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Dynamic Macroecology

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The dynamic macroecology group studies different aspects of ecology on large spatial and temporal scales, from the Pleistocene to the Anthropocene, related to the question

“How do species and their traits change in space and time, particularly with global change?”

We explore

the current and past distributions of species or functional groups and their traits and niches

the effect of climate and other factors on biodiversity
the spatio-temporal dynamics of plant (particularly tree) species and their ranges interacting with the environment, ecophysiology, population dynamics, species migration and climate and land-use change

the evolution in time and geographical space of species niches and traits and biological communities and assemblages

Main methods we develop and work with

climate (change) data scaling and provision

dynamic ecological models
model scaling
statistical methods in ecology, e.g., species distribution models, phylogenetic comparative methods, trait analyses

FURTHER INFORMATION

Projects

Blue-green conservation design

This project contributes to the Blue Green Biodiversity Research Initiative - an Eawag-WSL collaboration focusing on Biodiversity at the interface of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.

A range-wide transplant experiment using participatory science and genomic prediction

Mikroklimatische Veränderungen beeinflussen Artenvielfalt

Wie wirkt sich die Klimaerwärmung auf die Artenvielfalt in der Schweiz aus? Die Veränderungen des bodennahen Mikroklimas liefern neue Einsichten.

Feedbacks between Biodiversity and Climate

Despite being an essential element of the biodiversity and climate change crisis, the feedback between biodiversity and climate remains an understudied subject in biodiversity and climate science. The project FeedBaCks will focus on this important interaction between the two disciplines.

CHELSA

CHELSA (Climatologies at high resolution for the earth's land surface areas) is a very high resolution (30 arc sec, ~1km) global climate data set currently hosted by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL.

Global blue-green richness differences

This project contributes to the Blue Green Biodiversity Research Initiative - an Eawag-WSL collaboration focusing on Biodiversity at the interface of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.

COMECO

The proposed project will focus on floristic data from Switzerland as a pilot system to study the benefits of combining machine learning techniques with spatially explicit ecological and morphological meta information to identify species identities from pictures.

DeSeFoM

Oriental beech (Fagus orientalis) for assisted migration?

We assess the drought response of European and oriental across different life stages by taking advantage of existing Oriental beech plantations in France, Germany and Switzerland.

ClimEx

Climatic extremes such as droughts, heat waves, and late frost events, are predicted to increase with ongoing climate change and are therefore of primary concern for environmental research. We will develop such data on extreme climatic events on a global scale from 1950-2100.

FutureWeb

FutureWeb will integrate predictive biogeography, geography, biostatistics and trophic web ecology to derive an ensemble of scenarios of the impact of global change on multi-trophic vertebrate biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and the provision of ecosystem services in Europe.

Simulating dynamics and spread of vegetation and interacting species

The spatio-temporal DGVM LPJ-GM is extended with modules for dynamics and spread of interacting species and tested in case studies with different interactors

FORClimateS

The project aims to aggregate and synthesize existing information on different spatial and temporal scales to provide decision-makers with relevant and robust information on short- and long-term risks for forests and forest functions and on adaptation strategies under different climate futures

Ecology of Interactions

Hummingbird-plant interactions across elevation gradients in Central and South America

Joint models in biodiversity modeling

This project aims to evaluate advantages and potential pitfalls of JSDMs in biodiversity modeling

Automatisierte Erfassung invasiver Neophyten an Autobahnen

Highways are important corridors for the spread of invasive species. In this project, an automated detection and mapping of invasive alien plant species based on artificial intelligence (Deep Learning) and computer vision was developed and applied on highways of the Swiss Central Plateau.

Photoperiod and ciracian clocks - effects on adaptation and acclimation

Do evolutionary constraints on photoperiod and circadian clocks hinder adaptation and acclimation of plants to climate change? With this project, we will provide the mechanistic basis and a conceptual framework to understand how climatic and daylight/photoperiod cues jointly affects tree functioning.

Can all agriculture in Europe changed to organic production?

What happens when all agriculture in Europe is changed to organic production? This project investigates how the transition to organic production can be made and at a truly European scale combining 11 universities and 15- multi actors from 9 EU countries and 3 associated countries.

SpeedMind

The SpeedMind project will focuses on floristic data from Switzerland as a pilot system to set up and study the benefits of data-mining and machine learning techniques for facilitating biodiversity assessments.

DEForScen

Current plastic response of plants to climate change may be reflected by tree health. We investigate tree health data collected on ca. 6000 plots across Europe since the 1980s to figure out whether changes and trends in defoliation permit to identify species-specific response to climate change.

HYDRO-CH2018 "Forhycs-Ice"

In the project FORHYCS-ICE, ("Forest, Glacier and Hydrology Change in Switzerland"), we aim at providing the first holistic simulations of climate impacts (CH2018 scenarios) on water resources, glaciers and forests.

Tree species migration in DGVMs

Combining very efficient methods for simulation of seed dispersal and for local vegetation dynamics allows for large scale spatiotemporal vegetation dynamics simulations in DGVMs

Shiny Server

The R package "Shiny" offers a simple web application framework for R. Within this internal project we use a dedicated Shiny server to evaluate the capability of web-based Shiny applications for existing work processes and projects at WSL.

ClimSens - Climate Sensitivity of plants and animals in Switzerland

This project assesses the sensitivity of (mostly) plant and animal species to expected climatic changes.

STACCATO

STACCATO is a BiodivERsA project carried out in collaboration with 10 European Institutions and investigates direct effects of climate and land-use change on biodiversity, as well as indirect effects on ecosystem services.

FORHYCS

A hydrological model is coupled to a forest model to better assess the influence of changing drivers to forests and the hydrological cycle

Forest dynamics in Switzerland - pattern, driving forces and ecological implications

Aim of the project is the reconstruction of forest changes in Switzerland (since 1840) and Canton of Zurich (since 1667) to study forest dynamics and search for transition processes.

FORECOM Forest cover changes in mountainous regions

In the Polish-Swiss joint research project Forecom we will analyze historical forest cover changes and their drivers in the Carpatians and Alps. We will develop scenarios of potential future forest cover changes and assess the impact of past and future changes on key ecosystem services.

Biodiversität und Raumentwicklung

Das Projekt «Biodiversität und Raumentwicklung» untersucht Zusammenhänge zwischen Biodiversität und Raumentwicklung auf Landschaftsebene. Die Resultate sind kartographisch dargestellt und können zur Visualisierung von Szenarien der Landschaftsentwicklung eingesetzt werden.

Revision of the Red List of fern and vascular plants

The accessory study of the revision of the red list of fern and vascular plants aims to evaluate the practicability of using statistical methods as a tool for revisions and quality control of red lists.

The need for high resolution

The goal of this project is to provide current and scenario climate grids of resolutions adequate for ecological studies and applications.

Genetic Variation

Die Klimerwärmung dürfte den Wald auf vielen Standorten unter Stress setzen. Wir untersuchen, ob die genetische Variation der Waldbäume es ihnen erlaubt, sich an den Klimawandel anzupassen. Wir fokussieren dabei auf die drei häufigsten Baumarten in Schweizer Wäldern, die Fichte, die Tanne und die Buche.

Bark Beetle Modeling

The most important forest insect in Europe, i.e. the bark beetle Ips typographus, is likely to become even more important with climate change. In this project, we evaluate the driving factors of recent bark beetle infestations by means of statistical modeling and develop bark beetle population and tree susceptibility models for infestation risk analysis.

Waldausdehnung

Ziel des Projektes ist es, zu verbesserten Grundlagen für die politische Lenkung der Waldflächenzunahme im Schweizer Berggebiet beizutragen.

TreeMig

A spatio-temporal forest modelled has been developed to simulate forest dynamics and species migration under a changing climate.

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Publications

Wan, J.; Wang, C.; Zimmermann, N.E.; Li, M.; Pouteau, R.; Yu, F., 2021: Current and future plant invasions in protected areas: does clonality matter?. Diversity and Distributions, doi: 10.1111/ddi.13425

Haesen, S.; Lembrechts, J.J.; De Frenne, P.; Lenoir, J.; Aalto, J.; Ashcroft, M.B.; Kopecký, M.; Luoto, M.; Maclean, I.; Nijs, I.; Zellweger, F.; Van Meerbeek, K., 2021: ForestTemp – Sub‐canopy microclimate temperatures of European forests. Global Change Biology, doi: 10.1111/gcb.15892

Chauvier, Y.; Zimmermann, N.E.; Poggiato, G.; Bystrova, D.; Brun, P.; Thuiller, W., 2021: Novel methods to correct for observer and sampling bias in presence-only species distribution models. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 30, 11: 2312-2325. doi: 10.1111/geb.13383

Barreto, E.; Rangel, T.F.; Coelho, M.T.P.; Cassemiro, F.A.S.; Zimmermann, N.E.; Graham, C.H., 2021: Spatial variation in direct and indirect effects of climate and productivity on species richness of terrestrial tetrapods. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 30, 9: 1899-1908. doi: 10.1111/geb.13357

Benedetti, F.; Vogt, M.; Hofmann Elizondo, U.; Righetti, D.; Zimmermann, N.E.; Gruber, N., 2021: Major restructuring of marine plankton assemblages under global warming. Nature Communications, 12, 1: 5226 (15 pp.). doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-25385-x

Caron, M.M.; Zellweger, F.; Verheyen, K.; Baeten, L.; Hédl, R.; Bernhardt-Römermann, M.; Berki, I.; Brunet, J.; Decocq, G.; Díaz, S.; Dirnböck, T.; Durak, T.; Heinken, T.; Jaroszewicz, B.; Kopecký, M.; Lenoir, J.; Macek, M.; Malicki, M.; Máliš, F.; ... De Frenne, P., 2021: Thermal differences between juveniles and adults increased over time in European forest trees. Journal of Ecology, doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.13773

Gebremedhin, B.; Chala, D.; Flagstad, Ø.; Bekele, A.; Bakkestuen, V.; Van Moorter, B.; Ficetola, G.F.; Zimmermann, N.E.; Brochmann, C.; Stenseth, N.Chr., 2021: Quest for new space for restricted range mammals: the case of the endangered Walia Ibex. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 9: 611632 (12 pp.). doi: 10.3389/fevo.2021.611632

Bornand, C.; Huck, C.; Descombes, P.; Zimmermann, N.; Eggenberg, S., 2021: Zeit für einen neuen Verbreitungsatlas?. L’heure d’un nouvel atlas de distribution?. FloraCH, 12: 20-22.

Iosifescu Enescu, I.; De Espona, L.; Haas-Artho, D.; Kurup Buchholz, R.; Hanimann, D.; Rüetschi, M.; Karger, D.N.; Plattner, G.; Hägeli, M.; Ginzler, C.; Zimmermann, N.E.; Pellissier, L., 2021: Cloud optimized raster encoding (CORE): a web-native streamable format for large environmental time series. Geomatics, 1, 3: 369-382. doi: 10.3390/geomatics1030021

Moos, C.; Guisan, A.; Randin, C.F.; Lischke, H., 2021: Climate change impacts the protective effect of forests: a case study in Switzerland. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, 4: 682923 (15 pp.). doi: 10.3389/ffgc.2021.682923

Turjeman, S.; Eggers, U.; Rotics, S.; Fiedler, W.; Centeno-Cuadros, A.; Kaatz, M.; Zurell, D.; Jeltsch, F.; Wikelski, M.; Nathan, R., 2021: Estimating nest-switching in free-ranging wild birds: an assessment of the most common methodologies, illustrated in the White Stork (Ciconia ciconia). Ibis, 163, 3: 1110-1119. doi: 10.1111/ibi.12933

De Pauw, K.; Meeussen, C.; Govaert, S.; Sanczuk, P.; Vanneste, T.; Bernhardt‐Römermann, M.; Bollmann, K.; Brunet, J.; Calders, K.; Cousins, S.A.O.; Diekmann, M.; Hedwall, P.; Iacopetti, G.; Lenoir, J.; Lindmo, S.; Orczewska, A.; Ponette, Q.; Plue, J.; Selvi, F.; ... De Frenne, P., 2021: Taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity of understorey plants respond differently to environmental conditions in European forest edges. Journal of Ecology, 109, 7: 2629-2648. doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.13671

Ahmadi, M.; Hemami, M.; Kaboli, M.; Nazarizadeh, M.; Malekian, M.; Behrooz, R.; Geniez, P.; Alroy, J.; Zimmermann, N.E., 2021: The legacy of Eastern Mediterranean mountain uplifts: rapid disparity of phylogenetic niche conservatism and divergence in mountain vipers. BMC Ecology and Evolution, 21, 1: 130 (13 pp.). doi: 10.1186/s12862-021-01863-0

Zimmermann, N., 2021: Research Programme Extremes. In: Ferretti, M.; Fischer, C.; Gessler, A. (eds), 2021: Towards an advanced inventorying and monitoring system for the Swiss forest. Towards an advanced inventorying and monitoring system for the Swiss forest, Birmensdorf. 49-50.

König, C.; Wüest, R.O.; Graham, C.H.; Karger, D.N.; Sattler, T.; Zimmermann, N.E.; Zurell, D., 2021: Scale dependency of joint species distribution models challenges interpretation of biotic interactions. Journal of Biogeography, 48: 1541-1551. doi: 10.1111/jbi.14106

Chalmandrier, L.; Hartig, F.; Laughlin, D.C.; Lischke, H.; Pichler, M.; Stouffer, D.B.; Pellissier, L., 2021: Linking functional traits and demography to model species-rich communities. Nature Communications, 12: 2724 (9 pp.). doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-22630-1

De Frenne, P.; Lenoir, J.; Luoto, M.; Scheffers, B.R.; Zellweger, F.; Aalto, J.; Ashcroft, M.B.; Christiansen, D.M.; Decocq, G.; De Pauw, K.; Govaert, S.; Greiser, C.; Gril, E.; Hampe, A.; Jucker, T.; Klinges, D.H.; Koelemeijer, I.A.; Lembrechts, J.J.; Marrec, R.; ... Hylander, K., 2021: Forest microclimates and climate change: importance, drivers and future research agenda. Global Change Biology, 27, 11: 2279-2297. doi: 10.1111/gcb.15569

Wohlgemuth, T.; Del Fabbro, C.; Keel, A.; Nobis, M.; Kessler, M., 2021: Mit Bürgerwissenschaft zur Flora des Kantons Zürich 2020. Vierteljahrsschrift der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft in Zürich, 166, 1: 4-7.

Wohlgemuth, T.; Del Fabbro, C.; Keel, A.; Nobis, M.; Kessler, M., 2021: Veränderung der Zürcher Flora seit dem frühen 19. Jahrhundert. Vierteljahrsschrift der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft in Zürich, 166, 1: 8-11.

Casanelles-Abella, J.; Chauvier, Y.; Zellweger, F.; Villiger, P.; Frey, D.; Ginzler, C.; Moretti, M.; Pellissier, L., 2021: Applying predictive models to study the ecological properties of urban ecosystems: a case study in Zürich, Switzerland. Landscape and Urban Planning, 214: 104137 (13 pp.). doi: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2021.104137

20 from 485 publications

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Staff

Dynamic macroecology

Prof. Dr. Niklaus Zimmermann	teamleader, senior scientist
David Böhm	temporary employee
Dr. Philipp Brun	technical staff member
Yohann Chauvier	PhD student
Dr. Lucienne Claudine de Witte	scientific staff member
Dr. Wenna Ding	visiting scientist
PD Dr. Ingolf Kühn	visiting scientist
Adrian Lang	temporary employee
Prof. Veiko Lehsten	visiting scientist
Ziyan Liao	PhD student guest
Dr. Heike Lischke	senior scientist
Yi Liu	PhD student guest
Dr. Ian Ramsey McFadden	Postdoc
Dr. Michael Nobis	scientific staff member
Prof. Signe Normand	visiting scientist
Dr. Bianca Saladin	PhD student guest
Dr. Dirk Schmatz	scientific staff member
Jannick Sicher	Zivildienst-Mitarbeiter
Eric Sulmoni	technical staff member
PD Dr. Wilfried Thuiller	visiting scientist
Deborah Zani	PhD student
Dr. Florian Zellweger	scientific staff member
Yibiao Zou	trainee
Dr. Damaris Zurell	scientific staff member