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Fernando T. Maestre

@ftmaestre.bsky.social
842 followers 179 following 117 posts

Professor of Environmental Science and Engineering #KAUST Husband, father, dryland ecologist & runner. PI #Maestrelab

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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Dryland soils store huge amounts of inorganic C, but is it an inert, ancient C reservoir? In @globalchangebio.bsky.social we report that topsoil inorganic C carries a modern C signature & is connected to contemporary C cycling Another great outcome from the @erc.europa.eu funded #BIODESERT (1/2)
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Two faculty openings in #KAUST in key areas for a more sustainable future (+info & how to apply): * Sustainable Food Security: apply.interfolio.com/191661 * Water Security & Desalination: apply.interfolio.com/191656 KAUST is an amazing place to live & work, w/ world-class lab & faculty, apply!
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
In our new @esajournals.bsky.social Front Ecol Environ paper we argue that dryland research networks are critical infrastructure that can turn fragmented knowledge into coordinated action, helping deliver the goals of @unccd.bsky.social @unbiodiversity.bsky.social & #UNFCCC #COP17Mongolia
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Shersingh Joseph Tumber-Dávila @josephtumber.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
A great PhD opportunity! (check it out) The Plant Interactions Ecology Lab at the University of Texas at El Paso is recruiting a PhD students to start in the Spring or Fall of 2027 under the supervision of Dr. @alemtzb.bsky.social @esalatamcarib.bsky.social
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Alejandro Montenegro @aemonten.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
On replying to emails from lab applicants: "I make a point of replying to every single personalized email (except the clearly generic ones sent en mass). (...) Academia is already tough and uncertain enough - we don't need to add silence to the list of challenges" www.linkedin.com/posts/fernan...
linkedin.com
#academia #mentorship #earlycareerresearchers #academiclife #leadership | Fernando Tomás Maestre Gil | 46 comments
Every week, I receive between 5 and 20 requests from students and researchers interested in joining our lab. Unfortunately, I cannot accommodate them — our group is already at full capacity and will b...
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Springer @springer.springernature.com · 02/02/2026
🌏🦋 A new #OpenAccess book, 'The Labyrinth of Desertification', explores desertification through 16 case studies from Spain—edited by Jaime Martínez-Valderrama and Jorge Olcina Cantos—with a prologue by Fernando Tomás Maestre Gil. bit.ly/3MjhEzV #BookSky #ResearchPublishing
'The Labyrinth of Desertification'
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
How tightly are plant biomass & soil nutrients linked worldwide?Our new study (400+ sites across all biomes) in J Sustain Agric Environ shows climate plays a key role in decoupling this relationship—challenging classic views of nutrient limitation onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
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Prof Braj Singh @prof-braj-singh.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
New paper from lab-@natecoevo.nature.com Abiotic and biotic controls of non-native perennial plant success in drylands Non-native plant success in drylands is facilitated by high grazing pressure & resource availability. Led by Rahmanian and @ftmaestre.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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Nicolas Gross @nicolas-p-gross.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
Plant phenolics play a key roles in plant strategies. Here we explore the drivers of phenolic content in plants over 1800 species across global drylands 🧪🌐 ➡️https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1365-2745.70222
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
In our latest paper, just published in @natcomms.nature.com we show that soil conditions, landscape structure & land-use change shape global soil pathogenic fungal diversity. Landscape complexity and crops increase diversity, while grass and tree cover reduce it www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
Just published in @natecoevo.nature.com: using data from the @erc.europa.eu funded BIODESERT dryland survey, we show that plant diversity strongly enhances ecosystem resistance to increasing grazing pressure. Conserving biodiversity is key to sustaining dryland rangelands worldwide rdcu.be/eXY6D
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
Just published in @journalofecology.bsky.social Using data from 1,854 plant species coming from the @erc.europa.eu funded #BIODESERT survey, we show how climate & grazing jointly shape leaf phenolics—key defence compounds—across global drylands. Great work led by PhD student Kaarina Shilula
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
A few years ago I shared my @erc.europa.eu Starting Grant proposal (BIOCOM) openly on @figshare.com doi.org/10.6084/m9.f... I never imagined it would reach over 14K views and >6K downloads. A reminder of why sharing proposals & experiences matters—for those coming after us
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
Happy to share our new paper from the @erc.europa.eu funded #BIODESERT global survey! Brilliantly led by MSc student Imke Smit, we show that plant facilitation in drylands is driven by a consistent trait match between dominant and target species Out in Global Ecol Biog dx.doi.org/10.1111/geb....
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Peer review in top journals is tough, and we often focus on its “dark side”: delays, rejections, and harsh reports. But there’s also a bright side we talk about far too little. Our recent acceptance came with exceptionally kind words from the handling editor—polite, thoughtful, ...
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
In our new @mdpiopenaccess.bsky.social #Water paper, led by Jaime Martínez-Valderrama, we quantify the hidden & huge cost of food waste in #Spain Between 2014–2018, >480,000 tons of fruits & vegetables were discarded — wasting 36 hm³ of water and emitting >36,000 tCO₂-eq. A crisis that we must stop
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Our new review in @universitypress.cambridge.org Cambridge Prisms: Drylands explores the ecology of biocrusts in the Arabian Peninsula, one of the most extreme and underexplored regions on Earth, their functions, knowledge gaps & potential for land restoration doi.org/10.1017/dry....
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Dr. Mariana García Criado @nanitundra.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
Thrilled to be one of the plenary speakers for the @iavs5.bsky.social 68th #IAVS Symposium (Gijón, Spain, 22-26 June 2026) along legends like @jcsvenning.bsky.social @gmendietal.bsky.social @ftmaestre.bsky.social et al! Join us to discuss plants across taxonomic, spatial and temporal scales! 🌿
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
A new article in Biological Reviews by Islam et al. synthesizes current knowledge on C cycling and storage in desert ecosystems, highlighting the roles of precipitation patterns, vegetation dynamics & soil inorganic processes in regulating C sequestration onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 28/10/2025
Delighted to celebrate the first anniversary of this journal. As an editor, it’s been inspiring to see such a wide range of articles advancing our understanding of dryland ecosystems. If you work in #drylands please consider submitting your work to us www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
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Science Magazine @science.org · 21/10/2025
Although many ecosystems can weather several years of moderate drought, consecutive years of extreme dryness push them past a tipping point, resulting in dramatic declines in plant growth, researchers report in Science. scim.ag/4ogN9I8
scim.ag
Drought intensity and duration interact to magnify losses in primary productivity
As droughts become longer and more intense, impacts on terrestrial primary productivity are expected to increase progressively. Yet, some ecosystems appear to acclimate to multiyear drought, with cons...
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 22/10/2025
Excited to give a plenary talk at the @iavs5.bsky.social Symposium 2026 in beautiful Gijón, Spain! Looking forward to share our latest research about #dryland plant diversity and to reconnecting with the global vegetation science community gijon2026.iavs-meetings.org Don´t miss it!
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
Our new article in @ejsoilscience.bsky.social highlights the key uncertainties limiting the use of nitrification inhibitors (NIs), a promising tool to curb N pollution and N₂O emissions. Better design & smarter use of NIs are key for sustainable N management onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/author...
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Liangzhi Chen @liangzhi-chen.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
#MultiyearDroughts, it is nice to see studies with distinct designs and used data converge to similar results — "25-30%" seems to be a key range, in this study about the measured reduction of primary production in grassland and in our previous study with kNDVI www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... .
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SAOCousins @saocousins.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
New paper out 🥳 Drought intensity and duration interact to magnify losses in primary productivity | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... @stockholm-uni.bsky.social
science.org
Drought intensity and duration interact to magnify losses in primary productivity
As droughts become longer and more intense, impacts on terrestrial primary productivity are expected to increase progressively. Yet, some ecosystems appear to acclimate to multiyear drought, with cons...
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
Excelente reportaje de Miguel Ángel Criado para @elpais.com elpais.com/ciencia/2025... sobre nuestro artículo en @science.org 👇
elpais.com
Así se cuela la aridez en la mitad de la superficie terrestre
Un experimento global muestra cómo la combinación entre duración y severidad de las sequías reduce la cobertura vegetal del planeta
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
As droughts become longer and more intense, their toll on ecosystems could be far greater than we thought. Our new paper in @science.org shows how prolonged & extreme droughts cause dramatic, cumulative losses in ecosystem productivity across the globe www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
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Nature Portfolio @natureportfolio.nature.com · 11/10/2025
Nature’s global survey of 3,785 doctoral students shows satisfaction has recovered from pandemic lows, but harassment and inadequate supervision remain widespread. #Academicsky 🧪
go.nature.com
How money, politics and technology are redefining the PhD experience in 2025
Nature’s global survey of 3,785 doctoral students shows satisfaction has recovered from pandemic lows, but harassment and inadequate supervision remain widespread.
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
In #drylands, plants don’t grow randomly — they self-organize into disordered hyperuniform patterns that help them use water wisely & endure extreme aridity. A beautiful hidden logic of nature, revealed in a new @pnas.org study doi.org/10.1073/pnas... including #Maestrelab alumni
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 06/10/2025
New study in @universitypress.cambridge.org #CambridgePrismsDrylands reveals how landscape- & patch-scale processes shape the “fertile island effect” in the Chihuahuan Desert, illustrating the importance of spatial heterogeneity in drylands doi.org/10.1017/dry.... 📷by Patricia Zumsteg @unsplash.com
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 17/09/2025
Powerful piece by @darmenteras.bsky.social in @natureportfolio.nature.com #Nature Global science won’t be equitable until it goes beyond diversity optics & truly shares power, credit & leadership. A must-read for anyone committed to promote a more fair and just science www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
Equity in science is a beautiful lie — and I’m done pretending
Science isn’t really moving towards equity; institutions are just perfecting the appearance of equity. We need to build an alternative system.
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Amigas de la Tierra @amigasdelatierra.bsky.social · 14/09/2025
🔥Más de 400.000 hectáreas han ardido solo este año, otro año más. 🗣️Nuestro compañero @migueldiazcarro.bsky.social echa la mirada hacia adelante en este problema y hacia el futuro, en la restauración, con la miranda en lo comunitario y escuchando a la ciencia 🔗 www.elsaltodiario.com/incendios-fo...
elsaltodiario.com
El calor que quedará después de los incendios
El calor y los incendios no son una anomalía, son la consecuencia de un modelo económico que ha saqueado las entrañas de la tierra y ha quemado sistemáticamente su sangre y su piel.
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 13/09/2025
🌍 We’re excited to host the Future Food Systems Conference (FFS2026) at #KAUST with #PlantACT! 📅 Apr 13–15, 2026 | Thuwal, Saudi Arabia A global gathering to reimagine how to feed the world without eating the planet 👉 Free registration & info: kaust.edu.sa/events/ffs26/
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Pablo García-Palacios @pablogarciapal.bsky.social · 05/09/2025
Great thread on our recent lab paper in @geoderma.bsky.social on how SOC fractions regulate ecosystem services in global drylands Nicely led by Luna McGill as part of her PhD at ICA @csic.es @cesarplaza.bsky.social @ftmaestre.bsky.social @manudelbaq.bsky.social
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 05/09/2025
Our new article is out in @geoderma.bsky.social! Drylands, which cover 40% of Earth’s land, store ~30% of global soil organic carbon. But how do different carbon fractions support ecosystem services under rising aridity? 🏜️ 📖 doi.org/10.1016/j.ge...
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 19/08/2025
As stated by this press release from @unccd.bsky.social we must overhaul global food systems to avert worsening land crisis unccd.int/news-stories... Read the @natureportfolio.nature.com #Nature Review here rdcu.be/eBlid
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 15/08/2025
Very glad to see this report in @elmundo.es.web.brid.gy elmundo.es/ciencia-y-sa... about our recent @natureportfolio.nature.com #Nature review rdcu.be/eACfr Let´s hope that it will contribute to much-needed discussions & action around food systems 2 ensure a healthier, safer & more peaceful future
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Lindsay Stringer @proflinds.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Great to be a coauthor of this new paper in @natureportfolio.nature.com which provides a comprehensive set of solutions to bend the land degradation curve & leverage the transformation of global #food systems. #land #climate #biodiversity @yesiuoy.bsky.social @uoyenvironment.bsky.social
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Frédérique Reverchon @drafred.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Bending the curve of land degradation to achieve global environments goals Much needed review by @ftmaestre.bsky.social et al.
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Pablo García-Palacios @pablogarciapal.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Masterpiece on one of the most critical challenges our society faces: land degradation
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
El cambio climático se acelera, la biodiversidad se desploma y la degradación de la tierra avanza sin cesar ¿y si la herramienta más poderosa —y a menudo pasada por alto— para abordar estas tres crisis estuviera en nuestros platos? elpais.com/clima-y-medi... @elpais.com
elpais.com
El futuro del planeta se decide en la mesa
El sistema alimentario global es responsable del 80% de la deforestación de nuestro planeta
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
To meet the targets of the #UN Rio Conventions (#UNCCD, #UNFCCC & #CBD) we must bend the curve of land degradation. Our latest Review in @natureportfolio.nature.com #Nature discusses how to do it by 2050 by urgently transforming global food systems rdcu.be/eACfr #KAUST
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Nicolas Gross @nicolas-p-gross.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
A must read www.nature.com/articles/s41... from @ftmaestre.bsky.social et al.!
nature.com
Bending the curve of land degradation to achieve global environmental goals - Nature
The Rio Conventions’ objectives can be met by transforming food systems to bend the curve of land degradation.
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 24/06/2025
#Biocrusts are vital to dryland health—but can they recover after being disturbed? 🤔A new review in @botsocamerica.bsky.social #AmJBot by @michalaphillips.bsky.social & al explores biocrust recovery timelines, climate impacts & restoration potential bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Navigating the possibilities and pitfalls of biocrust recovery in a changing climate
Biological soil crusts are complex communities composed of lichens, mosses, bacteria, and cyanobacteria that create a living skin on the soil surface across drylands worldwide. Although small in size...
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
Today is #DesertificationAndDroughtDay 🌍Our lab at #KAUST studies how to restore and manage drylands to boost biodiversity, fight climate change & support livelihoods Let’s #RestoreLand and #UnlockOpportunities—for people and the planet
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Uni Göttingen @uni-goettingen.de · 12/06/2025
How to repair damaged ecosystems around the world? Researchers found that when restoring nature even ecosystems that look similar on the surface can respond very differently to the same fix: www.uni-goettingen.de/en/3240.html... #Ecography: nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Image: Landscape with dry brown forest floor. The trees are spaced out and with some green and brown leaves. It shows intact Mediterranean-type oak savanna (Tonzi Ranch), a research site of the University of California, Berkeley, whose researchers contributed to the study. The photo is thanks to Sebastian Fiedler
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 12/06/2025
What if plant N & P cycles aren’t as linked as we thought?🤔Our new @journalofecology.bsky.social paper shows that global change decouples them, challenging existing asumptions & showing the need 2 incoporate this decoupling into models to predict global change responses doi.org/10.1111/1365...
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Prof Braj Singh @prof-braj-singh.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
New paper from the lab- A Large Fraction of Soil Microbial Taxa Is Sensitive to Experimental Warming. In @globalchangebio.bsky.social ‪ led by Tadeo Saez and Pankaj tried with contribution from @manudelbaq.bsky.social @ftmaestre.bsky.social & others onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
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Nature Portfolio @natureportfolio.nature.com · 25/05/2025
Nature posed a variety of scenarios to 5,000 academics around the world to understand which uses of AI are considered ethically acceptable. The survey results suggest that researchers are sharply divided on what they feel are appropriate practices. #Academicsky 🧪
go.nature.com
Is it OK for AI to write science papers? Nature survey shows researchers are split
Poll of 5,000 researchers finds contrasting views on when it’s acceptable to involve AI and what needs to be disclosed.
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Fernando T. Maestre @ftmaestre.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
New paper out in @globalchangebio.bsky.social led by Tadeo Sáez-Sandino doi.org/10.1111/gcb.... We analyzed >500 topsoil samples from 3 mid-term warming experiments (>5 yrs) across dryland (👇) and temperate-boreal ecosystems to examine how warming alters soil microbial communities
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