Experiments on ecosystem functions and resources
The role of biodiversity as a regulator for ecosystem functions and ecosystem stability has not yet been sufficiently investigated and is therefore the object of several research projects on a national and international level. At the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ this topic is being researched on in the projects “Connections between above-ground and below-ground processes” and "Interactions between species, ecosystem functions and ecosystem stability".
Ilex aquifolium spreads northwards.
Foto: Uwe Lochstampfer
The research results are relevant for practical purposes of a future-orientated forestry. Conifer forests are transformed into semi-natural deciduous and mixed forests in order to achieve a higher resilience of the forests against extreme weather events and infestation by pests. One project focuses on how plant diversity influences above-ground and below-ground food webs and substance conversion in soil. The according field experiments are conducted by the Departments of Soil Ecology, Soil Physics, Community Ecology, Environmental Microbiology and Landscape Ecology.
Projects & Contact
Title:
DIVA-Projekt, Mechanisms of biodiversity conservation and functional role of biodiversity in the grassland model system
(e.g. comparison of functional diversity of Mykhorrhiza fungi on sites with and without pesticide treatment)
Departments:
Soil Ecology, Community Ecology
Contact:
Prof. Francois Buscot, Dr. Elke Schulz (both BOOEK), Dr. Harald Auge (BZF)
francois.buscot@ufz.de
elke.schulz@ufz.de
harald.auge@ufz.de
Remarks:
im Rahmen des BMBF-Programmes BIOLOG
Title:
ESF-Project BioCycle, impact of tree diversity on ecosystem functions
Department:
Community Ecology
Contact:
Dr. Harald Auge
harald.auge@ufz.de
Remarks:
with partners from the Departments of Soil Ecology, Environmental Microbiology, Soil Physics, Landscape Ecology
Title:
Jena-Experiment, the biggest European biodiversity project in grassland communities analyses experimentally the host range of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on the basis of monoculture experiments
Department:
Soil Ecology
Contact:
Prof. Francois Buscot, Stephan König (UFZ-Beteiligte)
francois.buscot@ufz.de
stephan.koenig@ufz.de
Remarks:
Title:
German biodiversity-exploratories
Departments:
Soil Ecology
Computational Landscape Ecology
Community Ecology
Contact UFZ:
Prof. Francois Buscot, Dr. Carsten Dormann, Dr. Walter Durka, Dr. Harald Auge
francois.buscot@ufz.de, carsten.dormann@ufz.de, walter.durka@ufz.de, harald.auge@ufz.de
Remarks:
Within the DFG-exploratories UFZ-colleagues analyse the diversity of Mykhorrhiza fungi, Basidiomycetes and specific genes along land use gradients
www.bio.uni-potsdam.de/biodiversity