #PlantBiology
🌱 New paper out!
In Teide National Park (Tenerife), ~69% of seed dispersal interactions have been lost after centuries of human impact.🐦⬛🫐
But there’s hope: 90% of those interactions involve extant species, making ecological restoration an achievable long-term goal!
doi.org/10.1016/j.ge...
🌍🌐🧪
Really hot days of fieldwork 🔥🥾🎒, searching for some of the rarest and most endangered endemic plant species 🌿🌱 on La Gomera island 🏝️
🌎🌐🧪
It’s a wrap on the @newphyt.bsky.social Next Generation Scientists meeting! 🌳🪻
I loved having the opportunity to share my work on seed dispersal and to hear incredible talks on plant science from all around the world. It was a lot of fun, and we even wrapped it up with a funfair! 🎡✨
#npnextgen
It was a great week 🤗🤗
🌳🌷Day 1 of the New Phytologist Next Generation Scientists in Birmingham has been filled with amazing talks on plant science and thought-provoking panel discussions!
So grateful for the opportunity to be here ✨
#npnextgen
#NGS2025
I’m deeply thankful to my supervisors, Ruben Heleno and Jens Olesen (@jensolesen1.bsky.social), for their unwavering support and guidance throughout this beautiful journey. 😊 🪻
✨ I’m very grateful to have been awarded 2nd place in the 2025 National Award for the best PhD Thesis in Ecology promoted by SPECO. 🤗
This award holds a special place in my heart as it represents the culmination of over four years of hard work, learning and doing what I truly love. 🐦⬛ 🌳 🥾 🎒 💻
Qué bien, suena súper interesante! Si quieres, hablamos. Me encantaría un montón estudiar la de dispersión de semillas en varias ciudades del continente. 😊
Todavía no hay papers en zonas altamente urbanizadas (el único paper que hay en medio de ciudades, aparte de este, es el de Mubamba et al. 2020 en Oecologia, y es más bien un entorno rural, creo). Molaría mucho hacer un estudio en zonas del continente que sean grandes ciudades 😊
Moreover, many frugivores (42%) move between cities and forests 🌆🌴🐦, potentially spreading non-native plant species into forests.
But 🚫 32% of the frugivores completely avoided cities!!
Our findings highlight the need for sustainable urban planning to protect the seed dispersal service. 🏙️🌿🐦
New paper out! 🏙️ We found that urbanisation simplifies and homogenises seed dispersal networks. 🪴🐦⬛ Non-native plants dominate in cities, accounting for 61% 😔 of interactions in the urban network vs just 15% in forests! 🪻🌿🌴
Check it out: doi.org/10.1111/cobi...
🌐🧪🌍🍁
Happy to share that I’ve won the UC-Life Sciences Award 2025 for best scientific article of 2024 in Biology!🧪👩🏻💻🪻🌿🐦⬛🦊
This national award recognizes top papers published by master’s or PhD students in Portugal.
Huge thanks to everyone who’s been part of this journey, especially my amazing co-authors! 🙌
Parque Natural** (not Parque Nacional)
It’s a privilege to work in a place like Parque Nacional de Tamadaba, in Gran Canaria! Surrounded by beautiful pine forests 🌲🌲, rich biodiversity with endemic species 🐦🌿, and , on clear days, a stunning view of Tenerife’s Teide volcano 🌋. (If you look closely, you might spot Teide in the photo!)🌎🌐🧪
The beautiful Semele gayae, endemic to Gran Canaria island 🥰🏝️🌿
Come and join us in Newcastle for a wonderful gathering of network ecologists! This year our theme is 'Network Ecology in the Anthropocene' and our plenary speakers include Jane Memmott and Paulo Guimarães. Symposium tickets are an absolute bargain, especially for students.
Office view of the week in Gran Canaria island 🥾🎒🏝️
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