Magnetic resonance tomography (MRT) on microcosm soil cores (200 mm Ø) used for CeMiX, comprising naturally stacked subsoil down to 700 mm plus topsoil from CeFiT, will be implemented at a laterally partially open Split 1.5 T magnet, with intended final in-plane spatial resolution of 200 Micro m. Three-dimensional biopore distributions and dynamics of their formation within the cores will be determined non-invasively and compared to complementing CT analyses of SP 2. One major aim is a non-invasive differentiation of the biopores into earthworm- and root system-originating ones and currently air-, water-, root- and earthwormfilled ones, based on NMR relaxation parameters. Attempts will additionally be made to classify different wall coatings of the biopores with regard to their water affinity. Dynamics of water distribution within the microcosm core and its biopore structures, starting from initial values taken from CeFiT (SP 3), will be documented with an in-plane resolution of 5 mm, in parallel to measurements of root growth dynamics for calculation of biomass and root surface area. Special emphasis will be put on the role of the plant root system for a re-distribution of water/D2O (and solutes) between different soil layers. Finally we will attempt MRT-controlled sample collection from the microcosm cores, to get - together with our research unit partners of SPs 4-8 - repeated access to minimally invasively acquired data on nutrient and microorganism distributions in concert with non-invasively collected water and root distribution data as a basis for dynamic modelling of water and solute circuits in SP 10. Beside the microcosm cores, flat rhizotrons as used in SP 3 will be employed to enable measurements of root and shoot hydrostatic pressure profiles with pressure probes, in addition to MRT measurements. In this way water distributions and corresponding driving forces and growth dynamics will be measured altogether in a minimally invasive manner.
Webanwendung mit ca. 230 Merkmalen der Amtlichen Statistik; u. a. Daten zu den Bereichen Bevölkerung, Wanderungen, Arbeitsmarkt, SGB II, Bautätigkeit, Produzierendes Gewerbe, Handel, Tourismus, Verkehr und Verdienste. Die Aktualisierung der hinterlegten Datenbank erfolgt täglich.
Bamboos (Poaceae) are widespread in tropical and subtropical forests. Particularly in Asia, bamboos are cultivated by smallholders and increasingly in large plantations. In contrast to trees, reliable assessments of water use characteristics for bamboo are very scarce. Recently we tested a set of methods for assessing bamboo water use and obtained first results. Objectives of the proposed project are (1) to further test and develop the methods, (2) to compare the water use of different bamboo species, (3) to analyze the water use to bamboo size relationship across species, and (4) to assess effects of bamboo culm density on the stand-level transpiration. The study shall be conducted in South China where bamboos are very abundant. It is planned to work in a common garden (method testing), a botanical garden (species comparison, water use to size relationship), and on-farm (effects of culm density). Method testing will include a variety of approaches (thermal dissipation probes, stem heat balance, deuterium tracing and gravimetry), whereas subsequent steps will be based on thermal methods. The results may contribute to an improved understanding of bamboo water use characteristics and a more appropriate management of bamboo with respect to water resources.
The present-day configuration of Indonesia and SE Asia is the results of a long history of tectonic movements, volcanisms and global eustatic sea-level changes. Not indifferent to these dynamics, fauna and flora have been evolving and dispersing following a complicate pattern of continent-sea changes to form what are today defined as Sundaland and Wallacea biogeographical regions. The modern intraannual climate of Indonesia is generally described as tropical, seasonally wet with seasonal reversals of prevailing low-level winds (Asian-Australian monsoon). However at the interannual scale a range of influences operating over varying time scales affect the local climate in respect of temporal and spatial distribution of rainfall. Vegetation generally reflects climate and to simplify it is possible to distinguish three main ecological elements in the flora of Malaysia: everwet tropical, seasonally dry tropical (monsoon) and montane. Within those major ecological groups, a wide range of specific local conditions caused a complex biogeography which has and still attract the attention of botanists and biogeographers worldwide. Being one of the richest regions in the Worlds in terms of species endemism and biodiversity, Indonesia has recently gone through intensive transformation of previously rural/natural lands for intensive agriculture (oil palm, rubber, cocoa plantations and rice fields). Climate change represents an additional stress. Projected climate changes in the region include strengthening of monsoon circulation and increase in the frequency and magnitude of extreme rainfall and drought events. The ecological consequences of these scenarios are hard to predict. Within the context of sustainable management of conservation areas and agro-landscapes, Holocene palaeoecological and palynological studies provide a valuable contribution by showing how the natural vegetation present at the location has changed as a consequence of climate variability in the long-term (e.g. the Mid-Holocene moisture maximum, the modern ENSO onset, Little Ice Age etc.). The final aim of my PhD research is to compare the Holocene history of Jambi province and Central Sulawesi. In particular: - Reconstructing past vegetation, plant diversity and climate dynamics in the two study areas Jambi (Sumatra) and Lore Lindu National Park (Sulawesi) - Comparing the ecological responses of lowland monsoon swampy rainforest (Sumatra) and everwet montane rainforests (Sulawesi) to environmental variability (vulnerability/resilience) - Investigating the history of human impact on the landscape (shifting cultivation, slash and burn, crop cultivation, rubber and palm oil plantation) - Assessing the impact and role of droughts (El Niño) and fires - Adding a historical perspective to the evaluation of current and future changes.
Although global pesticide use increases steadily, our field-data based knowledge regarding exposure of non-target ecosystems is very restricted. Consequently, this meta-analysis will for the first time evaluate the worldwide available peer-reviewed information on agricultural insecticide concentrations in surface water or sediment and test the following two hypotheses: I) Insecticide concentrations in the field largely exceed regulatory threshold levels and II) Additional factors important for threshold level exceedances can be quantified using retrospective meta-analysis. A feasibility study using a restricted dataset (n = 377) suggested the significance of the expected results, i.e. an threshold level exceedance rate of more than 50Prozent of the detected concentrations. Subsequent to a comprehensive database search in the peer-reviewed literature of the past 60 years, analysis of covariance with the relevant threshold level exceedance as the continuous dependent variable (about 10,000 cases) will be performed and the impact of significant predictor variables will be quantified. Parameters not yet considered in pesticide exposure assessment will be included as independent variables, such as compound class, environmental regulatory quality, and sampling design. The simultaneous presence of several insecticide compounds as a well as their metabolites will also be considered in the evaluation. The present approach may provide an innovative and integrated view on the potential environmental side effects of global high-intensity agriculture and in particular of pesticides use.
Terrestrial green algae and cyanobacteria are typical and abundant components of biological soil crusts in the Polar Regions. These communities form water-stable aggregates that have important ecological roles in primary production, nitrogen fixation, nutrient cycling, water retention and stabilization of soils. Although available data on green algae and cyanobacteria are generally very limited for the Arctic and Antarctica, their functional importance as ecosystem developers in nutrient poor environments is regarded as high. Therefore, the main goal of the interdisciplinary project is, for the first time, a precise evaluation of their 1.) Biodiversity as well as of 2.) The infra-specific genetic diversity, 3.) ecophysiological performance and 4.) transcriptomics of the most abundant taxa in biological soil crusts isolated from the Antarctic Peninsula and Arctic Svalbard. Biodiversity will be investigated using a classical culture approach in combination with molecular-taxonomical methods as well as with metagenomics. The infra-specific genetic diversity of the most abundant green algae and cyanobacteria will be studied using fingerprinting techniques, and a range of selected populations characterized in relation to their physiological plasticity. Temperature and water availability, two key environmental factors for terrestrial organisms, are currently changing in Polar Regions due to global warming, and hence their effect on growth and photosynthesis response patterns will be comparatively investigated. The data will indicate whether and how global change influence population structure and ecological performance of key organisms in polar soil crusts, and help to make predictions on the future significance of the ecological functions of these pioneer communities. Such a multiphasic approach has never been applied before to soil algae and cyanobacteria in both Polar Regions, and hence represents one of the key innovations of this proposal.
The AZV (Altitudinal Zonation of Vegetation) Project was initiated in the year 2002. On the basis of a detailed regional study in continental West Greenland the knowledge about altitudinal vegetation zonation in the Arctic is aimed to be enhanced. The main objectives of the project are: a) considering the regional study: characterize mountain vegetation with regard to flora, vegetation types, vegetation pattern and habitat conditions, investigate the differentiation of these vegetation characteristics along the altitudinal gradient, develop concepts about altitudinal indicator values of species and plant communities, extract suitable characteristics for the distinction and delimitation of vegetation belts, assess altitudinal borderlines of vegetation belts in the study area. b) considering generalizations: test the validity of the altitudinal zonation hypothesis of the Circumpolar Arctic Vegetation Map ( CAVM Team 2003), find important determinants of altitudinal vegetation zonation in the Arctic, develop a first small scale vegetation map of entire continental West Greenland. Field work consists of vegetational surveys according to the Braun-Blanquet approach, transect studies, soil analyses, long-time-measurements of temperature on the soil surface and vegetation mapping in three different altitudinal vegetation belts (up to 1070 m a.s.l.).
The final goal of the EUROWET project is to integrate the substantial multidisciplinary European research in wetlands to help attain the sustainable management of the water cycle. This will be achieved by the translation of state-of-the art science developed at both national and European levels, into practical guidance for end-users. This will be achieved by a comprehensive review, expert assessment and a focussed dissemination strategy. There is considerable scientific knowledge and technical experience gained in diverse aspects of wetland science and management including hydrology, biogeochemistry, ecology restoration, socio-economic and policy analysis. However the results of research and management experience are still too fragmentary and not sufficiently orientated to problem-solving or simply inadequately framed to be effectively transferred to, or used by, stakeholders and policy-makers. Simultaneously the general outcome of the scientific research has been increased awareness of the significance of wetlands in delivering goods and services important for human welfare including quality of life, biodiversity conservation and maintenance or enhancement of environment quality. Despite this wetlands continue to be degraded and lost throughout Europe without adequate consideration of the wider benefits to be achieved from this management. The new Water Framework Directive (WFD) promotes a unique opportunity to redress this problem by means of the holistic, integrated approach to water management. There is currently in preparation horizontal guidance on Wetlands as part of the Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) process. There is however work still to be done on providing more specific scientific and technical guidance on the effective implementation of the Directive with respect to wetlands. This is particularly the case in relation to Integrated River Management, the CIS cluster within which wetlands are being considered in the WFD.
Perennial fodder cropping potentially increases subsoil biopore density by formation of extensive root systems and temporary soil rest. We will quantify root length density, earthworm abundance and biopore size classes after Medicago sativa, Cichorium intybus and Festuca arundinacea grown for 1, 2 and 3 years respectively in the applied research unit's Central Field Trial (CeFiT) which is established and maintained by our working group. Shoot parameters including transpiration, gas exchange and chlorophyll fluorescence will frequently be recorded. Precrop effects on oilseed rape and cereals will be quantified with regard to crop yield, nutrient transfer and H2-release. The soil associated with biopores (i.e. the driloshpere) is generally rich in nutrients as compared to the bulk soil and is therefore supposed to be a potential hot spot for nutrient acquisition. However, contact areas between roots and the pore wall have been reported to be low. It is still unclear to which extent the nutrients present in the drilosphere are used and which potential relevance subsoil biopores may have for the nutrient supply of crops. We will use a flexible videoscope to determine the root-soil contact in biopores. Nitrogen input into the drilosphere by earthworms and potential re-uptake of nitrogen from the drilosphere by subsequent crops with different rooting systems (oilseed rape vs. cereals) will be quantified using 15N as a tracer.
Evidence is compelling for a positive correlation between urbanisation and increment of allergic sensitisation and diseases. The reason for this association is not clear to date. Some data point to a pro-allergic effect of anthropogenic factors on susceptible individuals. Data analysing the impact of environmental - natural and anthropogenic - factors on the allergenicity of allergen carriers such as pollen grains are scarce, and if applicable only taken from in vitro experimental designs. This study will analyse one of the most common allergy inducers in northern Europe - the birch pollen. Under natural exposure conditions, birch pollen will be analysed with respect to their allergenicity. Within an interdisciplinary research team this study will evaluate the effect of natural (e.g. soil, climate, genetic background) and anthropogenic (e.g. traffic pollutants) factors on birch pollen in a holistic approach including analysis of allergen bioavailability, release of pollen associated lipid mediators from birch pollen grains, in vitro immunostimulatory activity and in vivo allergenic potential. These data collected in the time course of three years will significantly add to our understanding how urbanisation and climate change influence the allergenicity of birch pollen and will help us in the future to set up primary prevention studies.
| Organisation | Count |
|---|---|
| Bund | 296 |
| Europa | 80 |
| Kommune | 1 |
| Land | 2 |
| Wissenschaft | 144 |
| Zivilgesellschaft | 1 |
| Type | Count |
|---|---|
| Förderprogramm | 296 |
| unbekannt | 1 |
| License | Count |
|---|---|
| Offen | 297 |
| Language | Count |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | 84 |
| Englisch | 281 |
| Resource type | Count |
|---|---|
| Keine | 224 |
| Webseite | 73 |
| Topic | Count |
|---|---|
| Boden | 259 |
| Lebewesen und Lebensräume | 289 |
| Luft | 208 |
| Mensch und Umwelt | 297 |
| Wasser | 207 |
| Weitere | 297 |