Annals of the Natural History Museum Vienna begins publishing with Pensoft

The Annals of the Natural History Museum Vienna (ANHMW) has launched its first issue since transitioning to the ARPHA scholarly publishing platform and entering a co-publishing partnership with Pensoft. 

The open-access, peer-reviewed journal publishes original research relating to the museum’s scientific collections and ongoing projects, covering anthropology, biosciences, earth sciences, genetics, prehistory, and the museum’s history.

journal mockup.

Established in 1836 as the Annalen des Wiener Museums der Naturgeschichte, the journal is one of Europe’s oldest periodicals, maintaining a longstanding tradition of scientific publishing. Over the years, the journal experienced various iterations and name changes and, in 1980, it was divided into three series. Now, following the transition to Pensoft, these series have been reunited under one title.

ANHMW operates as a diamond open-access journal, allowing authors to publish freely thanks to the generous support of the Natural History Museum Vienna. Co-published by Pensoft and the museum, all articles are available in multiple formats including HTML, JATS XML, and high-resolution full-colour PDF. 

journal mockup.

Content is enhanced semantically and converted into Linked Open Data and OpenBiodiv Biodiversity knowledge graphs. To meet nomenclatural standards for electronic publication, all articles will be indexed and archived in repositories such as Zenodo, CLOCKSS, Portico, and more, with nomenclatural acts registered in ZooBank.

The joint Editors-in-Chief, Dr Anna Weinmann, Mag Andrea Krapf, and Dr Nesrine Akkari, expressed enthusiasm for the journal’s digital transformation. Andrea Krapf commented, “I am very proud to accompany such a venerable and traditional journal as the Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien on its journey into the digital future under its new English title, Annals of the Natural History Museum Vienna. In Pensoft, we have found a reliable partner to publish the journal under a modern diamond open access model, making it thus more attractive to the scientific community and the general public.”

Dr Nesrine Akkari said, “Since joining the editorial team of the Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien as the editor-in-chief of Serie B in 2018, I have witnessed continuous attempts to modernise the journal’s editorial workflow and publications. The idea of moving to Pensoft as a co-publisher was discussed and I am delighted that our managers support it.

“As both a scientist and an editor, I recognise the importance of the Annals as part of the museum’s legacy, while I also recognize the many advantages of the collaboration with Pensoft. I believe that this change marks a new era for the Annals and that, by combining modernity and tradition, our journal will continue to thrive.”

Prof Lyubomir Penev, CEO and Founder of Pensoft, welcomed the partnership: “We are thrilled to welcome the Annals of the Natural History Museum Vienna into the Pensoft family of next-generation scientific journals. ARPHA’s publishing solutions will allow the journal to modernise and find new audiences.”

The first issue is now available on the ANHMW’s new website, including an editorial by the Editors-in-Chief reflecting on the past and future of this historic journal.

Devilishly distinctive new bee species discovered in WA Goldfields

Named for the female’s horned face and the Netflix character Lucifer, it’s the first new addition to its group in over 20 years.

A new native bee species with tiny devil-like “horns” named Megachile (Hackeriapis) lucifer has been discovered in Western Australia’s Goldfields, highlighting how much remains unknown about Australia’s native pollinators.

A woman in a wide-brimmed hat and plaid shirt holds a butterfly net outdoors, surrounded by greenery and sunlight.
Dr Kit Prendergast

The striking new bee was found during surveys of a critically endangered wildflower Marianthus aquilonarius that grows only in the Bremer Range region, which is between the towns of Norseman and Hyden.

Lead author Curtin Adjunct Research Fellow Dr Kit Prendergast, from the Curtin School of Molecular and Life Sciences, said the female bee’s unusual horned face inspired its name lucifer – Latin for “light-bringer,” but also a playful nod to the devilish look.

A female Megachile Lucifer.

“I discovered the species while surveying a rare plant in the Goldfields and noticed this bee visiting both the endangered wildflower and a nearby mallee tree,” Dr Prendergast said.

A purple flower blooms among green pods and leaves.
A close-up of a eucalyptus tree featuring green leaves and clusters of fluffy white flowers against a blue sky.
The two plants visited by Megachile Lucifer. Left: Marianthus aquilonaris. Right: Eucalyptus livida.

“The female had these incredible little horns on her face. When writing up the new species description I was watching the Netflix show Lucifer at the time, and the name just fit perfectly. I am also a huge fan of the Netflix character Lucifer so it was a no-brainer.

A female Megachile Lucifer.

“DNA barcoding confirmed the male and female were the same species and that it didn’t match any known bees in DNA databases, nor did the specimens I had collected morphologically match any in museum collections.

“It’s the first new member of this bee group to be described in more than 20 years, which really shows how much life we still have to discover – including in areas that are at risk of mining, such as the Goldfields.”

Dr Prendergast said the discovery highlighted the importance of understanding native bees before their habitats are disturbed.

New unusual bee species discovered with dog-like snout

“Because the new species was found in the same small area as the endangered wildflower, both could be at risk from habitat disturbance and other threatening processes like climate change,” Dr Prendergast said.

“Many mining companies still don’t survey for native bees, so we may be missing undescribed species, including those that play crucial roles in supporting threatened plants and ecosystems.

“Without knowing which native bees exist and what plants they depend on, we risk losing both before we even realise they’re there.”

Dr Kit Prendergast

The publication of the research coincides with Australian Pollinator Week, an annual celebration of the crucial role bees, butterflies and other insects play in maintaining healthy ecosystems and food production.

The research was supported by the Atlas of Living Australia, the Goldfields Environmental Management Group and the USDA Agricultural Research Service.

Research article:

Prendergast KS, Campbell JW (2025) Megachile (Hackeriapis) lucifer (Hymenoptera, Megachilidae), a new megachilid with demon-like horns that visits the Critically Endangered Marianthus aquilonaris (Pittosporaceae). Journal of Hymenoptera Research 98: 1017-1030. https://doi.org/10.3897/jhr.98.166350

First ever discovery of Lepidosira springtails in China reveals four new species

The tiny arthropods were found in Yintiaoling National Nature Reserve, a biodiversity hotspot.

Researchers from Nantong University have announced the discovery of four new species belonging to the springtail genus Lepidosira in China, representing the first record of this genus in the country. 

The findings, confirmed by both advanced molecular and traditional morphological analysis, are published in the latest issue of Museum für Naturkunde Berlin’s open-access entomology journal Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift.

Led by researchers Xiaowei Qian, Meidong Jing, and Yitong Ma, the study involved extensive fieldwork in the Yintiaoling National Nature Reserve in Chongqing, a biodiversity hotspot in southwestern China. 

Springtail on a dark background.
Lepidosira wuxiensis sp. nov. A, B. Habitus (lateral view). Scale bars: 500 μm. Credit: Qian et al.

Through COI barcoding and meticulous examination of physical characteristics, the team identified and described four species new to science: Lepidosira apigmenta, L. similis, L. wuxiensis, and L. chongqingensis. These species expand scientific understanding of the diversity and evolution of springtails: tiny, soil-dwelling arthropods that play a critical role in ecosystem health and soil fertility.

In addition to introducing these new species, the study proposes taxonomic updates, including the transfer and renaming of two previously known Chinese species based on their true affinities to Lepidosira. The use of genetic barcoding was key to overcoming the limitations of identification methods based only on colouration, a common but unreliable trait in traditional Collembola taxonomy.

Springtail on a dark background.
Lepidosira similis sp. nov. A, B. Habitus (lateral view). Scale bars: 500 μm. Credit: Qian et al.

The research team also provides an updated identification key for the scaled genera of the subfamily Entomobryinae, further facilitating future studies in the region.

This discovery highlights the richness of endemic species in China and the importance of continued exploration in under-studied habitats. The work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Large Instruments Open Foundation of Nantong University.

Original source
Qian X, Jing M, Ma Y (2025) First report of Lepidosira (Collembola, Entomobryidae) from China, with description of four new species under the aid of COI barcoding. Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 72(2): 341-365. https://doi.org/10.3897/dez.72.153961

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How open science and shared data can help tackle global challenges: The Crete Declaration

European research infrastructures commit to advancing FAIR data integration and informing policy-making through integrated scientific knowledge.

The global community is facing a number of urgent challenges, such as emerging diseases, epidemics, antimicrobial resistance, food safety, water scarcity, environmental contamination, and severe changes in biodiversity. All of them are intensified by the widespread impact of climate change. These interconnected threats demand “a fundamental shift towards systemic, integrated solutions,” a systemic change of perspective in risk management, and a long-term, action-focused strategic vision, point out representatives of Europe’s leading biodiversity, ecology and engineering communities, coordinated by the LifeWatch European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC). 

Text on a clean background asks how open science and shared data can address global challenges, introducing the Crete Declaration.

Together, the partners offer a unified, systemic response to these critical challenges. In the Crete Declaration, published in a policy brief in the open-science journal Research Ideas and Outcomes, they outline how scientific cooperation can be transformed into actionable policy and robust innovation.

Recognising the “intimate and inseparable link between the health of people, animals and plants and how they interact within ecosystems,” the signatories aim to significantly strengthen Europe’s resilience and global leadership by sharing data and expertise, developing innovative solutions, and promoting evidence-based policies.

Text highlighting the Crete Declaration, emphasizing collaboration in One Health approach among European research infrastructures. Background of mountains.

They argue that research infrastructures across Europe are uniquely positioned to provide solutions “that are firmly grounded in robust science and evidence-based insights into the functioning of our living environment.”

A key message the team would like to get across is that “[p]olicies anchored in reliable data are robust and, when rooted in societal participation, they will become more feasible, impactful and widely adopted.”

In addition, research infrastructures can provide unified data and service integration through collaboration and co-creation with users and stakeholders. To this end, it is essential to embrace and support open science as a driver for scientific and social innovation.

Text outlining the aims of signatories to address One Health challenges through research, innovation, and responsible use of AI.

To realise this vision, the parties commit to strengthening strategic collaboration. Another critical commitment is to advance data integration and FAIR Principles for open science by ensuring equitable access to data resources, software, workflows, standards, and protocols across domains.

To support open innovation in critical areas such as conservation, sustainable food systems, and water security, the signatories will establish a “trusted, inclusive platform for stakeholder engagement.”

Finally, they commit to providing integrated scientific knowledge to inform the policy and public, supporting effective, evidence-based policy-making and engaging citizens.

The Declaration was developed during a special assembly held in Crete in June 2025, hosted by the Institute of Marine Biology, Biotechnology and Aquaculture at the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research.

Text inviting European stakeholders to endorse a coordinated approach to One Health research and innovation.

The policy brief containing the Crete Declaration is the latest contribution to the LifeWatch ERIC Strategic Working Plan Outcomes open-science collection in the Research Ideas and Outcomes journal, a one-stop access point to the most important deliverables by the research infrastructure consortium.

Original source:

Arvanitidis C, Ameixa O, Basset A, Chatzinikolaou E, Coman C, Companys B, De Leo F, Deneudt K, Drago F, Eriksson J, Ferrari T, Georgiev T, Giuliano G, Gruber S, Habermann J, Heil K, Hubbard T, Huertas Olivares C, Kotoulas G, Koureas D, Manola N, Marrocco V, Pade N, Portugal Melo A, Provenzale A, Psomopoulos F, Raes N, Robinson S, Ruch P, Schaap D, Stanica A, Stavropoulos T, Teixeira H, van Tienderen P, Tsigenopoulos C, Waterhouse R, Aprea G, Boër M, Casino A, Delauney L, Ewbank J, Mirtl M, Pavlic-Zupanc J, Penev L, Piera J, Pitta P, Puillat I, Richter D, Stepanyan D, Ussi A, Węsławski J, Zuquim G (2025) The Crete Declaration: Uniting Science for One Health. Research Ideas and Outcomes 11: e176120. https://doi.org/10.3897/rio.11.e176120

Pensoft showcases open science and restoration innovation at the IUCN World Conservation Congress

Pensoft joined thousands of global conservationists, policymakers, and researchers in Abu Dhabi for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress, the world’s largest and most influential event dedicated to safeguarding nature and shaping a sustainable future.

The grand opening ceremony of the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025.

Held from the 9th to 15th of September 2025, the event brought together over 10,000 participants from 189 countries under five central themes: Scaling Up Resilient Conservation Action; Reducing Climate Overshoot Risks; Delivering on Equity; Transitioning to Nature-Positive Economies and Societies; and Disruptive Innovation and Leadership for Conservation.

Numerous concrete steps towards advancing conservation were taken at the event, from the adoption of a 20-year Strategic Vision for the Union, to the Abu Dhabi Call to Action outlining key global priorities, to announcing Panama as the host of the next World Protected and Conserved Areas Congress in 2027.

Pensoft’s involvement

Represented by Prof Lyubomir Penev (Founder and CEO), Maria Kolesnikova (Marketing and Sales Manager), and Denitsa Peneva (Scientific Illustrator), Pensoft took part in the Congress with a dedicated booth, engaging attendees in conversation about how open science, innovative publishing, and collaborative research can drive conservation.

Denitsa Peneva (left) and Maria Kolesnikova (right) representing Pensoft at the event.

Pensoft’s exhibit placed a strong emphasis on restoration and ecological research, showcasing the publisher’s active role in international initiatives supporting biodiversity recovery and sustainable ecosystem management. Numerous illustrated materials were available for attendees to browse through and take home.

A key feature of the booth was Pensoft’s participation in Horizon 2020 projects such as REST-COAST, which aims to restore and safeguard coastal ecosystems through innovative, large-scale nature-based solutions. Alongside the company’s project involvement, visitors explored Pensoft’s diverse range of open-access journals, including Nature Conservation, One Ecosystem, Estuarine Management and Technologies, NeoBiota, and the newly launched Individual-based Ecology. 

A selection of Pensoft’s materials at the congress.

Two sessions at the event presented Pensoft-partnered EU projects, highlighting the critical connection between science, policy, and practice: the first, Bridging Science and Policy: European Action for Biodiversity and Climate Goals was a collaborative effort of the COOP4CBD, BIOAGORA, RESPIN, and TRANSPATH projects; and the second was REST-COAST’s Advancing Large Scale Restoration Programmes Through Sharing Insights of EU Funded Nature Restoration Projects.

  • Maja Vasilijevic opening the session, Bridging Science and Policy: European Action for Biodiversity and Climate Goals..
  • Keynote speaker Musonda Mumba at Advancing Large Scale Restoration Programmes Through Sharing Insights of EU Funded Nature Restoration Projects.

A platform for lasting impact

One of the most anticipated events on the calendar, the IUCN Congress was a fantastic event that looked to the future of collaborative global conservation. For Pensoft, participation in Abu Dhabi reaffirmed its mission to foster open, accessible, and data-driven knowledge to support efforts to protect and restore our planet’s ecosystems.

  • Letsema Adontsi, Minister of Environment and Forestry, Lesotho.
  • Visitors at the Pensoft booth.
  • Taxonomist Korsh Ararat.
  • Kostas Triantis, author of several articles in Frontiers of Biogeography.
  • Nature Conservation author Kristijn Swinnen.
  • Sana Taktak, part of REST-COAST project.
  • IMA Fungus author Jonathan Cazabonne..
  • Nature Conservation author Neil D’Cruze.
  • Elisa Furlan and Elena Alegri from REST-COAST.
  • Sofia Paredes Maury and Claudia Garcia Barrios from the Guatemalan Association of the Private Nature Reserves.
  • Maggie Kilian, botanist and Director of Engaging Heritage Consulting.
  • Guido Berguido, who recently had a new species named ater him in PhytoKeys.
  • Srijana Joshi Rijal and Bandana Shakya from GBIF Nepal, with Pensoft’s Maria Kolesnikova.
  • Julia Sigwart, Senckenberg Research Institute. with Prof Lyubomir Penev.
  • BDJ author Rachel Haderle.
  • NeoBiota author Ana Nunes.
  • Pensoft Founder and CEO Prof Lyubomir Penev.
  • Matthieu Lapinski and Mathilde Michaud from REST-COAST.

The conversations, collaborations, and commitments shared at IUCN 2025 will continue to shape the publisher’s approach to science communication and innovation going forward.

Relive highlights of the conference on Bluesky and LinkedIn using the hashtag #IUCNcongress.

Eyes to the skies: assessing the threat status of Vietnam’s bird species

A new study published in the open-access journal Nature Conservation assesses the threat status of bird species from Vietnam, underscoring the country’s critical conservation needs.

Vietnam is well known for its extraordinary level of biodiversity, particularly its very rich bird fauna. However, although the country is home to more than 900 species, co-author of the study Dr. Hung Le Manh stresses that no efforts had been made to assess their conservation status to better protect them from extinction risks.

eagle on a tree.
Lesser fish eagle in Vietnam. Credit: Dr. Hung Le.

For this reason, the study provides a comprehensive list of bird species reported from Vietnam. It incorporates threat statuses, identifying avian richness hotspots and their coverage by the national protected area network. The implementation of the IUCN’s “One Plan Approach to Conservation” is also examined.

Of the 803 native bird species in Vietnam, only 43 are currently listed as threatened in the IUCN Red List. Internationally, an additional 87 species are listed in the Appendices of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Prof. Dr. Truong Quang Nguyen highlights that 61 species are listed in the 2007 version of Vietnam Red Data Book, 112 species in the 2024 version, and 138 species are included under national decrees.

Two birds on a branch.
Streaked barwings in Vietnam. Credit: Dr. Hung Le.

Ass. Prof. Dr. Dennis Rödder from the Leibniz-Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change (LIB) stresses that highest bird species richness was found in northern and central Vietnam. The Mekong Delta is an important area for non-breeding species, but it had comparatively low protected area coverage.

Zoo databases show that 308 species are represented in zoo holdings, including 20 threatened and two threatened and endemic species. One of these species, the Vietnam pheasant, listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, has not been reported from the wild in Vietnam since 2000. It is one of the flagship species of the current VIETNAMAZING conservation campaign and network, and is set to be released back into the wild to restock the natural populations.

Vietnam pheasant at Hanoi Zoo. Credit: Thomas Ziegler.

The team led by Prof. Dr. Thomas Ziegler, Cologne Zoo and the Institute of Zoology at the University of Cologne, has contributed to identifying gaps in conservation of Vietnamese vertebrates. Three papers written by the team have already been published in Nature Conservation: amphibians (2022), reptiles (2023), and mammals (2024). These threat analyses are intended to accelerate effective conservation measures by implementing IUCN’s “One Plan Approach” and the “Reverse the Red” initiative.

One third of Vietnam’s mammals are at risk of extinction

“This updated avifaunal assessment underscores Vietnam’s critical conservation needs, highlighting areas for improved protection, integration of expanded ex situ conservation efforts, and alignment of legislation with global conservation priorities,” says Ass. Prof. Dr. Minh D. Le from Central Institute for Natural Resources and Environmental Studies (CRES), Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam.

Original source

Ginal P, Hackenbroch H, Le Manh H, Nguyen TQ, Le MD, Rödder D, Ziegler T (2025) Assessment of the threat status of bird species from Vietnam – Implementation of the One Plan Approach to conservation. Nature Conservation 60: 49-72. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.60.162832

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The legacy of impactful biodiversity research: Pensoft at Living Data 2025

Events like these continue to be of great significance for Pensoft as it works to innovate the landscape of academic data management and scientific outreach.

Effective biodiversity conservation at the global level requires consolidated, streamlined and open scientific data to support it. This was the tenet at the heart of Living Data 2025, a conference unprecedented in its scale and ambition to foster a transcontinental dialogue on the past, present and future of research into the biosphere. 

The event took place between 21 and 24 October in Bogotá, Colombia, and was made possible via an extensive collaboration between the biodiversity networks GBIF, TDWG, OBIS and GEO BON, with support from the Humboldt Institute.

With an audience spanning the globe and a four-day agenda reflecting the diversity of innovations and challenges to be addressed in this context, the scene was set for an inclusive and productive dialogue on biodiversity data. 

For its part, Pensoft seized the opportunity to join this crucial forum. Represented by founder and CEO Prof. Lyubomir Penev, CTO Teodor Georgiev and Science Communication Expert Peter Bozakov, the open-access scholarly publisher and technology provider became an active participant in the programme as:

Three men pose in front of a colorful backdrop featuring tropical plants and the event title "Datos Vivos 2025" in Bogotá, Colombia.
Pensoft’s Chief Technology Officer Teodor Georgiev, Science Communication Expert Peter Bozakov, and founder and Chief Executive Officer Prof. Lyubomir Penev

Еxhibitor on the conference floor

Pensoft’s representatives were front and centre at the event by virtue of a dedicated booth showcasing the company’s work in academic publishing and science communication, as well as FAIR biodiversity data innovation. A wide array of materials was available for researchers to browse through, reflecting a variety of scientific subjects and endeavours. The ensuing conversations reflected a shared commitment to a more ambitious biodiversity research landscape today and tomorrow, as the parties charted potential avenues for cooperation.

A booth at a conference displays biodiversity research materials and promotional items, with two men posing.
Pensoft’s stand at Living Data 2025.

Sponsor of the Best Student Presentation award

Unwavering in its support for young scientists and early-career researchers, Pensoft also left a mark with its sponsorship of the most critically acclaimed student oral talk delivered at Living Data 2025. During the conference’s closing ceremony, Prof. Lyubomir Penev delivered the award to Mélisande Teng for her presentation, titled “A machine learning approach to species distribution modelling using remote sensing and citizen science data“. This distinction entitles her to a free publication in one of the journals in Pensoft’s extensive and exclusively open-access portfolio. 

A speaker stands behind a podium at a conference with a presentation backdrop showcasing various partners, including logos and event details.
Prof. Penev presenting the Best Student Presentation award

Co-organiser of a symposium

Last but not least, Pensoft drew on its experience across its multiple expertises to address some of the topical pillars of the event in its own symposium. The publisher and technology provider was joined in this effort by long-standing partners from LifeWatch ERIC (represented by its CEO Christos Arvanitidis) and the Naturalis Biodiversity Centre (represented by Niels Raes). 

Together, they delivered two sessions sharing the title “Long Live Biodiversity Data: Knowledge Transfer and Continuity across Research Projects”. In that sense, the aim was to emphasise the importance of science results being repurposed and reused, finding new life beyond the endeavours that gave rise to them. The role of open data, targeted communication and clearly defined pathways to impact in decision-making was singled out as an essential aspect on the road to such long-lived outputs.

Both sessions attracted the attention of attendees, leading to proactive engagement with the topics in focus. 

A number of ongoing projects and initiatives – where Pensoft has been involved as an active consortium partner – were in the spotlight, including Biodiversity Meets Data, B-Cubed, OneSTOP, BioAgora, FORSAID, WildPosh, IP4OS and GATE. Special mention was also afforded to SOLO and eLTER, as well as the concluded BiCKL, EuropaBON, HOMED and PoshBee. 

Together with a number of other fellow projects, they provided inspiring testaments to the potential of results to grow beyond the vision they first emerged out of. Overall, the symposium brought together 16 abstracts with over 90 contributing authors, more than 20 initiatives and more than 30 affiliated institutions and organisations. The recordings of Session #1 and Session #2 are already available on YouTube.

Later this year, extended abstracts presented throughout the Living Data 2025 conference will be published in the open-access journal Biodiversity Information Standards and Science (BISS): the official scholarly outlet of TDWG launched in 2017 in partnership with long-term collaborator Pensoft. Initiated by a dedicated call from TDWG, this year’s extended abstracts collection will provide further insight into the perspectives, opportunities and issues discussed in the respective showcases. 

All in all, the conference was a noteworthy milestone for the international biodiversity community – an exchange of views, results and opportunities at a broad geographical and multidisciplinary scale that is truly oriented towards tangible outcomes for the planet’s future. As ever, formats like these continue to be of great significance for Pensoft as it works to innovate the landscape of academic data management and scientific outreach across and beyond borders.

Relive highlights of the conference on Bluesky and LinkedIn using the hashtag #LivingData2025.

Did you know that three years ago Pensoft hosted the TDWG annual conference? Check out the highlights on our blog!

New Horizon Europe project supports land-coast-sea systems under climate change

“COAST-SCAPES is a collective effort to rethink how we coexist with coastal systems”, explains project coordinator Prof. Manel Grifoll.

COAST-SCAPES: a newly launched project, funded by the European Commission, is to propose a reconsideration of the current coastal ecosystem to enhance resilience and biodiversity protection through nature-based solutions.

Leading maritime engineering specialists, marine ecologists, and biodiversity experts, gathered in Barcelona (Spain) between 7 and 9 October to officially kick start the project’s vision on climate-resilient coastal landscapes. Hosted by the Maritime Engineering Laboratory from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, the meeting focused on setting the strategic direction of the project, aligning the scientific, technical and communication objectives and establishing synergies between project partners across Europe and beyond. 

In the span of two days, consortium partners were given the opportunity to present their missions with the COAST-SCAPES project, showcasing how each partner institution will contribute to building science-based and community-driven resilience pathways. 

The project coordinator, Prof. Manel Grifoll, navigated the discussions, which centered around key deliverables and milestones, future challenges and plans on work-related activities, highlighting the crucial role of the project’s Core and Replicating Pilots for scalable resilience plans for replication and export. 

A group photo of the COAST-SCAPES consortium at the project’s kick-off (Barcelona, October 2025).

Officially started on 1 September 2025, the COAST-SCAPES project has major ambitions to co-design systemic resilience solutions for coastal landscapes by developing integrated indicators, proactive climate warning systems, as well as knowledge-based strategies for business and maintenance in order to reduce the risks of climate change and improve land-sea interactions. To achieve this, COAST-SCAPES will promote the utilisation of nature-based solutions (NbS), seeking biodiversity gains and reduction of the environmental footprint under scarce natural resources. 

The project brings together a diverse group of partners, including research institutions, universities and technological organisations from Europe, Africa and Latin America. Their shared goal is to restore vulnerable coastal areas and apply resilience through adaptation. Due to human intervention, which drastically altered the evolution of coastal ecosystems, the ecological role of such areas is becoming crucial. By harnessing their low-carbon adaptation potential, coastal ecosystems can mitigate climate-related risks and boost biodiversity.

COAST-SCAPES is a collective effort to rethink how we coexist with coastal systems. By integrating natural processes, technology, and community knowledge, we aim to create adaptive landscapes that safeguard biodiversity and support sustainable livelihoods. Our ambition is to build resilient coasts that can thrive, not just survive, under climate change.

says Prof. Manel Grifoll, project coordinator.

The selected project’s Core Pilots, among which the Mar Menor lagoon in the Iberian Peninsula, will serve as a starting point for leading experts to carry out large-scale resilience plans, while protecting coastal biodiversity and addressing existing infrastructure challenges. 

Supported by social and technical innovation, as well as a governance shift, these plans will connect scientists, citizens, policy-makers, environmental activists, and the industry with administrations responsible for local implementations for an increased cross-sectoral engagement. Contributing to a balanced land-to-sea ecosystem and a sustainable biodiversity protection, COAST-SCAPES reminds us that coastal restoration is vital for our adaptation to climate change.

Pensoft’s contribution to COAST-SCAPES:

Pensoft will lead two tasks within the COAST-SCAPES’ Work Package dedicated to dissemination and communication for practical exploitation. The objectives of these tasks are focused on the identification of key exploitable results of the project. Together with other consortium members, Pensoft will be working on establishing the most suitable exploitation pathways for each result. The experienced communication team at the scholarly publishing and technology providing company will also be actively raising societal and technical awareness necessary to transform governance for systemic resilience through yearly newsletters and policy briefs. In addition, Pensoft takes part in Work Package 6, where it will be responsible for the project’s visual identity and ensuring constant visibility of project results, as well as proper data management. 

List of project consortium members: 

Coordinated by the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, the project brings together 30 partner organisations from 15 countries to develop coastal resilience through nature-based solutions (NbS).

  1. Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) 
  2. EURECAT Technology Centre 
  3. The New Water Culture Foundation (FNCA)
  4. National Research and Development Institute for Marine Geology and Geoecology (GeoEcoMar) 
  5. Consortium for the coordination of research relating to the Venice lagoon system (CORILA) 
  6. National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics (OGS) 
  7. Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC)
  8. Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS)
  9. Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology Spain SL (RMIT Spain)
  10.  University of Aveiro (UA) 
  11.  Pensoft Publishers (Pensoft) 
  12.  Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU)
  13.  Lower Saxony State Office for Water Management, Coastal Protection and Nature Conservation (NLWKN) 
  14.  University of Save (USV)
  15.  Northern University Foundation (UNR) 
  16.  Mohammed Premier University (UMP) 
  17.  Assane-Seck University of Ziguinchor (UASZ)  
  18.  Global Climate Forum (GCF) 
  19.  Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon GMBH 
  20.  Odesa I.I. Mechnykov National University 
  21.  International Center for Coastal Resources Research of Spain 
  22.  Can Tho University 
  23.  Ministry of Infrastructure and of Transport of Italy 
  24.  Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) 
  25.  University of San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) 
  26.  WWF Romania 
  27.  Association for the Defense of Nature/WWF – Spain 
  28.  Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology – RMIT University (RMIT Uni) 
  29.  Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge of Spain (MITECO) 
  30.  Portuguese Environment Agency (APA)
For more information:

Follow the COAST-SCAPES project on Bluesky and LinkedIn.

Project website coming soon!

Funded by the European Union under grant agreement No. 101213138, COAST-SCAPES (rethinking COASTal landSCAPES with climate-resilient interventions: systemic land-to-sea solutions).

Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the EU, nor the REA can be held responsible for them.

Shining a light on dark taxa: new fungal phyla and classes revealed by eDNA long reads

Molecular analyses of soil and water commonly reveal large proportions of fungal taxa that cannot be assigned to any taxonomic or functional groups. Some of these so-called ‘dark taxa’ have been encoded alphanumerically, while others have remained completely overlooked.

Recent advances in long-read sequencing techniques have produced large amounts of high-quality rRNA marker gene data about eukaryotic organisms, but many of these taxa have remained unknown at the highest taxonomic levels: phylum and kingdom. 

Now, via a thorough analysis of the EUKARYOME long-read database, an international team led by Prof Leho Tedersoo (University of Tartu, Estonia) has discovered that a large proportion of the unknown eukaryotes belong to deep, hitherto undescribed fungal lineages.

By developing innovative approaches in taxonomy and performing rigorous phylogenetic analyses, the researchers described 30 novel fungal lineages from the order to phylum levels, including the type species of these groups. They published their findings in the open-access journal MycoKeys.

Names of new taxa were developed and voted for by all co-authors, with the names referring to type locality using the native language stems (Amerindian, Sámi, Estonian) prevailing. 

The authors also proposed the taxonomic terms “nucleotype” and “legitype” to refer to holotype-derived DNA samples and DNA sequences, respectively, which under certain circumstances (e.g., when holotype is lost) could also be used as types.

The taxonomic approach developed by Tedersoo et al. provides a means of describing and communicating unseen, potentially uncultivable microeukaryotic taxa.

Original source

Tedersoo L, Hosseyni Moghadam MS, Panksep K, Prins V, Anslan S, Mikryukov V, Bahram M, Abarenkov K, Kõljalg U, Esmaeilzadeh-Salestani K, Pawłowska J, Wurzbacher C, Ding Y, Alkahtani SH, Nilsson RH (2025) Thirty novel fungal lineages: formal description based on environmental samples and DNA. MycoKeys 124: 1-121. https://doi.org/10.3897/mycokeys.124.161674

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RoC10: A Milestone in Chrysomelidae Research and Community

This issue brings together novel research from contributors worldwide, covering taxonomy, morphology, ecology, pest management, and historical perspectives.

Guest blog post by Caroline S. Chaboo, Yoko Matsumura, and Michael Schmitt

We are thrilled to announce the publication of the 10th volume of Research on Chrysomelidae (RoC10), which appeared in September 2025. It was born at the 11th International Symposium on the Chrysomelidae that occurred during the 27th International Congress of Entomology (ICE) in Kyoto, Japan, August 2024. This volume continues the legacy begun in 2008 by Pierre Jolivet (1922–2020), whose vision launched the RoC series. Since RoC3, Pensoft Publishers have been a wonderful partner to prepare and publish these special issues in ZooKeys.

Returning to Japan after 44 years, ICE Kyoto was the largest entomological event since the pandemic, drawing over 4,000 participants—more than 1,000 from Japan. The symposium particularly offered young Japanese researchers a rare opportunity to engage with global experts, in our shared passion for the spectacular leaf beetle family.

Group photo from the symposium. Left to right: Michael Schmitt (Germany), Rui Nie (China), Brian Farrell (USA), and Jesús Gómez-Zurita (Spain)

RoC10 brings together novel research in biology and systematics from contributors worldwide. The volume comprises scientific papers and historical articles. Authors are emerging students, seasoned experts, and interdisciplinary teams. Topics cover taxonomy, morphology, ecology, pest management, and historical perspectives.

After co-editing 12 volumes—including 10 RoC editions—Michael Schmitt steps down from the editorial board. He passes the torch to new and younger colleagues to continue this tradition that began in 1985. We owe much gratitude for his impressive contributions and we welcome new researchers to join us at the 13th European Congress of Entomology in Tours, France (July 2026), and the 28th ICE in Cape Town, South Africa (July 2028). Let’s keep this vibrant momentum going!