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Monitoring of Ecosystem Development at the Constructed Catchment Chicken Creek

  • The constructed catchment Chicken Creek was established in 2005 as an experimental landscape laboratory for ecosystem research. The 6 ha area with clearly defined horizontal as well as vertical boundary conditions was left for an unrestricted primary succession. The developing ecosystem offers the opportunity to study most processes occurring at the interface of bio-, pedo-, geo- and hydrosphere. Particularly interactions and feedbacks between different evolving compartments as well as the establishment of ecosystem functions and services can be investigated during the ongoing ecosystem development. The catchment is extensively instrumented since 2005 in order to detect transition stages of the ecosystem. Comprehensive data recorded with a high spatial and temporal resolution include hydrological, geomorphological, pedological, limnological as well as biological parameters. This site offers the unique situation of an early stage ecosystem with highly dynamic system properties. The first years of development were characterized by aThe constructed catchment Chicken Creek was established in 2005 as an experimental landscape laboratory for ecosystem research. The 6 ha area with clearly defined horizontal as well as vertical boundary conditions was left for an unrestricted primary succession. The developing ecosystem offers the opportunity to study most processes occurring at the interface of bio-, pedo-, geo- and hydrosphere. Particularly interactions and feedbacks between different evolving compartments as well as the establishment of ecosystem functions and services can be investigated during the ongoing ecosystem development. The catchment is extensively instrumented since 2005 in order to detect transition stages of the ecosystem. Comprehensive data recorded with a high spatial and temporal resolution include hydrological, geomorphological, pedological, limnological as well as biological parameters. This site offers the unique situation of an early stage ecosystem with highly dynamic system properties. The first years of development were characterized by a fast formation of geomorphological structures due to massive erosion processes at the initially non-vegetated surface. Hydrological processes led to the establishment of a local groundwater body within 5 years. In the following years the influence of biological structures like vegetation patterns gained an increasing importance. Feedbacks between developing vegetation and e.g. hydrological features became more and more dominant. As a result, different phases of ecosystem development could be distinguished until now. This observatory offers manifold possibilities to identify and disentangle complex interactions between ecosystem compartments in situ under natural conditions. The originally low complexity of the system is growing with time facilitating the identification of influences of newly developing structures on ecosystem functions. Thus, it is possible to study effects of small-scale processes on the whole system at the landscape scale. In addition, the highly dynamic initial system properties allow the observation of multifaceted changes of ecosystem properties and functions within short periods of time.show moreshow less

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Metadaten
Author: Werner GerwinORCiD, Wolfgang SchaafORCiDGND, Christoph HinzORCiD, Reinhard F. HüttlGND
URL:http://www.tereno-conference2014.de/tereno-conference/EN/download_book_of_abstracts/_node.html
Title of the source (English):TERENO International Conference 2014, From Observation to Prediction in Terrestrial Systems, 29 September to 2 October 2014, Book of Abstracts
Document Type:Conference Proceeding
Language:English
Year of publication:2014
First Page:P2-12
Faculty/Chair:Zentrale Einrichtungen / Forschungszentrum Landschaftsentwicklung und Bergbaulandschaften (FZLB)
Fakultät 2 Umwelt und Naturwissenschaften / FG Bodenschutz und Rekultivierung
Fakultät 2 Umwelt und Naturwissenschaften / FG Hydrologie
Institution name at the time of publication:Fakultät für Umweltwissenschaften und Verfahrenstechnik (eBTU) / LS Bodenschutz und Rekultivierung
Fakultät für Umweltwissenschaften und Verfahrenstechnik (eBTU) / LS Hydrologie und Wasserressourcenbewirtschaftung
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