A5103217780- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Forest Ecology and Biodiversity Studies
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Peatlands and Wetlands Ecology
- Plant and animal studies
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
- Plant nutrient uptake and metabolism
- Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
- Botany and Plant Ecology Studies
- Soil and Water Nutrient Dynamics
- Land Use and Ecosystem Services
- Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics
- Plant Micronutrient Interactions and Effects
- Scarabaeidae Beetle Taxonomy and Biogeography
- Plant responses to elevated CO2
- Lichen and fungal ecology
- Environmental Science and Technology
- Remote Sensing and LiDAR Applications
- African Botany and Ecology Studies
- Environmental Conservation and Management
- Avian ecology and behavior
- Ecology and biodiversity studies
- Hemiptera Insect Studies
- Ethnobotanical and Medicinal Plants Studies
Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research
2008-2023
Federal Agency for Nature Conservation
2013
Western Sydney University
2011
University of Bayreuth
1990-1994
Summary 1. Studying the effects of climate or weather extremes such as drought and heat waves on biodiversity ecosystem functions is one most important facets change research. In particular, primary production amounting to common currency in field experiments world‐wide. Rarely, however, are multiple measured a single study order address general patterns across different categories responses analyse various functions. 2. We set up long‐term experiment, where we applied recurrent severe...
Summary 1. Disturbance is one of the most important factors structuring taxonomic and functional composition vegetation. Vegetation resistance or resilience to disturbance depends on local environmental conditions, further modifying pool species traits. This paper aims understand how environment combine affect 2. A functional‐trait approach was used detect traits related vegetation resilience, trait attributes individual responding disturbance. Trait approaches enable comparison responses...
Changes in traditional agricultural systems Europe recent decades have led to widespread abandonment and colonization of various habitats by shrubs trees. We combined several vegetation databases test whether patterns changes plant diversity after land different followed similar pathways. The impacts subsequent woody on composition traits were studied five semi-natural open two arable six regions Europe. For each habitat, surveys carried out stages succession using either permanent or...
Within the past few years plant functional trait analyses have been widely applied to learn more about processes and patterns of ecosystem development in response environmental changes. These approaches are based on assumption that plants with similar ecologically relevant attributes respond changes comparable ways. Several methods described how analyse a priori defined sets respect environment. Irrespective statistical used contrast responses conditions, each approach depends strongly...
We analysed the distribution of native and alien plant species across 20 ecogeographic zones northwestern Kenya. The source pool for majority aliens was Europe America. Thus, has a biogeographic bias which explains low proportion in tropics: most European or American are not well adapted to tropical conditions. As expected, showed an area effect. Correcting this rich higher their flora. At scale, richness communities does increase resistance invasions invade diversity hotspots. Compared...
Abstract Aim In several ecosystems, the diversity of functional species traits has been shown to have a stronger effect on ecosystem functioning than taxonomic alone. However, few studies explored this idea at large geographical scale. multisite experiment, we unravelled relationship between function and completeness assemblages using dung beetles as model group, focusing removal secondary seed dispersal. Location Seventeen grassland locations across Western Palaearctic. Methods We used...
Abstract Dung removal by macrofauna such as dung beetles is an important process for nutrient cycling in pasturelands. Intensification of farming practices generally reduces species and functional diversity terrestrial invertebrates, which may negatively affect ecosystem services. Here, we investigate the effects cattle-grazing intensification on field experiments replicated 38 pastures around world. Within each study site, measured managed with low- high-intensity regimes to assess...
For plant species adapted to disturbances, the germination niche breadth (the time span within a year during which is able germinate) may be key in understanding variability of range sizes across species. Species that are germinate throughout should use more disturbances and build up large local populations. As population size correlated distribution, one would expect correlation between temporal pattern distributional sizes. test this hypotheses, we used patterns abundance data from 31...
ABSTRACT We have investigated the interactions between resource assimilation and storage in rosette leaves, their impact on growth reproduction of annual species Arabidopsis thaliana. The balance was experimentally perturbed by changing (i) external nutrition, varying nitrogen supply; (ii) reallocation resources from leaves to reproductive organs, cutting or covering at time early flower bud formation, (iii) internal carbon plants, using isogenic mutants either lacking starch formation (PGM...
The invasion process was documented from data on the labels of specimens stored in East African Herbarium at National Museums Kenya. We analysed seven abundant alien plant species: Ageratum conyzoides L. (Asteraceae), Capsella bursa‐pastoris (L.) Med . (Brassicaceae ) , Datura stramonium (Solanaceae), Galinsoga parviflora Cav. Tagetes minuta Spergula arvensis (Caryophyllaceae) and Stellaria media Vill. compared these with spread two native weeds: Cynoglossum coeruleum A.DC. (Boraginaceae)...
ABSTRACT The southernmost extension of tropical Andean–Amazonian forests protrudes into the arid to semiarid habitats in northwestern Argentina. We analyzed decline species richness forest mammals along these Yungas forests. In particular, we tested whether is due a general latitudinal effect and drop from assemblages was independent species' traits environmental variables. For tests, estimated geographic range edges 39 mammal with bands 30′. First, compared slope north south (5.8...
The difficulties specialized phytophagous insects face in finding habitats with an appropriate host should constrain their dispersal. Within the concept of metacommunities, this leads to prediction that host-plant specialists sort into local assemblages according environmental conditions, i.e. habitat whereas generalists depend also on regional processes. Our study aimed at ranking importance factors and species composition vegetation for predicting moth either a narrow or broad range....
We used data on body size and host range of phytophagous Heteroptera in central Europe, an inverse measure specialisation, to analyse the relationship vs specialisation: 1) we found a clear positive between using species as independent points. 2) However, nested analysis variance shows that most occurred at higher taxonomic levels whereas specialisation species. This suggests different phylogenetic inertia specialisation. Nevertheless, means there is still significant correlation range. 3)...
Abstract Interactions between ammonium and nitrate as competitive N sources depend on various biotic abiotic factors. The preference for one of these the influence uptake reductase activity was investigated in a 15N labelling experiment using 2-year-old potted plants ash (Fraxinus excelsior L.) oak (Quercus robur under greenhouse conditions. Seedlings both tree species use equal amounts when forms are supplied 1:1 ratio (1.5 mM NH4 + 1.5 NO3 −), although there is slight tendency that...