Chris Catano
@chriscatano.bsky.social
Assistant Professor at University of California, Riverside | Ecology | Community Assembly | Biodiversity | Global Change Biology
Working towards a predictive ecology to advance fundamental theory & applications
https://chcatano.wixsite.com/ecology
Working towards a predictive ecology to advance fundamental theory & applications
https://chcatano.wixsite.com/ecology
Pinned
Chris Catano
@chriscatano.bsky.social
· Mar 5
Regional Processes Mediate Ecological Selection and the Distribution of Plant Diversity Across Scales
This experiment quantifies how species pool size and immigration influence plant community assembly in restored grasslands. Our findings reveal that greater immigration (seed arrival) and smaller spe...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Excited to share our new paper in Ecology Letters w @lars-brudvig.bsky.social, the culmination of more than a half decade of great fun and research from a landscape-scale experiment in tallgrass prairies! #CommunityAssembly, #PlantDiversity, #RestorationEcology, #Scale, #Prediction
Reposted by Chris Catano
Exciting new 🧪 work by Kai Huang on #soil N emissions after warming a forest for 6 years @pnas.org www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
November 24, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Exciting new 🧪 work by Kai Huang on #soil N emissions after warming a forest for 6 years @pnas.org www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Had an amazing time the last two days visiting and giving a seminar at UC Davis! Such great conversations, especially with students, and got to meet people who I've been inspired by since I was a student. Thank you Susan Harrison for hosting me, and to everyone else for your hospitality!
November 21, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Had an amazing time the last two days visiting and giving a seminar at UC Davis! Such great conversations, especially with students, and got to meet people who I've been inspired by since I was a student. Thank you Susan Harrison for hosting me, and to everyone else for your hospitality!
Reposted by Chris Catano
This is a reminder that @asn-amnat.bsky.social publishes abstracts in both English and your native language, using your native alphabet. You can see and read those online. Here is a screenshot of a great example. Love seeing this in my favorite journal.
November 14, 2025 at 3:47 PM
This is a reminder that @asn-amnat.bsky.social publishes abstracts in both English and your native language, using your native alphabet. You can see and read those online. Here is a screenshot of a great example. Love seeing this in my favorite journal.
First year disturbance treatments are done in our new #DRAGNet site in Riverside, California! Yes, we were crazy enough to do it by hand ... literally blood, sweat, and tears went into this today.
November 13, 2025 at 9:59 PM
First year disturbance treatments are done in our new #DRAGNet site in Riverside, California! Yes, we were crazy enough to do it by hand ... literally blood, sweat, and tears went into this today.
Reposted by Chris Catano
🆕 in "Ecological Monographs": Static models miss the mark—adding nonlinear, density-based facilitation helps predict coexistence, persistence, and realistic community dynamics
📄Neighbor density-dependent facilitation promotes coexistence and internal oscillation
doi.org/10.1002/ecm....
📄Neighbor density-dependent facilitation promotes coexistence and internal oscillation
doi.org/10.1002/ecm....
November 10, 2025 at 7:45 PM
🆕 in "Ecological Monographs": Static models miss the mark—adding nonlinear, density-based facilitation helps predict coexistence, persistence, and realistic community dynamics
📄Neighbor density-dependent facilitation promotes coexistence and internal oscillation
doi.org/10.1002/ecm....
📄Neighbor density-dependent facilitation promotes coexistence and internal oscillation
doi.org/10.1002/ecm....
Reposted by Chris Catano
Thanks for this contribution to "Ecology"!
V. pleased to have this out in Ecology @esajournals.bsky.social - evidence for limiting similarity vs. pre-adaptation (Darwin's naturalisation conundrum) vary across very fine spatial scales and when using phylogenetic vs. functional metrics!
esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Evidence for environmental filtering and limiting similarity depends on spatial scale and dissimilarity metrics
Darwin's theory of natural selection provides two seemingly contradictory hypotheses for explaining the success of biological invasions: (1) the pre-adaptation hypothesis posits that introduced speci....
esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 11, 2025 at 2:25 PM
Thanks for this contribution to "Ecology"!
Reposted by Chris Catano
Another amazing paper from Tara Christensen - with a surprising result that nectar generalists (butterflies) are declining more than specialists. esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Specialized flower visitation in montane butterflies is associated with positive population trajectories over time
Insect biodiversity is under threat from multiple stressors, including climate change and extreme weather. For butterflies, nectar resource use is an understudied trait in relation to population traj....
esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 6, 2025 at 12:34 PM
Another amazing paper from Tara Christensen - with a surprising result that nectar generalists (butterflies) are declining more than specialists. esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Reposted by Chris Catano
Caterpillar guts are like grasslands: immigration and selection determine gut microbial communities. Thanks @chriscatano.bsky.social for leading this exciting project, and for showing that niche selection is important in caterpillar microbial ecology!
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Experimental Immigration Mediates Ecological Selection and Drift in Monarch Microbiome Assembly
The distribution of biodiversity depends on processes operating across scales, yet multiscale paradigms have struggled to permeate host-microbiome research. By integrating multi-scale ecological theo...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 10, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Caterpillar guts are like grasslands: immigration and selection determine gut microbial communities. Thanks @chriscatano.bsky.social for leading this exciting project, and for showing that niche selection is important in caterpillar microbial ecology!
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
New paper showing how immigration alters the ecological processes structuring the assembly and variation in #Monarch caterpillar gut #microbiomes.
w/ @jaapderoode.bsky.social, @gabe-dubose.bsky.social, Joselyne Chavez, Lydia Fuller-Hall
Ecology Letters onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
w/ @jaapderoode.bsky.social, @gabe-dubose.bsky.social, Joselyne Chavez, Lydia Fuller-Hall
Ecology Letters onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Experimental Immigration Mediates Ecological Selection and Drift in Monarch Microbiome Assembly
The distribution of biodiversity depends on processes operating across scales, yet multiscale paradigms have struggled to permeate host-microbiome research. By integrating multi-scale ecological theo...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 10, 2025 at 2:40 PM
New paper showing how immigration alters the ecological processes structuring the assembly and variation in #Monarch caterpillar gut #microbiomes.
w/ @jaapderoode.bsky.social, @gabe-dubose.bsky.social, Joselyne Chavez, Lydia Fuller-Hall
Ecology Letters onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
w/ @jaapderoode.bsky.social, @gabe-dubose.bsky.social, Joselyne Chavez, Lydia Fuller-Hall
Ecology Letters onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Reposted by Chris Catano
Did you know "Ecology" publishes Statistical Innovations papers?
These articles spotlight cutting-edge methods that tackle pressing ecological questions and advance data analysis in the field. Learn more in our author guidelines: esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/hub/journal/...
These articles spotlight cutting-edge methods that tackle pressing ecological questions and advance data analysis in the field. Learn more in our author guidelines: esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/hub/journal/...
November 3, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Did you know "Ecology" publishes Statistical Innovations papers?
These articles spotlight cutting-edge methods that tackle pressing ecological questions and advance data analysis in the field. Learn more in our author guidelines: esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/hub/journal/...
These articles spotlight cutting-edge methods that tackle pressing ecological questions and advance data analysis in the field. Learn more in our author guidelines: esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/hub/journal/...
This looks like an important one! Nice work all!
New paper out today in Ecology Letters! In this synthesis we dive into the equilibrium assumption in ecology - why it's everywhere in ecological theory, the evidence for it in nature, when meeting the assumption is important, how to achieve it in empirical research, and more! tinyurl.com/yh6kyysm
November 3, 2025 at 2:28 PM
This looks like an important one! Nice work all!
Reposted by Chris Catano
New paper out today in Ecology Letters! In this synthesis we dive into the equilibrium assumption in ecology - why it's everywhere in ecological theory, the evidence for it in nature, when meeting the assumption is important, how to achieve it in empirical research, and more! tinyurl.com/yh6kyysm
November 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
New paper out today in Ecology Letters! In this synthesis we dive into the equilibrium assumption in ecology - why it's everywhere in ecological theory, the evidence for it in nature, when meeting the assumption is important, how to achieve it in empirical research, and more! tinyurl.com/yh6kyysm
Reposted by Chris Catano
“We fundamentally believe that publishing less – but better – is essential for the health of the entire research system worldwide,” the authors of the report state.
Less is more: academic publishing needs ‘radical change,’ Cambridge press report concludes
Academic publishing needs “renewed focus and collective action” to embrace new approaches and ensure the future of the industry, concludes a report from Cambridge University Press, released last we…
retractionwatch.com
October 21, 2025 at 7:11 PM
“We fundamentally believe that publishing less – but better – is essential for the health of the entire research system worldwide,” the authors of the report state.
Reposted by Chris Catano
Interested in resource competition theory, mutualism, spatial patterns or temporal dynamics? I'll be giving a talk in the IITE online seminar series tomorrow summarizing our recent work on microbial cross-feeding that includes all these ingredients.
📣Tomorrow our next series of online seminars restarts: Chris Klausmeier (MSU) will present:
⭐Microbial cross-feeding: coexistence and collapse, spatial patterns and population cycles⭐
Free and open to all:
Zoom link: iite.info/seminar/
Global Times: www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/f...
⭐Microbial cross-feeding: coexistence and collapse, spatial patterns and population cycles⭐
Free and open to all:
Zoom link: iite.info/seminar/
Global Times: www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/f...
October 20, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Interested in resource competition theory, mutualism, spatial patterns or temporal dynamics? I'll be giving a talk in the IITE online seminar series tomorrow summarizing our recent work on microbial cross-feeding that includes all these ingredients.
Our lab's first trip together to the field in SoCal! So fun to explore and talk remote sensing, plants, pollinators, and ecosystem restoration with my new grad students.
October 19, 2025 at 12:38 AM
Our lab's first trip together to the field in SoCal! So fun to explore and talk remote sensing, plants, pollinators, and ecosystem restoration with my new grad students.
Reposted by Chris Catano
New paper led by former post-bac researcher Isabelle Turner, with @chriscatano.bsky.social:
Seeding density alters the role of soil moisture in structuring plant abundance during prairie restoration
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Seeding density alters the role of soil moisture in structuring plant abundance during prairie restoration
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
October 10, 2025 at 1:41 PM
New paper led by former post-bac researcher Isabelle Turner, with @chriscatano.bsky.social:
Seeding density alters the role of soil moisture in structuring plant abundance during prairie restoration
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Seeding density alters the role of soil moisture in structuring plant abundance during prairie restoration
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
I'm developing a grad course on experimental design (study design generally) & data analysis in biology. What topics, papers, etc. do you think are most important? If you teach something similar, I would love to hear what/how you teach (if you are willing to share a syllabus that would amazing!).
September 26, 2025 at 12:28 PM
I'm developing a grad course on experimental design (study design generally) & data analysis in biology. What topics, papers, etc. do you think are most important? If you teach something similar, I would love to hear what/how you teach (if you are willing to share a syllabus that would amazing!).
Reposted by Chris Catano
🌱📚Excited to share my journey and experiences in academia, the ups, downs, and everything in between!
Hope it sparks good conversations!
@plantaeofficial.bsky.social @aspbofficial.bsky.social
@plantpostdocs.bsky.social @plantgrads.bsky.social
Hope it sparks good conversations!
@plantaeofficial.bsky.social @aspbofficial.bsky.social
@plantpostdocs.bsky.social @plantgrads.bsky.social
📣 Join us for the upcoming Plantae webinar on September 26 at 12:00 pm Eastern time, hosted by the 2025 Plantae Fellows.🌱
👉 Free registration at buff.ly/AAtvGQv.
#PlantScience
👉 Free registration at buff.ly/AAtvGQv.
#PlantScience
September 10, 2025 at 7:35 PM
🌱📚Excited to share my journey and experiences in academia, the ups, downs, and everything in between!
Hope it sparks good conversations!
@plantaeofficial.bsky.social @aspbofficial.bsky.social
@plantpostdocs.bsky.social @plantgrads.bsky.social
Hope it sparks good conversations!
@plantaeofficial.bsky.social @aspbofficial.bsky.social
@plantpostdocs.bsky.social @plantgrads.bsky.social
Reposted by Chris Catano
My department is searching for a new Microbiologist!!! Come join us at the University of South Alabama. We are broadly defining microbiologists, so microbial ecologists, human health, environmental microbiologists, etc encouraged to apply www.southalabama.edu/departments/...
www.southalabama.edu
September 25, 2025 at 3:58 PM
My department is searching for a new Microbiologist!!! Come join us at the University of South Alabama. We are broadly defining microbiologists, so microbial ecologists, human health, environmental microbiologists, etc encouraged to apply www.southalabama.edu/departments/...
But if i change the terminology... 🤫
September 19, 2025 at 6:02 PM
But if i change the terminology... 🤫
I know about the Freshamn 15, but no one told me about the Assistant Professor 15...
September 18, 2025 at 11:10 PM
I know about the Freshamn 15, but no one told me about the Assistant Professor 15...
Reposted by Chris Catano
"Biologists often become alienated from mathematics at an early stage in their career under the misconception [...] that biology is not a mathematical science. The claim is also often made that mathematical theory is overly simplistic, ignoring the [...] complex nature of biological systems."
1/
1/
September 12, 2025 at 11:55 AM
"Biologists often become alienated from mathematics at an early stage in their career under the misconception [...] that biology is not a mathematical science. The claim is also often made that mathematical theory is overly simplistic, ignoring the [...] complex nature of biological systems."
1/
1/
Reposted by Chris Catano
Absolutely! I'm experiencing the same thing as AE for a few journals. Authors are getting frustrated with me (I feel awful), and often, the additional burden shifts to me to provide a second review. 😒
September 7, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Absolutely! I'm experiencing the same thing as AE for a few journals. Authors are getting frustrated with me (I feel awful), and often, the additional burden shifts to me to provide a second review. 😒
Reposted by Chris Catano
As an Associate Editor, this is what I'm going through. It can take *months* just to get 2 people to agree to do a review. Many don't respond to the invitation at all, prolonging the process further. People are busy, that's understandable. Please respond, and if "no", suggest alternative reviewers.
Peer reviewers are exhausted. It's common to spend *months* inviting reviewers, getting refusals, inviting more, maybe 12 or more, then 2 agree but 1 doesn't complete, so you go again. That's why your paper is in limbo. I'm very sorry, it's awful, but it's also an untenable academic labour issue.
September 7, 2025 at 4:02 AM
As an Associate Editor, this is what I'm going through. It can take *months* just to get 2 people to agree to do a review. Many don't respond to the invitation at all, prolonging the process further. People are busy, that's understandable. Please respond, and if "no", suggest alternative reviewers.