The Society for the Study of Species Biology has been presenting the Plant Species Biology Best Paper Award annually since 2007 for outstanding papers published in the journal. The Editorial Board of Plant Species Biology and the Society for the Study of Species Biology are pleased to announce the recipients of the 19th Plant Species Biology Best Paper Award, selected from Volume 40 (2025). As this is a journal managed by the Society for the Study of Species Biology, a Japanese society, I regularly introduce papers published in it on Japanese mailing lists for evolutionary biology and ecology. Coincidentally, some of the papers that I had previously introduced were later recognized with awards. Here, I present revised and translated English versions of the commentaries I originally prepared in Japanese. Keigo Takahashi and Gaku Kudo Leaf herbivory causes abortion of selfed seeds in Rhododendron kaempferi var. kaempferi. 40: 123–135 (2025) https://doi.org/10.1111/1442-1984.12492 At the study site near Mt. Apoi (Figure 1a), herbivory in Rhododendron kaempferi var. kaempferi by the sawfly larvae (Arge similis; Figure 1b) varied greatly both among individual plants and between survey years. Using molecular markers, this study demonstrates that in response to the unpredictable disaster of resource reduction caused by leaf herbivory, R. kaempferi var. kaempferi (Figure 1c) aborts selfed seeds (while not reducing seed mass). Interestingly, because herbivory was unexpectedly lower in the second year than in the previous one, the authors conducted an artificial leaf excision as a strategy to simulate herbivory and examine the plant's response. Interestingly, the authors also faced a “disaster” of their own, as herbivory was unexpectedly lower in the second year than in the previous one. In response to this, the authors conducted an artificial leaf excision as a strategy to simulate herbivory and examine the plant's response. Even when resources were reduced through artificial excision, similar results were obtained: seed number decreased, but seed mass remained unchanged. Thus, R. kaempferi var. kaempferi appears to adopt a strategy of reducing seed number in response to resource limitation caused by leaf herbivory, and the abortion process seems to begin with selfed seeds. Joshua D. Englehardt, Michael D. Carrasco, José Said Gutiérrez-Ortega, Benjamin E. Deloso and Nobuyuki Matsubara Threats to cycad biocultural heritage in the Amami Islands, Japan. 40: 292–310 (2025) https://doi.org/10.1111/1442-1984.12494 This paper reviews the cultural significance of cycads on the Amami Islands and highlights the importance of considering conservation from an anthropological perspective. Although it was included in a special issue, it underwent the same peer-review process as regular submissions. In preparing this special issue, we occasionally faced the question of whether certain manuscripts deviated from the scope of Plant Species Biology, and this was indeed one of them. In part, this reflected insufficient explanation to the reviewer; however, my own view was that, because it was a special issue, we should approach the theme from multiple perspectives—even if that meant extending beyond the journal's usual scope—and incorporate research from other disciplines. Including this paper, we were able to publish several contributions that aligned with that intention. Judging by download numbers and related metrics, this paper appears to have attracted attention beyond the typical readership. As a journal of a Japanese academic society, I believe it has a responsibility to communicate with biologists overseas, and in this respect, we have fulfilled that role. When one reads the later discussion of scale insect damage after first understanding cycads as a cultural heritage on the Amami Islands, the very meaning of “threats” described by the authors (Figure 2) seems to take on a different nuance. Data sharing not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated or analyzed during the current study.
Takashi Miyake (Sun,) studied this question.