TY - JOUR A1 - Karp, Daniel S. A1 - Tallis, Heather A1 - Sachse, Rene A1 - Halpern, Ben A1 - Thonicke, Kirsten A1 - Cramer, Wolfgang A1 - Mooney, Harold A1 - Polasky, Stephen A1 - Tietjen, Britta A1 - Waha, Katharina A1 - Walt, Ariane A1 - Wolny, Stacie T1 - National indicators for observing ecosystem service change JF - Global environmental change : human and policy dimensions N2 - Earth's life-support systems are in rapid decline, yet we have few metrics or indicators with which to track these changes. The world's governments are calling for biodiversity and ecosystem-service monitoring to guide and evaluate international conservation policy as well as to incorporate natural capital into their national accounts. The Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON) has been tasked with setting up this monitoring system. Here we explore the immediate feasibility of creating a global ecosystem-service monitoring platform under the GEO BON framework through combining data from national statistics, global vegetation models, and production function models. We found that nine ecosystem services could be annually reported at a national scale in the short term: carbon sequestration, water supply for hydropower, and non-fisheries marine products, crop, livestock, game meat, fisheries, mariculture, and timber production. Reported changes in service delivery over time reflected ecological shocks (e.g., droughts and disease outbreaks), highlighting the immediate utility of this monitoring system. Our work also identified three opportunities for creating a more comprehensive monitoring system. First, investing in input data for ecological process models (e.g., global land-use maps) would allow many more regulating services to be monitored. Currently, only 1 of 9 services that can be reported is a regulating service. Second, household surveys and censuses could help evaluate how nature affects people and provides non-monetary benefits. Finally, to forecast the sustainability of service delivery, research efforts could focus on calculating the total remaining biophysical stocks of provisioning services. Regardless, we demonstrated that a preliminary ecosystem-service monitoring platform is immediately feasible. With sufficient international investment, the platform could evolve further into a much-needed system to track changes in our planet's life-support systems. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. KW - Ecosystem services KW - GEO BON KW - Global change KW - Monitoring KW - Process models Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2015.07.014 SN - 0959-3780 SN - 1872-9495 VL - 35 SP - 12 EP - 21 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Jeltsch, Florian A1 - Blaum, Niels A1 - Brose, Ulrich A1 - Chipperfield, Joseph D. A1 - Clough, Yann A1 - Farwig, Nina A1 - Geissler, Katja A1 - Graham, Catherine H. A1 - Grimm, Volker A1 - Hickler, Thomas A1 - Huth, Andreas A1 - May, Felix A1 - Meyer, Katrin M. A1 - Pagel, Jörn A1 - Reineking, Björn A1 - Rillig, Matthias C. A1 - Shea, Katriona A1 - Schurr, Frank Martin A1 - Schroeder, Boris A1 - Tielbörger, Katja A1 - Weiss, Lina A1 - Wiegand, Kerstin A1 - Wiegand, Thorsten A1 - Wirth, Christian A1 - Zurell, Damaris T1 - How can we bring together empiricists and modellers in functional biodiversity research? JF - Basic and applied ecology : Journal of the Gesellschaft für Ökologie N2 - Improving our understanding of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning and our capacity to inform ecosystem management requires an integrated framework for functional biodiversity research (FBR). However, adequate integration among empirical approaches (monitoring and experimental) and modelling has rarely been achieved in FBR. We offer an appraisal of the issues involved and chart a course towards enhanced integration. A major element of this path is the joint orientation towards the continuous refinement of a theoretical framework for FBR that links theory testing and generalization with applied research oriented towards the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. We further emphasize existing decision-making frameworks as suitable instruments to practically merge these different aims of FBR and bring them into application. This integrated framework requires joint research planning, and should improve communication and stimulate collaboration between modellers and empiricists, thereby overcoming existing reservations and prejudices. The implementation of this integrative research agenda for FBR requires an adaptation in most national and international funding schemes in order to accommodate such joint teams and their more complex structures and data needs. KW - Biodiversity theory KW - Biodiversity experiments KW - Conservation management KW - Decision-making KW - Ecosystem functions and services KW - Forecasting KW - Functional traits KW - Global change KW - Monitoring programmes KW - Interdisciplinarity Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2013.01.001 SN - 1439-1791 VL - 14 IS - 2 SP - 93 EP - 101 PB - Elsevier CY - Jena ER - TY - THES A1 - Grosse, Guido T1 - Characterisation and evolution of periglacial landscapes in Northern Siberia during the Late Quaternary : remote sensing and GIS studies T1 - Charakterisierung und Evolution periglazialer Landschaften in Nordsibirien während des Spätquartärs : Fernerkundungs- und GIS-Studien N2 - About 24 % of the land surface in the northern hemisphere are underlayed by permafrost in various states. Permafrost aggradation occurs under special environmental conditions with overall low annual precipitation rates and very low mean annual temperatures. Because the general permafrost occurrence is mainly driven by large-scale climatic conditions, the distribution of permafrost deposits can be considered as an important climate indicator. The region with the most extensive continuous permafrost is Siberia. In northeast Siberia, the ice- and organic-rich permafrost deposits of the Ice Complex are widely distributed. These deposits consist mostly of silty to fine-grained sandy sediments that were accumulated during the Late Pleistocene in an extensive plain on the then subaerial Laptev Sea shelf. One important precondition for the Ice Complex sedimentation was, that the Laptev Sea shelf was not glaciated during the Late Pleistocene, resulting in a mostly continuous accumulation of permafrost sediments for at least this period. This shelf landscape became inundated and eroded in large parts by the Holocene marine transgression after the Last Glacial Maximum. Remnants of this landscape are preserved only in the present day coastal areas. Because the Ice Complex deposits contain a wide variety of palaeo-environmental proxies, it is an excellent palaeo-climate archive for the Late Quaternary in the region. Furthermore, the ice-rich Ice Complex deposits are sensible to climatic change, i.e. climate warming. Because of the large-scale climatic changes at the transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene, the Ice Complex was subject to extensive thermokarst processes since the Early Holocene. Permafrost deposits are not only an environmental indicator, but also an important climate factor. Tundra wetlands, which have developed in environments with aggrading permafrost, are considered a net sink for carbon, as organic matter is stored in peat or is syn-sedimentary frozen with permafrost aggradation. Contrary, the Holocene thermokarst development resulted in permafrost degradation and thus the release of formerly stored organic carbon. Modern tundra wetlands are also considered an important source for the climate-driving gas methane, originating mainly from microbial activity in the seasonal active layer. Most scenarios for future global climate development predict a strong warming trend especially in the Arctic. Consequently, for the understanding of how permafrost deposits will react and contribute to such scenarios, it is necessary to investigate and evaluate ice-rich permafrost deposits like the widespread Ice Complex as climate indicator and climate factor during the Late Quaternary. Such investigations are a pre-condition for the precise modelling of future developments in permafrost distribution and the influence of permafrost degradation on global climate. The focus of this work, which was conducted within the frame of the multi-disciplinary joint German-Russian research projects "Laptev Sea 2000" (1998-2002) and "Dynamics of Permafrost" (2003-2005), was twofold. First, the possibilities of using remote sensing and terrain modelling techniques for the observation of periglacial landscapes in Northeast Siberia in their present state was evaluated and applied to key sites in the Laptev Sea coastal lowlands. The key sites were situated in the eastern Laptev Sea (Bykovsky Peninsula and Khorogor Valley) and the western Laptev Sea (Cape Mamontovy Klyk region). For this task, techniques using CORONA satellite imagery, Landsat-7 satellite imagery, and digital elevation models were developed for the mapping of periglacial structures, which are especially indicative of permafrost degradation. The major goals were to quantify the extent of permafrost degradation structures and their distribution in the investigated key areas, and to establish techniques, which can be used also for the investigation of other regions with thermokarst occurrence. Geographical information systems were employed for the mapping, the spatial analysis, and the enhancement of classification results by rule-based stratification. The results from the key sites show, that thermokarst, and related processes and structures, completely re-shaped the former accumulation plain to a strongly degraded landscape, which is characterised by extensive deep depressions and erosional remnants of the Late Pleistocene surface. As a results of this rapid process, which in large parts happened within a short period during the Early Holocene, the hydrological and sedimentological regime was completely changed on a large scale. These events resulted also in a release of large amounts of organic carbon. Thermokarst is now the major component in the modern periglacial landscapes in terms of spatial extent, but also in its influence on hydrology, sedimentation and the development of vegetation assemblages. Second, the possibilities of using remote sensing and terrain modelling as a supplementary tool for palaeo-environmental reconstructions in the investigated regions were explored. For this task additionally a comprehensive cryolithological field database was developed for the Bykovsky Peninsula and the Khorogor Valley, which contains previously published data from boreholes, outcrops sections, subsurface samples, and subsurface samples, as well as additional own field data. The period covered by this database is mainly the Late Pleistocene and the Holocene, but also the basal deposits of the sedimentary sequence, interpreted as Pliocene to Early Pleistocene, are contained. Remote sensing was applied for the observation of periglacial strucures, which then were successfully related to distinct landscape development stages or time intervals in the investigation area. Terrain modelling was used for providing a general context of the landscape development. Finally, a scheme was developed describing mainly the Late Quaternary landscape evolution in this area. A major finding was the possibility of connecting periglacial surface structures to distinct landscape development stages, and thus use them as additional palaeo-environmental indicator together with other proxies for area-related palaeo-environmental reconstructions. In the landscape evolution scheme, i.e. of the genesis of the Late Pleistocene Ice Complex and the Holocene thermokarst development, some new aspects are presented in terms of sediment source and general sedimentation conditions. This findings apply also for other sites in the Laptev Sea region. N2 - Die vorliegende Arbeit wurde im Rahmen der multidisziplinären Deutsch-Russischen Verbundprojekte "Laptev See 2000" (1998-2002) und "Dynamik des Permafrost" (2003-2005) erstellt. Etwa 24 % der Landoberfläche der Erde sind von Permafrost unterlagert. Die ausgedehntesten Permafrostgebiete befinden sich heute in Sibirien. In Nordostsibirien, das während der letzten Eiszeit nicht von Inlandeismassen bedeckt bedeckt war, lagerten sich während dieser Zeit mächtige eisreiche Permafrostsedimente ab. Die durch den nacheiszeitlichen Meeresspiegelanstieg um ca. 120 Meter nur noch in den heutigen Küstengebieten erhaltenen Ablagerungen sind zum Teil hervorragende Paläoklimaarchive, die verschiedenste fossile organische Überreste der Eiszeitlichen Fauna und Flora konserviert haben. Aber auch die Sedimente und das enthalten Grundeis enthalten Klimainformationen z.B. die aus Mineralogie, Ablagerungsmilieu oder geochemischer und isotopenchemischer Zusammensetzung gewonnen werden können. Der hohe Eisgehalt in den Sedimenten führte mit Beginn der holozänen Warmzeit zur Bildung von Thermokarst und Thermo-Erosion, d.h. zu starken Zersetzungserscheinungen durch Auftauen und Erosion. Thermokarst beschreibt das Schmelzen des Grundeises und die gleichzeitig stattfindende tiefe Absenkung der betroffenen Landoberfläche. Thermokarst geht mit der Bildung von Thermokarstseen einher, deren Wasserkörper ein zusätzlicher Wärmespeicher ist und das Auftauen des darunter liegenden Permafrost verstärken kann. In Sibirien, aber auch anderen Regionen der Arktis, sind weite Gebiete von Thermokarst betroffen. Der Einfluss dieser klimabedingten großräumigen Landschaftsveränderungen in Permafrostgebieten auf den lokalen, regionalen und auch globalen Stoff- und Energiehaushalt ist bisher nur wenig untersucht. Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der Charakterisierung und Evolution von periglazialen Landschaften im nordsibirischen Laptevsee-Gebiet, die seit dem Beginn des Holozän von solchen klimatisch bedingten Veränderungen betroffen sind, und liefert damit ein Puzzleteil zum einen für die Rekonstruktion der Landschaft und Landschaftsentwicklung als auch Vorraussetzungen für das Verständnis der großräumig wirkenden geologischen und geomorphologischen Veränderungsprozesse. Die generellen Schwerpunkte, für die die vorliegende Arbeit Informationen liefert, sind die Charakterisierung von periglazialen Relief- und Oberflächentypen und die Bestimmung ihrer räumlichen Verbreitung, die Identifizierung und Quantifizierung einzelner geologischer und geomorphologischer Prozesse in diesen Landschaften, und die Rekonstruktion der Entwicklung periglazialer Landschaften im Spätquartär für Schlüsselgebiete im Küstengebiet der nordsibirischen Laptevsee. Um diese generellen Schwerpunkte zu erreichen, werden verschiedene Einzelziele in der Arbeit verfolgt: Die Entwicklung and Anwendung von Satellitenfernerkundungstechniken zur Analyse periglazialer Landschaften in Nordsibirien. Dazu werden hochauflösende Corona-Satellitendaten und multispektrale Landsat-7 Satellitendaten verwendet. Die Untersuchung von Satellitenbildern, mit dem Schwerpunkt auf Oberflächen, die von der Zersetzung des eisreichen Permafrosts betroffen sind Die Entwicklung von hochauflösenden digitalen Geländemodellen für die geomorphologische Analyse in zwei Schlüsselgebieten Die räumliche Untersuchung der gewonnenen Daten mit Hilfe von geographischen Informationssystemen, mit einem Schwerpunkt auf Form, Verteilung und Außmaß von holozänem Thermokarst Das Sammeln und Auswerten von Felddaten, mit Schwerpunkt auf Oberflächeneigenschaften periglazialer Landschaften und der Zusammensetzung der Permafrostablagerungen Die Anwendung der gewonnenen Daten zur Unterstützung, Verbesserung und Ausweitung der lokal gewonnenen Felddaten und Paläoumweltrekonstruktionen, sowie die datengestützte Entwicklung von Vorstellungen zur Landschaftsgenese Weite, Permafrost-dominierte Küstentiefländer der heutigen Laptevsee in Nordost-Sibirien sind durch die spätpleistozänen Ablagerungen des Eiskomplex aufgebaut. Diese zumeist schluffig bis mittelsandigen Ablagerungen sind durch einen sehr großen Eisgehalt in Form von verteiltem Grundeis und großer syngenetischer Eiskeile, sowie einem relativ hohen Anteil an organischen Resten gekennzeichnet. Mit Beginn der holozänen Klimaerwärmung kam es zur weitläufigen Bildung von Thermokarst. KW - Dauerfrostboden KW - Periglazial KW - Periglazialgeomorphologie KW - Sibirien KW - Fernerkundung KW - Optische Fernerkundung KW - Geomorphologie KW - Permafrost KW - Thermokarst KW - Sibirien KW - Klimawandel KW - Siberia KW - Global change KW - Geomorphology Y1 - 2005 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-5544 ER -