Call for papers - Impact of climate change on ecology and evolution

Guest Editors

Andrea Chiocchio, PhD, Tuscia University, Italy
Wenxing Long, PhD, Hainan University, China
Hu Zi-Min, PhD, Yantai University, China

Submission Status: Open | Submission Deadline: 4 December 2025

This Collection invites submissions focused on the impacts of climate change on ecology and evolution, emphasizing shifts in biodiversity, species interactions, and adaptive responses. We welcome research that explores various aspects of climate change, including phenological changes, local adaptations, and the effects of invasive species, with the aim of advancing our understanding of ecological resilience and evolutionary dynamics in a warming world.

New Content Item This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 13: Climate Action and SDG 15: Life on Land.

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Meet the Guest Editors

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Andrea Chiocchio, PhD, Tuscia University, Italy

Dr Chiocchio is an evolutionary ecologist interested in understanding the processes shaping the spatial patterns of biodiversity, with a strong focus on the processes generating hotspots of intraspecific diversity. By means of an integrative approach employing both molecular methods and ecological modeling, he investigates the spatial and temporal patterns of genetic diversity in several vertebrates and invertebrates inhabiting the Mediterranean peninsulas. More recently, he has been focusing on phenotypic integration and its genomic underpinnings.

Wenxing Long, PhD, Hainan University, China

Dr Long is interested in conservation of tropical rainforest biodiversity, especially plant diversity in tropical cloud forests and Hainan Gibbon. In recent years, he established net grid plots covering habitats of Hainan Gibbon and rainforests in the National Rainforest Park and has been working on biodiversity adaptation and coexistence. Also, he focuses on plant response to global changes with the platform of phosphorus addition experiments and water reduction experiments.

Hu Zi-Min, PhD, Yantai University, China

Professor Hu Zi-Min is an evolutionary and marine biologist and completed his PhD in early 2008 from Ocean University of China. He worked as a Research Intern at National University of Ireland, a Research Fellow at Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa and serves as a Research Scientist at Yantai University. He is most interested in exploring evolutionary phylogeography (e.g. population genetic structuring, diversification, and associated ecological drivers) of marine plants, particularly seaweed and seagrass, and understanding how these plants with different biological traits are responding and will respond to global climate change, by integrating ecological, genetic, transcriptomic, and metagenomic evidence.

About the Collection

BMC Ecology and Evolution is calling for submissions to our Collection on Impact of climate change on ecology and evolution. This Collection seeks to explore how climate change alters ecological dynamics and evolutionary processes, including shifts in phenology, local adaptations, and responses to invasive species. By understanding these shifts, we can gain insights into the resilience of ecosystems and the adaptive capacity of species in a rapidly changing world.

The significance of this research is underscored by the ongoing challenges posed by climate change, which threatens biodiversity and disrupts ecosystems. Recent advances in ecological modeling and genetic analyses have provided new tools to assess the impacts of environmental change on species and communities. These insights are crucial for developing conservation strategies and management practices aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change and preserving biodiversity for future generations.

Continued research in this area promises to enhance our understanding of the interplay between climate change and ecological dynamics. As new data emerges, we may uncover novel adaptive strategies employed by species in response to environmental shifts, revealing patterns of gene flow, population dispersal, and phenotypic plasticity. This knowledge can inform conservation strategies that are increasingly vital in an era of unprecedented environmental change.

Climate change and biodiversity loss
Phenotypic plasticity in response to environmental change
Effects of invasive species on ecosystems
Local adaptation and genetic structure in changing environments

This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 13: Climate Action and SDG 15: Life on Land.

All manuscripts submitted to this journal, including those submitted to collections and special issues, are assessed in line with our editorial policies and the journal’s peer review process. Reviewers and editors are required to declare competing interests and can be excluded from the peer review process if a competing interest exists.

There are currently no articles in this collection.

Submission Guidelines

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This Collection welcomes submission of original Research Articles. Should you wish to submit a different article type, please read our submission guidelines to confirm that type is accepted by the journal. Articles for this Collection should be submitted via our submission system, Snapp. During the submission process you will be asked whether you are submitting to a Collection, please select "Impact of climate change on ecology and evolution" from the dropdown menu.

All manuscripts submitted to this journal, including those submitted to collections and special issues, are assessed in line with our editorial policies and the journal’s peer review process. Reviewers and editors are required to declare competing interests and can be excluded from the peer review process if a competing interest exists.