NØF 2017: A burning issue ... | Vigdis Vandvik
Channel: UiO Realfagsbiblioteket
Date: 2017-01-13

“A burning issue: Ecological and evolutionary consequences of climate and land-use in a domesticated ecosystem”

presented by Vigdis Vandvig

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50 years after "The silent spring" and as the global temperature is increasing at an alarming rate it is uncontroversial that humans have strong, and often negative, impacts on natural ecosystems. However, the debate is often polarized into a 'people vs. nature' dichotomy, and fails to acknowledge that aspects of nature that we value are also partly shaped by human imprints. The coastal heathlands of north-west Europe is one example of landscapes that have emerged under, and are shaped by, strong anthropogenic forcing. These heathlands have been continuously managed by traditional burning and grazing regimes for up to 6000 years, and support characteristic ecosystems and biodiversity.

 

Understanding the ecology and evolutionary biology of the heathlands requires understanding of how the interplay between natural and anthropogenic forcing has shaped heathland ecosystems and their flora and fauna through history. We combine different methods, such as palaeoecological reconstructions, landscape ecology and germination ecosphysiology, to explore the roles of climate and land-use in shaping heathland ecology and evolutionary biology. In contrast to the often stated 'biotic homogenization' paradigm, we find that the species colonizing heathlands after fire are not widespread generalists, but a characteristic set of relatively narrow-range species representing a characteristic subset of the local and regional flora. The traditional heathland management, such as grazing and management burning, thus contributes significantly to the biodiversity of the heathland landscape across a range of spatial and temporal scales. We also demonstrate that past human manipulation of coastal heathland fire-regimes have triggered evolution of smoke-responsive seed germination in the keystone species Calluna vulgaris. Such evolutionary imprints of (pre)historic anthropogenic impacts are severely under-studied, and research is urgently needed to inform decision-making in conservation science and ecosystem management.

 

Acknowledgments: Liv Guri Velle, Inger Elisabeth Måren, Peter Emil Kaland, Ann Norderhaug, Samson L. Øpstad, Liv S. Nilsen, Matt I. Daws, Joachim Töpper, Einar Heegaard, Sigird S. Bruvoll, Lyngheinettverket, The Norwegian Research Council.

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From the third biennial conference of the Norwegian Ecological Society, taking place on the 12th and 13th of January 2017 at Blindern Campus, Oslo, organized and hosted by the Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES). The theme of the conference is Evolutionary Ecology, emphasizing the growing links and merger between the separate traditions of ecology and evolutionary biology.

http://www.mn.uio.no/cees/english/research/news/events/research/others/2017/nof2017/