Aims: We introduce ReSurveyEurope — a new data source of resurveyed vegetation plots in Europe, compiled by a collaborative network of vegetation scientists. We describe the scope of this initiative, provide an overview of currently available data, governance, data contribution rules, and accessibility. In addition, we outline further steps, including potential research questions.Results: ReSurveyEurope includes resurveyed vegetation plots from all habitats. Version 1.0 of ReSurveyEurope contains 283,135 observations (i.e., individual surveys of each plot) from 79,190 plots sampled in 449 independent resurvey projects. Of these, 62,139 (78%) are permanent plots, that is, marked in situ, or located with GPS, which allow for high spatial accuracy in resurvey. The remaining 17,051 (22%) plots are from studies in which plots from the initial survey could not be exactly relocated. Four data sets, which together account for 28,470 (36%) plots, provide only presence/absence information on plant species, while the remaining 50,720 (64%) plots contain abundance information (e.g., percentage cover or cover–abundance classes such as variants of the Braun‐Blanquet scale). The oldest plots were sampled in 1911 in the Swiss Alps, while most plots were sampled between 1950 and 2020.Conclusions: ReSurveyEurope is a new resource to address a wide range of research questions on fine‐scale changes in European vegetation. The initiative is devoted to an inclusive and transparent governance and data usage approach, based on slightly adapted rules of the well‐established European Vegetation Archive (EVA). ReSurveyEurope data are ready for use, and proposals for analyses of the data set can be submitted at any time to the coordinators. Still, further data contributions are highly welcome.

Question: Plant–plant facilitation is a critical ecological mechanism in arid environments, influencing biodiversity and ecosystem resilience globally. Shrubs often serve as nurse species, enhancing tree regeneration and sheltering plant communities, particularly in overgrazed or degraded habitats. In this study, we examine the role of shrubs as nurse species in the Socotra Archipelago (Yemen), a biodiversity hotspot in which several endemic tree species, including the iconic frankincense (Boswellia spp.), myrrh (Commiphora spp.), and Socotran dragon's blood (Dracaena cinnabari) trees, are threatened. This is largely due to a lack of natural regeneration caused by the combined effects of overgrazing by goats, sheep, and climatic events such as extreme droughts and cyclones. To aid conservation of threatened trees in arid regions, nature‐based solutions are urgently needed to help tree regeneration. Effective nurse plants have this potential, particularly in arid environments. We therefore examined the role of thorny, poisonous, and/or unpalatable shrubs as nurse plants in sheltering threatened plant communities, with a focus on woody species in an arid insular context.Study Area: The Socotra Archipelago (Yemen) situated in the western Indian Ocean, east of the Horn of Africa. It is a biodiversity sanctuary and a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site.Methods: Vegetation surveys were conducted in 144 paired plots under six common shrub species and adjacent open areas. Community data, environmental variables, and functional traits were analysed using RLQ and fourth‐corner analyses, while Linear Mixed Models (LMMs) evaluated the effects of environmental variables and nurse species on key functional traits based on Community Weighted Means (CWMs). Facilitation effects were quantified using the Relative Interaction Index (RII).Results: Our analysis revealed significant variations in species composition and functional traits between under‐canopy and open‐area plots. Certain shrubs, such as Cebatha balfourii, facilitated significantly higher species richness under its canopy compared to open areas. Elevation and grazing pressure influenced these interactions, with notable effects on functional traits like the occurrence of legumes and tree growth forms. Buxus hildebrandtii was less effective in supporting species richness, while C. balfourii, Lycium sokotranum, and two Cissus species exhibited significant positive facilitation. The LMMs confirmed the importance of environmental variables and nurse shrub characteristics in shaping plant community dynamics.Conclusions: The results highlight differences in the facilitative potential of the studied species, with some showing a stronger ability to act as nurse shelters through microhabitat amelioration and protection from herbivory. The presence of tree species under shrubs is confirmed, and the role of these nurse species in supporting diverse plant communities provides critical insights for conservation strategies, supporting biodiversity resilience and sustainable management in degraded landscapes like Socotra Island and other arid environments. Future efforts should focus on leveraging nurse shrubs to mitigate environmental pressures and enhance ecological restoration, in particular to help conserve range‐restricted and threatened plant species.

New Italian data on the distribution of 17 Annex I Habitats are reported in this contribution. Specifically, 11 new occurrences in Natura 2000 sites are presented and 30 new cells are added in the EEA 10 km × 10 km reference grid. The new data refer to the Italian administrative regions of Apulia, Campania, Calabria, Lazio, Sardinia, Sicily and Tuscany.

Xylella fastidiosa subsp. pauca ST53 (XFP), the causal agent of olive quick decline syndrome (OQDS), was thoroughly investigated after a 2013 outbreak in the Salento region of Southern Italy. Some trees from Ogliarola Salentina and Cellina di Nardò, susceptible cultivars in the Gallipoli area, the first XFP infection hotspot in Italy, have resprouted crowns and are starting to flower and yield fruits. Satellite imagery and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index analyses revealed a significant improvement in vegetation health and productivity from 2018 to 2022 of these trees. Lipid molecules have long been recognized as plant defense modulators, and recently, we investigated their role in XFP-positive hosts and in XFP-resistant as well as in XFP-susceptible cultivars of olive trees. Here, we present a case study regarding 36 olive trees (12 XFP-positive resprouting, 12 XFP-positive OQDS-symptomatic, and 12 XFP-negative trees) harvested in 2022 within the area where XFP struck first, killing millions of trees in a decade. These trees were analyzed for some free fatty acid, oxylipin, and plant hormones, in particular jasmonic and salicylic acid, by targeted LC-MS/MS. Multivariate analysis revealed that lipid markers of resistance (e.g., 13-HpOTrE), along with jasmonic and salicylic acid, were accumulated differently in the XFP-positive resprouting trees from both cultivars with respect to XFP-positive OQDS symptomatic and XFP-negative trees, suggesting a correlation of lipid metabolism with the resprouting, which can be an indication of the resiliency of these trees to OQDS. This is the first report concerning the resprouting of OQDS-infected olive trees in the Salento area.

Palo Laziale Wood is a relatively small biotope (129 ha) situated along the coast of the Metropolitan Area of Rome, Lazio region, Italy. Despite being one of the region's remaining patches of an ancient oak floodplain broad-leaved forest, it conserves numerous priority habitats and species of high conservation interest. The vegetation consists mainly of Turkey oak stands with small temporary ponds and flooded meadows. The forest underwent a dieback in 2003, triggered by a significantly hot and dry summer. In 2018, an ecological restoration project (LIFE PRIMED LIFE17 NAT/GR/000511) was initiated to restore Palo Laziale’s ecosystems. This paper presents the methodological approach employed to assess the vegetation ecology of a degraded forest ecosystem. Such an investigation was a key component of the Adaptative Restoration Plan of the Project. It provided the baseline necessary for designing and calibrating the planned direct conservation actions on the target habitat types (91M0: Pannonian-Balkanic turkey oak-sessile oak forests, 3170*: Mediterranean temporary ponds, 5230*: Arborescent matorral with Laurus nobilis, etc.) and establishing reference values to enable long-term monitoring. Plant taxa comparison from 1 ha square-grid sampling and multivariate analyses were carried out to group species and identify environmental and Ellenberg-based drivers. Six ecologically distinct units were found, eventually confirming the distinctive ecological heterogeneity of Mediterranean ecosystems. Amongst these, the hygrophilous vegetation has resulted to be the one mainly affected by the dieback outbreak. Due to the high heterogeneity, introduced by the massive tree mortality, the method of regular 1 ha squares turned out to be a reliable alternative to random vegetation sampling plots (e.g., phytosociological relevés) to disentangle ecological patterns of fragmented and disturbed habitats.

Natural resins are complex mixtures of secondary metabolites produced by many plants in response to stress or injury and have long been used for their antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Among resin-producing genera, Commiphora Jacq. (Burseraceae) stands out for the traditional and medicinal relevance of its oleogum resins, commonly known as myrrh. In this study, we investigated, for the first time, the non-volatile fraction of the oleogum resin of Commiphora ornifolia (Balf.f.) J.B.Gillett, which is an endemic species of Socotra Island. Ethanol extraction followed by chromatographic and spectroscopic analysis (HPLC-DAD, NMR, HRMS) led to the isolation of (+)-yangambin, a furofuran lignan not previously reported in this species. Quantitative analysis showed yangambin to be present in all eight resin samples analyzed, at concentrations ranging from 3.50 (±0.02) to 9.05% (±0.19) of the ethanol extract. In addition, the analysis of the hydrolyzed polysaccharide fraction revealed the presence of arabinose, rhamnose, galactose, and galacturonic acid. These preliminary findings highlight the phytochemical richness of C. ornifolia oleogum resin and suggest the presence of other potentially bioactive compounds. The presence of yangambin, known for various pharmacological activities, supports further phytochemical and biological studies on this largely unexplored species.