In this blog post, Paula de la Barra and Allert Bijleveld discuss their latest research, conducted alongside Geert Aarts. This work focusses on gas extraction under intertidal mudflats, and the impact that this has on macrozoobenthic communities and sediment. The importance of the Wadden Sea Every day the tide covers and reveals thousands of square kilometres of sand and mudflats in the Wadden Sea, the … Continue reading The hidden values of the Wadden Sea
Fairlie Kirkpatrick Baird from NatureScot discusses their latest research that reveals the increasing risk of extreme drought in Scotland and how that may affect key habitats and their species. One of the first things that comes to mind when people think of Scotland, alongside the beautiful mountains and the Loch Ness Monster, is the terrible weather. Scotland is famously wet, and as Highlanders we agree … Continue reading Drought in Scotland? Projections affect specialist habitats and species
As flooding events increase in frequency and severity, how will managed grasslands weather the storm? Can we use the traits or ‘strategies’ of the plants that make up these grasslands to predict their resilience? Natalie Oram and colleagues address this issue in their new Journal of Applied Ecology article. Here they discuss their work further. Long story short: in flooded conditions, resource-conservative plant communities are … Continue reading Weathering the storm: plant community flood resilience in intensively managed grasslands and the role of the plant economic spectrum
With Plant Conservation Day in mind, Samantha Dawson’s post discusses characteristics of wetland plants and her new paper, Plant traits of propagule banks and standing vegetation reveal flooding alleviates impacts of agriculture on wetland restoration. Many of the world’s wetlands are highly degraded and they are one of the most threatened types of ecosystems. To attempt to halt or reverse this trend, there are lots of … Continue reading Wet wetlands restore better
The Applied Ecologist 