@article{WieczorekKolmogorovKruseetal.2017,
  author    = {Wieczorek, Mareike and Kolmogorov, Alexei and Kruse, Stefan and Jacobsen, Inga and Nitze, Ingmar and Nikolaev, Anatoly N. and Heinrich, Ingo and Pestryakova, Luidmila Agafyevna and Herzschuh, Ulrike},
  title     = {Disturbance-effects on treeline larch-stands in the lower Kolyma River area (NE Siberia)},
  series = {Silva Fennica : a quarterly journal for forest science},
  volume    = {51},
  journal   = {Silva Fennica : a quarterly journal for forest science},
  number    = {3},
  publisher = {The Finnish Society of Forest Science},
  address   = {Helsinki},
  issn      = {0037-5330},
  doi       = {10.14214/sf.1666},
  pages     = {20},
  year      = {2017},
  abstract  = {Tree stands in the boreal treeline ecotone are, in addition to climate change, impacted by disturbances such as fire, water-related disturbances and logging. We aim to understand how these disturbances affect growth, age structure, and spatial patterns of larch stands in the north-eastern Siberian treeline ecotone (lower Kolyma River region), an insufficiently researched region. Stand structure of Larix cajanderi Mayr was studied at seven sites impacted by disturbances. Maximum tree age ranged from 44 to 300 years. Young to medium-aged stands had, independent of disturbance type, the highest stand densities with over 4000 larch trees per ha. These sites also had the highest growth rates for tree height and stem diameter. Overall lowest stand densities were found in a polygonal field at the northern end of the study area, with larches growing in distinct " tree islands". At all sites, saplings are significantly clustered. Differences in fire severity led to contrasting stand structures with respect to tree, recruit, and overall stand densities. While a low severity fire resulted in low-density stands with high proportions of small and young larches, high severity fires resulted in high-density stands with high proportions of big trees. At waterdisturbed sites, stand structure varied between waterlogged and drained sites and latitude. These mixed effects of climate and disturbance make it difficult to predict future stand characteristics and the treeline position.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{FrommholdHeimBarabanovetal.2019,
  author    = {Frommhold, Martin and Heim, Arend and Barabanov, Mikhail and Maier, Franziska and M{\"u}hle, Ralf-Udo and Smirenski, Sergei M. and Heim, Wieland},
  title     = {Breeding habitat and nest-site selection by an obligatory "nest-cleptoparasite", the Amur Falcon Falco amurensis},
  series = {Ecology and evolution},
  volume    = {9},
  journal   = {Ecology and evolution},
  number    = {24},
  publisher = {Wiley},
  address   = {Hoboken},
  issn      = {2045-7758},
  doi       = {10.1002/ece3.5878},
  pages     = {14430 -- 14441},
  year      = {2019},
  abstract  = {The selection of a nest site is crucial for successful reproduction of birds. Animals which re-use or occupy nest sites constructed by other species often have limited choice. Little is known about the criteria of nest-stealing species to choose suitable nesting sites and habitats. Here, we analyze breeding-site selection of an obligatory "nest-cleptoparasite", the Amur Falcon Falco amurensis. We collected data on nest sites at Muraviovka Park in the Russian Far East, where the species breeds exclusively in nests of the Eurasian Magpie Pica pica. We sampled 117 Eurasian Magpie nests, 38 of which were occupied by Amur Falcons. Nest-specific variables were assessed, and a recently developed habitat classification map was used to derive landscape metrics. We found that Amur Falcons chose a wide range of nesting sites, but significantly preferred nests with a domed roof. Breeding pairs of Eurasian Hobby Falco subbuteo and Eurasian Magpie were often found to breed near the nest in about the same distance as neighboring Amur Falcon pairs. Additionally, the occurrence of the species was positively associated with bare soil cover, forest cover, and shrub patches within their home range and negatively with the distance to wetlands. Areas of wetlands and fallow land might be used for foraging since Amur Falcons mostly depend on an insect diet. Additionally, we found that rarely burned habitats were preferred. Overall, the effect of landscape variables on the choice of actual nest sites appeared to be rather small. We used different classification methods to predict the probability of occurrence, of which the Random forest method showed the highest accuracy. The areas determined as suitable habitat showed a high concordance with the actual nest locations. We conclude that Amur Falcons prefer to occupy newly built (domed) nests to ensure high nest quality, as well as nests surrounded by available feeding habitats.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{GluecklerGengGrimmetal.2022,
  author    = {Gl{\"u}ckler, Ramesh and Geng, Rongwei and Grimm, Lennart and Baisheva, Izabella and Herzschuh, Ulrike and Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen R. and Kruse, Stefan and Andreev, Andrej Aleksandrovic and Pestryakova, Luidmila and Dietze, Elisabeth},
  title     = {Holocene wildfire and vegetation dynamics in Central Yakutia, Siberia, reconstructed from lake-sediment proxies},
  series = {Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution},
  volume    = {10},
  journal   = {Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution},
  publisher = {Frontiers Media},
  address   = {Lausanne},
  issn      = {2296-701X},
  doi       = {10.3389/fevo.2022.962906},
  pages     = {19},
  year      = {2022},
  abstract  = {Wildfires play an essential role in the ecology of boreal forests. In eastern Siberia, fire activity has been increasing in recent years, challenging the livelihoods of local communities. Intensifying fire regimes also increase disturbance pressure on the boreal forests, which currently protect the permafrost beneath from accelerated degradation. However, long-term relationships between changes in fire regime and forest structure remain largely unknown. We assess past fire-vegetation feedbacks using sedimentary proxy records from Lake Satagay, Central Yakutia, Siberia, covering the past c. 10,800 years. Results from macroscopic and microscopic charcoal analyses indicate high amounts of burnt biomass during the Early Holocene, and that the present-day, low-severity surface fire regime has been in place since c. 4,500 years before present. A pollen-based quantitative reconstruction of vegetation cover and a terrestrial plant record based on sedimentary ancient DNA metabarcoding suggest a pronounced shift in forest structure toward the Late Holocene. Whereas the Early Holocene was characterized by postglacial open larch-birch woodlands, forest structure changed toward the modern, mixed larch-dominated closed-canopy forest during the Mid-Holocene. We propose a potential relationship between open woodlands and high amounts of burnt biomass, as well as a mediating effect of dense larch forest on the climate-driven intensification of fire regimes. Considering the anticipated increase in forest disturbances (droughts, insect invasions, and wildfires), higher tree mortality may force the modern state of the forest to shift toward an open woodland state comparable to the Early Holocene. Such a shift in forest structure may result in a positive feedback on currently intensifying wildfires. These new long-term data improve our understanding of millennial-scale fire regime changes and their relationships to changes of vegetation in Central Yakutia, where the local population is already being confronted with intensifying wildfire seasons.},
  language  = {en}
}