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Little is known about the evolution of the feeding ecology of coral reef fishes. Here, Bellwood et al.show that the tooth shape of coral reef fishes has remained unchanged for 240 million years, with the exception of the emergence of a distinct long-toothed form within the last 40 million years.

Here Yan et al. assess the community dynamics that are driving biodiversity-ecosystem function relationships across the world’s reef fishes. While reef fish abundances and species richness have similar impacts on productivity in temperate regions, productivity in the tropics is driven by abundances.

Biofluorescence is widespread in fishes. Here, the authors compile data on biofluorescence presence across teleost fishes and demonstrate that it may have originally evolved in eels 112 million years ago, but evolved numerous other times as well, often in association with coral reefs.

This study estimates the reproductive potential of fish in globally distributed coral reef sites. The results show substantial gains in reproductive potential can be achieved through the 30 × 30 conservation target, particularly for the important fisheries family, Serranidae, demonstrating the possible benefit of protection to population replenishment.

A global network of researchers was formed to investigate the role of human genetics in SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity; this paper reports 13 genome-wide significant loci and potentially actionable mechanisms in response to infection.

An analysis of 24,202 critical cases of COVID-19 identifies potentially druggable targets in inflammatory signalling (JAK1), monocyte–macrophage activation and endothelial permeability (PDE4A), immunometabolism (SLC2A5 and AK5), and host factors required for viral entry and replication (TMPRSS2 and RAB2A).

Over a geological timescale, plate tectonics are thought to promote biodiversity, but this link remained descriptive. Here, Leprieur et al. model dynamically how plate tectonics shaped species diversification and movement of hotspots on tropical reefs over the past 140 million years.

Whole-genome sequencing, transcriptome-wide association and fine-mapping analyses in over 7,000 individuals with critical COVID-19 are used to identify 16 independent variants that are associated with severe illness in COVID-19.

Both geography and ecology can drive the origins of new species. Siqueira et al. show how geological changes in the structure of Miocene reefs and the concurrent evolution of new feeding strategies combine to explain why coral reefs contain such a diversity of fish species.

A meta-analysis of papers that relate reef fish abundance, biomass or species richness to proportion of living hard coral cover finds correlations that are predominantly positive but consistently weak.

Despite fishing-induced biomass depletion on coral reefs, fisheries persist. This study presents a framework to evaluate potential reef fisheries productivity across a major fishing pressure gradient and shows evidence of compensatory ecological responses triggered by fishing on coral reefs.

The high global temperatures of the Eocene and subsequent habitat reconfigurations might have been critical for the rise and retention of the highly productive, high-turnover fish faunas that characterize modern coral reef ecosystems.

Genome-wide data from 166 East Asian individuals dating to between 6000 bc and ad 1000 and from 46 present-day groups provide insights into the histories of mixture and migration of human populations in East Asia.

Analysing a global dataset of >24,000 observations of coral reef benthic cover, the authors show that high macroalgal cover is largely restricted to the Western Atlantic, where alongside the Central Pacific there have also been marked declines in coral cover since the late 1990s.

Aerial and underwater survey data combined with satellite-derived measurements of sea surface temperature over the past two decades show that multiple mass-bleaching events have expanded to encompass virtually all of the Great Barrier Reef.

The effect of biotic interactions among reef corals on macroevolutionary patterns is unclear. Here, the authors study the rich coral fossil record, finding that reef coral diversity experienced potentially biotic interaction-driven evolutionary rate changes, and that Staghorn corals affected fossil diversity trajectories of other coral groups.

Deep whole-genome sequencing of 300 individuals from 142 diverse populations provides insights into key population genetic parameters, shows that all modern human ancestry outside of Africa including in Australasians is consistent with descending from a single founding population, and suggests a higher rate of accumulation of mutations in non-Africans compared to Africans since divergence.

The genetic prehistory of central America has not been well explored. Here, the authors find evidence from ancient DNA from twenty individuals who lived in Belize 9,600 to 3,700 years ago of a migration from the south that coincided with the first evidence for forest clearing and the spread of maize horticulture.

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are established to conserve species, but the extent to which they also conserve evolutionary history is not clear. Here, Mouillot et al. show that for tropical corals and fish, the current global MPA network secures only 1.7 and 17.6% of phylogenetic diversity, respectively.

Climate impacts are triggering a host of novel bio- and geoengineering interventions to save coral reefs. This Comment challenges heroic scientific assumptions and advocates for a more systemic, evidence-based approach to caring for coral reefs.

Populations speaking Austronesian languages are numerous and widespread, but their history remains controversial. Here, the authors analyse genetic data from Southeast Asia and show that all populations harbour ancestry most closely related to aboriginal Taiwanese, while some also contain a component closest to Austro-Asiatic speakers.

A survey of genetic variation in Native American and Siberian populations reveals that Native Americans are descended from at least three streams of gene flow from Asia: after the initial peopling of the continent there was a southward expansion facilitated by the coast, with sequential population splits and little gene flow after divergence, especially in South America.

Analysis of ancient DNA from four individuals who lived in Vanuatu and Tonga between 2,300 and 3,100 years ago suggests that the Papuan ancestry seen in present-day occupants of this region was introduced at a later date.

A genome-wide analysis of 69 ancient Europeans reveals the history of population migrations around the time that Indo-European languages arose in Europe, when there was a large migration into Europe from the Eurasian steppe in the east (providing a genetic ancestry still present in Europeans today); these findings support a ‘steppe origin’ hypothesis for how some Indo-European languages arose.

Sharon Wismer et al. report the effects of coral loss on the Great Barrier Reef on coral-dependent fish populations. They show that despite huge losses in coral cover, both adult and young fishes persisted by using a range of alternative reef habitats.

In European Neolithic populations, the arrival of farmers prompted admixture with local hunter-gatherers over many centuries, resulting in distinct signatures in each region due to a complex series of interactions.