Varun Varma
Publications
Quantifying relative sponginess: a high-resolution model of landscape water retention as an ecosystem service
Evans, P.M., Dussaillant, A., Varma, V., Redhead, J.W., Pywell, R.F., Storkey, J., Mead, A. and Bullock, J.M. (2024). Quantifying relative sponginess: a high-resolution model of landscape water retention as an ecosystem service. bioRxiv (preprint). doi: 10.1101/2024.10.11.617771
Sensitivities in associating land-system archetypes with sustainability metrics: Insights from simulations
Varma, V., Evans, P.M., Butikofer, L., Goodwin, C.E., Pywell, R.F., Redhead, J.W., Storkey, J., Bullock, J.M. and Mead, A. (2024). Sensitivities in associating land-system archetypes with sustainability metrics: Insights from simulations. bioRxiv (preprint). doi: 10.1101/2024.08.01.606212
De novo genome sequence assembly of the RNAi-tractable endosymbiosis model system Paramecium bursaria 186b reveals factors shaping intron repertoire
Leonard, G., Jenkins, B.H., Savory, F.R., Kilias, E.S., Maguire, F., Varma, V., Milner, D.S. and Richards, T.A. (2024). De novo genome sequence assembly of the RNAi-tractable endosymbiosis model system Paramecium bursaria 186b reveals factors shaping intron repertoire. bioRxiv (preprint). doi: 10.1101/2024.08.09.607295
Identifying pathways to more sustainable farming using archetypes and multi-objective optimisation
Bütikofer, L., Goodwin, C.E., Varma, V., Evans, P.M., Redhead, J.W., Bullock, J.M., Pywell, R.F., Mead, A., Richter, G.M. and Storkey, J. (2024). Identifying pathways to more sustainable farming using archetypes and multi-objective optimisation. Ecological Indicators, 166, p.112433. doi: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2024.112433
Smallholder farmer resilience to extreme weather events in global food value chains
Thompson, W.J., Varma, V., Joerin, J., Bonilla-Duarte, S., Bebber, D.P., Blaser-Hart, W., Kopainsky, B., Späth, L., Curcio, B., Six, J. & Krütli, P. (2023). Smallholder farmer resilience to extreme weather events in global food value chains. Climatic Change, 176:152. doi: 10.1007/s10584-023-03586-1
A model of sediment retention by vegetation for Great Britain: new methodologies & validation
Hooftman, D.A.P., Bullock, J.M., Evans, P.M., Redhead, J.W., Ridding, L.E., Varma, V., and Pywell, R.F. (2023). A model of sediment retention by vegetation for Great Britain: new methodologies & validation. bioRxiv (preprint). doi: 10.1101/2023.08.17.553678
Nutrient deposition enhances post‐fire survival in non‐N‐fixing savanna tree seedlings
Varma, V., & Sankaran, M. (2021). Nutrient deposition enhances post‐fire survival in non‐N‐fixing savanna tree seedlings. Journal of Vegetation Science, 32(2). doi: 10.1111/jvs.13020
Mapping the impacts of hurricanes Maria and Irma on banana production area in the Dominican Republic
Varma, V., Thompson, W., Duarte, S. B., Krütli, P., Six, J., & Bebber, D. P. (2020). Mapping the impacts of hurricanes Maria and Irma on banana production area in the Dominican Republic. bioRxiv (preprint). doi: 10.1101/2020.09.20.304899
Hunting and forest modification have distinct defaunation impacts on tropical mammals and birds
Osuri, A. M., Mendiratta, U., Naniwadekar, R.,Varma, V., & Naeem, S. (2020). Hunting and forest modification have distinct defaunation impacts on tropical mammals and birds. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, 2, 87. doi: 10.3389/ffgc.2019.00087
Climate change impacts on banana yields around the world
Varma, V., & Bebber, D. P. (2019). Climate change impacts on banana yields around the world. Nature climate change, 9(10), 752-757. doi: 10.1038/s41558-019-0559-9
A new mechanistic model of weather-dependent Septoria tritici blotch disease risk
Chaloner, T. M., Fones, H. N., Varma, V., Bebber, D. P., & Gurr, S. J. (2019). A new mechanistic model of weather-dependent Septoria tritici blotch disease risk. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 374. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2018.0266
Climate change impacts on ecosystem functions and services in India: An exploration of concepts and a state of knowledge synthesis
Osuri, A.M., Varma, V., & Singh, D. (2018). Climate change impacts on ecosystem functions and services in India: An exploration of concepts and a state of knowledge synthesis. Biodiversity and climate change: An Indian perspective, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India, 26-44.
Effects of increased N and P availability on biomass allocation and root carbohydrate reserves differ between N‐fixing and non‐N‐fixing savanna tree seedlings
Varma, V., Catherin, A. M., & Sankaran, M. (2018). Effects of increased N and P availability on biomass allocation and root carbohydrate reserves differ between N‐fixing and non‐N‐fixing savanna tree seedlings. Ecology and Evolution, 8(16), 8467-8476. doi: 10.1002/ece3.4289
Upscaling biodiversity: estimating the species–area relationship from small samples
Kunin, W. E., Harte, J., He, F., Hui, C., Jobe, R. T., Ostling, A., ... & Varma, V. (2018). Upscaling biodiversity: estimating the species–area relationship from small samples. Ecological Monographs, 88(2), 170-187. doi: 10.1002/ecm.1284
Nitrogen fixation ability explains leaf chemistry and arbuscular mycorrhizal responses to fertilization
Tiruvaimozhi, Y. V., Varma, V., & Sankaran, M. (2018). Nitrogen fixation ability explains leaf chemistry and arbuscular mycorrhizal responses to fertilization. Plant Ecology, 219(4), 391-401. doi: 10.1007/s11258-018-0803-9
Effects of nutrient addition and soil drainage on germination of N-fixing and non-N-fixing tropical dry forest tree species
Varma, V., Iyengar, S. B., & Sankaran, M. (2016). Effects of nutrient addition and soil drainage on germination of N-fixing and non-N-fixing tropical dry forest tree species. Plant Ecology, 217(8), 1043-1054. doi: 10.1007/s11258-016-0630-9
Contrasting effects of defaunation on aboveground carbon storage across the global tropics
Osuri, A. M., Ratnam, J., Varma, V., Alvarez-Loayza, P., Astaiza, J. H., Bradford, M., ... & Sankaran, M. (2016). Contrasting effects of defaunation on aboveground carbon storage across the global tropics. Nature Communications, 7, 11351. doi: 10.1038/ncomms11351
Perceptions of priority issues in the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in India
Varma, V., Ratnam, J., Viswanathan, V., Osuri, A. M., Biesmeijer, J. C., Madhusudan, M. D., ... & Sundaram, B. (2015). Perceptions of priority issues in the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in India. Biological Conservation, 187, 201-211. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2015.04.031
Identifying geographic hot spots of reassortment in a multipartite plant virus
Savory, F. R., Varma, V., & Ramakrishnan, U. (2014). Identifying geographic hot spots of reassortment in a multipartite plant virus. Evolutionary Applications, 7(5), 569-579. doi: 10.1111/eva.12156
Stressful environments can indirectly select for increased longevity
Savory, F. R., Benton, T. G., Varma, V., Hope, I. A., & Sait, S. M. (2014). Stressful environments can indirectly select for increased longevity. Ecology and Evolution, 4(7), 1176-1185. doi: 10.1002/ece3.1013
Black Spot: a platform for automated and rapid estimation of leaf area from scanned images
Varma, V., & Osuri, A. M. (2013). Black Spot: a platform for automated and rapid estimation of leaf area from scanned images. Plant Ecology, 214(12), 1529-1534. doi: 10.1007/s11258-013-0273-z
Realising multiple ecosystem services based on the response of three beneficial insect groups to floral traits and trait diversity
Campbell, A. J., Biesmeijer, J. C., Varma, V., & Wäckers, F. L. (2012). Realising multiple ecosystem services based on the response of three beneficial insect groups to floral traits and trait diversity. Basic and Applied Ecology, 13(4), 363-370. doi: 10.1016/j.baae.2012.04.003
Conferences and Seminars
A new approach to associating ecosystem service delivery to land and farm system archetypes
Varma, V., Evans, P.M., Bullock, J.M. and Mead, A. (2023) Landscape Decisions Programme Conference, Royal Society, London.
Trade-offs in using landscape archetypes to plan ecosystem service delivery
Varma, V., Evans, P.M., Bullock, J.M. and Mead, A. (2022) British Ecological Society Annual Meeting, Edinburgh.
Affordable access and open access publishing
Panellist - ChronosHub webinar series (2022)
Research and Scholarly Publishing Forum
Panellist - London Book Fair (2022)
Mapping technologies that complement territorial pest risk assessment
Varma, V. and Bebber, D.P. (2021) United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) World Banana Forum (WBF) conference: Capacity building and awareness raising in response to the threat of Fusarium Wilt of banana Tropical Race 4.
Global banana production monitoring using remote sensing
Varma, V., Oliver, S. and Bebber, D.P. (2019) Science and Technology Facilities Council Food Network Annual Meeting, Manchester.
Modelling risks and opportunities for global banana production systems
Varma, V. and Bebber, D.P. (2019) British Ecological Society Macro-ecology Special Interest Group, Penryn
BananEx: Securing the future of the UK's favourite fruit
Varma, V. and Bebber, D.P. (2019) United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) 16th Steering Committee meeting of the World Banana Forum (WBF), Rome.
Nutrient depostion alters post-fire survival in N-fixing and non-N-fixing tropical dry forest tree seedlings
Varma, V. and Sankaran, M. (2015) British Ecological Society Annual Meeting, Edinburgh.
Effects of nutrient deposition on germination of tropical dry forest tree seedlings
Varma, V. and Sankaran, M. (2013) Student Conference for Conservation Science (SCCS), Bangalore.
Effect of density and fire on savanna tree patch mortality
Varma, V., Moustakas, A. and Sankaran, M. (2009) 52nd International Association of Vegetation Science (IAVS) symposium, Crete.