Academic literature on the topic 'Ecosystem structure and functioning'
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Journal articles on the topic "Ecosystem structure and functioning"
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Marleau, Justin N., Frédéric Guichard, and Michel Loreau. "Meta-ecosystem dynamics and functioning on finite spatial networks." Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 281, no. 1777 (February 22, 2014): 20132094. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2013.2094.
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The addition of spatial structure to ecological concepts and theories has spurred integration between sub-disciplines within ecology, including community and ecosystem ecology. However, the complexity of spatial models limits their implementation to idealized, regular landscapes. We present a model meta-ecosystem with finite and irregular spatial structure consisting of local nutrient–autotrophs–herbivores ecosystems connected through spatial flows of materials and organisms. We study the effect of spatial flows on stability and ecosystem functions, and provide simple metrics of connectivity that can predict these effects. Our results show that high rates of nutrient and herbivore movement can destabilize local ecosystem dynamics, leading to spatially heterogeneous equilibria or oscillations across the meta-ecosystem, with generally increased meta-ecosystem primary and secondary production. However, the onset and the spatial scale of these emergent dynamics depend heavily on the spatial structure of the meta-ecosystem and on the relative movement rate of the autotrophs. We show how this strong dependence on finite spatial structure eludes commonly used metrics of connectivity, but can be predicted by the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the connectivity matrix that describe the spatial structure and scale. Our study indicates the need to consider finite-size ecosystems in meta-ecosystem theory.
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Ferraz, Silvio, Pedro H. S. Brancalion, Joannès Guillemot, and Paula Meli. "On the Need to Differentiate the Temporal Trajectories of Ecosystem Structure and Functions in Restoration Programs." Tropical Conservation Science 13 (January 2020): 194008292091031. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1940082920910314.
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Potential time lags between human-mediated disturbances and the subsequent responses of ecosystems are critical for planning and implementing conservation and restoration actions. In this context, decoupling between the temporal trajectories of ecosystems structure and functions is particularly critical. Here, we stand out the need to differentiate the temporal trajectories of ecosystem structure and functions to be considered in ecological restoration programs. In cases when ecosystem functions persist after the degradation of the ecosystem structure, and when functions do not recover at the same rate as structure, some kind of ecosystem functioning credits or debts can occur. In other situations, an ongoing loss of the ecosystem function can occur even in the absence of further disturbance. Ecosystem restoration outcomes could be optimized in regions with ecosystem functioning credit, since mitigating the decline in functioning will be more efficient than recovering functions in highly degraded conditions. Ecological restoration programs should not only focus on structure-derived indicators but they should also consider the dynamics of ecosystem functions to guide land-planning decision-making.
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Vishnyagova, Ekaterina, and Irina Solovieva. "IDENTIFICATION OF STRUCTURE AND FEATURES OF INDUSTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS." Bulletin of the South Ural State University series "Economics and Management" 18, no. 1 (2024): 80–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.14529/em240107.
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In modern conditions of widespread digitalization and the introduction of sanctions restrictions, industrial enterprises need to be flexible and timely adapt to the current situation. In this regard, there is an urgent need to develop and implement new innovative ways of doing business, one of which is the creation of industrial ecosystems. The study aimed to analyze the functioning of ecosystems and identify the possible structure and principles of industrial ecosystems functioning. The key hypothesis of the study is the possibility of increasing the efficiency of domestic industrial enterprises by developing methodological support for the creation and functioning of industrial ecosystems in Russia. The methodological basis of the study is represented by the provisions of systems theory, digital economy and the concept of ecosystems. The research was carried out using methods of systematization, comparative and structural analysis. As a result, it presents the author's definition of an ecosystem, a system of principles for the functioning of an industrial ecosystem and the author's model of the composition and structure of industrial ecosystems. The author’s model being atomic in nature reflects the composition of the ecosystem, its interrelations, where the center is a base enterprise, uniting participating enterprises under its brand on the basis of a single digital platform to form a modular customer offer, expand boundaries, and increase competitiveness industry and ensuring the technological sovereignty of the country. The author's model of industrial ecosystems structure makes it possible to analyze the relationships between the elements of the ecosystem, see the composition (of all participants) of the ecosystem, as well as understand the essence of the work of industrial ecosystems from the inside, determine the key aspects of strategic planning and current operational management. The paper focuses on the need to assess the readiness of industrial enterprises for ecosystem transformation as a base enterprise or a participating enterprise, as well as the lack of approaches to assessing the effectiveness of industrial ecosystems functioning, which became a prerequisite for the development of the author’s approach and methodology on this issue. The theoretical significance of the study lies in increasing knowledge in the field of strategic planning and management of industrial enterprises and complexes.
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Dossena, Matteo, Gabriel Yvon-Durocher, Jonathan Grey, José M. Montoya, Daniel M. Perkins, Mark Trimmer, and Guy Woodward. "Warming alters community size structure and ecosystem functioning." Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 279, no. 1740 (April 11, 2012): 3011–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2012.0394.
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Global warming can affect all levels of biological complexity, though we currently understand least about its potential impact on communities and ecosystems. At the ecosystem level, warming has the capacity to alter the structure of communities and the rates of key ecosystem processes they mediate. Here we assessed the effects of a 4°C rise in temperature on the size structure and taxonomic composition of benthic communities in aquatic mesocosms, and the rates of detrital decomposition they mediated. Warming had no effect on biodiversity, but altered community size structure in two ways. In spring, warmer systems exhibited steeper size spectra driven by declines in total community biomass and the proportion of large organisms. By contrast, in autumn, warmer systems had shallower size spectra driven by elevated total community biomass and a greater proportion of large organisms. Community-level shifts were mirrored by changes in decomposition rates. Temperature-corrected microbial and macrofaunal decomposition rates reflected the shifts in community structure and were strongly correlated with biomass across mesocosms. Our study demonstrates that the 4°C rise in temperature expected by the end of the century has the potential to alter the structure and functioning of aquatic ecosystems profoundly, as well as the intimate linkages between these levels of ecological organization.
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Biles, C. L., D. M. Paterson, R. B. Ford, M. Solan, and D. G. Raffaelli. "Bioturbation, ecosystem functioning and community structure." Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 6, no. 6 (December 31, 2002): 999–1005. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/hess-6-999-2002.
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Abstract. The effect of community structure on the functioning of the ecosystem is an important issue in ecology due to continuing global species loss. The influence of infaunal community structure on the functioning of marine systems is proposed here to act primarily through bioturbation of the sediment. Nutrient concentration in the water column, generated by release from the sediment, was used as a measure of ecosystem functioning. In situ and laboratory experiments showed a significant difference in nutrient concentrations with different species treatments. Bioturbation profiles showing the incorporation of tracer particles also differed between communities with different dominant species. The behavioural differences between infaunal species, generating different modes and rates of bioturbation, are therefore proposed to influence nutrient release. The presence and quantity of bioturbating infauna also influenced the amount of sediment suspended in the water column. The increase in surface area available for microbial activity may generate an increase in nutrient cycling. Abiotic influences on sediment structure, such as flow, may have a similar effect on nutrient concentration. Annular flumes used in both laboratory and in situ experiments to generate flow conditions produced a significant increase in ammonia (NH4-N) production in macrofaunal treatments. Flow may influence the behaviour of macrofaunal species, causing changes in NH4-N production through modifying bioturbation of the sediment. Keywords: bioturbation, community structure, ccosystem functioning, estuaries, flow, infauna
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Dubnytskyi, V., T. Mishustina, O. Ovcharenko, and N. Naumenko. "Special Features of Business Ecosystem Development in the Context of Digital Economy Transformation." Economic Herald of the Donbas, no. 3 (73) (2023): 61–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.12958/1817-3772-2023-3(73)-61-70.
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At work, the results of research by foreign scholars in the field of business ecosystems and digital platforms have been summarized. The evolution of the construction of business structures/ecosystems has been systematized. Strategic models of digital society transformation have been analyzed, specifically: the model of an economy "driven by technology" and the model of an economy "driven by the market." The main drivers of business ecosystem development in the context of digital transformation have been considered. The forms of functioning of business ecosystems in centralized and adaptive ecosystem conditions have been analyzed, highlighting differences based on criteria such as structure, partners, goals, conditions of use, strategic focus, relationship management, and impact on the central company. Distinctions between digital ecosystems and traditional business alliances, particularly clusters, have been outlined. The most relevant risks associated with ecosystem functioning have been discussed, including tax risk, strategic risk, business risk, compliance risk, technological risk, cyber risk, and reputational risk. The significance of customer experience in the functioning of a business ecosystem has been substantiated.
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Florenta, Veronica, Corina Certan, Nadejda Grabco, and Constantin Bulimaga. "Relationships between ecosystem services provided by forest ecosystems and human well-being." Studia Universitatis Moldaviae. Seria Științe ale Naturii, no. 1(171) (June 2024): 100–108. http://dx.doi.org/10.59295/sum1(171)2024_12.
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Current climate change trends significantly influenceing the structure and functioning of natural ecosystems, including forest ecosystems, which directly or indirectly affects human well-being. The present study consists in reviewing the specialized literature on the effects of the relationships between ecosystem services provided by forest ecosystems and human well-being, describing the following aspects: the definition of the concept of ecosystem services, their history, categories of ecosystem services and the relationship between them and human well-being. The concept of ecosystem services has become an important model of the link between forest ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Understanding this linkage is essential for a wide range of decision-making contexts for the sustainable management of forest ecosystems. We conclude that humanity’s dependence on nature for well-being and survival is complex.
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Maleque, M. Abdul, Hiroaki T. Ishii, and Kaoru Maeto. "The Use of Arthropods as Indicators of Ecosystem Integrity in Forest Management." Journal of Forestry 104, no. 3 (March 1, 2006): 113–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jof/104.3.113.
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Abstract Arthropods play vital roles in various ecosystem functions and respond acutely to habitat manipulation. Diversity and community dynamics of arthropods are strongly correlated with ecosystem functioning. Arthropod community structure reflects habitat heterogeneity, as well as development and recovery of forest ecosystems after natural and anthropogenic disturbances. Arthropod community structure also reflects the degree of fragmentation and isolation of forest ecosystems on the landscape. Arthropods are good indicators of the overall biodiversity and ecosystem integrity of forests and can be used for evaluating and designing sound ecosystem management plans.
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Bundy, Alida, Lynne J. Shannon, Marie-Joëlle Rochet, Sergio Neira, Yunne-Jai Shin, Louize Hill, and Kerim Aydin. "The good(ish), the bad, and the ugly: a tripartite classification of ecosystem trends." ICES Journal of Marine Science 67, no. 4 (January 6, 2010): 745–68. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsp283.
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Abstract Bundy, A., Shannon, L. J., Rochet, M-J., Neira, S., Shin, Y-J., Hill, L., and Aydin, K. 2010. The good(ish), the bad, and the ugly: a tripartite classification of ecosystem trends. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 67: 745–768. Marine ecosystems have been exploited for a long time, growing increasingly vulnerable to collapse and irreversible change. How do we know when an ecosystem may be in danger? A measure of the status of individual stocks is only a partial gauge of its status, and does not include changes at the broader ecosystem level, to non-commercial species or to its structure or functioning. Six ecosystem indicators measuring trends over time were collated for 19 ecosystems, corresponding to four ecological attributes: resource potential, ecosystem structure and functioning, conservation of functional biodiversity, and ecosystem stability and resistance to perturbations. We explored the use of a decision-tree approach, a definition of initial ecosystem state (impacted or non-impacted), and the trends in the ecosystem indicators to classify the ecosystems into improving, stationary, and deteriorating. Ecosystem experts classified all ecosystems as impacted at the time of their initial state. Of these, 15 were diagnosed as “ugly”, because they had deteriorated from an already impacted state. Several also exhibited specific combinations of trends indicating “fishing down the foodweb”, reduction in size structure, reduction in diversity and stability, and changed productivity. The classification provides an initial evaluation for scientists, resource managers, stakeholders, and the general public of the concerning status of ecosystems globally.
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WANG, Zhi-Heng, and Ling-Li LIU. "Ecosystem structure and functioning: current knowledge and perspectives." Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology 45, no. 10 (2021): 1033–35. http://dx.doi.org/10.17521/cjpe.2021.0370.
Full textDissertations / Theses on the topic "Ecosystem structure and functioning"
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Williams, Gavin Mark David. "Impact of drought on stream ecosystem structure and functioning." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2016. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/6950/.
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Climate change is projected to increase the frequency and severity of extreme events, adding to the plethora of existing pressures that streams and rivers already face. Compound events such as drought may comprise numerous stressors that occur in concert to elicit ecological change. However the causal mechanisms of such impacts remain unknown, and research attempting to disentangle impacts of compound events, or link effects across levels of ecological organisation, remains in its infancy. This research investigates impacts of key drought stressors –sedimentation, dewatering and warming – across multiple ecological, hierarchical levels. At the individual level, macroinvertebrates displayed differential thermal sensitivity to warming which may explain idiosyncratic ecological responses reported elsewhere, whilst sedimentation intensified predator-prey interactions. Mesocosms were effective tools for studying drought stressors independently and in combination at the community and functional level. Dewatering main effects reduced the density of a common taxon and functional feeding group biomass, whilst all three stressors sometimes interacted together in complex ways. Stressors also had quantifiable effects at the whole-system level, e.g. stream metabolism. This study provides initial findings pertaining to drought impact causative mechanisms across multiple levels of ecological complexity, highlighting the importance of an experimental approach to predict future effects of compound events.
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Cotter, Shaun. "Impacts of watercress farming on stream ecosystem functioning and community structure." Thesis, Queen Mary, University of London, 2012. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/handle/123456789/8385.
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Despite the increased prominence of ecological measurement in fresh waters within recent national regulatory and legislative instruments, their assessment is still almost exclusively based on taxonomic structure. Integrated metrics of structure and function, though widely advocated, to date have not been incorporated into these bioassessment programmes. We sought to address this, by assessing community structure (macroinvertebrate assemblage composition) and ecosystem functioning (decomposition, primary production, and herbivory rates), in a series of replicated field experiments, at watercress farms on the headwaters of chalk streams, in southern England. The outfalls from watercress farms are typically of the highest chemical quality, however surveys have revealed long-term (30 years) impacts on key macroinvertebrate taxa, in particular the freshwater shrimp Gammarus pulex (L.), yet the ecosystem-level consequences remain unknown. Initial studies were at Europe’s largest watercress farm at St Mary Bourne, Hampshire, during the bioremediation of its complex wastewaters and changes to farm management practices. These widened to include larger scale spatiotemporal studies at other watercress farms. Detrimental ecological impacts at the start of the study were detected by the structural and functioning measures, but they did not respond to bioremediation. However, an increase in G. pulex abundance was detected, providing evidence of recovery in response to altered practices, which may be attributable to the cessation of chlorine use. The detrimental impacts were unique to the St Mary Bourne watercress farm and were not consistent across the other watercress farms in the study. Our results demonstrate the importance of integrated metrics of both ecosystem structure and functioning, to derive a more comprehensive view of aquatic ecosystems and highlights the difficulties associated with extrapolating from laboratory studies in response to stressors.
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Jackson, Michelle C. "Waves of invaders : interactions among invasive species and their impacts on ecosystem structure and functioning." Thesis, Queen Mary, University of London, 2012. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/handle/123456789/27043.
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Many freshwater ecosystems sustain several invasive species. Here I examine multiple invasions in two highly invaded and well catalogued catchments; Lake Naivasha, Kenya and River Thames, England. New metrics, derived from stable isotope analysis, are used to provide measures of trophic diversity and to examine dietary interactions among species. I test the hypothesis that functionally similar sympatric species will occupy a smaller niche than their allopatric counterparts. Additionally, I quantify the impact of multiple invasive species on ecosystem structure and functioning in order to address the question; do interactions among species amplify or mitigate one another's impact? In Lake Naivasha, the stable isotope metrics revealed serial replacement of invasive species due to dietary interactions. Invasive red swamp crayfish were eventually excluded from the lake due to niche restriction in the presence of a more recent invader, the common carp. Now, the crayfish have migrated into the catchment where they overlap with a species of native river crab. Here, I found a novel mechanism of invasion, whereby the crayfish restricted their niche at the invasion front in order to reduce competition with crabs. Crayfish also caused significant changes in invertebrate community structure and increased decomposition rates, which indirectly resulted in displacement of the crabs. In the Thames catchment, I catalogue the non-indigenous species and show how invasion rates have increased significantly since 1800 due to globalisation. Using the four species of invasive crayfish present (red swamp, signal, Turkish and virile), I demonstrate their extensive diet plasticity using novel measures of niche width and individual specialisation based on stable isotope data. Interactions among the crayfish were examined and this revealed that each species has varying and independent impacts on invertebrate community structure, algal standing stock and decomposition rates. Hence, interactions among invaders are not expected to amplify or mitigate one another's impact and instead, the combined impact will be the sum of their allopatric impacts.
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Lo, Veronica <1982>. "Effects of Human Pressures on Ecosystem Structure, Functioning and Services in Salt Marshes." Doctoral thesis, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 2017. http://amsdottorato.unibo.it/8263/7/Lo_Veronica_PhD%20Thesis_UNIBO_2017-FINAL.pdf.
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Salt marsh ecosystems are recognized as highly productive, diverse systems which provide key services to society, but are facing an increasing number of multiple human pressures resulting in global losses of these ecosystems. I aimed to assess the effects of human pressures on salt marsh status and functioning, focusing on the perennial Spartina spp. grasses across the Northern Adriatic Sea, using a combination of field observational studies, manipulation of pressures on salt marshes, and wave mesocosm experiments to measure erosion resistance. Major findings include: 1. Macrobenthos diversity and abundance in Spartina spp. patches were influenced by sediment and nutrient variables, and indirectly influenced by Spartina spp. which modified the sdiments via organic enrichment; 2. Spartina spp. below-ground biomass decreased resistance to erosion, with a more pronounced effect in sandy compared to silty sediments; 3. A heat wave that occurred in 2015 synergistically interacted with high nutrient loads to change the vegetation composition in experimentally fertilized plots, with a rapid shift from Spartina spp. grasses to Salicornia spp. succulents, and the heat wave triggered changes in sediment properties that reduced the erosion resistance of salt marsh sediments; 4. After exposure to different inundation levels through a salt marsh transplantation experiment, plant survival (indicated by % live shoot biomass) and % silt were the most significant predictors of erosion resistance. Overall, biomass and sediment properties were the main factors influencing lateral resistance to erosion in our experiments. The research in this thesis fills important knowledge gaps regarding the status of salt marshes and their functioning across lagoons of the Northern Adriatic Sea. These results help to consolidate the evidence of the important role of salt marsh vegetation in coastal protection, and demonstrate the conditions under which erosion resistance in salt marshes is most effective.
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Mazzochini, Guilherme Gerhardt. "Plant diversity influencing structure and functioning of Caatinga vegetation." Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 2014. http://repositorio.ufrn.br/handle/123456789/20583.
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O estudo dos efeitos que a diversidade de esp?cies pode causar nos processos ecossist?micos tem crescido vertiginosamente nas ?ltimas duas d?cadas. Diversos trabalhos experimentais realizados no mundo todo t?m demonstrado que uma maior diversidade de plantas contribui para o aumento da produtividade de ecossistemas terrestres. Al?m disso, esse efeito pode influenciar processos em diversos n?veis tr?ficos, contribuindo assim para a estabilidade dos processos ecossist?micos a longo prazo. Paralelamente com os estudos do efeito da diversidade, muita aten??o tem sido dada para desvendar o papel das caracter?sticas funcionais das esp?cies no funcionamento dos ecossistemas. Isto porque as caracter?sticas funcionais das esp?cies t?m se mostrado importantes "pe?as" no entendimento dos efeitos que esp?cies individuais podem exercer nos ecossistemas e suas respostas ao ambiente. Nesta tese de doutorado eu explorei algumas lacunas de conhecimento dentro dessa ?rea em crescente desenvolvimento conhecida na literatura ecol?gica como "biodiversidade e funcionamento dos ecossistemas". No primeiro cap?tulo, eu busquei evid?ncias para mecanismos que podem explicar a rela??o positiva entre diversidade e funcionamento com foco em cinco mecanismos relacionados ?s intera??es entre plantas, tendo como par?metro de funcionamento a produtividade prim?ria. No segundo cap?tulo, eu utilizei t?cnicas para a estimativa de padr?es de diversidade em escalas biogeogr?ficas e bases de dados de sat?lites com longa dura??o para desvendar se a biodiversidade em escalas macroecol?gicas promove a estabilidade da produtividade dos ambientes terrestres no semi?rido brasileiro. Por fim, o objetivo do terceiro cap?tulo foi entender como a perda da cobertura vegetal origin?ria do uso da terra por comunidades tradicionais no semi?rido brasileiro influenciaria os processos de intera??es entre plantas e o papel das caracter?sticas funcionais das esp?cies nessas intera??es. Acredito que a contribui??o individual de cada cap?tulo preenche lacunas de conhecimento importantes dessa ?rea da Ecologia que ainda se encontra em expans?o.
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Qwabe, Welly. "Interactions between ecosystem engineering by burrowing sandprawns (Callichirus kraussi) and nutrients: consequences for benthic community structure and ecosystem functioning." Doctoral thesis, Faculty of Science, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/30890.
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Non-trophic interactions are significant structuring agents of ecological communities. Knowledge of how this process drives ecosystem functioning and community structure either individually, or interactively with other processes, is however, limited, particularly in shallow soft- littoral ecosystems. At a local level, such systems are dominated by allogenic engineers such as the burrowing axiid sandprawn Callichirus kraussi Stebbing, which has important effects on macro- and meiobenthic assemblages. C. kraussi is distributed across the South African coastline, from the subtropical Mozambican border to the temperate west coast borders with Namibia. Bioturbation — the principal mechanism by which C. kraussi engineers influence associated biota in sedimentary systems, also has significant effects on sediment properties, biofilms, microalgal and microbial composition. However, theory suggests that ecosystem engineering effects are contextually dependent and contingent upon processes that are temporally and spatially variable. In South Africa, variations in background nutrient levels across the coastline is significant, with the West coast being dominated strong upwelling, which increases biological productivity. Within the west coast, upwelling is also seasonally variable, being strongest in summer. In view of this natural variability in nutrient levels across the coast, seasonal variability within the west coast and the fact that the sandprawn C. kraussi dominates across these conditions, the central focus of this PhD thesis was to investigate how ecosystem engineering by sandprawns C. kraussi and nutrient levels individually or interactively influence assemblages and ecological processes in coastal soft-sediment ecosystems. The study was carried out in Langebaan Lagoon, which is a marine lagoonal system on the west coast of South Africa that is dominated by sandprawns and subjected to seasonal upwelling that is a feature of the west coast. This thesis was based on the two principal approaches, viz. a field comparative study and in situ experiments. The field observational study investigated the responses of macroand meiofaunal communities to sandprawn bioturbation impacts between upwelling and non-upwelling seasons, with the aim of understanding how upwelling nutrient pulses modify these benthic assemblages. Benthic and water column chlorophyll-a (chl-a) levels were also measured, while meiofaunal communities were investigated within sandprawn burrows (burrow-walls) and at the sediment surface. It was hypothesized that chl-a levels, and community metrics would be lower in winter (non-upwelling) but increase in summer upwelling season due to nutrient pulses. It was also hypothesized that community metrics would be negatively correlated with sandprawn density due to bioturbatory effects (sediment turnover) in winter (non-upwelling) but this relationship would become neutral or positive increased in summer, due to increased productivity offsetting negative bioturbative effects. Clear, non-intuitive and ecologically interesting outcomes emerged from the field study. Firstly, benthic chl-a concentrations appeared to be lower in summer relative to winter in 2015, although, this pattern disappeared in 2016. In contrast, water column chl-a concentrations within the lagoon channel conformed to the posed hypothesis, being consistently greater in summer relative to winter. Even though both macro- and meiofaunal assemblages differed significantly between seasons, the hypothesis that community metrics would be greater in summer relative to winter season was not overwhelmingly supported by these findings. Pearson correlation analyses revealed that sandprawn effects were generally weaker within seasons but stronger when winter and summer data were combined and investigated per year. In terms of the latter, most community metrics and benthic chl-a levels were generally negatively correlated with sandprawn abundances, but this varied seasonally and spatially. Overall, results of the comparative study suggest that increases in water column chl-a levels do not necessarily translate into increases in benthic chl-a and community metric levels. One possible reason for this is that increasing bioturbation by C. kraussi overrides nutrient enrichment effects. This conclusion though is spatially dependent, given that results of correlation analyses were site-specific. The factorial field experiment employed in this dissertation manipulated nutrients (fertilizer capsules, Plantacote N: P: K) and sandprawns (C. kraussi densities) to investigate their individual and interactive effects on benthic assemblages. I hypothesized within the context of the grazer-reversal hypothesis of Proulx and Mazumder (1998) that, responses of diversity metrics should alter from a linear decrease at the ambient nutrient level to a unimodal hump-shaped response at the intermediate nutrient level and then to a linear increase at highest nutrients. Generally, emerging patterns for meiofaunal diversity metrics and individual morphotypes were inconsistent with the prediction of the grazer-reversal model. Instead, responses were of an increasing and decreasing nature. The outcomes of this investigation, however, revealed that meiofaunal community structure at the sediment surface was significantly affected by the main effect of sites and sandprawn densities, while within burrow-walls, the interaction between sites and nutrients, but also sandprawn densities alone, significantly affected meiofaunal community structure. Overall, meiofaunal results of this investigation showed limited support for the grazer-reversal hypothesis. Although the findings of this investigation also indicated limited support for the grazer-reversal hypothesis on the macrofauna community, interactive effects of nutrient enrichment and sandprawn densities emerged to influence the macrofaunal community structure and abundances of certain individual species/taxa. Generally, macrofaunal community metrics exhibited both increasing and decreasing patterns in response to experimental treatments, however, in some instances unimodal hump-shaped patterns emerged. There was evidence of macrofaunal functional groups (i.e. suspension feeders) conforming to the hypothesis posed, but this was site-specific. Overall, I conclude that an interplay between nutrients and sandprawns does not exert strong influences on the benthic communities of Langebaan Lagoon. However, sandprawn ecosystem engineering, mainly in the form of bioturbation overrides nutrient enrichment effects in regulating benthic assemblages.
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Burdon, Francis John. "Impacts of sedimentation on the structure and functioning of agricultural stream communities." Thesis, University of Canterbury. School of Biological Sciences, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10092/8310.
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The excessive deposition of fine inorganic sediment (<2 mm) is a major pathway by which agricultural land uses exert pressure on stream ecosystems. However, less well understood are the underlying mechanisms driving threshold biotic responses and the ecological consequences of community changes to sedimentation. Reviewing the literature, I found that sedimentation can affect algal and detrital pathways, and invertebrate community composition may show abrupt shifts with increased sediment. Moreover, functional changes to communities potentially leads to simpler food webs, with altered interactions and decreased ecosystem function. After identifying these knowledge gaps, I conducted survey and experimental research using agricultural streams on the Canterbury Plains of New Zealand’s South Island. Results from my survey of 30 streams along a sedimentation gradient showed that pollution-sensitive invertebrates (% EPT; Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera) demonstrated threshold responses to sediment that varied with spatial scale, and change-point analysis indicated marked declines beyond 20% fine sediment covering streambed reaches. Structural equation modeling indicated that decreased habitat availability was a key mechanism contributing to these changes. To better understand the functional consequences of altered community structure, I investigated food webs in 12 streams along the gradient. The results showed a compression of community trophic niche space, suggesting that in particular, primary consumers became trophically more equivalent. The simplification of stream food webs with increasing sediment appeared to be the result of functional changes to invertebrate communities, with fewer specialised consumers, and shifts in the availability of basal resources. Using field and laboratory experiments investigating litter breakdown and invertebrate feeding, I found that the net consequence of functionally less diverse stream communities with increased sediment was impaired ecosystem function, demonstrated by a reduction in litter breakdown rates. The reduction of detrital resource availability through burial by sediment in laboratory mesocosm experiments strongly influenced detrital consumption rates, thus leading to reduced growth and survival of detritivorous caddisflies. The survey and experimental results support my postulate that sediment deposition causes environmental stress by degrading benthic habitat and making associated food resources (e.g., periphyton and leaves) less available. Overall, my results have provided new insights into sediment impacts on stream communities and have furthered our understanding of how these changes affect the structure and functioning of stream ecosystems.
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Epperly, Joshua A. "The Effects of Enhanced Flows on Community Structure and Ecosystem Functioning in a Montane Utah River System." DigitalCommons@USU, 2018. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/7223.
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Due to growing human demands for freshwater within the last century, manmade flow alterations are now a common characteristic of rivers worldwide. Alterations to the volume and timing of flows in rivers are known to negatively impact aquatic biodiversity, biological productivity and ecosystem functions such as nutrient cycling. While previous research has focused on the effects of flow reductions and spates, there is a lack of knowledge on how high flows across longer timespans (i.e. ‘enhanced flows’) impact the structure of river communities and the integrity of ecosystem functions.
The Utah Reclamation, Mitigation and Conservation Commission has expressed interest in reducing enhanced flows in a central Utah river so as to benefit aquatic habitat and native game fish. With their funding support, I collected aquatic invertebrate and ecosystem function data under natural and enhanced flow conditions throughout Sixth Water Creek and Diamond Fork River. These data were supplemented with historical invertebrate data collected by BIO-West, Incorporated. For each river segment, I tested whether flow volume and variation had relationships with the density and health of streambed invertebrate communities. I also sought to determine how these flow metrics affected leaf litter breakdown, primary production and stream metabolism (i.e. the production and respiration of organic matter).
Here, I demonstrate that enhanced flows impact streambed invertebrate communities differently in each river segment, in addition to suppressing stream metabolism system-wide. While streambed communities were mostly unaffected by enhanced flows in Sixth Water Creek, density and community health exhibited negative relationships with flow metrics in Diamond Fork River. In the Lower Diamond Fork mainstem, proportions of pollution-tolerant taxa increased as peak flows increased, while streambed invertebrate density decreased as mean monthly flows increased. Moreover, enhanced flows appeared to severely impact the production of organic matter in Sixth Water Creek and Lower Diamond Fork River. This disproportionate suppression of production over respiration shifted the river towards greater reliance on out-of-stream energy sources. These results demonstrate the importance of considering spatial gradients when investigating community responses to flow alterations, and also reveal how river ecosystems are threatened with losses of in-stream energy supplies under enhanced flows.
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Hachuy, Filho Leandro. "Exotic grass invasion alters the structure and functioning of plant-bee interactions in a Neotropical grassland ecosystem." Botucatu, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/11449/181940.
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Orientador: Felipe Wanderley AmorimResumo: As mudanças globais mediadas pela ação antrópica estão alterando a biodiversidade e os ecossistemas em um ritmo acelerado. Um dos principais impulsionadores dessas mudanças é a introdução de espécies exóticas em ecossistemas nativos. Entre os grupos de organismos afetados por este processo, o das plantas é reconhecido um dos mais preocupantes, uma vez que a produção primária limita o tamanho e a composição das comunidades e participa através de efeitos em cascata em interações multi-tróficas. Uma das principais relações ecológicas influenciada por esse efeito é a relação entre plantas e polinizadores, cujo papel é importante para estrutura e funcionamento das comunidades biológicas, não apenas porque as plantas fornecem recursos alimentares essenciais para muitos grupos de animais que visitam flores, mas também porque o sucesso reprodutivo da maioria das plantas com flores depende dos serviços bióticos fornecidos por estes animais. Neste contexto, a introdução de espécies de plantas exóticas invasoras pode ter impactos críticos nas interações planta-polinizador ao nível da comunidade, principalmente através da competição com espécies nativas. Como as interações planta-polinizador são cruciais para determinar a estrutura da comunidade, nesse estudo nós testamos como o crescimento rápido de uma gramínea invasora altera a composição das espécies de plantas nativas em um campo cerrado, juntamente com os impactos deste processo sobre a estrutura das interações planta-polinizador. ... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo)
Abstract: The global change mediated by anthropic action is altering biodiversity and ecosystems in a fast pace. One major driver of these changes is the introduction of alien species in native ecosystems. Among the groups of organisms that are affected by this process, plants are recognized to be one of the most concern, since primary production limit global communities’ sizes and composition, and participate through cascade effects on multitrophic interactions. One crucial type of interaction that is influenced by this effect is the plant-pollinator relationship, which have an important role in the structure and functioning of biological communities, not only because plants provide essential food resources for many groups of animals that visit flowers, but also because the reproductive success of most flowering plants depends on the biotic services provided by animals. In this context, the introduction of invasive alien plant species may have critical impacts on plant-pollinator interactions at community level, mainly through competition with native species. Since plantpollinator interactions are determinants of community structure, here we evaluated how the rising of a fast-growing invasive alien grass species changes plant species composition of a Neotropical grassland community along with its impacts on the structure of plant-pollinator interactions. For this, we analyzed the changes in community composition and plantpollinator interactions over time, through the temporal turnover... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)
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Peralta, Guadalupe. "Food webs from natural to production forests: composition, phylogeny and functioning." Thesis, University of Canterbury. School of Biological Sciences, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10092/8556.
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Habitat loss and fragmentation have been identified as the main drivers of biodiversity loss. These drivers increase the proportion of habitat edges and change the configuration of landscapes. Habitat edges are known to affect ecological patterns and processes, however, is still unknown how these boundaries affect the assemblage of interactions among species within a community, and particularly its structure. Food webs depict not only the composition of the community, but also the feeding links, which represent a measure of energy flow. Therefore, they can inform about the relationships among community diversity, stability, and ecosystem functions.
This thesis explores the effects of habitat edges across native vs. managed forests on the food web of a tri-trophic system comprising plants, herbivores (Lepidoptera larvae) and predators (parasitoids). Particularly, it addresses three main objectives: 1) how food webs at habitat edges are assembled from the species and interactions present in the adjoining habitats; 2) how phylogenetic diversity and the coevolutionary signal among interacting species change across a habitat edge gradient; and 3) whether the mechanisms driving community-wide consumption rates and the ecosystem service of pest control are related to structural characteristics of the food webs.
The key findings of this thesis are that, despite the composition of species and interactions of native and managed habitats merging at their interface, food-web structure did not arise as a simple combination of its adjacent habitat webs, potentially due to differential responses of organisms to habitat edges. Moreover, beyond taxonomic composition, the phylogenetic diversity and signal of coevolution among interacting species also change between habitat types, even though this did not translate to changes in consumption rates. Consumption rates and their stability increased with complementarity and redundancy in resource-use among predators.
This reflects how environmental changes such as habitat fragmentation can have an effect beyond composition per se, affecting the assemblage of species interactions and even potentially interfering with natural evolutionary processes. Therefore, using interaction-network approaches for determining the impacts of changes may shed light on the underlying mechanisms driving such changes, and help to develop landscape management plans that reduce negative effects on species assemblages.
Books on the topic "Ecosystem structure and functioning"
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Luc, Abbadie, ed. Lamto: Structure, functioning and dynamics of a savanna ecosystem. Berlin ; New York: Springer-Verlag, 2005.
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Popov, Evgeniy, Viktoriya Simonova, Igor' Chelak, Pavel Minakir, and Boris Porfir'ev. The company's ecosystem. ru: INFRA-M Academic Publishing LLC., 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.12737/1864513.
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The monograph is devoted to modeling the ecosystem of the company. The influence of social networks on the development of business processes is shown, the principles of the use of new digital communication technologies are given and the drivers of the economy in the conditions of the coronavirus pandemic are substantiated. The structure of industrial ecosystems in the digital economy is given, the economic effects of digitalization of inter-firm interactions are discussed, the idea of the network potential of a firm in the conditions of digitalization of economic activity is substantiated. The application of digital platforms as the basis for the functioning of economic ecosystems is considered. The possibilities of assessing the development of innovative ecosystems and the typology of their models are given. The factor model of the economic ecosystem is considered. The stakeholder model of the ecosystem and its analytical model are described. The differentiation of stakeholders' impact on ecosystem institutions and the difference in the levels of interaction between the core of the system and stakeholders are discussed. The principles and ideas of the theory of ecosystem analysis are presented.
It is addressed to researchers and university professors specializing in the fields of economic theory, institutional economics, regional economics, microeconomics and minieconomics.
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Miller, Mark Eugene. The structure and functioning of dryland ecosystems--conceptual models to inform long-term ecological monitoring. Reston, Va: U.S. Geological Survey, 2005.
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Michel, Loreau, Naeem Shahid, and Inchausti Pablo, eds. Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: Synthesis and perspectives. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.
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Milena, Rychnovská, and Balátpvá-Tuláčková Emilie, eds. Structure and functioning of seminatural meadows. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1993.
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P, Singh V. Mangrove ecosystem: Structure and function. Jodhpur: Scientific Publishers (India), 2004.
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Wood, Stephen Andrew. Soil microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning in smallholder African agroecosystems. [New York, N.Y.?]: [publisher not identified], 2015.
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Flynn, Dan F. B. Linking plant traits and herbivory in grassland biodiversity-ecosystem functioning research. [New York, N.Y.?]: [publisher not identified], 2011.
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Shahid, Naeem, ed. Biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and human wellbeing: An ecological and economic perspective. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.
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Carmi, Schooler, Schaie K. Warner 1928-, Lipman Paula Darby, National Institute on Aging, and Max-Planck-Institut für Bildungsforschung, eds. Cognitive functioning and social structure over the life course. Norwood, N.J: Ablex Pub. Corp., 1987.
Find full textBook chapters on the topic "Ecosystem structure and functioning"
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Bakker, Cees. "Structure and functioning of the pelagic system." In The Oosterschelde Estuary (The Netherlands): a Case-Study of a Changing Ecosystem, 57–60. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 1994. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1174-4_6.
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Helmisaari, Heljä-Sisko. "Structure and Functioning of Forest Ecosystems." In Forest Condition in a Changing Environment, 179–82. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 2000. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9373-1_21.
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Elosegi, Arturo, Joserra Díez, and Michael Mutz. "Effects of hydromorphological integrity on biodiversity and functioning of river ecosystems." In Global Change and River Ecosystems—Implications for Structure, Function and Ecosystem Services, 199–215. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 2010. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0608-8_14.
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Rodrigues Capítulo, Alberto, Nora Gómez, Adonis Giorgi, and Claudia Feijoó. "Global changes in pampean lowland streams (Argentina): implications for biodiversity and functioning." In Global Change and River Ecosystems—Implications for Structure, Function and Ecosystem Services, 53–70. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 2010. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0608-8_5.
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Li, Changjia, Bojie Fu, Shuai Wang, Lindsay C. Stringer, Wenxin Zhou, Tong Lu, Xutong Wu, Rina Hu, and Zhuobing Ren. "Structure and Functioning of China’s Dryland Ecosystems in a Changing Environment." In Dryland Social-Ecological Systems in Changing Environments, 391–424. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore, 2024. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-9375-8_12.
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AbstractChina has one of the largest dryland areas worldwide, covering 6.6 million km2 and supporting approximately 580 million people. Conflicting findings showing a drier China’s drylands with increasing aridity and observed greenness indicate the complexity of environmental processes, highlighting a pressing research need to improve understanding of how active dryland processes, ecosystem structure and functioning will alter. This chapter synthesizes the changes, impacts, and their drivers in China’s dryland ecosystems. Results from analyses covering the period 2000–2015 showed that 58.69% of the vegetated area exhibited an increase in vegetation greenness, cover, and productivity, while 4.29% of those showed a decrease in all three aspects. However, 37.02% of the vegetated area showed inconsistent trends in vegetation greenness, cover, and productivity, suggesting high uncertainty in estimations of vegetation dynamics in drylands. China’s drylands are nevertheless at risk of expansion and could pass an irreversible tipping point with increasing aridity, particularly in the country’s semi-arid regions. Nitrogen enrichment and overgrazing generally reduce plant species diversity. Wind erosion, water erosion, salinization, and freeze–thaw erosion are typical processes of desertification in China’s drylands. Large-scale ecological restoration projects enhance greening and ecosystem services of China’s drylands, but also impose substantial pressure on these water-limited environments. Future research is needed to examine interactions among different drivers of environmental change (e.g., the relationships between CO2 fertilization and increased aridity). Such research could usefully include complex systems approaches to link patterns and processes across spatial and time scales, and long-term experiments on physical‐chemical‐biological process interactions.
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Temperton, Vicky M., Annett Baasch, Philipp von Gillhaussen, and Anita Kirmer. "Assembly Theory for Restoring Ecosystem Structure and Functioning: Timing is Everything?" In Foundations of Restoration Ecology, 245–70. Washington, DC: Island Press/Center for Resource Economics, 2016. http://dx.doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-698-1_9.
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Bottaro, Giorgia, Paola Gatto, and Davide Pettenella. "Assessing the Economic Impacts of Climate Change on Mountain Forests: A Literature Review." In Climate-Smart Forestry in Mountain Regions, 453–76. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80767-2_13.
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AbstractThe effects of climate change are increasingly more visible on natural ecosystems. Being mountain forest ecosystems among the most vulnerable and the most affected, they appear to be, at the same time, the most suitable for the assessment of climate change effects on ecosystem services. Assuming this, we review the literature on the economic assessment of climate change impacts on European mountain forests. Initially, the trends in the provision of mountain forest ecosystem services are discussed. We, then, considered the effects on forest structure and tree physiology, these two being strictly associated with the capability of the ecosystem to provide ecosystem services. The results have been grouped into a table that displays the trend, the quality and the quantity of the information found. Subsequently, the main methods that can be employed to assess the economic value of the different ecosystem services have been described. For each method, some implementation examples have been introduced to better understand its functioning. Concluding, the main gaps still existing in literature concerning the effects of climate change on ecosystem services provided by mountain forests have been highlighted. Finally, some more considerations about the existing methods for the economic valuation of ecosystem services have been done.
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Piao, Shilong, Yangjian Zhang, Zaichun Zhu, Xu Lian, Ke Huang, Mingzhu He, Chuang Zhao, and Dan Liu. "Socioeconomic and Environmental Changes in Global Drylands." In Dryland Social-Ecological Systems in Changing Environments, 161–201. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore, 2024. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-9375-8_6.
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AbstractDrylands are a pivotal component of Earth’s biosphere and provide essential ecosystem services to mankind. Over the past several decades, with rapid population growth, global drylands have been experiencing quick socioeconomic transitioning. Such socioeconomic changes, together with fast climate change, have dramatically altered dryland ecosystem functioning and the quality and quantity of ecosystem services they provide. In fact, complex interactions among climate, vegetation, and humans, involving multiple biophysical, biogeochemical, societal, and economic factors, have all played important roles in shaping the changes in global dryland environment. A comprehensive review of socioeconomic and environmental changes of global drylands and their underlying mechanisms would provide crucial knowledge informing ecosystem management and socio-ecological capacity buildup for a more sustainable future of global drylands. In this chapter, we would begin with summarizing the characteristics of socioeconomic changes in drylands. We then presented and discussed past and future projected changes in dryland ecosystem structure and functioning (e.g., vegetation growth, land cover changes, carbon sink, water-use efficiency, resistance/resilience to disturbances) and hydrological cycles (e.g., soil moisture, runoff, and groundwater storage). We also discussed new understandings of mechanisms underlying dryland eco-hydrological changes.
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Seidl, Rupert, Marie-Josée Fortin, Juha Honkaniemi, and Melissa Lucash. "Modeling Natural Disturbances in Boreal Forests." In Advances in Global Change Research, 591–612. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2023. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15988-6_24.
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AbstractNatural disturbances such as wildfires, insect outbreaks, and windthrow are important processes shaping the structure and functioning of boreal forests. Disturbances are expected to intensify in the future, and this change will have profound consequences on the supply of ecosystem services to society. Consequently, models are needed to project future disturbance trajectories and quantify disturbance impacts on boreal forests. Here, we summarize key concepts of modeling natural disturbances in boreal forests. We focus specifically on disturbances from wildfire, wind and snow, and herbivores and discuss the different approaches used to capture their dynamics in models.
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Schrodt, Franziska, Betsabe de la Barreda Bautista, Christopher Williams, Doreen S. Boyd, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub, and Maria J. Santos. "Integrating Biodiversity, Remote Sensing, and Auxiliary Information for the Study of Ecosystem Functioning and Conservation at Large Spatial Scales." In Remote Sensing of Plant Biodiversity, 449–84. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-33157-3_17.
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AbstractAssessing patterns and processes of plant functional, taxonomic, genetic, and structural biodiversity at large scales is essential across many disciplines, including ecosystem management, agriculture, ecosystem risk and service assessment, conservation science, and forestry. In situ data housed in databases necessary to perform such assessments over large parts of the world are growing steadily. Integrating these in situ data with remote sensing (RS) products helps not only to improve data completeness and quality but also to account for limitations and uncertainties associated with each data product. Here, we outline how auxiliary environmental and socioeconomic data might be integrated with biodiversity and RS data to expand our knowledge about ecosystem functioning and inform the conservation of biodiversity. We discuss concepts, data, and methods necessary to assess plant species and ecosystem properties across scales of space and time and provide a critical discussion of outstanding issues.
Conference papers on the topic "Ecosystem structure and functioning"
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Sisenis, Linards, Irina Pilvere, Toms Endzins, Baiba Jansone, and Oskars Keiss. "BIOMETRIC MEASUREMENTS AND DEMOGRAPHIC STRUCTURE OF DUCKS HUNTED ON LAKE ENGURE IN THE PERIOD 1993-2022." In 24th SGEM International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference 2024, 347–56. STEF92 Technology, 2024. https://doi.org/10.5593/sgem2024/3.1/s14.41.
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The research aims to identify changes in the biometric measurements and demographic structure of game ducks living on Lake Engure. Game management in Latvia as well as the entire Northern Europe is an important segment of the economy, which has rich and ancient traditions. Although a small segment of society perceives game management as the killing of animals, which is not the case, it should be understood that it represents an economic activity resulting in limiting the animal population, which can increase rapidly because of anthropogenic factors. Therefore, the functioning of an ecosystem modified by humans is unthinkable today without hunting. Waterfowl hunting is a kind of hunting that is important to hunters, and the hunters are often those who also create artificial nesting sites to increase the population of ducks, thereby increasing the success of nesting in their hunting grounds. Ducks have many natural enemies, as well as there are other abiotic and anthropogenic factors that can sometimes significantly affect the local population of ducks. The research was conducted in Latvia, on Lake Engure, which is one of the richest lakes in ducks and where research on waterfowl has been conducted for several decades. Censuses of nesting waterfowl on the islands of Lake Engure and on grass and reed swamps as well as other censuses are taken every year. The research analysed hunted waterfowl by taking biometric measurements, identifying their wing length and weight and collecting demographic data on their sex and age. The changes were analysed by the regression analysis method; an independent parameter was the number of days from the beginning of the year, while dependent parameters were wing length and body weight, which were calculated for each hunted waterfowl species during the year/season. To identify the overall health condition of hunted waterfowl, the body mass index was calculated for each species. The research found that the number of hunted ducks on Lake Engure significantly decreased in the period 1993-2022 (r=0.54; p=0.002). The number of days from the beginning of the year to the beginning of the waterfowl hunting season did not significantly affect the wing length of ducks living on Lake Engure. For ducks nesting in Latvia on Lake Engure: northern shovelers (r=0.23; p=0.51), Eurasian teals (r=0.24; p=0.46), mallards (r=0.23; p=0.46), garganeys (r=0.28; p=0.47), gadwalls (r=0.19; p=0.57) and common pochards (r=0.46; p=0.18), the body mass index has not significantly changed in the period 1993-2022.
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Rasool, Juveria, and Shruti Gupta. "Decentralised Autonomous Organisation based Ecosystem Structure for commercial companies and organisations." In 2024 First International Conference on Technological Innovations and Advance Computing (TIACOMP), 212–20. IEEE, 2024. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/tiacomp64125.2024.00044.
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ANDRONACHE, Ion. "Using fractal analysis in biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration." In "Instruire prin cercetare pentru o societate prosperă", conferinţă ştiinţifico-practică internaţională, 160–69. Ion Creangă Pedagogical State University, 2024. https://doi.org/10.46727/c.v1.16-17-05-2024.p160-169.
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This article explores the use of fractal analysis as a tool to support decision making for biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration in the context of contemporary anthropogenic pressures and climate change. Fractal analysis, a complex mathematical approach, is used to examine the spatial patterns of ecosystems, providing a detailed perspective on their diversity and complexity. The main fractal measures used - fractal dimension, lacunarity and succolarity - complement each other to provide a comprehensive analysis of ecosystem structure and change. The study focuses on the effects of deforestation on forest ecosystems in two mountainous regions of Romania: the Northern Group of the Eastern Carpathians and the Retezat-Godeanu Group. Fractal analysis revealed distinct patterns of deforestation between these regions, highlighting changes in forest space-filling, spatial heterogeneity and connectivity of forest fragments. The results suggest that deforestation has led to habitat loss and ecosystem fragmentation, affecting biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Fractal analysis was instrumental in highlighting these changes and providing data for planning conservation and ecological restoration efforts. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of fractal analysis in understanding ecosystem dynamics and developing strategies for natural resource management.
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Pshenichnov, D., and Elena Maklakova. "The impact of plastic on the ecosystem of the seas and oceans." In SCIENCE TRANSFORMS REALITY – 2024, 217–21. FSBE Institution of Higher Education Voronezh State University of Forestry and Technologies named after G.F. Morozov, 2024. http://dx.doi.org/10.58168/reality2024_217-221.
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Plastic pollution poses a serious threat to marine and oceanic ecosystems around the world. The constant accumulation of plastic debris by humans in water systems leads to direct or indirect damage to the structure, functioning and value of these systems. The sources of these toxic substances are both terrestrial and marine sources, which carry pollution into the ocean in various forms. The purpose of this article is to highlight various aspects of the problem of plastic pollution of marine and oceanic spaces. Plastic pollution is present in the ecosystem in various shapes and sizes, including micro-plastics, macro-plastics and mega-plastic particles. Micro-particles of plastic in primary and secondary forms spread through surface water masses, bottom sediments and living organisms inhabiting the marine and coastal environment.
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Zhyvitskaya, E. P., E. K. Vlasenko, V. A. Stelmakh, and A. G. Sysa. "METHODS FOR ASSESSING THE ECOLOGICAL CAPACITY OF NATURAL AND URBANIZED WATER SYSTEMS." In SAKHAROV READINGS 2021: ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS OF THE XXI CENTURY. International Sakharov Environmental Institute, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.46646/sakh-2021-1-252-255.
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Anthropogenic pollution ;rnd e^TOph^t^ of aquatic ecosystems аге дЬЬа1 problems. Especi^ly important is the problem of reducing the quality of the already limited supply of fresh water. These problems have led to а wide range of studies in the field of monitoring of water ecosystems, which allows us to assess the ecologicd state of the reservoir. The functioning of aquatic ecosystems is trgely determined by the anthropogenic ;rnd иаШта! input of biogenic elements from the environment, so to determine the environment^ sound norms of anthropogenic input of biogenic elements into the ecosystem of the reservoir, it is necessary to identify the features of the structure of phyto- ;rnd zooptnkton, macrophytes, as well as to determine the concentration of chem^l elements connmed in the water.
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Zhyvitskaya, E. P., E. K. Vlasenko, V. A. Stelmakh, and A. G. Sysa. "METHODS FOR ASSESSING THE ECOLOGICAL CAPACITY OF NATURAL AND URBANIZED WATER SYSTEMS." In SAKHAROV READINGS 2021: ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS OF THE XXI CENTURY. International Sakharov Environmental Institute, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.46646/sakh-2021-1-252-255.
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Anthropogenic pollution ;rnd e^TOph^t^ of aquatic ecosystems аге дЬЬа1 problems. Especi^ly important is the problem of reducing the quality of the already limited supply of fresh water. These problems have led to а wide range of studies in the field of monitoring of water ecosystems, which allows us to assess the ecologicd state of the reservoir. The functioning of aquatic ecosystems is trgely determined by the anthropogenic ;rnd иаШта! input of biogenic elements from the environment, so to determine the environment^ sound norms of anthropogenic input of biogenic elements into the ecosystem of the reservoir, it is necessary to identify the features of the structure of phyto- ;rnd zooptnkton, macrophytes, as well as to determine the concentration of chem^l elements connmed in the water.
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Карпин, Владимир Александрович, and Ольга Ивановна Шувалова. "ECOSYSTEM - STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL UNIT OF THE BIOSPHERE." In Наука. Исследования. Практика: сборник избранных статей по материалам Международной научной конференции (Санкт-Петербург, Февраль 2022). Crossref, 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.37539/srp301.2022.14.78.004.
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Теория экосистем - одно из фундаментальных оснований теоретической биологии. Она является важнейшим научным результатом применения общей теории систем к биологическим объектам. Экосистема рассматривается как структурно-функциональная единица биосферы. Описано ее понятие, важнейшие элементы функционирования. Сделано заключение, что экосистема является способом существования жизни. Ecosystem theory is one of the fundamental foundations of theoretical biology. It is the most important scientific result of applying the general theory of systems to biological objects. The ecosystem is considered as a structural and functional unit of the biosphere. Its concept and the most important elements of its functioning are described. It is concluded that the ecosystem is a way of existence of life.
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Shmeleva, L. A. "The specificity of paleocoenosis and a trophic structure of the Upper Ordovician Bol’shaya Kos’yu reef (Northern Urals)." In All-Russia Lithological Meeting «Geology of reefs». Institute of Geology FRC Komi SC UB RAS, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.19110/98491-013-136-140.
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The study of the spatial-temporal and paleoecological structures of the paleocenoses of the Bolshaya Kosyu reef showed that the sphinctozoic sponges Amblysiphonelloides reticulata Rigby & Potter, 1986 and Corymbospongia sp. starting from the late Ordovician could settle in sublittoral environments with active hydrodynamics in close connection with cyanobacteria, which played a leading role in the functioning of the trophic structure of this ecosystem. Fossilized biofilms and glycocalyx, tubular and worm-like bacteriomorphs found on the surface of sponges are evidence of active participation of microbial organisms in the life of sphinctozoal sponges.
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Williams, Jewel, Shelby Warrington, and Astrid Layton. "Waste Reduction: A Review of Common Options and Alternatives." In ASME 2019 14th International Manufacturing Science and Engineering Conference. American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2019. http://dx.doi.org/10.1115/msec2019-2903.
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Abstract Circular economy aims to address limited resources through the continuous circulation of materials and energy. Recirculating low quality materials for reuse is a sustainability goal that is analogous to the primary function of Nature’s detritus species, a keystone for the proper functioning of ecosystems. Prior applications of ecosystem structure to human network design uncovered that even the most economically successful networks of industries demonstrate a lack of analogous detritus actors in the form of reuse and recycling. The recycling industry’s volatile nature, dependency on international factors, and financial difficulties prevent this strategy from becoming an efficient alternative. Creativity in design, inspired by ecosystems, is proposed here as a method to repurpose manufacturing byproducts that are otherwise seen as low quality waste materials. Realizing the reuse potential of these materials can create detrital-type feedback loops, an attribute that supports the characteristic resilience and efficiency of ecosystems. The work here analyzes existing methods of pursuing circular economy and investigates the potential benefits generated by purposefully adding connects that create detrital-feedback-loops at the consumer and producer levels.
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Florin, Matei. "STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONING OF SOME FOREST ECOSYSTEMS LOCATED IN CURVATURE CARPATHIANS OF ROMANIA." In 19th SGEM International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference EXPO Proceedings. STEF92 Technology, 2019. http://dx.doi.org/10.5593/sgem2019/3.2/s14.105.
Full textReports on the topic "Ecosystem structure and functioning"
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Burton, Andrew J., Donald R. Zak, Mark E. Kubiske, and Kurt S. Pregitzer. IMPACTS OF INTERACTING ELEVATED ATMOSPHERIC CO2 AND O3 ON THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONING OF A NORTHERN FOREST ECOSYSTEM: OPERATING AND DECOMMISSIONING THE ASPEN FACE PROJECT. Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI), June 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.2172/1135783.
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Tsybekmitova, G. Ts, L. D. Radnaeva, N. A. Tashlykova, V. G. Shiretorova, A. K. Tulokhonov, B. B. Bazarova, and M. O. Matveeva. THE EFFECT OF CLIMATIC SHIFTS ON BIODIVERSITY OF PHYTOCENOSIS: LAKE ARAKHLEY (EASTERN SIBERIA, RUSSIA). DOICODE, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.18411/0973-7308-2020-35-3-77-90.
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Lake Arakhley is located within the Lake Baikal basin in Eastern Siberia, Russia. The area is characterized by continental subarctic climate with considerate diurnal temperature range, long cold dry winters and short hot summers with more precipitation occurring during the latter half of the summer. Climatic shifts in high water years and low water years result in morphometric changes in the lake and in the chemical and physical parameters of the ecosystem. During low water years, concentrations of ammonium nitrogen and nitrite nitrogen are decreased, whereas nitrate concentration increases. High water years feature average concentrations of ammonium ions 1.5–2 times higher than the values of recent dry years. Redundancy analysis (RDA) of abiotic factors and biotic community indicated that the community structure shows the greatest correlation with physical and chemical parameters of water and biogenic elements (nitrites, ammonium, phosphates) along the first axis, and with the lake depth and transparency along the second axis. Changes in abiotic factors induce functioning and formation of characteristic communities of the primary producers in the trophic structure of the ecosystem. During low water years, with increased level of autochthonous organic matter, Lindavia comta dominance is observed, while during high water years, with increased allochthonous organic matter Asterionella formosa appeared as dominant. Currently, during low water years, the hydrophytes community is monodominant and composed of Ceratophyllum demersum. Meanwhile, such species indicating eutrophic conditions as Myriophyllum sibiricum, Potamogeton pectinatus are found in the lake vegetation.
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Kennedy, Meaghan, Michaela Bonnett, and Teri Garstka. A Model for Technology-Enabled Community Resilience. Orange Sparkle Ball, June 2024. http://dx.doi.org/10.61152/plcr9111.
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Introduction Tech-Enabled Community Resilience is an innovative model designed to enhance resilience and optimize impact in complex systems such as communities and ecosystems. The model leverages social network analysis and technology to visualize network dynamics, measure interactions, and implement targeted interventions. Model Structure The approach consists of two key stages: a Startup Phase focused on assembling champions and co-creating a shared vision, and a Steady-state Phase involving iterative measurement and intervention. By utilizing technology platforms for data collection and visualization, the model provides near real-time understanding of network functioning. Advantages Over Traditional Approaches Traditional resource mapping approaches provide a limited understanding of the network based on a static understanding of resources and a lack of complexity about network function. The Tech-Enabled Community Resilience model provides for a more dynamic, systems-thinking perspective. The model allows for precision interventions based on network structure, potentially influencing community-level outcomes. Case Studies and Research Findings Case studies from social care networks and economic development initiatives demonstrate the model's applicability across various contexts. Research findings linking network cohesion to improved community outcomes during crises, and network structure to increased innovation in ecosystems, underscore the model's potential impact. Future Directions Further model refinement includes the development of a portfolio of network-based interventions, integration of real-time data sources, and strategies for adaptive governance structures. This model represents a significant advancement in how to understand and harness complex systems for community resilience and impact optimization.
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Price, Roz. Climate Adaptation: Lessons and Insights for Governance, Budgeting, and Accountability. Institute of Development Studies (IDS), December 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.19088/k4d.2022.008.
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This rapid review draws on literature from academic, policy and non-governmental organisation sources. There is a huge literature on climate governance issues in general, but less is known about effective support and the political-economy of adaptation. A large literature base and case studies on climate finance accountability and budgeting in governments is nascent and growing. Section 2 of this report briefly discusses governance of climate change issues, with a focus on the complexity and cross-cutting nature of climate change compared to the often static organisational landscape of government structured along sectoral lines. Section 3 explores green public financial management (PFM). Section 4 then brings together several principles and lessons learned on green PFM highlighted in the guidance notes. Transparency and accountability lessons are then highlighted in Section 5. The Key findings are: 1) Engaging with the governance context and the political economy of climate governance and financing is crucial to climate objectives being realised. 2) More attention is needed on whether and how governments are prioritising adaptation and resilience in their own operations. 3) Countries in Africa further along in the green PFM agenda give accounts of reform approaches that are gradual, iterative and context-specific, building on existing PFM systems and their functionality. 4) A well-functioning “accountability ecosystem” is needed in which state and non-state accountability actors engage with one another. 5) Climate change finance accountability systems and ecosystems in countries are at best emerging. 6) Although case studies from Nepal, the Philippines and Bangladesh are commonly cited in the literature and are seen as some of the most advanced developing country examples of green PFM, none of the countries have had significant examples of collaboration and engagement between actors. 7) Lessons and guiding principles for green PFM reform include: use the existing budget cycle and legal frameworks; ensure that the basic elements of a functional PFM system are in place; strong leadership of the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and clear linkages with the overall PFM reform agenda are needed; smart sequencing of reforms; real political ownership and clearly defined roles and responsibilities; and good communication to stakeholders).
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Demuth, M. N., and M. Ednie. A glacier condition and thresholding rubric for use in assessing protected area / ecosystem functioning. Natural Resources Canada/ESS/Scientific and Technical Publishing Services, 2016. http://dx.doi.org/10.4095/297892.
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Adair, Carol, Anthony D'Amato, Jane Foster, Maxwell Landsman-Gerjoi, Marie English, Aimée Classen, and Karin Rand. The impacts of cold-air pooling on Northeastern Temperate Forest structure & function. Forest Ecosystem Monitoring Cooperative, October 2024. http://dx.doi.org/10.18125/5l54hc.
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Struthers, Kim. Natural resource conditions at Fort Pulaski National Monument: Findings and management considerations for selected resources. National Park Service, December 2023. http://dx.doi.org/10.36967/2300064.
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The National Park Service (NPS) Water Resources Division’s Natural Resource Condition Assessment (NRCA) Program initiated an NRCA project with Fort Pulaski National Monument (FOPU) in 2022. The purpose of an NRCA is to synthesize information related to the primary drivers and stressors affecting natural resource conditions at a park and to report conditions for natural resource topics selected by park managers. Resource conditions are evaluated as either a condition assessment or a gap analysis, depending on data availability. For FOPU’s NRCA, managers selected salt marsh, shorebirds, Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica), and butterflies as the focal resources. FOPU is comprised of two islands in coastal Georgia, McQueens and Cockspur, which are separated by the Savannah River near its confluence with the Atlantic Ocean. Cockspur Island contains the 19th century masonry fort, Fort Pulaski, and the monument’s visitor services and facilities and is primarily constructed with dredge material from the Savannah River. McQueens Island is almost entirely salt marsh habitat and most of its area is eligible federal wilderness, containing one of Georgia’s oyster recreational harvest areas (RHAs), Oyster Creek RHA. Both McQueens and Cockspur islands are designated as a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Marine Protected Area (MPA), underscoring FOPU’s natural resource significance. Riverine, freshwater, and estuarine wetlands cover 83.81% of FOPU, with the latter accounting for almost 99% of all monument wetlands. Persistently emergent vegetation of smooth cordgrasses (Spartina spp.) and unconsolidated shore represent the dominant wetland types. McQueens Island estuarine wetlands were evaluated for 11 functions and were rated primarily as high functioning, except for the wetland north of Highway 80, where the causeway has altered its ability to function properly. The wetland west of the Highway 80 bend is composed of unconsolidated material so was rated as moderately functioning in carbon sequestration, retention of sediments, and shore stabilization. In contrast, the unconsolidated shore wetland in the Oyster Creek RHA, where the highest concentration of FOPU’s oysters occurs, were rated high for all expected wetland functions. In 2013, over 75% of the total oyster area from within four of Georgia’s RHAs was in the Oyster Creek RHA. A spectral analysis of oyster density in Oyster Creek RHA, comparing 2013 and 2018 images, reported an increase in the high-density class, a decrease in the moderate-low class, and an increase in the no oyster class, with the latter likely a function of how oyster areas were drawn between the images. A successful 2013 enhanced reef project in Oyster Creek RHA reported a pre-enhancement oyster area of 2.68 m2 (28.8 ft2) that increased to 894.2 m2 (0.22 ac) of oysters by 2018. FOPU’s extensive salt marsh habitat and beaches provide critical food sources and habitat for shorebirds in the Atlantic Flyway, especially during the pre-breeding season. The American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliates), Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), and the federally threatened rufa subspecies of Red Knot (Calidris canutus rufa) are identified as high priority species in the flyway and have been observed on Cockspur Island during the Manomet International Shorebird Surveys (2019–2022) at FOPU. The USFWS (2023) is seeking additional critical habitat designation, which will include Cockspur Island, for the rufa subspecies of Red Knot, whose estimated population abundance trend is declining throughout its entire range. FOPU’s non-wetland, upland habitat is primarily located on Cockspur Island and supports vegetation that can serve as host, roost and/or nectar plants for pollinators, especially butterflies. Cedar–Live Oak–Cabbage Palmetto (Juniperus virginiana var. silicicola–Q. virginiana–Sabal palmetto) Marsh Hammock and Cabbage Palmetto Woodland contain the most diversity of beneficial butterfly plants. While a comprehensive butterfly inventory is needed, fall migration surveys have recorded three target species of the Butterflies of the Atlantic Flyway (BAFA): monarch (Danaus plexippus), gulf fritillary (Agraulis vanillae), and cloudless sulphur (Phoebis sennae). Collectively, FOPU’s natural resources are affected by the sea level, which has risen by 0.35 m (1.15 ft) from 1935 to 2022. Hardened shorelines, such as causeways or armored structures, are identified as the greatest threat to the salt marsh habitat’s ability to migrate upland with continued sea level rise. Erosion along Cockspur Island’s north shore is an ongoing issue and FOPU managers have been working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to develop solutions to address the erosion, while also creating habitat for shorebirds. Several agencies routinely monitor for water and sediment pollution in and around FOPU, which, if managed collectively, can inform landscape-level management actions to address drivers that are influencing resource conditions at the ecosystem level.
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Reynolds, Richard T., Andrew J. Sanchez Meador, James A. Youtz, Tessa Nicolet, Megan S. Matonis, Patrick L. Jackson, Donald G. DeLorenzo, and Andrew D. Graves. Restoring composition and structure in Southwestern frequent-fire forests: A science-based framework for improving ecosystem resiliency. Ft. Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, 2013. http://dx.doi.org/10.2737/rmrs-gtr-310.
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McGee, Gregory. Forest Ecosystem Management: A New Paradigm for Preserving Forest Biodiversity. American Museum of Natural History, 2006. http://dx.doi.org/10.5531/cbc.ncep.0106.
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Forest ecologists have developed a more complete understanding of the ecological impacts of traditional forest management practices and the need to integrate knowledge of structure-biodiversity linkage into modern management techniques. This has led to the development of forest ecosystem management (FEM), which has been adapted by various public and private land managers, in hopes to improve the ecological conditions of the world’s forests. This module provides a review of the history of forest management and silviculture systems leading to the developing of FEM. In addition, the process of adapting and developing FEM is explored through a case study based on northern hardwood forests in eastern North America.
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Haddad, Ibrahim. A Deep Dive into Open Source Program Offices: Structure, Roles, Responsibilities, and Challenges. The Linux Foundation, August 2022. https://doi.org/10.70828/tdwk4785.
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Open source projects and initiatives provide enterprises with proven, successful models to collaborate with other organizations, create new technologies, and support the development of new communities. Organizations across many industries are establishing Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs) and staffing them with highly skilled individuals to drive open source software leadership and gain a critical foothold in this external research and development ecosystem. A Deep Dive into Open Source Program Offices examines how enterprises structure their OSPOs and the required minimal staffing needed for their operation, discusses the responsibilities of such offices, and elaborates on the challenges that are faced in open source enterprise adoption.