Biodiversity

The contribution of forest edges to the regional biodiversity

The project investigates the invertebrate species which depend on forest edges. It tries to pin down the ecotone structures most important for survival of a diverse community. Furthermore, it especially considers oldgrowth- and dead-wood inhabiting Arthropods, as well as predatory and parasitoid antagonists of commercially important pests.

Forest fires

(german link !)

The influence of sporadic and regular fires on invertebrate biodiversity is investigated in deciduous forests of the southern slope of the Alps. (german link)

Faunistic inventory methods for invertebrates

Faunistic valuation of intensively cultivated and natural habitat in the viewpoint of agroecology and nature protection. Development and evaluation of standardised inventory methods which give comparable criteria for the assessment of diverse landscape elements. Validation of these methods for simultaneous comparisons (e.g. transects) and successive comparisons (e.g. impact studies).