@article{ToetzkeCermakNadezhdinaetal.2017, author = {T{\"o}tzke, Christian and Cermak, Jan and Nadezhdina, Nadezhda and Tributsch, Helmut}, title = {Electrochemical in-situ studies of solar mediated oxygen transport and turnover dynamics in a tree trunk of Tilia cordata}, series = {iForest - Biogeosciences and Forestry}, volume = {10}, journal = {iForest - Biogeosciences and Forestry}, number = {2}, publisher = {SISEF - The Italian Society of Silviculture and Forest Ecology}, address = {Potenza}, issn = {1971-7458}, doi = {10.3832/ifor1681-010}, pages = {355 -- 361}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Platinum electrodes were implanted into the xylem of a lime tree (Tilia cordata) stem and solar- induced electrochemical potential differences of up to 120 mV were measured during the vegetative period and up to 30 mV in winter. The time dependent curves were found to be delayed with respect to solar radiation, sap flow activity, temperature and vapor pressure deficit. A general equation for the potential difference was derived and simplified by analyzing the effect of temperature and tensile strength. The potential determining influence of oxygen concentration on the respective location of the platinum electrode was identified as the principal phenomenon measured. A systematic analysis and investigation of the observed periodic oxygen concentration signals promises new information on sap flow, oxygen diffusion through tree tissues and on oxygen consumption related to the energy turnover in tree tissues.}, language = {en} } @article{FrielerSchaubergerArnethetal.2017, author = {Frieler, Katja and Schauberger, Bernhard and Arneth, Almut and Balkovic, Juraj and Chryssanthacopoulos, James and Deryng, Delphine and Elliott, Joshua and Folberth, Christian and Khabarov, Nikolay and M{\"u}ller, Christoph and Olin, Stefan and Pugh, Thomas A. M. and Schaphoff, Sibyll and Schewe, Jacob and Schmid, Erwin and Warszawski, Lila and Levermann, Anders}, title = {Understanding the weather signal in national crop-yield variability}, series = {Earths future}, volume = {5}, journal = {Earths future}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {2328-4277}, doi = {10.1002/2016EF000525}, pages = {605 -- 616}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Year-to-year variations in crop yields can have major impacts on the livelihoods of subsistence farmers and may trigger significant global price fluctuations, with severe consequences for people in developing countries. Fluctuations can be induced by weather conditions, management decisions, weeds, diseases, and pests. Although an explicit quantification and deeper understanding of weather-induced crop-yield variability is essential for adaptation strategies, so far it has only been addressed by empirical models. Here, we provide conservative estimates of the fraction of reported national yield variabilities that can be attributed to weather by state-of-the-art, process-based crop model simulations. We find that observed weather variations can explain more than 50\% of the variability in wheat yields in Australia, Canada, Spain, Hungary, and Romania. For maize, weather sensitivities exceed 50\% in seven countries, including the United States. The explained variance exceeds 50\% for rice in Japan and South Korea and for soy in Argentina. Avoiding water stress by simulating yields assuming full irrigation shows that water limitation is a major driver of the observed variations in most of these countries. Identifying the mechanisms leading to crop-yield fluctuations is not only fundamental for dampening fluctuations, but is also important in the context of the debate on the attribution of loss and damage to climate change. Since process-based crop models not only account for weather influences on crop yields, but also provide options to represent human-management measures, they could become essential tools for differentiating these drivers, and for exploring options to reduce future yield fluctuations.}, language = {en} } @article{HodgkinsRichardsonDommainetal.2018, author = {Hodgkins, Suzanne B. and Richardson, Curtis J. and Dommain, Rene and Wang, Hongjun and Glaser, Paul H. and Verbeke, Brittany and Winkler, B. Rose and Cobb, Alexander R. and Rich, Virginia I. and Missilmani, Malak and Flanagan, Neal and Ho, Mengchi and Hoyt, Alison M. and Harvey, Charles F. and Vining, S. Rose and Hough, Moira A. and Moore, Tim R. and Richard, Pierre J. H. and De la Cruz, Florentino B. and Toufaily, Joumana and Hamdan, Rasha and Cooper, William T. and Chanton, Jeffrey P.}, title = {Tropical peatland carbon storage linked to global latitudinal trends in peat recalcitrance}, series = {Nature Communications}, volume = {9}, journal = {Nature Communications}, publisher = {Nature Publ. Group}, address = {London}, issn = {2041-1723}, doi = {10.1038/s41467-018-06050-2}, pages = {13}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Peatlands represent large terrestrial carbon banks. Given that most peat accumulates in boreal regions, where low temperatures and water saturation preserve organic matter, the existence of peat in (sub)tropical regions remains enigmatic. Here we examined peat and plant chemistry across a latitudinal transect from the Arctic to the tropics. Near-surface low-latitude peat has lower carbohydrate and greater aromatic content than near-surface high-latitude peat, creating a reduced oxidation state and resulting recalcitrance. This recalcitrance allows peat to persist in the (sub)tropics despite warm temperatures. Because we observed similar declines in carbohydrate content with depth in high-latitude peat, our data explain recent field-scale deep peat warming experiments in which catotelm (deeper) peat remained stable despite temperature increases up to 9 degrees C. We suggest that high-latitude deep peat reservoirs may be stabilized in the face of climate change by their ultimately lower carbohydrate and higher aromatic composition, similar to tropical peats.}, language = {en} } @article{GrafMorenodelasHerasRuizetal.2018, author = {Graf, Lukas and Moreno-de-las-Heras, Mariano and Ruiz, Maurici and Calsamiglia, Aleix and Garc{\´i}a-Comendador, Juli{\´a}n and Fortesa, Josep and L{\´o}pez-Taraz{\´o}n, Jos{\´e} A. and Estrany, Joan}, title = {Accuracy assessment of digital terrain model dataset sources for hydrogeomorphological modelling in small mediterranean catchments}, series = {Remote sensing}, volume = {10}, journal = {Remote sensing}, number = {12}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2072-4292}, doi = {10.3390/rs10122014}, pages = {26}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Digital terrain models (DTMs) are a fundamental source of information in Earth sciences. DTM-based studies, however, can contain remarkable biases if limitations and inaccuracies in these models are disregarded. In this work, four freely available datasets, including Shuttle Radar Topography Mission C-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SRTM C-SAR V3 DEM), Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer Global Digital Elevation Map (ASTER GDEM V2), and two nationwide airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR)-derived DTMs (at 5-m and 1-m spatial resolution, respectively) were analysed in three geomorphologically contrasting, small (3-5 km2) catchments located in Mediterranean landscapes under intensive human influence (Mallorca Island, Spain). Vertical accuracy as well as the influence of each dataset's characteristics on hydrological and geomorphological modelling applicability were assessed by using ground-truth data, classic geometric and morphometric parameters, and a recently proposed index of sediment connectivity. Overall vertical accuracy—expressed as the root mean squared error (RMSE) and normalised median deviation (NMAD)—revealed the highest accuracy for the 1-m (RMSE = 1.55 m; NMAD = 0.44 m) and 5-m LiDAR DTMs (RMSE = 1.73 m; NMAD = 0.84 m). Vertical accuracy of the SRTM data was lower (RMSE = 6.98 m; NMAD = 5.27 m), but considerably higher than for the ASTER data (RMSE = 16.10 m; NMAD = 11.23 m). All datasets were affected by systematic distortions. Propagation of these errors and coarse horizontal resolution caused negative impacts on flow routing, stream network, and catchment delineation, and to a lower extent, on the distribution of slope values. These limitations should be carefully considered when applying DTMs for catchment hydrogeomorphological modelling.}, language = {en} } @article{SkinnerCoulthardSchwanghartetal.2018, author = {Skinner, Christopher J. and Coulthard, Tom J. and Schwanghart, Wolfgang and Van De Wiel, Marco J. and Hancock, Greg}, title = {Global sensitivity analysis of parameter uncertainty in landscape evolution models}, series = {Geoscientific model development : an interactive open access journal of the European Geosciences Union}, volume = {11}, journal = {Geoscientific model development : an interactive open access journal of the European Geosciences Union}, number = {12}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1991-959X}, doi = {10.5194/gmd-11-4873-2018}, pages = {4873 -- 4888}, year = {2018}, abstract = {The evaluation and verification of landscape evolution models (LEMs) has long been limited by a lack of suitable observational data and statistical measures which can fully capture the complexity of landscape changes. This lack of data limits the use of objective function based evaluation prolific in other modelling fields, and restricts the application of sensitivity analyses in the models and the consequent assessment of model uncertainties. To overcome this deficiency, a novel model function approach has been developed, with each model function representing an aspect of model behaviour, which allows for the application of sensitivity analyses. The model function approach is used to assess the relative sensitivity of the CAESAR-Lisflood LEM to a set of model parameters by applying the Morris method sensitivity analysis for two contrasting catchments. The test revealed that the model was most sensitive to the choice of the sediment transport formula for both catchments, and that each parameter influenced model behaviours differently, with model functions relating to internal geomorphic changes responding in a different way to those relating to the sediment yields from the catchment outlet. The model functions proved useful for providing a way of evaluating the sensitivity of LEMs in the absence of data and methods for an objective function approach.}, language = {en} } @article{MarrucciZeilingerRibolinietal.2018, author = {Marrucci, Monica and Zeilinger, Gerold and Ribolini, Adriano and Schwanghart, Wolfgang}, title = {Origin of Knickpoints in an Alpine Context Subject to Different Perturbing Factors, Stura Valley, Maritime Alps (North-Western Italy)}, series = {Geosciences}, volume = {8}, journal = {Geosciences}, number = {12}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2076-3263}, doi = {10.3390/geosciences8120443}, pages = {20}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Natural catchments are likely to show the existence of knickpoints in their river networks. The origin and genesis of the knickpoints can be manifold, considering that the present morphology is the result of the interactions of different factors such as tectonic movements, quaternary glaciations, river captures, variable lithology, and base-level changes. We analyzed the longitudinal profiles of the river channels in the Stura di Demonte Valley (Maritime Alps) to identify the knickpoints of such an alpine setting and to characterize their origins. The distribution and the geometry of stream profiles were used to identify the possible causes of the changes in stream gradients and to define zones with genetically linked knickpoints. Knickpoints are key geomorphological features for reconstructing the evolution of fluvial dissected basins, when the different perturbing factors affecting the ideally graded fluvial system have been detected. This study shows that even in a regionally small area, perturbations of river profiles are caused by multiple factors. Thus, attributing (automatically)-extracted knickpoints solely to one factor, can potentially lead to incomplete interpretations of catchment evolution.}, language = {en} } @article{BormanndeBritoCharchousietal.2018, author = {Bormann, Helge and de Brito, Mariana Madruga and Charchousi, Despoina and Chatzistratis, Dimitris and David, Amrei and Grosser, Paula Farina and Kebschull, Jenny and Konis, Alexandros and Koutalakis, Paschalis and Korali, Alkistis and Krauzig, Naomi and Meier, Jessica and Meliadou, Varvara and Meinhardt, Markus and Munnelly, Kieran and Stephan, Christiane and de Vos, Leon Frederik and Dietrich, J{\"o}rg and Tzoraki, Ourania}, title = {Impact of Hydrological Modellers' Decisions and Attitude on the Performance of a Calibrated Conceptual Catchment Model}, series = {Hydrology}, volume = {5}, journal = {Hydrology}, number = {4}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2306-5338}, doi = {10.3390/hydrology5040064}, pages = {13}, year = {2018}, abstract = {In this study, 17 hydrologists with different experience in hydrological modelling applied the same conceptual catchment model (HBV) to a Greek catchment, using identical data and model code. Calibration was performed manually. Subsequently, the modellers were asked for their experience, their calibration strategy, and whether they enjoyed the exercise. The exercise revealed that there is considerable modellers' uncertainty even among the experienced modellers. It seemed to be equally important whether the modellers followed a good calibration strategy, and whether they enjoyed modelling. The exercise confirmed previous studies about the benefit of model ensembles: Different combinations of the simulation results (median, mean) outperformed the individual model simulations, while filtering the simulations even improved the quality of the model ensembles. Modellers' experience, decisions, and attitude, therefore, have an impact on the hydrological model application and should be considered as part of hydrological modelling uncertainty.}, language = {en} } @article{PuppeWannerSommer2018, author = {Puppe, Daniel and Wanner, Manfred and Sommer, Michael}, title = {Data on euglyphid testate amoeba densities, corresponding protozoic silicon pools, and selected soil parameters of initial and forested biogeosystems}, series = {Data in brief}, volume = {21}, journal = {Data in brief}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {2352-3409}, doi = {10.1016/j.dib.2018.10.164}, pages = {1697 -- 1703}, year = {2018}, abstract = {The dataset in the present article provides information on protozoic silicon (Si) pools represented by euglyphid testate amoebae (TA) in soils of initial and forested biogeosystems. Protozoic Si pools were calculated from densities of euglyphid TA shells and corresponding Si contents. The article also includes data on potential annual biosilicification rates of euglyphid TA at the examined sites. Furthermore, data on selected soil parameters (e.g., readily-available Si, soil pH) and site characteristics (e.g., soil groups, climate data) can be found. The data might be interesting for researchers focusing on biological processes in Si cycling in general and euglyphid TA and corresponding protozoic Si pools in particular.}, language = {en} } @article{HellwigTattiSartorietal.2018, author = {Hellwig, Niels and Tatti, Dylan and Sartori, Giacomo and Anschlag, Kerstin and Graefe, Ulfert and Egli, Markus and Gobat, Jean-Michel and Broll, Gabriele}, title = {Modeling spatial patterns of humus forms in montane and subalpine forests}, series = {Sustainability}, volume = {11}, journal = {Sustainability}, number = {1}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2071-1050}, doi = {10.3390/su11010048}, pages = {15}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Humus forms are a distinctive morphological indicator of soil organic matter decomposition. The spatial distribution of humus forms depends on environmental factors such as topography, climate and vegetation. In montane and subalpine forests, environmental influences show a high spatial heterogeneity, which is reflected by a high spatial variability of humus forms. This study aims at examining spatial patterns of humus forms and their dependence on the spatial scale in a high mountain forest environment (Val di Sole/Val di Rabbi, Trentino, Italian Alps). On the basis of the distributions of environmental covariates across the study area, we described humus forms at the local scale (six sampling sites), slope scale (60 sampling sites) and landscape scale (30 additional sampling sites). The local variability of humus forms was analyzed with regard to the ground cover type. At the slope and landscape scale, spatial patterns of humus forms were modeled applying random forests and ordinary kriging of the model residuals. The results indicate that the occurrence of the humus form classes Mull, Mullmoder, Moder, Amphi and Eroded Moder generally depends on the topographical position. Local-scale patterns are mostly related to micro-topography (local accumulation and erosion sites) and ground cover, whereas slope-scale patterns are mainly connected with slope exposure and elevation. Patterns at the landscape scale show a rather irregular distribution, as spatial models at this scale do not account for local to slope-scale variations of humus forms. Moreover, models at the slope scale perform distinctly better than at the landscape scale. In conclusion, the results of this study highlight that landscape-scale predictions of humus forms should be accompanied by local- and slope-scale studies in order to enhance the general understanding of humus form patterns.}, language = {en} } @article{RusakTanentzapKlugetal.2018, author = {Rusak, James A. and Tanentzap, Andrew J. and Klug, Jennifer L. and Rose, Kevin C. and Hendricks, Susan P. and Jennings, Eleanor and Laas, Alo and Pierson, Donald C. and Ryder, Elizabeth and Smyth, Robyn L. and White, D. S. and Winslow, Luke A. and Adrian, Rita and Arvola, Lauri and de Eyto, Elvira and Feuchtmayr, Heidrun and Honti, Mark and Istvanovics, Vera and Jones, Ian D. and McBride, Chris G. and Schmidt, Silke Regina and Seekell, David and Staehr, Peter A. and Guangwei, Zhu}, title = {Wind and trophic status explain within and among-lake variability of algal biomass}, series = {Limnology and oceanography letters / ASLO, Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography}, volume = {3}, journal = {Limnology and oceanography letters / ASLO, Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography}, number = {6}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {2378-2242}, doi = {10.1002/lol2.10093}, pages = {409 -- 418}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Phytoplankton biomass and production regulates key aspects of freshwater ecosystems yet its variability and subsequent predictability is poorly understood. We estimated within-lake variation in biomass using high-frequency chlorophyll fluorescence data from 18 globally distributed lakes. We tested how variation in fluorescence at monthly, daily, and hourly scales was related to high-frequency variability of wind, water temperature, and radiation within lakes as well as productivity and physical attributes among lakes. Within lakes, monthly variation dominated, but combined daily and hourly variation were equivalent to that expressed monthly. Among lakes, biomass variability increased with trophic status while, within-lake biomass variation increased with increasing variability in wind speed. Our results highlight the benefits of high-frequency chlorophyll monitoring and suggest that predicted changes associated with climate, as well as ongoing cultural eutrophication, are likely to substantially increase the temporal variability of algal biomass and thus the predictability of the services it provides.}, language = {en} } @article{NeugartWiesnerReinholdFredeetal.2018, author = {Neugart, Susanne and Wiesner-Reinhold, Melanie and Frede, Katja and Jander, Elisabeth and Homann, Thomas and Rawel, Harshadrai Manilal and Schreiner, Monika and Baldermann, Susanne}, title = {Effect of Solid Biological Waste Compost on the Metabolite Profile of Brassica rapa ssp chinensis}, series = {Frontiers in plant science : FPLS}, volume = {9}, journal = {Frontiers in plant science : FPLS}, publisher = {Frontiers Media}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {1664-462X}, doi = {10.3389/fpls.2018.00305}, pages = {13}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Large quantities of biological waste are generated at various steps within the food production chain and a great utilization potential for this solid biological waste exists apart from the current main usage for the feedstuff sector. It remains unclear how the usage of biological waste as compost modulates plant metabolites. We investigated the effect of biological waste of the processing of coffee, aronia, and hop added to soil on the plant metabolite profile by means of liquid chromatography in pak choi sprouts. Here we demonstrate that the solid biological waste composts induced specific changes in the metabolite profiles and the changes are depending on the type of the organic residues and its concentration in soil. The targeted analysis of selected plant metabolites, associated with health beneficial properties of the Brassicaceae family, revealed increased concentrations of carotenoids (up to 3.2-fold) and decreased amounts of glucosinolates (up to 4.7-fold) as well as phenolic compounds (up to 1.5-fold).}, language = {en} } @article{JobeLiBookhagenetal.2018, author = {Jobe, Jessica Ann Thompson and Li, Tao and Bookhagen, Bodo and Chen, Jie and Burbank, Douglas W.}, title = {Dating growth strata and basin fill by combining Al-26/Be-10 burial dating and magnetostratigraphy}, series = {Lithosphere}, volume = {10}, journal = {Lithosphere}, number = {6}, publisher = {American Institute of Physics}, address = {Boulder}, issn = {1941-8264}, doi = {10.1130/L727.1}, pages = {806 -- 828}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Cosmogenic burial dating enables dating of coarse-grained, Pliocene-Pleistocene sedimentary units that are typically difficult to date with traditional methods, such as magnetostratigraphy. In the actively deforming western Tarim Basin in NW China, Pliocene-Pleistocene conglomerates were dated at eight sites, integrating Al-26/Be-10 burial dating with previously published magnetostratigraphic sections. These samples were collected from growth strata on the flanks of growing folds and from sedimentary units beneath active faults to place timing constraints on the initiation of deformation of structures within the basin and on shortening rates on active faults. These new basin-fill and growthstrata ages document the late Neogene and Quaternary growth of the Pamir and Tian Shan orogens between >5 and 1 Ma and delineate the eastward propagation of deformation at rates up to 115 km/m.y. and basinward growth of both mountain belts at rates up to 12 km/m.y.}, language = {en} } @article{WengLuedekeZempetal.2018, author = {Weng, Wei and L{\"u}deke, Matthias K. B. and Zemp, Delphine Clara and Lakes, Tobia and Kropp, J{\"u}rgen}, title = {Aerial and surface rivers}, series = {Hydrology and earth system sciences : HESS}, volume = {22}, journal = {Hydrology and earth system sciences : HESS}, number = {1}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1027-5606}, doi = {10.5194/hess-22-911-2018}, pages = {911 -- 927}, year = {2018}, abstract = {The abundant evapotranspiration provided by the Amazon forests is an important component of the hydrological cycle, both regionally and globally. Since the last century, deforestation and expanding agricultural activities have been changing the ecosystem and its provision of moisture to the atmosphere. However, it remains uncertain how the ongoing land use change will influence rainfall, runoff, and water availability as findings from previous studies differ. Using moisture tracking experiments based on observational data, we provide a spatially detailed analysis recognizing potential teleconnection between source and sink regions of atmospheric moisture. We apply land use scenarios in upwind moisture sources and quantify the corresponding rainfall and runoff changes in downwind moisture sinks. We find spatially varying responses of water regimes to land use changes, which may explain the diverse results from previous studies. Parts of the Peruvian Amazon and western Bolivia are identified as the sink areas most sensitive to land use change in the Amazon and we highlight the current water stress by Amazonian land use change on these areas in terms of the water availability. Furthermore, we also identify the influential source areas where land use change may considerably reduce a given target sink's water reception (from our example of the Ucayali River basin outlet, rainfall by 5-12 \% and runoff by 19-50 \% according to scenarios). Sensitive sinks and influential sources are therefore suggested as hotspots for achieving sustainable land-water management.}, language = {en} } @article{RitterAngelesBurgosBoeckmannetal.2018, author = {Ritter, Christoph and {\´A}ngeles Burgos, Mar{\´i}a and B{\"o}ckmann, Christine and Mateos, David and Lisok, Justyna and Markowicz, Krzysztof M. and Moroni, Beatrice and Cappelletti, David and Udisti, Roberto and Maturilli, Marion and Neuber, Roland}, title = {Microphysical properties and radiative impact of an intense biomass burning aerosol event measured over Ny-angstrom lesund, Spitsbergen in July 2015}, series = {Tellus - Series B, Chemical and Physical Meteorology}, volume = {70}, journal = {Tellus - Series B, Chemical and Physical Meteorology}, publisher = {Routledge, Taylor \& Francis Group}, address = {Abingdon}, issn = {1600-0889}, doi = {10.1080/16000889.2018.1539618}, pages = {23}, year = {2018}, abstract = {In this work, an evaluation of an intense biomass burning event observed over Ny-angstrom lesund (Spitsbergen, European Arctic) in July 2015 is presented. Data from the multi-wavelengths Raman-lidar KARL, a sun photometer and radiosonde measurements are used to derive some microphysical properties of the biomass burning aerosol as size distribution, refractive index and single scattering albedo at different relative humidities. Predominantly particles in the accumulation mode have been found with a bi-modal distribution and dominance of the smaller mode. Above 80\% relative humidity, hygroscopic growth in terms of an increase of particle diameter and a slight decrease of the index of refraction (real and imaginary part) has been found. Values of the single scattering albedo around 0.9 both at 355nm and 532nm indicate some absorption by the aerosol. Values of the lidar ratio are around 26sr for 355nm and around 50sr for 532nm, almost independent of the relative humidity. Further, data from the photometer and surface radiation values from the local baseline surface radiation network (BSRN) have been applied to derive the radiative impact of the biomass burning event purely from observational data by comparison with a clear background day. We found a strong cooling for the visible radiation and a slight warming in the infra-red. The net aerosol forcing, derived by comparison with a clear background day purely from observational data, obtained a value of -95 W/m(2) per unit AOD500.}, language = {en} } @article{MetinNguyenVietDungSchroeteretal.2018, author = {Metin, Ayse Duha and Nguyen Viet Dung, and Schr{\"o}ter, Kai and Guse, Bj{\"o}rn and Apel, Heiko and Kreibich, Heidi and Vorogushyn, Sergiy and Merz, Bruno}, title = {How do changes along the risk chain affect flood risk?}, series = {Natural hazards and earth system sciences}, volume = {18}, journal = {Natural hazards and earth system sciences}, number = {11}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1561-8633}, doi = {10.5194/nhess-18-3089-2018}, pages = {3089 -- 3108}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Flood risk is impacted by a range of physical and socio-economic processes. Hence, the quantification of flood risk ideally considers the complete flood risk chain, from atmospheric processes through catchment and river system processes to damage mechanisms in the affected areas. Although it is generally accepted that a multitude of changes along the risk chain can occur and impact flood risk, there is a lack of knowledge of how and to what extent changes in influencing factors propagate through the chain and finally affect flood risk. To fill this gap, we present a comprehensive sensitivity analysis which considers changes in all risk components, i.e. changes in climate, catchment, river system, land use, assets, and vulnerability. The application of this framework to the mesoscale Mulde catchment in Germany shows that flood risk can vary dramatically as a consequence of plausible change scenarios. It further reveals that components that have not received much attention, such as changes in dike systems or in vulnerability, may outweigh changes in often investigated components, such as climate. Although the specific results are conditional on the case study area and the selected assumptions, they emphasize the need for a broader consideration of potential drivers of change in a comprehensive way. Hence, our approach contributes to a better understanding of how the different risk components influence the overall flood risk.}, language = {en} } @article{FosterHeindelRichozetal.2019, author = {Foster, William J. and Heindel, Katrin and Richoz, Sylvain and Gliwa, Jana and Lehrmann, Daniel J. and Baud, Aymon and Kolar-Jurkovsek, Tea and Aljinovic, Dunja and Jurkovsek, Bogdan and Korn, Dieter and Martindale, Rowan C. and Peckmann, J{\"o}rn}, title = {Suppressed competitive exclusion enabled the proliferation of Permian/Triassic boundary microbialites}, series = {The Depositional Record : the open access journal of the International Association of Sedimentologists}, volume = {6}, journal = {The Depositional Record : the open access journal of the International Association of Sedimentologists}, number = {1}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {2055-4877}, doi = {10.1002/dep2.97}, pages = {62 -- 74}, year = {2019}, abstract = {During the earliest Triassic microbial mats flourished in the photic zones of marginal seas, generating widespread microbialites. It has been suggested that anoxic conditions in shallow marine environments, linked to the end-Permian mass extinction, limited mat-inhibiting metazoans allowing for this microbialite expansion. The presence of a diverse suite of proxies indicating oxygenated shallow sea-water conditions (metazoan fossils, biomarkers and redox proxies) from microbialite successions have, however, challenged the inference of anoxic conditions. Here, the distribution and faunal composition of Griesbachian microbialites from China, Iran, Turkey, Armenia, Slovenia and Hungary are investigated to determine the factors that allowed microbialite-forming microbial mats to flourish following the end-Permian crisis. The results presented here show that Neotethyan microbial buildups record a unique faunal association due to the presence of keratose sponges, while the Palaeotethyan buildups have a higher proportion of molluscs and the foraminifera Earlandia. The distribution of the faunal components within the microbial fabrics suggests that, except for the keratose sponges and some microconchids, most of the metazoans were transported into the microbial framework via wave currents. The presence of both microbialites and metazoan associations were limited to oxygenated settings, suggesting that a factor other than anoxia resulted in a relaxation of ecological constraints following the mass extinction event. It is inferred that the end-Permian mass extinction event decreased the diversity and abundance of metazoans to the point of significantly reducing competition, allowing photosynthesis-based microbial mats to flourish in shallow water settings and resulting in the formation of widespread microbialites.}, language = {en} } @article{BielcikAguilarTriguerosLakovicetal.2019, author = {Bielcik, Milos and Aguilar-Trigueros, Carlos A. and Lakovic, Milica and Jeltsch, Florian and Rillig, Matthias C.}, title = {The role of active movement in fungal ecology and community assembly}, series = {Movement Ecology}, volume = {7}, journal = {Movement Ecology}, number = {1}, publisher = {BMC}, address = {London}, issn = {2051-3933}, doi = {10.1186/s40462-019-0180-6}, pages = {12}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Movement ecology aims to provide common terminology and an integrative framework of movement research across all groups of organisms. Yet such work has focused on unitary organisms so far, and thus the important group of filamentous fungi has not been considered in this context. With the exception of spore dispersal, movement in filamentous fungi has not been integrated into the movement ecology field. At the same time, the field of fungal ecology has been advancing research on topics like informed growth, mycelial translocations, or fungal highways using its own terminology and frameworks, overlooking the theoretical developments within movement ecology. We provide a conceptual and terminological framework for interdisciplinary collaboration between these two disciplines, and show how both can benefit from closer links: We show how placing the knowledge from fungal biology and ecology into the framework of movement ecology can inspire both theoretical and empirical developments, eventually leading towards a better understanding of fungal ecology and community assembly. Conversely, by a greater focus on movement specificities of filamentous fungi, movement ecology stands to benefit from the challenge to evolve its concepts and terminology towards even greater universality. We show how our concept can be applied for other modular organisms (such as clonal plants and slime molds), and how this can lead towards comparative studies with the relationship between organismal movement and ecosystems in the focus.}, language = {en} } @article{ZollDiehlSiebert2019, author = {Zoll, Felix and Diehl, Katharina and Siebert, Rosemarie}, title = {Integrating sustainability goals in innovation processes}, series = {Sustainability}, volume = {11}, journal = {Sustainability}, number = {14}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2071-1050}, doi = {10.3390/su11143761}, pages = {15}, year = {2019}, abstract = {The innovative dual-purpose chicken approach aims at contributing to the transition towards sustainable poultry production by avoiding the culling of male chickens. To successfully integrate sustainability aspects into innovation, goal congruency among actors and clearly communicating the added value within the actor network and to consumers is needed. The challenge of identifying common sustainability goals calls for decision support tools. The objectives of our research were to investigate whether the tool could assist in improving communication and marketing with respect to sustainability and optimizing the value chain organization. Three actor groups participated in the tool application, in which quantitative and qualitative data were collected. The results showed that there were manifold sustainability goals within the innovation network, but only some goals overlapped, and the perception of their implementation also diverged. While easily marketable goals such as 'animal welfare' were perceived as being largely implemented, economic goals were prioritized less often, and the implementation was perceived as being rather low. By visualizing congruencies and differences in the goals, the tool helped identify fields of action, such as improved information flows and prompted thinking processes. We conclude that the tool is useful for managing complex decision processes with several actors involved.}, language = {en} } @article{Buerger2019, author = {B{\"u}rger, Gerd}, title = {A seamless filter for daily to seasonal forecasts, with applications to Iran and Brazil}, series = {Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society}, volume = {146}, journal = {Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society}, number = {726}, publisher = {WILEY-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, pages = {14}, year = {2019}, abstract = {A digital filter is introduced which treats the problem of predictability versus time averaging in a continuous, seamless manner. This seamless filter (SF) is characterized by a unique smoothing rule that determines the strength of smoothing in dependence on lead time. The rule needs to be specified beforehand, either by expert knowledge or by user demand. As a result, skill curves are obtained that allow a predictability assessment across a whole range of time-scales, from daily to seasonal, in a uniform manner. The SF is applied to downscaled SEAS5 ensemble forecasts for two focus regions in or near the tropical belt, the river basins of the Karun in Iran and the Sao Francisco in Brazil. Both are characterized by strong seasonality and semi-aridity, so that predictability across various time-scales is in high demand. Among other things, it is found that from the start of the water year (autumn), areal precipitation is predictable with good skill for the Karun basin two and a half months ahead; for the Sao Francisco it is only one month, longer-term prediction skill is just above the critical level.}, language = {en} } @article{AyzelIzhitskiy2019, author = {Ayzel, Georgy and Izhitskiy, Alexander}, title = {Climate Change Impact Assessment on Freshwater Inflow into the Small Aral Sea}, series = {Water}, volume = {11}, journal = {Water}, number = {11}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2073-4441}, doi = {10.3390/w11112377}, pages = {19}, year = {2019}, abstract = {During the last few decades, the rapid separation of the Small Aral Sea from the isolated basin has changed its hydrological and ecological conditions tremendously. In the present study, we developed and validated the hybrid model for the Syr Darya River basin based on a combination of state-of-the-art hydrological and machine learning models. Climate change impact on freshwater inflow into the Small Aral Sea for the projection period 2007-2099 has been quantified based on the developed hybrid model and bias corrected and downscaled meteorological projections simulated by four General Circulation Models (GCM) for each of three Representative Concentration Pathway scenarios (RCP). The developed hybrid model reliably simulates freshwater inflow for the historical period with a Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency of 0.72 and a Kling-Gupta efficiency of 0.77. Results of the climate change impact assessment showed that the freshwater inflow projections produced by different GCMs are misleading by providing contradictory results for the projection period. However, we identified that the relative runoff changes are expected to be more pronounced in the case of more aggressive RCP scenarios. The simulated projections of freshwater inflow provide a basis for further assessment of climate change impacts on hydrological and ecological conditions of the Small Aral Sea in the 21st Century.}, language = {en} } @article{MartinLopezLeisterCruzetal.2019, author = {Martin-Lopez, Berta and Leister, Ines and Cruz, Pedro Lorenzo and Palomo, Ignacio and Gret-Regamey, Adrienne and Harrison, Paula A. and Lavorel, Sandra and Locatelli, Bruno and Luque, Sandra and Walz, Ariane}, title = {Nature's contributions to people in mountains}, series = {PLoS one}, volume = {14}, journal = {PLoS one}, number = {6}, publisher = {PLoS}, address = {San Fransisco}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0217847}, pages = {24}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Mountains play a key role in the provision of nature's contributions to people (NCP) worldwide that support societies' quality of life. Simultaneously, mountains are threatened by multiple drivers of change. Due to the complex interlinkages between biodiversity, quality of life and drivers of change, research on NCP in mountains requires interdisciplinary approaches. In this study, we used the conceptual framework of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) and the notion of NCP to determine to what extent previous research on ecosystem services in mountains has explored the different components of the IPBES conceptual framework. We conducted a systematic review of articles on ecosystem services in mountains published up to 2016 using the Web of Science and Scopus databases. Descriptive statistical and network analyses were conducted to explore the level of research on the components of the IPBES framework and their interactions. Our results show that research has gradually become more interdisciplinary by studying higher number of NCP, dimensions of quality of life, and indirect drivers of change. Yet, research focusing on biodiversity, regulating NCP and direct drivers has decreased over time. Furthermore, despite the fact that research on NCP in mountains becoming more policy-oriented over time, mainly in relation to payments for ecosystem services, institutional responses remained underexplored in the reviewed studies. Finally, we discuss the relevant knowledge gaps that should be addressed in future research in order to contribute to IPBES.}, language = {en} } @article{SchoonoverGretRegameyMetzgeretal.2019, author = {Schoonover, Heather A. and Gret-Regamey, Adrienne and Metzger, Marc J. and Ruiz-Frau, Ana and Santos-Reis, Margarida and Scholte, Samantha S. K. and Walz, Ariane and Nicholas, Kimberly A.}, title = {Creating space, aligning motivations, and building trust}, series = {Ecology and society : a journal of integrative science for resilience and sustainability}, volume = {24}, journal = {Ecology and society : a journal of integrative science for resilience and sustainability}, number = {1}, publisher = {Resilience Alliance}, address = {Wolfville}, issn = {1708-3087}, doi = {10.5751/ES-10061-240111}, pages = {13}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Ecosystem services inherently involve people, whose values help define the benefits of nature's services. It is thus important for researchers to involve stakeholders in ecosystem services research. However, a simple and practicable framework to guide such engagement, and in particular to help researchers anticipate and consider key issues and challenges, has not been well explored. Here, we use experience from the 12 case studies in the European Operational Potential of Ecosystem Research Applications (OPERAs) project to propose a stakeholder engagement framework comprising three key elements: creating space, aligning motivations, and building trust. We argue that involving stakeholders in research demands thoughtful reflection from the researchers about what kind of space they want to create, including if and how they want to bring different interests together, how much space they want to allow for critical discussion, and whether there is a role for particular stakeholders to serve as conduits between others. In addition, understanding their own motivations—including values, knowledge, goals, and desired benefits—will help researchers decide when and how to involve stakeholders, identify areas of common ground and potential disagreement, frame the project appropriately, set expectations, and ensure each party is able to see benefits of engaging with each other. Finally, building relationships with stakeholders can be difficult but considering the roles of existing relationships, time, approach, reputation, and belonging can help build mutual trust. Although the three key elements and the paths between them can play out differently depending on the particular research project, we suggest that a research design that considers how to create the space in which researchers and stakeholders will meet, align motivations between researchers and stakeholders, and build mutual trust will help foster productive researcher-stakeholder relationships.}, language = {en} } @article{MusterRileyRothetal.2019, author = {Muster, Sina and Riley, William J. and Roth, Kurt and Langer, Moritz and Aleina, Fabio Cresto and Koven, Charles D. and Lange, Stephan and Bartsch, Annett and Grosse, Guido and Wilson, Cathy J. and Jones, Benjamin M. and Boike, Julia}, title = {Size distributions of arctic waterbodies reveal consistent relations in their statistical moments in space and time}, series = {Frontiers in Earth Science}, volume = {7}, journal = {Frontiers in Earth Science}, publisher = {Frontiers Research Foundation}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {2296-6463}, doi = {10.3389/feart.2019.00005}, pages = {15}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Arctic lowlands are characterized by large numbers of small waterbodies, which are known to affect surface energy budgets and the global carbon cycle. Statistical analysis of their size distributions has been hindered by the shortage of observations at sufficiently high spatial resolutions. This situation has now changed with the high-resolution (<5 m) circum-Arctic Permafrost Region Pond and Lake (PeRL) database recently becoming available. We have used this database to make the first consistent, high-resolution estimation of Arctic waterbody size distributions, with surface areas ranging from 0.0001 km(2) (100 m(2)) to 1 km(2). We found that the size distributions varied greatly across the thirty study regions investigated and that there was no single universal size distribution function (including power-law distribution functions) appropriate across all of the study regions. We did, however, find close relationships between the statistical moments (mean, variance, and skewness) of the waterbody size distributions from different study regions. Specifically, we found that the spatial variance increased linearly with mean waterbody size (R-2 = 0.97, p < 2.2e-16) and that the skewness decreased approximately hyperbolically. We have demonstrated that these relationships (1) hold across the 30 Arctic study regions covering a variety of (bio)climatic and permafrost zones, (2) hold over time in two of these study regions for which multi-decadal satellite imagery is available, and (3) can be reproduced by simulating rising water levels in a high-resolution digital elevation model. The consistent spatial and temporal relationships between the statistical moments of the waterbody size distributions underscore the dominance of topographic controls in lowland permafrost areas. These results provide motivation for further analyses of the factors involved in waterbody development and spatial distribution and for investigations into the possibility of using statistical moments to predict future hydrologic dynamics in the Arctic.}, language = {en} } @article{BarbosadeLiraRabeloCoelhoetal.2019, author = {Barbosa, Luis Romero and de Lira, Nicholas Borges and Rabelo Coelho, Victor Hugo and Bernard Passerat de Silans, Alain Marie and Gadelha, Andre Nobrega and Almeida, Cristiano das Neves}, title = {Stability of Soil Moisture Patterns Retrieved at Different Temporal Resolutions in a Tropical Watershed}, series = {Revista brasileira de ciencias do solo}, volume = {43}, journal = {Revista brasileira de ciencias do solo}, publisher = {Sociedade Brasileira de Ciencia do Solo}, address = {Vicosa}, issn = {0100-0683}, doi = {10.1590/18069657rbcs20180236}, pages = {21}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Above and underground hydrological processes depend on soil moisture (SM) variability, driven by different environmental factors that seldom are well-monitored, leading to a misunderstanding of soil water temporal patterns. This study investigated the stability of the SM temporal dynamics to different monitoring temporal resolutions around the border between two soil types in a tropical watershed. Four locations were instrumented in a small-scale watershed (5.84 km(2)) within the tropical coast of Northeast Brazil, encompassing different soil types (Espodossolo Humiluvico or Carbic Podzol, and Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo or Haplic Acrisol), land covers (Atlantic Forest, bush vegetation, and grassland) and topographies (flat and moderate slope). The SM was monitored at a temporal resolution of one hour along the 2013-2014 hydrological year and then resampled a resolutions of 6 h, 12 h, 1 day, 2 days, 4 days, 7 days, and 15 days. Descriptive statistics, temporal variability, time-stability ranking, and hierarchical clustering revealed uneven associations among SM time components. The results show that the time-invariant component ruled SM temporal variability over the time-varying parcel, either at high or low temporal resolutions. Time-steps longer than 2 days affected the mean statistical metrics of the SM time-variant parcel. Additionally, SM at downstream and upstream sites behaved differently, suggesting that the temporal mean was regulated by steady soil properties (slope, restrictive layer, and soil texture), whereas their temporal anomalies were driven by climate (rainfall) and hydrogeological (groundwater level) factors. Therefore, it is concluded that around the border between tropical soil types, the distinct behaviour of time-variant and time-invariant components of SM time series reflects different combinations of their soil properties.}, language = {en} } @article{ParkBatallaBirgandetal.2019, author = {Park, Jungsu and Batalla, Ramon J. and Birgand, Francois and Esteves, Michel and Gentile, Francesco and Harrington, Joseph R. and Navratil, Oldrich and Lopez-Tarazon, Jos{\´e} Andr{\´e}s and Vericat, Damia}, title = {Influences of Catchment and River Channel Characteristics on the Magnitude and Dynamics of Storage and Re-Suspension of Fine Sediments in River Beds}, series = {Water}, volume = {11}, journal = {Water}, number = {5}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2073-4441}, doi = {10.3390/w11050878}, pages = {23}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Fine particles or sediments are one of the important variables that should be considered for the proper management of water quality and aquatic ecosystems. In the present study, the effect of catchment characteristics on the performance of an already developed model for the estimation of fine sediments dynamics between the water column and sediment bed was tested, using 13 catchments distributed worldwide. The model was calibrated to determine two optimal model parameters. The first is the filtration parameter, which represents the filtration of fine sediments through pores of the stream bed during the recession period of a flood event. The second parameter is the bed erosion parameter that represents the active layer, directly related to the re-suspension of fine sediments during a flood event. A dependency of the filtration parameter with the catchment area was observed in catchments smaller than 100 km(2), whereas no particular relationship was observed for larger catchments (>100 km(2)). In contrast, the bed erosion parameter does not show a noticeable dependency with the area or other environmental characteristics. The model estimated the mass of fine sediments released from the sediment bed to the water column during flood events in the 13 catchments within 23\% bias.}, language = {en} } @article{IrrgangLantuitGordonetal.2019, author = {Irrgang, Anna Maria and Lantuit, Hugues and Gordon, Richard R. and Piskor, Ashley and Manson, Gavin K.}, title = {Impacts of past and future coastal changes on the Yukon coast - threats for cultural sites, infrastructure, and travel routes}, series = {Arctic Science}, volume = {5}, journal = {Arctic Science}, number = {2}, publisher = {Canadian Science Publishing}, address = {Ottawa}, issn = {2368-7460}, doi = {10.1139/as-2017-0041}, pages = {107 -- 126}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Yukon's Beaufort coast, Canada, is a highly dynamic landscape. Cultural sites, infrastructure, and travel routes used by the local population are particularly vulnerable to coastal erosion. To assess threats to these phenomena, rates of shoreline change for a 210 km length of the coast were analyzed and combined with socioeconomic and cultural information. Rates of shoreline change were derived from aerial and satellite imagery from the 1950s, 1970s, 1990s, and 2011. Using these data, conservative (S1) and dynamic (S2) shoreline projections were constructed to predict shoreline positions for the year 2100. The locations of cultural features in the archives of a Parks Canada database, the Yukon Archaeological Program, and as reported in other literature were combined with projected shoreline position changes. Between 2011 and 2100, approximately 850 ha (S1) and 2660 ha (S2) may erode, resulting in a loss of 45\% (S1) to 61\% (S2) of all cultural features by 2100. The last large, actively used camp area and two nearshore landing strips will likely be threatened by future coastal processes. Future coastal erosion and sedimentation processes are expected to increasingly threaten cultural sites and influence travelling and living along the Yukon coast.}, language = {en} } @article{CortiCioniFranceschinietal.2019, author = {Corti, Giacomo and Cioni, Raffaello and Franceschini, Zara and Sani, Federico and Scaillet, Stephane and Molin, Paola and Isola, Ilaria and Mazzarini, Francesco and Brune, Sascha and Keir, Derek and Erbello Doelesso, Asfaw and Muluneh, Ameha and Illsley-Kemp, Finnigan and Glerum, Anne}, title = {Aborted propagation of the Ethiopian rift caused by linkage with the Kenyan rift}, series = {Nature Communications}, volume = {10}, journal = {Nature Communications}, publisher = {Nature Publ. Group}, address = {London}, issn = {2041-1723}, doi = {10.1038/s41467-019-09335-2}, pages = {11}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Continental rift systems form by propagation of isolated rift segments that interact, and eventually evolve into continuous zones of deformation. This process impacts many aspects of rifting including rift morphology at breakup, and eventual ocean-ridge segmentation. Yet, rift segment growth and interaction remain enigmatic. Here we present geological data from the poorly documented Ririba rift (South Ethiopia) that reveals how two major sectors of the East African rift, the Kenyan and Ethiopian rifts, interact. We show that the Ririba rift formed from the southward propagation of the Ethiopian rift during the Pliocene but this propagation was short-lived and aborted close to the Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary. Seismicity data support the abandonment of laterally offset, overlapping tips of the Ethiopian and Kenyan rifts. Integration with new numerical models indicates that rift abandonment resulted from progressive focusing of the tectonic and magmatic activity into an oblique, throughgoing rift zone of near pure extension directly connecting the rift sectors.}, language = {en} } @article{FaireyTimmermanSudoetal.2019, author = {Fairey, Brenton J. and Timmerman, Martin Jan and Sudo, Masafumi and Tsikos, Harilaos}, title = {The role of hydrothermal activity in the formation of Karst-hosted manganese deposits of the Postmasburg Mn Field, Northern Cape Province, South Africa}, series = {Minerals}, volume = {9}, journal = {Minerals}, number = {7}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2075-163X}, doi = {10.3390/min9070408}, pages = {28}, year = {2019}, abstract = {The Postmasburg Manganese Field (PMF), Northern Cape Province, South Africa, once represented one of the largest sources of manganese ore worldwide. Two belts of manganese ore deposits have been distinguished in the PMF, namely the Western Belt of ferruginous manganese ores and the Eastern Belt of siliceous manganese ores. Prevailing models of ore formation in these two belts invoke karstification of manganese-rich dolomites and residual accumulation of manganese wad which later underwent diagenetic and low-grade metamorphic processes. For the most part, the role of hydrothermal processes and metasomatic alteration towards ore formation has not been adequately discussed. Here we report an abundance of common and some rare Al-, Na-, K- and Ba-bearing minerals, particularly aegirine, albite, microcline, banalsite, serandite-pectolite, paragonite and natrolite in Mn ores of the PMF, indicative of hydrothermal influence. Enrichments in Na, K and/or Ba in the ores are generally on a percentage level for most samples analysed through bulk-rock techniques. The presence of As-rich tokyoite also suggests the presence of As and V in the hydrothermal fluid. The fluid was likely oxidized and alkaline in nature, akin to a mature basinal brine. Various replacement textures, particularly of Na- and K- rich minerals by Ba-bearing phases, suggest sequential deposition of gangue as well as ore-minerals from the hydrothermal fluid, with Ba phases being deposited at a later stage. The stratigraphic variability of the studied ores and their deviation from the strict classification of ferruginous and siliceous ores in the literature, suggests that a re-evaluation of genetic models is warranted. New Ar-Ar ages for K-feldspars suggest a late Neoproterozoic timing for hydrothermal activity. This corroborates previous geochronological evidence for regional hydrothermal activity that affected Mn ores at the PMF but also, possibly, the high-grade Mn ores of the Kalahari Manganese Field to the north. A revised, all-encompassing model for the development of the manganese deposits of the PMF is then proposed, whereby the source of metals is attributed to underlying carbonate rocks beyond the Reivilo Formation of the Campbellrand Subgroup. The main process by which metals are primarily accumulated is attributed to karstification of the dolomitic substrate. The overlying Asbestos Hills Subgroup banded iron formation (BIF) is suggested as a potential source of alkali metals, which also provides a mechanism for leaching of these BIFs to form high-grade residual iron ore deposits.}, language = {en} } @article{SchmidtNendelFunketal.2019, author = {Schmidt, Martin and Nendel, Claas and Funk, Roger and Mitchell, Matthew G. E. and Lischeid, Gunnar}, title = {Modeling Yields Response to Shading in the Field-to-Forest Transition Zones in Heterogeneous Landscapes}, series = {Agriculture}, volume = {9}, journal = {Agriculture}, number = {1}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2077-0472}, doi = {10.3390/agriculture9010006}, pages = {15}, year = {2019}, abstract = {In crop modeling and yield predictions, the heterogeneity of agricultural landscapes is usually not accounted for. This heterogeneity often arises from landscape elements like forests, hedges, or single trees and shrubs that cast shadows. Shading from forested areas or shrubs has effects on transpiration, temperature, and soil moisture, all of which affect the crop yield in the adjacent arable land. Transitional gradients of solar irradiance can be described as a function of the distance to the zero line (edge), the cardinal direction, and the height of trees. The magnitude of yield reduction in transition zones is highly influenced by solar irradiance-a factor that is not yet implemented in crop growth models on a landscape level. We present a spatially explicit model for shading caused by forested areas, in agricultural landscapes. With increasing distance to forest, solar irradiance and yield increase. Our model predicts that the shading effect from the forested areas occurs up to 15 m from the forest edge, for the simulated wheat yields, and up to 30 m, for simulated maize. Moreover, we estimated the spatial extent of transition zones, to calculate the regional yield reduction caused by shading of the forest edges, which amounted to 5\% to 8\% in an exemplary region.}, language = {en} } @article{FreymarkBottCacaceetal.2019, author = {Freymark, Jessica and Bott, Judith and Cacace, Mauro and Ziegler, Moritz 0. and Scheck-Wenderoth, Magdalena}, title = {Influence of the Main Border Faults on the 3D Hydraulic Field of the Central Upper Rhine Graben}, series = {Geofluids}, journal = {Geofluids}, publisher = {Wiley-Hindawi}, address = {London}, issn = {1468-8115}, doi = {10.1155/2019/7520714}, pages = {21}, year = {2019}, abstract = {The Upper Rhine Graben (URG) is an active rift with a high geothermal potential. Despite being a well-studied area, the three-dimensional interaction of the main controlling factors of the thermal and hydraulic regime is still not fully understood. Therefore, we have used a data-based 3D structural model of the lithological configuration of the central URG for some conceptual numerical experiments of 3D coupled simulations of fluid and heat transport. To assess the influence of the main faults bordering the graben on the hydraulic and the deep thermal field, we carried out a sensitivity analysis on fault width and permeability. Depending on the assigned width and permeability of the main border faults, fluid velocity and temperatures are affected only in the direct proximity of the respective border faults. Hence, the hydraulic characteristics of these major faults do not significantly influence the graben-wide groundwater flow patterns. Instead, the different scenarios tested provide a consistent image of the main characteristics of fluid and heat transport as they have in common: (1) a topography-driven basin-wide fluid flow perpendicular to the rift axis from the graben shoulders to the rift center, (2) a N/NE-directed flow parallel to the rift axis in the center of the rift and, (3) a pronounced upflow of hot fluids along the rift central axis, where the streams from both sides of the rift merge. This upflow axis is predicted to occur predominantly in the center of the URG (northern and southern model area) and shifted towards the eastern boundary fault (central model area).}, language = {en} } @article{DidovetsKrysanovaBuergeretal.2019, author = {Didovets, Iulii and Krysanova, Valentina and B{\"u}rger, Gerd and Snizhko, Sergiy and Balabukh, Vira and Bronstert, Axel}, title = {Climate change impact on regional floods in the Carpathian region}, series = {Journal of hydrology : Regional studies}, volume = {22}, journal = {Journal of hydrology : Regional studies}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {2214-5818}, doi = {10.1016/j.ejrh.2019.01.002}, pages = {14}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Study region: Tisza and Prut catchments, originating on the slopes of the Carpathian mountains. Study focus: The study reported here investigates (i) climate change impacts on flood risk in the region, and (ii) uncertainty related to hydrological modelling, downscaling techniques and climate projections. The climate projections used in the study were derived from five GCMs, downscaled either dynamically with RCMs or with the statistical downscaling model XDS. The resulting climate change scenarios were applied to drive the eco-hydrological model SWIM, which was calibrated and validated for the catchments in advance using observed climate and hydrological data. The changes in the 30-year flood hazards and 98 and 95 percentiles of discharge were evaluated for the far future period (2071-2100) in comparison with the reference period (1981-2010). New hydrological insights for the region: The majority of model outputs under RCP 4.5 show a small to strong increase of the 30-year flood level in the Tisza ranging from 4.5\% to 62\%, and moderate increase in the Prut ranging from 11\% to 22\%. The impact results under RCP 8.5 are more uncertain with changes in both directions due to high uncertainties in GCM-RCM climate projections, downscaling methods and the low density of available climate stations.}, language = {en} } @article{vonSpechtOeztuerkVehetal.2019, author = {von Specht, Sebastian and {\"O}zt{\"u}rk, Ugur and Veh, Georg and Cotton, Fabrice and Korup, Oliver}, title = {Effects of finite source rupture on landslide triggering}, series = {Solid earth}, volume = {10}, journal = {Solid earth}, number = {2}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1869-9510}, doi = {10.5194/se-10-463-2019}, pages = {463 -- 486}, year = {2019}, abstract = {The propagation of a seismic rupture on a fault introduces spatial variations in the seismic wave field surrounding the fault. This directivity effect results in larger shaking amplitudes in the rupture propagation direction. Its seismic radiation pattern also causes amplitude variations between the strike-normal and strike-parallel components of horizontal ground motion. We investigated the landslide response to these effects during the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake (M-w 7.1) in central Kyushu (Japan). Although the distribution of some 1500 earthquake-triggered landslides as a function of rupture distance is consistent with the observed Arias intensity, the landslides were more concentrated to the northeast of the southwest-northeast striking rupture. We examined several landslide susceptibility factors: hillslope inclination, the median amplification factor (MAF) of ground shaking, lithology, land cover, and topographic wetness. None of these factors sufficiently explains the landslide distribution or orientation (aspect), although the landslide head scarps have an elevated hillslope inclination and MAF. We propose a new physics-based ground-motion model (GMM) that accounts for the seismic rupture effects, and we demonstrate that the low-frequency seismic radiation pattern is consistent with the overall landslide distribution. Its spatial pattern is influenced by the rupture directivity effect, whereas landslide aspect is influenced by amplitude variations between the fault-normal and fault-parallel motion at frequencies < 2 Hz. This azimuth dependence implies that comparable landslide concentrations can occur at different distances from the rupture. This quantitative link between the prevalent landslide aspect and the low-frequency seismic radiation pattern can improve coseismic landslide hazard assessment.}, language = {en} } @article{HaberPohlmeierToetzkeLehmannetal.2019, author = {Haber-Pohlmeier, Sabina and T{\"o}tzke, Christian and Lehmann, E. and Kardjilov, Nikolay and Pohlmeier, A. and Oswald, Sascha}, title = {Combination of magnetic resonance imaging and neutron computed tomography for three-dimensional rhizosphere imaging}, series = {Vadose zone journal}, volume = {18}, journal = {Vadose zone journal}, number = {1}, publisher = {Soil Science Society of America}, address = {Madison}, issn = {1539-1663}, doi = {10.2136/vzj2018.09.0166}, pages = {11}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Core Ideas 3D MRI relaxation time maps reflect water mobility in root, rhizosphere, and soil. 3D NCT water content maps of the same plant complement relaxation time maps. The relaxation time T1 decreases from soil to root, whereas water content increases. Parameters together indicate modification of rhizosphere pore space by gel phase. The zone of reduced T1 corresponds to the zone remaining dry after rewetting. In situ investigations of the rhizosphere require high-resolution imaging techniques, which allow a look into the optically opaque soil compartment. We present the novel combination of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neutron computed tomography (NCT) to achieve synergistic information such as water mobility in terms of three-dimensional (3D) relaxation time maps and total water content maps. Besides a stationary MRI scanner for relaxation time mapping, we used a transportable MRI system on site in the NCT facility to capture rhizosphere properties before desiccation and after subsequent rewetting. First, we addressed two questions using water-filled test capillaries between 0.1 and 5 mm: which root diameters can still be detected by both methods, and to what extent are defined interfaces blurred by these imaging techniques? Going to real root system architecture, we demonstrated the sensitivity of the transportable MRI device by co-registration with NCT and additional validation using X-ray computed tomography. Under saturated conditions, we observed for the rhizosphere in situ a zone with shorter T1 relaxation time across a distance of about 1 mm that was not caused by reduced water content, as proven by successive NCT measurements. We conclude that the effective pore size in the pore network had changed, induced by a gel phase. After rewetting, NCT images showed a dry zone persisting while the MRI intensity inside the root increased considerably, indicating water uptake from the surrounding bulk soil through the still hydrophobic rhizosphere. Overall, combining NCT and MRI allows a more detailed analysis of the rhizosphere's functioning.}, language = {en} } @article{JingHesseKumaretal.2019, author = {Jing, Miao and Hesse, Falk and Kumar, Rohini and Kolditz, Olaf and Kalbacher, Thomas and Attinger, Sabine}, title = {Influence of input and parameter uncertainty on the prediction of catchment-scale groundwater travel time distributions}, series = {Hydrology and earth system sciences : HESS}, volume = {23}, journal = {Hydrology and earth system sciences : HESS}, number = {1}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1027-5606}, doi = {10.5194/hess-23-171-2019}, pages = {171 -- 190}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Groundwater travel time distributions (TTDs) provide a robust description of the subsurface mixing behavior and hydrological response of a subsurface system. Lagrangian particle tracking is often used to derive the groundwater TTDs. The reliability of this approach is subjected to the uncertainty of external forcings, internal hydraulic properties, and the interplay between them. Here, we evaluate the uncertainty of catchment groundwater TTDs in an agricultural catchment using a 3-D groundwater model with an overall focus on revealing the relationship between external forcing, internal hydraulic properties, and TTD predictions. Eight recharge realizations are sampled from a high-resolution dataset of land surface fluxes and states. Calibration-constrained hydraulic conductivity fields (Ks fields) are stochastically generated using the null-space Monte Carlo (NSMC) method for each recharge realization. The random walk particle tracking (RWPT) method is used to track the pathways of particles and compute travel times. Moreover, an analytical model under the random sampling (RS) assumption is fit against the numerical solutions, serving as a reference for the mixing behavior of the model domain. The StorAge Selection (SAS) function is used to interpret the results in terms of quantifying the systematic preference for discharging young/old water. The simulation results reveal the primary effect of recharge on the predicted mean travel time (MTT). The different realizations of calibration-constrained Ks fields moderately magnify or attenuate the predicted MTTs. The analytical model does not properly replicate the numerical solution, and it underestimates the mean travel time. Simulated SAS functions indicate an overall preference for young water for all realizations. The spatial pattern of recharge controls the shape and breadth of simulated TTDs and SAS functions by changing the spatial distribution of particles' pathways. In conclusion, overlooking the spatial nonuniformity and uncertainty of input (forcing) will result in biased travel time predictions. We also highlight the worth of reliable observations in reducing predictive uncertainty and the good interpretability of SAS functions in terms of understanding catchment transport processes.}, language = {en} } @article{RoezerKreibichSchroeteretal.2019, author = {R{\"o}zer, Viktor and Kreibich, Heidi and Schr{\"o}ter, Kai and M{\"u}ller, Meike and Sairam, Nivedita and Doss-Gollin, James and Lall, Upmanu and Merz, Bruno}, title = {Probabilistic Models Significantly Reduce Uncertainty in Hurricane Harvey Pluvial Flood Loss Estimates}, series = {Earths future}, volume = {7}, journal = {Earths future}, number = {4}, publisher = {American Geophysical Union}, address = {Washington}, issn = {2328-4277}, doi = {10.1029/2018EF001074}, pages = {384 -- 394}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Pluvial flood risk is mostly excluded in urban flood risk assessment. However, the risk of pluvial flooding is a growing challenge with a projected increase of extreme rainstorms compounding with an ongoing global urbanization. Considered as a flood type with minimal impacts when rainfall rates exceed the capacity of urban drainage systems, the aftermath of rainfall-triggered flooding during Hurricane Harvey and other events show the urgent need to assess the risk of pluvial flooding. Due to the local extent and small-scale variations, the quantification of pluvial flood risk requires risk assessments on high spatial resolutions. While flood hazard and exposure information is becoming increasingly accurate, the estimation of losses is still a poorly understood component of pluvial flood risk quantification. We use a new probabilistic multivariable modeling approach to estimate pluvial flood losses of individual buildings, explicitly accounting for the associated uncertainties. Except for the water depth as the common most important predictor, we identified the drivers for having loss or not and for the degree of loss to be different. Applying this approach to estimate and validate building structure losses during Hurricane Harvey using a property level data set, we find that the reliability and dispersion of predictive loss distributions vary widely depending on the model and aggregation level of property level loss estimates. Our results show that the use of multivariable zero-inflated beta models reduce the 90\% prediction intervalsfor Hurricane Harvey building structure loss estimates on average by 78\% (totalling U.S.\$3.8 billion) compared to commonly used models.}, language = {en} } @article{SairamSchroeterLuedtkeetal.2019, author = {Sairam, Nivedita and Schr{\"o}ter, Kai and L{\"u}dtke, Stefan and Merz, Bruno and Kreibich, Heidi}, title = {Quantifying Flood Vulnerability Reduction via Private Precaution}, series = {Earth future}, volume = {7}, journal = {Earth future}, number = {3}, publisher = {American Geophysical Union}, address = {Washington}, issn = {2328-4277}, doi = {10.1029/2018EF000994}, pages = {235 -- 249}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Private precaution is an important component in contemporary flood risk management and climate adaptation. However, quantitative knowledge about vulnerability reduction via private precautionary measures is scarce and their effects are hardly considered in loss modeling and risk assessments. However, this is a prerequisite to enable temporally dynamic flood damage and risk modeling, and thus the evaluation of risk management and adaptation strategies. To quantify the average reduction in vulnerability of residential buildings via private precaution empirical vulnerability data (n = 948) is used. Households with and without precautionary measures undertaken before the flood event are classified into treatment and nontreatment groups and matched. Postmatching regression is used to quantify the treatment effect. Additionally, we test state-of-the-art flood loss models regarding their capability to capture this difference in vulnerability. The estimated average treatment effect of implementing private precaution is between 11 and 15 thousand EUR per household, confirming the significant effectiveness of private precautionary measures in reducing flood vulnerability. From all tested flood loss models, the expert Bayesian network-based model BN-FLEMOps and the rule-based loss model FLEMOps perform best in capturing the difference in vulnerability due to private precaution. Thus, the use of such loss models is suggested for flood risk assessments to effectively support evaluations and decision making for adaptable flood risk management.}, language = {en} } @article{HerzschuhCaoLaeppleetal.2019, author = {Herzschuh, Ulrike and Cao, Xianyong and Laepple, Thomas and Dallmeyer, Anne and Telford, Richard J. and Ni, Jian and Chen, Fahu and Kong, Zhaochen and Liu, Guangxiu and Liu, Kam-Biu and Liu, Xingqi and Stebich, Martina and Tang, Lingyu and Tian, Fang and Wang, Yongbo and Wischnewski, Juliane and Xu, Qinghai and Yan, Shun and Yang, Zhenjing and Yu, Ge and Zhang, Yun and Zhao, Yan and Zheng, Zhuo}, title = {Position and orientation of the westerly jet determined Holocene rainfall patterns in China}, series = {Nature Communications}, volume = {10}, journal = {Nature Communications}, publisher = {Nature Publ. Group}, address = {London}, issn = {2041-1723}, doi = {10.1038/s41467-019-09866-8}, pages = {8}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Proxy-based reconstructions and modeling of Holocene spatiotemporal precipitation patterns for China and Mongolia have hitherto yielded contradictory results indicating that the basic mechanisms behind the East Asian Summer Monsoon and its interaction with the westerly jet stream remain poorly understood. We present quantitative reconstructions of Holocene precipitation derived from 101 fossil pollen records and analyse them with the help of a minimal empirical model. We show that the westerly jet-stream axis shifted gradually southward and became less tilted since the middle Holocene. This was tracked by the summer monsoon rain band resulting in an early-Holocene precipitation maximum over most of western China, a mid-Holocene maximum in north-central and northeastern China, and a late-Holocene maximum in southeastern China. Our results suggest that a correct simulation of the orientation and position of the westerly jet stream is crucial to the reliable prediction of precipitation patterns in China and Mongolia.}, language = {en} } @article{SteirouGerlitzApeletal.2019, author = {Steirou, Eva and Gerlitz, Lars and Apel, Heiko and Sun, Xun and Merz, Bruno}, title = {Climate influences on flood probabilities across Europe}, series = {Hydrology and earth system sciences : HESS}, volume = {23}, journal = {Hydrology and earth system sciences : HESS}, number = {3}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1027-5606}, doi = {10.5194/hess-23-1305-2019}, pages = {1305 -- 1322}, year = {2019}, abstract = {The link between streamflow extremes and climatology has been widely studied in recent decades. However, a study investigating the effect of large-scale circulation variations on the distribution of seasonal discharge extremes at the European level is missing. Here we fit a climate-informed generalized extreme value (GEV) distribution to about 600 streamflow records in Europe for each of the standard seasons, i.e., to winter, spring, summer and autumn maxima, and compare it with the classical GEV distribution with parameters invariant in time. The study adopts a Bayesian framework and covers the period 1950 to 2016. Five indices with proven influence on the European climate are examined independently as covariates, namely the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the east Atlantic pattern (EA), the east Atlantic-western Russian pattern (EA/WR), the Scandinavia pattern (SCA) and the polar-Eurasian pattern (POL). It is found that for a high percentage of stations the climate-informed model is preferred to the classical model. Particularly for NAO during winter, a strong influence on streamflow extremes is detected for large parts of Europe (preferred to the classical GEV distribution for 46\% of the stations). Climate-informed fits are characterized by spatial coherence and form patterns that resemble relations between the climate indices and seasonal precipitation, suggesting a prominent role of the considered circulation modes for flood generation. For certain regions, such as northwestern Scandinavia and the British Isles, yearly variations of the mean seasonal climate indices result in considerably different extreme value distributions and thus in highly different flood estimates for individual years that can also persist for longer time periods.}, language = {en} } @article{CostaTomazdeSouzaAyzelHeistermann2020, author = {Costa Tomaz de Souza, Arthur and Ayzel, Georgy and Heistermann, Maik}, title = {Quantifying the location error of precipitation nowcasts}, series = {Advances in meteorology}, volume = {2020}, journal = {Advances in meteorology}, publisher = {Hindawi}, address = {London}, issn = {1687-9309}, doi = {10.1155/2020/8841913}, pages = {12}, year = {2020}, abstract = {In precipitation nowcasting, it is common to track the motion of precipitation in a sequence of weather radar images and to extrapolate this motion into the future. The total error of such a prediction consists of an error in the predicted location of a precipitation feature and an error in the change of precipitation intensity over lead time. So far, verification measures did not allow isolating the extent of location errors, making it difficult to specifically improve nowcast models with regard to location prediction. In this paper, we introduce a framework to directly quantify the location error. To that end, we detect and track scale-invariant precipitation features (corners) in radar images. We then consider these observed tracks as the true reference in order to evaluate the performance (or, inversely, the error) of any model that aims to predict the future location of a precipitation feature. Hence, the location error of a forecast at any lead time Delta t ahead of the forecast time t corresponds to the Euclidean distance between the observed and the predicted feature locations at t + Delta t. Based on this framework, we carried out a benchmarking case study using one year worth of weather radar composites of the German Weather Service. We evaluated the performance of four extrapolation models, two of which are based on the linear extrapolation of corner motion from t - 1 to t (LK-Lin1) and t - 4 to t (LK-Lin4) and the other two are based on the Dense Inverse Search (DIS) method: motion vectors obtained from DIS are used to predict feature locations by linear (DIS-Lin1) and Semi-Lagrangian extrapolation (DIS-Rot1). Of those four models, DIS-Lin1 and LK-Lin4 turned out to be the most skillful with regard to the prediction of feature location, while we also found that the model skill dramatically depends on the sinuosity of the observed tracks. The dataset of 376,125 detected feature tracks in 2016 is openly available to foster the improvement of location prediction in extrapolation-based nowcasting models.}, language = {en} } @article{OguntundeAbiodunLischeidetal.2020, author = {Oguntunde, Philip G. and Abiodun, Babatunde Joseph and Lischeid, Gunnar and Abatan, Abayomi A.}, title = {Droughts projection over the Niger and Volta River basins of West Africa at specific global warming levels}, series = {International Journal of Climatology}, volume = {40}, journal = {International Journal of Climatology}, number = {13}, publisher = {John Wiley \& Sons, Inc.}, address = {New Jersey}, pages = {12}, year = {2020}, abstract = {This study investigates possible impacts of four global warming levels (GWLs: GWL1.5, GWL2.0, GWL2.5, and GWL3.0) on drought characteristics over Niger River basin (NRB) and Volta River basin (VRB). Two drought indices-Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and Standardized Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI)-were employed in characterizing droughts in 20 multi-model simulation outputs from the Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment (CORDEX). The performance of the simulation in reproducing basic hydro-climatological features and severe drought characteristics (i.e., magnitude and frequency) in the basins were evaluated. The projected changes in the future drought frequency were quantified and compared under the four GWLs for two climate forcing scenarios (RCP8.5 and RCP4.5). The regional climate model (RCM) ensemble gives a realistic simulation of historical hydro-climatological variables needed to calculate the drought indices. With SPEI, the simulation ensemble projects an increase in the magnitude and frequency of severe droughts over both basins (NRB and VRB) at all GWLs, but the increase, which grows with the GWLs, is higher over NRB than over VRB. More than 75\% of the simulations agree on the projected increase at GWL1.5 and all simulations agree on the increase at higher GWLs. With SPI, the projected changes in severe drought is weaker and the magnitude remains the same at all GWLs, suggesting that SPI projection may underestimate impacts of the GWLs on the intensity and severity of future drought. The results of this study have application in mitigating impact of global warming on future drought risk over the regional water systems.}, language = {en} } @article{MarciszJasseyKosakyanetal.2020, author = {Marcisz, Katarzyna and Jassey, Vincent E. J. and Kosakyan, Anush and Krashevska, Valentyna and Lahr, Daniel J. G. and Lara, Enrique and Lamentowicz, Lukasz and Lamentowicz, Mariusz and Macumber, Andrew and Mazei, Yuri and Mitchell, Edward A. D. and Nasser, Nawaf A. and Patterson, R. Timothy and Roe, Helen M. and Singer, David and Tsyganov, Andrey N. and Fournier, Bertrand}, title = {Testate amoeba functional traits and their use in paleoecology}, series = {Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution}, volume = {8}, journal = {Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution}, publisher = {Frontiers Media}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {2296-701X}, doi = {10.3389/fevo.2020.575966}, pages = {28}, year = {2020}, abstract = {This review provides a synthesis of current knowledge on the morphological and functional traits of testate amoebae, a polyphyletic group of protists commonly used as proxies of past hydrological changes in paleoecological investigations from peatland, lake sediment and soil archives. A trait-based approach to understanding testate amoebae ecology and paleoecology has gained in popularity in recent years, with research showing that morphological characteristics provide complementary information to the commonly used environmental inferences based on testate amoeba (morpho-)species data. We provide a broad overview of testate amoeba morphological and functional traits and trait-environment relationships in the context of ecology, evolution, genetics, biogeography, and paleoecology. As examples we report upon previous ecological and paleoecological studies that used trait-based approaches, and describe key testate amoebae traits that can be used to improve the interpretation of environmental studies. We also highlight knowledge gaps and speculate on potential future directions for the application of trait-based approaches in testate amoeba research.}, language = {en} } @article{ZingraffHamedHueeskerLuppetal.2020, author = {Zingraff-Hamed, Aude and H{\"u}esker, Frank and Lupp, Gerd and Begg, Chloe and Huang, Josh and Oen, Amy M. P. and Vojinović, Zoran and Kuhlicke, Christian and Pauleit, Stephan}, title = {Stakeholder mapping to co-create nature-based solutions}, series = {Sustainability}, volume = {12}, journal = {Sustainability}, number = {20}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2071-1050}, doi = {10.3390/su12208625}, pages = {23}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Nature-based solutions (NBS) are inspired and supported by nature but designed by humans. Historically, governmental stakeholders have aimed to control nature using a top-down approach; more recently, environmental governance has shifted to collaborative planning. Polycentric governance and co-creation procedures, which include a large spectrum of stakeholders, are assumed to be more effective in the management of public goods than traditional approaches. In this context, NBS projects should benefit from strong collaborative governance models, and the European Union is facilitating and encouraging such models. While some theoretical approaches exist, setting-up the NBS co-creation process (namely co-design and co-implementation) currently relies mostly on self-organized stakeholders rather than on strategic decisions. As such, systematic methods to identify relevant stakeholders seem to be crucial to enable higher planning efficiency, reduce bottlenecks and time needed for planning, designing, and implementing NBS. In this context, this contribution is based on the analysis of 16 NBS and 359 stakeholders. Real-life constellations are compared to theoretical typologies, and a systematic stakeholder mapping method to support co-creation is presented. Rather than making one-fit-all statements about the "right" stakeholders, the contribution provides insights for those "in charge" to strategically consider who might be involved at each stage of the NBS project.}, language = {en} } @article{deBritoKuhlickeMarx2020, author = {de Brito, Mariana Madruga and Kuhlicke, Christian and Marx, Andreas}, title = {Near-real-time drought impact assessment}, series = {Environmental research letters}, volume = {15}, journal = {Environmental research letters}, number = {10}, publisher = {IOP Publ.}, address = {Bristol}, issn = {1748-9326}, doi = {10.1088/1748-9326/aba4ca}, pages = {11}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Contemporary drought impact assessments have been constrained due to data availability, leading to an incomplete representation of impact trends. To address this, we present a novel method for the comprehensive and near-real-time monitoring of drought socio-economic impacts based on media reports. We tested its application using the case of the exceptional 2018/19 German drought. By employing text mining techniques, 4839 impact statements were identified, relating to livestock, agriculture, forestry, fires, recreation, energy and transport sectors. An accuracy of 95.6\% was obtained for their automatic classification. Furthermore, high levels of performance in terms of spatial and temporal precision were found when validating our results against independent data (e.g. soil moisture, average precipitation, population interest in droughts, crop yield and forest fire statistics). The findings highlight the applicability of media data for rapidly and accurately monitoring the propagation of drought consequences over time and space. We anticipate our method to be used as a starting point for an impact-based early warning system.}, language = {en} } @article{HudsonHagedoornBubeck2020, author = {Hudson, Paul and Hagedoorn, Liselotte and Bubeck, Philip}, title = {Potential linkages between social capital, flood risk perceptions, and self-efficacy}, series = {International journal of disaster risk science}, volume = {11}, journal = {International journal of disaster risk science}, number = {3}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {Berlin}, issn = {2095-0055}, doi = {10.1007/s13753-020-00259-w}, pages = {251 -- 262}, year = {2020}, abstract = {A growing focus is being placed on both individuals and communities to adapt to flooding as part of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030. Adaptation to flooding requires sufficient social capital (linkages between members of society), risk perceptions (understanding of risk), and self-efficacy (self-perceived ability to limit disaster impacts) to be effective. However, there is limited understanding of how social capital, risk perceptions, and self-efficacy interact. We seek to explore how social capital interacts with variables known to increase the likelihood of successful adaptation. To study these linkages we analyze survey data of 1010 respondents across two communities in Thua Tien-Hue Province in central Vietnam, using ordered probit models. We find positive correlations between social capital, risk perceptions, and self-efficacy overall. This is a partly contrary finding to what was found in previous studies linking these concepts in Europe, which may be a result from the difference in risk context. The absence of an overall negative exchange between these factors has positive implications for proactive flood risk adaptation.}, language = {en} } @article{WebberLischeidSommeretal.2020, author = {Webber, Heidi and Lischeid, Gunnar and Sommer, Michael and Finger, Robert and Nendel, Claas and Gaiser, Thomas and Ewert, Frank}, title = {No perfect storm for crop yield failure in Germany}, series = {Environmental research letters}, volume = {15}, journal = {Environmental research letters}, number = {10}, publisher = {IOP Publ. Ltd.}, address = {Bristol}, issn = {1748-9326}, doi = {10.1088/1748-9326/aba2a4}, pages = {14}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Large-scale crop yield failures are increasingly associated with food price spikes and food insecurity and are a large source of income risk for farmers. While the evidence linking extreme weather to yield failures is clear, consensus on the broader set of weather drivers and conditions responsible for recent yield failures is lacking. We investigate this for the case of four major crops in Germany over the past 20 years using a combination of machine learning and process-based modelling. Our results confirm that years associated with widespread yield failures across crops were generally associated with severe drought, such as in 2018 and to a lesser extent 2003. However, for years with more localized yield failures and large differences in spatial patterns of yield failures between crops, no single driver or combination of drivers was identified. Relatively large residuals of unexplained variation likely indicate the importance of non-weather related factors, such as management (pest, weed and nutrient management and possible interactions with weather) explaining yield failures. Models to inform adaptation planning at farm, market or policy levels are here suggested to require consideration of cumulative resource capture and use, as well as effects of extreme events, the latter largely missing in process-based models. However, increasingly novel combinations of weather events under climate change may limit the extent to which data driven methods can replace process-based models in risk assessments.}, language = {en} } @article{TesselaarBotzenHaeretal.2020, author = {Tesselaar, Max and Botzen, W. J. Wouter and Haer, Toon and Hudson, Paul and Tiggeloven, Timothy and Aerts, Jeroen C. J. H.}, title = {Regional inequalities in flood insurance affordability and uptake under climate change}, series = {Sustainability}, volume = {12}, journal = {Sustainability}, number = {20}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2071-1050}, doi = {10.3390/su12208734}, pages = {30}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Flood insurance coverage can enhance financial resilience of households to changing flood risk caused by climate change. However, income inequalities imply that not all households can afford flood insurance. The uptake of flood insurance in voluntary markets may decline when flood risk increases as a result of climate change. This increase in flood risk may cause substantially higher risk-based insurance premiums, reduce the willingness to purchase flood insurance, and worsen problems with the unaffordability of coverage for low-income households. A socio-economic tipping-point can occur when the functioning of a formal flood insurance system is hampered by diminishing demand for coverage. In this study, we examine whether such a tipping-point can occur in Europe for current flood insurance systems under different trends in future flood risk caused by climate and socio-economic change. This analysis gives insights into regional inequalities concerning the ability to continue to use flood insurance as an instrument to adapt to changing flood risk. For this study, we adapt the "Dynamic Integrated Flood and Insurance" (DIFI) model by integrating new flood risk simulations in the model that enable examining impacts from various scenarios of climate and socio-economic change on flood insurance premiums and consumer demand. Our results show rising unaffordability and declining demand for flood insurance across scenarios towards 2080. Under a high climate change scenario, simulations show the occurrence of a socio-economic tipping-point in several regions, where insurance uptake almost disappears. A tipping-point and related inequalities in the ability to use flood insurance as an adaptation instrument can be mitigated by introducing reforms of flood insurance arrangements.}, language = {en} } @article{PanWangLiuetal.2020, author = {Pan, Xiaohui and Wang, Weishi and Liu, Tie and Huang, Yue and De Maeyer, Philippe and Guo, Chenyu and Ling, Yunan and Akmalov, Shamshodbek}, title = {Quantitative detection and attribution of groundwater level variations in the Amu Darya Delta}, series = {Water}, volume = {12}, journal = {Water}, number = {10}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2073-4441}, doi = {10.3390/w12102869}, pages = {20}, year = {2020}, abstract = {In the past few decades, the shrinkage of the Aral Sea is one of the biggest ecological catastrophes caused by human activity. To quantify the joint impact of both human activities and climate change on groundwater, the spatiotemporal groundwater dynamic characteristics in the Amu Darya Delta of the Aral Sea from 1999 to 2017 were analyzed, using the groundwater level, climate conditions, remote sensing data, and irrigation information. Statistics analysis was adopted to analyze the trend of groundwater variation, including intensity, periodicity, spatial structure, while the Pearson correlation analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) were used to quantify the impact of climate change and human activities on the variabilities of the groundwater level. Results reveal that the local groundwater dynamic has varied considerably. From 1999 to 2002, the groundwater level dropped from -189 cm to -350 cm. Until 2017, the groundwater level rose back to -211 cm with fluctuation. Seasonally, the fluctuation period of groundwater level and irrigation water was similar, both were about 18 months. Spatially, the groundwater level kept stable within the irrigation area and bare land but fluctuated drastically around the irrigation area. The Pearson correlation analysis reveals that the dynamic of the groundwater level is closely related to irrigation activity within the irrigation area (Nukus: -0.583), while for the place adjacent to the Aral Sea, the groundwater level is closely related to the Large Aral Sea water level (Muynak: 0.355). The results of PCA showed that the cumulative contribution rate of the first three components exceeds 85\%. The study reveals that human activities have a great impact on groundwater, effective management, and the development of water resources in arid areas is an essential prerequisite for ecological protection.}, language = {en} } @article{NathoTschikofBondarKunzeetal.2020, author = {Natho, Stephanie and Tschikof, Martin and Bondar-Kunze, Elisabeth and Hein, Thomas}, title = {Modeling the effect of enhanced lateral connectivity on nutrient retention capacity in large river floodplains}, series = {Frontiers in Environmental Science}, volume = {8}, journal = {Frontiers in Environmental Science}, publisher = {Frontiers Media}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {2296-665X}, doi = {10.3389/fenvs.2020.00074}, pages = {16}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Floodplains have been degraded in Central Europe for centuries, resulting in less dynamic and less diverse ecosystems than in the past. They provide essential ecosystem services like nutrient retention to improve overall water quality and thus fulfill naturally what EU legislation demands, but this service is impaired by reduced connectivity patterns. Along the second-longest river in Europe, the Danube, restoration measures have been carried out and are planned for the near future in the Austrian Danube Floodplain National Park in accordance with navigation purposes. We investigated nutrient retention capacity in seven currently differently connected side arms and the effects of proposed restoration measures using two complementary modeling approaches. We modeled nutrient retention capacity in two scenarios considering different hydrological conditions, as well as the consequences of planned restoration measures for side arm connectivity. With existing monitoring data on hydrology, nitrate, and total phosphorus concentrations for three side arms, we applied a statistical model and compared these results to a semi-empirical retention model. The latter was originally developed for larger scales, based on transferable causalities of retention processes and set up for this floodplain with publicly available data. Both model outcomes are in a comparable range for NO3-N (77-198 kg ha(-1)yr(-1)) and TP (1.4-5.7 kg ha(-1)yr(-1)) retention and agree in calculating higher retention in floodplains, where reconnection allows more frequent inundation events. However, the differences in the model results are significant for specific aspects especially during high flows, where the semi-empirical model complements the statistical model. On the other hand, the statistical model complements the semi-empirical model when taking into account nutrient retention at times of no connection between the remaining water bodies left in the floodplain. Overall, both models show clearly that nutrient retention in the Danube floodplains can be enhanced by restoring lateral hydrological reconnection and, for all planned measures, a positive effect on the overall water quality of the Danube River is expected. Still, a frequently hydrologically connected stretch of national park is insufficient to improve the water quality of the whole Upper Danube, and more functional floodplains are required.}, language = {en} } @article{LehrLischeid2020, author = {Lehr, Christian and Lischeid, Gunnar}, title = {Efficient screening of groundwater head monitoring data for anthropogenic effects and measurement errors}, series = {Hydrology and Earth System Sciences}, volume = {24}, journal = {Hydrology and Earth System Sciences}, number = {2}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1027-5606}, doi = {10.5194/hess-24-501-2020}, pages = {501 -- 513}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Groundwater levels are monitored by environmental agencies to support the sustainable use of groundwater resources. For this purpose continuous and spatially comprehensive monitoring in high spatial and temporal resolution is desired. This leads to large datasets that have to be checked for quality and analysed to distinguish local anthropogenic influences from natural variability of the groundwater level dynamics at each well. Both technical problems with the measurements as well as local anthropogenic influences can lead to local anomalies in the hydrographs. We suggest a fast and efficient screening method for the identification of well-specific peculiarities in hydrographs of groundwater head monitoring networks. The only information required is a set of time series of groundwater heads all measured at the same instants of time. For each well of the monitoring network a reference hydrograph is calculated, describing expected "normal" behaviour at the respective well as is typical for the monitored region. The reference hydrograph is calculated by multiple linear regression of the observed hydrograph with the "stable" principal components (PCs) of a principal component analysis of all groundwater head series of the network as predictor variables. The stable PCs are those PCs which were found in a random subsampling procedure to be rather insensitive to the specific selection of the analysed observation wells, i.e. complete series, and to the specific selection of measurement dates. Hence they can be considered to be representative for the monitored region in the respective period. The residuals of the reference hydrograph describe local deviations from the normal behaviour. Peculiarities in the residuals allow the data to be checked for measurement errors and the wells with a possible anthropogenic influence to be identified. The approach was tested with 141 groundwater head time series from the state authority groundwater monitoring network in northeastern Germany covering the period from 1993 to 2013 at an approximately weekly frequency of measurement.}, language = {en} } @article{ZimmermannStoofLeichsenringKruseetal.2020, author = {Zimmermann, Heike Hildegard and Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen Rosemarie and Kruse, Stefan and M{\"u}ller, Juliane and Stein, Ruediger and Tiedemann, Ralf and Herzschuh, Ulrike}, title = {Changes in the composition of marine and sea-ice diatoms derived from sedimentary ancient DNA of the eastern Fram Strait over the past 30 000 years}, series = {Ocean Science}, volume = {16}, journal = {Ocean Science}, number = {5}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {Tokyo}, pages = {16}, year = {2020}, abstract = {The Fram Strait is an area with a relatively low and irregular distribution of diatom microfossils in surface sediments, and thus microfossil records are scarce, rarely exceed the Holocene, and contain sparse information about past richness and taxonomic composition. These attributes make the Fram Strait an ideal study site to test the utility of sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) metabarcoding. Amplifying a short, partial rbcL marker from samples of sediment core MSM05/5-712-2 resulted in 95.7 \% of our sequences being assigned to diatoms across 18 different families, with 38.6 \% of them being resolved to species and 25.8 \% to genus level. Independent replicates show a high similarity of PCR products, especially in the oldest samples. Diatom sedaDNA richness is highest in the Late Weichselian and lowest in Mid- and Late Holocene samples. Taxonomic composition is dominated by cold-water and sea-ice-associated diatoms and suggests several reorganisations - after the Last Glacial Maximum, after the Younger Dryas, and after the Early and after the Mid-Holocene. Different sequences assigned to, amongst others, Chaetoceros socialis indicate the detectability of intra-specific diversity using sedaDNA. We detect no clear pattern between our diatom sedaDNA record and the previously published IP25 record of this core, although proportions of pennate diatoms increase with higher IP25 concentrations and proportions of Nitzschia cf. frigida exceeding 2 \% of the assemblage point towards past sea-ice presence.}, language = {en} }