Algae blooms (phytoplankton populations). @NASA Landsat image of the Baltic Sea.

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Finally out of reach –

No bondage, no dependency.

How calm the ocean,

Towering the void.

- Tessho

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Role and management of soil biodiversity for food security and nutrition; where do we stand? 

Mujtara, Muñoz, Prack Cormick, Pullemane, Tittonell

Highlights

Evidence on the impact of soil biodiversity on food security and nutrition was reviewed.

Soil biodiversity is closely dependent on management of plant diversity aboveground.

New insights on factors modulating soil biodiversity and their effect on human nutrition are increasing.

Reductionist and holistic approaches to enhance or utilize soil biodiversity can be distinguished.

Quantitatively, linking of soil biodiversity to a multidimensional issue like food security and nutrition remains challenging.

Abstract  

Soils host diverse communities that support and regulate ecosystem functions, thereby affecting plant production and resource use efficiencies. There is increasing evidence that agricultural intensification affects soil biodiversity (SBD) and such changes may impact on current and future food security. Here, we provide an overview of the state-of-the-art on the relations between agricultural management, SBD and food production. The potential of applying such knowledge to improve food security and nutrition is discussed. Biotechnological methods to describe impacts of agricultural practices on taxonomic and functional diversity of soil organisms are advancing rapidly. At the same time new understanding of soil-plant interactions has provided novel insights into the mechanisms by which soil organisms and plants co-regulate plant growth and defences, or affect food nutritional quality and safety. Yet, empirical studies on SBD – plant productivity relations often lead to results and applications that are crop and context specific. Translating knowledge on SBD into universally applicable soil management recommendations to enhance food production, and ultimately food security, remains challenging. Instead, we propose a holistic approach to SBD management that strengthens multiple ecosystem functions and provides ecological insurance.

Bacterial network analysis in soil samples taken along a gradient of land use types in Brazil. The different colours indicate different modules (groups of taxa containing key metabolic potential capacities). Each dot represents a bacterial genus and its size is proportional to the value of closeness centrality. Lines between dots represent trophic interactions. Closeness centrality denotes the proximity of a bacterial genus to all others in the network, and it is considered that a bacterial genus with high value of closeness centrality is likely to have a pronounced effect on microbial community because it can rapidly affect other species in the community. 

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https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211912418300300

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https://t.co/vSaPJSlFZ5

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The great George Washington Carver
(rare silent color footage from 1937)

A hunter and his dog in a Neo-Assyrian lion hunt relief from the North-West Palace at Nimrud

Photo: Filippo Guerra
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La sequía  afecta más del 98 por ciento de Nueva Gales del Sur, en Australia.
Fotos de Dean Lewins para @EFEverde
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We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.

Immanuel Kant 
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How grains took over the world 
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https://www.futurity.org/grains-food-history-globalization-1977642/

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All the trees in the world are journeying somewhere. Perpetual pilgrimage. 

Vladimir Nabokov, 'Gods'
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Paywall: The Business of Scholarship (Full Movie) CC BY 4.0 from Paywall The Movie on Vimeo.

 Gert van den Bosch ‏ @gertvanden

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The global burden of pathogens and pests on  major food crops 
Serge Savary, Laetitia Willocquet, Sarah Jane Pethybridge, Paul Esker, Neil McRoberts  and  Andy Nelson

Crop pathogens and pests reduce the yield and quality of agricultural production. They cause substantial economic losses and  reduce food security at household, national and global levels. Quantitative, standardized information on crop losses is difficult  to compile and compare across crops, agroecosystems and regions. Here, we report on an expert-based assessment of crop  health, and provide numerical estimates of yield losses on an individual pathogen and pest basis for five major crops globally  and in food security hotspots. Our results document losses associated with 137 pathogens and pests associated with wheat,  rice, maize, potato and soybean worldwide. Our yield loss (range) estimates at a global level and per hotspot for wheat (21.5%  (10.1–28.1%)), rice (30.0% (24.6–40.9%)), maize (22.5% (19.5–41.1%)), potato (17.2% (8.1–21.0%)) and soybean (21.4%  (11.0–32.4%)) suggest that the highest losses are associated with food-deficit regions with fast-growing populations, and  frequently with emerging or re-emerging pests and diseases. Our assessment highlights differences in impacts among crop  pathogens and pests and among food security hotspots. This analysis contributes critical information to prioritize crop health  management to improve the sustainability of agroecosystems in delivering services to societies.

The top left chart shows global losses and production for wheat, rice, maize, potato and soybean.  The other charts are specific to each food security hotspot. The upper portion of each chart shows the kilograms of crop production per person   (2010–2014 averages) on a log 10  scale. The lower portion shows the percentage yield losses across all reported P&Ps. Food security hotspot charts only  show losses where there were sufficient survey responses to estimate the loss. The grey dots represent the world averages per crop. The global map shows  the location of the eight food security hotspots. Above-average crop losses were found for: wheat (25.7%), rice (31.3%) and (maize  30.1%) in SSA; rice (40.9%), maize (41.1%) and potato (21.0%) in the IGP; wheat (28.1%) and rice (32.2%) in China; soybean (32.4%) in SB&A; and  wheat (24.9%) in NWE. However, lower than average crop losses were recorded for: wheat (17.9%), maize (21.3%) and potato (8.1%) in USM&C; wheat  (10.1%) and potato (12.6%) in WANA; and wheat (16.6%) in the IGP.

https://go.nature.com/2UIeW6A

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Fall Army Worm crossed mount Everest and found for the first time in Yunnan province of China

Anoplophora beryllina
John Horstman  @sinobug
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