Thermal Tolerance News Today

Almost 40 years of data shows that some species are more heat tolerant, but still face uphill battle against rising temperatures.

Heatwaves are increasingly occurring out-of-season, which may affect plants not primed for the event. Further, heat stress often coincides with water and/or nutrient stress, impairing short-term physiological function and potentially causing downstream effects on reproductive fitness. We investigated the response of water-stressed arid-zone Solanum oligacanthum and Solanum orbiculatum to spring vs summer heat stress under differing nutrient conditions. Heat stress events were imposed in open-top...

Context: Fauna nestboxes are used for conservation, research and mitigation against tree hollow/cavity loss. Scant attention has been given to the microclimate inside boxes until recently, with concern that nestboxes may be ineffective or a thermal trap because of high internal temperatures during summer. Aim: Our study used construction design principles to guide modifications to nestboxes to reduce maximum temperatures inside boxes. Methods: Five trials were undertaken, and modifications inclu...

Qin Wang et al There are microbes near the bottom of the third deepest hole in the world. The cells, recovered from rocks almost 5 kilometres below the surface in China, are the deepest so far found anywhere on land – and they may push beyond the known heat tolerances of life on Earth. A team …