TY - GEN A1 - Schulz, Stefanie A1 - Engel, Marion A1 - Fischer, Doreen A1 - Buegger, Franz A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Welzl, Gerhard A1 - Schloter, Michael T1 - Diversity pattern of nitrogen fixing microbes in nodules of Trifolium arvense (L.) at different initial stages of ecosystem development T2 - Biogeosciences KW - nitrogen fixing microbes Y1 - 2013 SN - 1726-4189 VL - 10 IS - 3 SP - 1183 EP - 1192 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Esperschütz, Jürgen A1 - Zimmermann, Claudia A1 - Dümig, Alexander A1 - Welzl, G. A1 - Buegger, Franz A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Munch, Jean Charles A1 - Schloter, Michael T1 - Dynamics of microbial communities during decomposition of litter from pioneering plants in initial soil ecosystems T2 - Biogeosciences N2 - In initial ecosystems, concentrations of all macro- and micronutrients can be considered as extremely low. Plant litter therefore strongly influences the development of a degrader’s food web and is an important source for C and N input into soil in such ecosystems. In the present study, a 13C litter decomposition field experiment was performed for 30 weeks in initial soils from a post-mining area near the city of Cottbus (Germany). Two of this region’s dominant but contrasting pioneering plant species (Lotus corniculatus L. and Calamagrostis epigejos L.) were chosen to investigate the effects of litter quality on the litter decomposing microbial food web in initially nutrient-poor substrates. The results clearly indicate the importance of litter quality, as indicated by its N content, its bioavailability for the degradation process and the development of microbial communities in the detritusphere and soil. The degradation of the L. corniculatus litter, which had a low C / N ratio, was fast and showed pronounced changes in the microbial community structure 1–4 weeks after litter addition. The degradation of the C. epigejos litter material was slow and microbial community changes mainly occurred between 4 and 30 weeks after litter addition to the soil. However, for both litter materials clear indication of the importance of fungi for the degradation process was observed both in terms of fungal abundance and activity (13C incorporation activity). Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-5115-2013 SN - 1726-4189 VL - 10 SP - 5115 EP - 5124 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Zaplata, Markus K. A1 - Kollmann, Johannes A1 - Ulrich, Werner A1 - Winter, Susanne A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Fischer, Anton ED - Jeltsch, Florian ED - Joshi, Jasmin T1 - Cover balance or degree of autocorrelation? It is the same and integratively traces pattern formation during succession T2 - GfÖ 43rd Annual Meeting, Building bridges in ecology, linking systems, scales and disciplines, September 9 to 13, 2013, Potsdam, Germany N2 - It is widely acknowledged that increasing complexity is a key attribute of ecosystem genesis. This is particularly true for primary succession on homogeneous substrates. However, a mechanistic understanding of spatial colonisation and pattern formation during primary succession has not been achieved yet. Thus, we studied this topic for 7 years within an experimental catchment (6 ha) established in the post-mining landscape of eastern Germany. Equidistant permanent plots (120 plots à 25m²) allowed for autocorrelation analyses, and thus tracing the spatial development of species cover performance. For each species tested, the “cover balance” first increased due to colonization, while decreasing in the course of succession. Drawing a benefit from these temporal trends, we suggested cover balance levels revealed by autocorrelation analyses to best indicate well-defined phases in primary succession at spatial entities. Hence, with the help of this spatial approach, terrestrial succession can be understood now much better at the most general level of the hierarchy provided by Pickett et al. (1987). In accordance with these authors, at subordinated levels of the causal hierarchy differential species performance might get collectively explained by contributing processes or conditions, such as ecophysiological traits, life history strategies, competition and allelopathy of the occurring plant species. Further research is needed to understand their relative contributions to the pattern formation. Y1 - 2013 UR - http://www.gfoe-2013.de/download/130905_GFOe_2013_Abstracts.small.pdf SP - 228 EP - 229 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Fischer, Anton A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Nenov, Rossen A1 - Pretzsch, Hans A1 - Seifert, Stefan A1 - Winter, Susanne A1 - Zaplata, Markus K. T1 - Monitoring the formation of structures and patterns during initial development of an artificial catchment T2 - Environmental Monitoring and Assessment N2 - The objective of this paper is to present observations, results from monitoring measurements, and preliminary conclusions about the development of patterns and structures during the first 5 years of development of an artificial catchment starting from point zero. We discuss the high relevance of initial system traits and external events for the system development and draw conclusions for further research. These investigations as part of a Collaborative Research Center, aim to disentangle and understand the feedback mechanisms and interrelationships of processes and their co-development with spatial and temporal structures and patterns by studying an initial, probably less complex ecosystem. Therefore, intensive measurements were carried out in the catchment with regard to the development of surface structures, hydrological patterns, vegetation dynamics, water chemistry, and element budgets. During the first 5 years, considerable changes within the catchment were observed. Both internal and external factors could be identified as driving forces for the formation of structures and patterns in the artificial catchment. Initial structures formed by the construction process and initial substrate characteristics were decisive for the distribution and flow of water. External factors like episodic events triggered erosion and dissection during this initial phase, promoted by the low vegetation cover, and the unconsolidated sandy substrate. The transformation of the initial geosystem into areas with evolving terrestrial or aquatic characteristics and from a very episodic to a more permanent stream network and discharge, together with the observed vegetation dynamics increased site diversity and heterogeneity with respect to water and nutrient availability and transformation processes compared with the more homogenous conditions at point zero. The processes and feedback mechanisms in the initial development of a new landscape may deviate in rates, intensity, and dominance from those known from mature ecosystems. It is therefore crucial to understand these early phases of ecosystem development and to disentangle the increasingly complex interactions between the evolving terrestrial and aquatic, biotic, and abiotic compartments of the system. Long-term monitoring of initial ecosystems may provide important data and parameters on processes and the crucial role of spatial and temporal structures and patterns to solve these problems. Artificially created catchments could be a suitable tool to study these initial developments at the landscape scale under known, designed, and defined boundary conditions. KW - ecosystem development Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-012-2998-x SN - 0167-6369 VL - Vol. 185 IS - 7 SP - 5965 EP - 5986 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Hinz, Christoph A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Flühler, Hannes A1 - Holländer, Hartmut M. A1 - Hüttl, Reinhard F. T1 - State transitions in the artificial catchment Huehnerwasser (Chicken Creek): Ecosystems development 8 years after initialization : abstract T2 - Soil-mediated Drivers of Coupled Biogeochemical and Hydrological Processes across Scales, AGU Chapman Conference Biosphere II, Tucson, Arizona, USA, 21-24 October 2013 Y1 - 2013 UR - http://chapman.agu.org/soil-mediated/files/2013/10/AGU-CC13SD-3.pdf SP - S. 34 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Fischer, Anton A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Nenov, Rossen A1 - Pretzsch, Hans A1 - Zaplata, Markus K. T1 - Feedbacks between vegetation, surface structures and hydrology during initial development of the artificial catchment 'Chicken Creek' T2 - Procedia Environmental Sciences N2 - Our investigations at the artificial catchment ´Chicken Creek´ in Lusatia/Germany aim to disentangle and understand the feedback mechanisms and interrelationships of processes and their co-development with spatial and temporal structures and patterns by studying this initial, probably less complex ecosystem. Intensive measurements were carried out in the catchment with regard to the development of surface structures, hydrological patterns, and vegetation dynamics. During the first seven years, considerable changes within the catchment were observed. Both internal and external factors could be identified as driving forces for the formation of structures and patterns in the artificial catchment. Initial structures formed by the construction process and initial substrate characteristics were decisive for the distribution and flow of water. External factors like episodic events triggered erosion and dissection during this initial phase, promoted by the low vegetation cover and the unconsolidated sandy substrate. The transformation of the initial geo-system into areas with evolving terrestrial or aquatic characteristics and from a very episodic to a more permanent stream network and discharge, together with the observed vegetation dynamics increased site diversity and heterogeneity with respect to water and nutrient availability and transformation processes compared to the more homogenous conditions at point zero. The processes and feedback mechanisms in the initial development of a new landscape may deviate in rates, intensity and dominance from those known from mature ecosystems. It is therefore crucial to understand these early phases of ecosystem development and to disentangle the increasingly complex interactions between the evolving terrestrial and aquatic, biotic and abiotic compartments of the system. Artificially created catchments could be a suitable tool to study these initial developments at the landscape scale under known, designed and defined boundary conditions. Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2013.06.010 SN - 1878-0296 VL - 19 SP - 86 EP - 95 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Zaplata, Markus K. A1 - Hohberg, Karin A1 - Nenov, Rossen A1 - Bens, Oliver A1 - Hüttl, Reinhard F. T1 - Dynamics of initial ecosystem development at the artificial catchment Chicken Creek, Lusatia, Germany T2 - Environmental Earth Sciences KW - ecosystem development Y1 - 2013 SN - 1866-6299 VL - 69 IS - 2 SP - 491 EP - 505 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Fischer, Anton A1 - Zaplata, Markus K. A1 - Nenov, Rossen T1 - Feedbacks between structures and processes during initial ecosystem development in an artificial catchment T2 - European Geosciences Union, General Assembly 2013, Vienna, Austria, 07 – 12 April 2013 N2 - We studied the role of strutures and processes and their feedbacks during initial ecosystem development in the artificial catchment Chicken Creek. During the first seven years, considerable changes within the catchment were observed. Both internal and external factors could be identified as driving forces for the formation of structures and patterns in the artificial catchment. Initial structures formed by the construction process and initial substrate characteristics were decisive for the distribution and flow of water. External factors like episodic events triggered erosion and dissection during this initial phase, promoted by the low vegetation cover and the unconsolidated sandy substrate. The transformation of the initial geo-system into areas with evolving terrestrial or aquatic characteristics and from a very episodic to a more permanent stream network and discharge, together with the observed vegetation dynamics increased site diversity and heterogeneity with respect to water and nutrient availability and transformation processes compared to the more homogenous conditions at point zero. The processes and feedback mechanisms in the initial development of a new landscape may deviate in rates, intensity and dominance from those known from mature ecosystems. It is therefore crucial to understand these early phases of ecosystem development and to disentangle the increasingly complex interactions between the evolving terrestrial and aquatic, biotic and abiotic compartments of the system. Artificially created catchments could be a suitable tool to study these initial developments at the landscape scale under known, designed and defined boundary conditions. Y1 - 2013 UR - http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2013/EGU2013-6837.pdf N1 - EGU2013-6837 PB - European Geophysical Society CY - Katlenburg-Lindau ER -