TY - GEN A1 - Veste, Maik A1 - Dominik, R. A1 - Dimitrov, M. A1 - Fischer, Annette A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang ED - Stadler, Jutta ED - Schöppe, Felix ED - Frenzel, Mark T1 - Novel drone-based system for ecosystem monitoring - application, analysis and interpretation T2 - EURECO-GFOE 2008, Proceedings Y1 - 2008 SN - 978-3-00-025522-9 SP - S. 809 PB - Gesellschaft für Ökologie CY - Berlin ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang T1 - Potentials of marginal lands - spontaneous ecosystem development T2 - European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2017 Vienna, Austria, 23–28 April 2017 N2 - Marginal lands are often considered as unfertile and not productive. They are widely excluded from modern land use by conventional agriculture. Assessment of soil fertility usually shows very low productivity potentials at least for growing traditional crops. However, it can be frequently observed that natural succession at different types of marginal lands leads to very diverse and nonetheless productive ecosystems. Examples can be found at abandoned former industrial or transportation sites which were set aside and not further maintained – and also in post-mining landscapes. In one of the lignite open cast mines of the State of Brandenburg in Eastern Germany a landscape observatory was established in 2005 for observing this natural ecosystem development under marginal site conditions. The site of 6 ha is part of the post-mining landscapes of Lusatia which are often characterized by poor soil conditions and clearly reduced soil fertility. It is named “Hühnerwasser-Quellgebiet” (Chicken Creek Catchment) after a small stream that is restored again after destruction by the mining operations. It is planned to serve as the headwater of this stream and was left to an unrestricted primary succession. A comprehensive scientific monitoring program is carried out since the start of ecosystem development in 2005. The results offer exemplary insights into the establishment of interaction networks between the developing ecosystem compartments. After 10 years a large biodiversity, expressed by a high number of species, can be found at this site as the result of natural recovery processes. A large number of both tree species and individuals have settled here. Even if no economic use of the site and of the woody biomass produced by these trees is planned, an overall assessment of the biomass production was carried out. The results showed that the biomass production from natural succession without any application of fertilizers etc. is directly comparable with yields from adjacent post-mining sites where trees are grown in agroforestry systems for bioenergy production. This reflects the general potentials of marginal lands with regard to biomass production. Y1 - 2017 UR - http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2017/EGU2017-6583-1.pdf N1 - EGU2017-6583-1 PB - European Geophysical Society CY - Katlenburg-Lindau ER - TY - GEN A1 - Badorreck, Annika A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Moghadas, Davood A1 - Hüttl, Reinhard F. T1 - Long-term monitoring program at the constructed catchment "Chicken Creek" T2 - Geophysical Research Abstracts N2 - Ecosystems are characterized by high complexity and are dynamically changing by abiotic and biotic drivers such as climate, vegetation and soil fauna. Due to feedback processes between compartments, ecosystems show an inherent degree of locally heterogeneous properties and structures at multiple spatial and temporal scales. The constructed catchment “Chicken Creek” represents a unique and outstanding site to study an ecosystem at the initial stage of development. The catchment is located about 20 km south of the city of Cottbus (Germany). The 6-ha catchment area was built in 2005 of coarse-textured quaternary sediments from the adjacent lignite mine and forms a back- and foot-slope that flattens out to a pond. A clay liner of 2-3 m thickness seals the catchment at the bottom, allowing for the formation of a local water body fed by precipitation. After construction the site was left to an unrestricted and unmanaged succession to elucidate the role of structures und processes during the initial establishment of an ecosystem. To study processes of ecosystem development and newly emerging structures the Chicken Creek catchment is equipped with a comprehensive ecological monitoring network. A network of more than 40 wells and two weirs allow for recording groundwater levels, surface runoff and discharge. Meteorological parameters are recorded at three weather stations. Annual aerial photos and vegetation monitoring reveal the floral colonisation of the area. Here, we present the 12 years of diverse and extensive monitoring program which has been launched to measure hydrological, biological, meteorological, and pedological parameters during the ecological development of the catchment area. Y1 - 2019 UR - https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2019/EGU2019-5038.pdf VL - 21 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang T1 - Dynamic interactions between abiotic and biotic ecosystem compartments - case study Huehnerwasser landscape observatory T2 - Geophysical Research Abstracts N2 - The Huehnerwasser catchment was constructed 2004-2005 in a post-mining landscape in Eastern Germany and was left for an unmanaged primary ecosystem succession. At the same time a comprehensive monitoring program was launched for observing the expected dynamic development of this 6 ha site. During the following years this artificially created system was subject to a series of fast changes with regard to morphology, hydrology or vegetation cover. In summary, these processes resulted in significant alterations of the original, initial system within a short period of time. This development can be divided up into single phases with dominating processes or groups of processes. A first phase was mainly characterized by interactions between abiotic system components such as water and substrate. However, already in this very early developmental phase biotic components in the form of microorganisms were a crucial system forming factor by means of biological soil crusts. This period was quickly replaced by a second phase with dominating hydrological processes. During this phase the local groundwater body of the system developed to its full extent. With the beginning of the present phase biota gained control of the system behavior. Particularly plants and related processes such as water uptake and evapotranspiration are now responsible for new modifications of the system. The Huehnerwasser site offers an example of young and highly dynamic ecological systems. This transitional development of a very young ecosystem contrasts with the behavior of mature ecosystems with slow and less pronounced changes unless the system is disturbed. In this paper we present insights into a unique landscape observatory which illustrates the dynamic nature of natural systems in fast motion. Y1 - 2019 UR - https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2019/EGU2019-4207.pdf VL - 21 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Hüttl, Reinhard F. T1 - 15 years of ecosystem development at Chicken Creek catchment: conceptual framework, surprises and conclusions T2 - Geophysical Research Abstracts N2 - After completion of the construction in 2005 (Gerwin et al. 2009), a major challenge was to develop and install a cross-disciplinary long-term monitoring program for the 6 ha area to record major environmental parameters adapted to the development of the site (Schaaf et al. 2013). During its first 15 years, Chicken Creek showed a very dynamic development (Elmer et al 2013). Whereas the abiotic geosystem of the first 2-3 years was characterized by heavy erosion and sediment transport, primary succession by invading vegetation and the unexpected formation of soil crusts within few years resulted in more biotic-abiotic feedbacks that controlled catchment hydrology. Our observations over a period of 15 years indicate that even minor variations in initial substrate characteristics (e.g. texture) can have lasting impacts on geomorphical, hydrological and biological development like erosion intensity, groundwater levels or establishment of vegetation patterns. The time-series of monitoring data combined with a structure model of the catchment (Gerke et al. 2013) allowed the closure of the water balance by relatively simple calculations of water storage volumes and the estimation of evapotranspiration (Schaaf et al. 2017). From these data three stages of ecosystem development were derived which are characterized by increasing influence of biota and increasing system complexity. Y1 - 2019 UR - https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2019/EGU2019-1864.pdf VL - 21 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Badorreck, Annika T1 - Adaptation strategies to monitor the catchment dynamics at 'Chicken Creek' T2 - European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2017 Vienna, Austria, 23–28 April 2017 N2 - The Chicken Creek catchment was constructed in 2005 to study ecosystem development of an initial ecosystem at the landscape scale. The site has an area of 6 ha with defined boundary conditions and known inner structures. Since more than 10 years, we are monitoring the unrestricted development of different system compartments. The fast development, the formation of patterns and increasing heterogeneity were challenges for the monitoring program. Starting with a regular 20 x 20 m grid in the initially homogeneous system, monitoring installations were continuously complemented by more pattern and patch oriented measurements in order to catch up with both the spatial and temporal dynamics of the catchment. The monitoring program includes both high-resolution temporal recordings (e.g. groundwater levels, discharge, meteorological data, soil moisture), spatial sampling campaigns (e.g. soil properties) and annual vegetation surveys. In addition, we use drone images to document the site development. The presentation describes the monitoring approach and adaptation with examples from vegetation, soil and hydrological data at different spatial and temporal scales. Y1 - 2017 UR - http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2017/EGU2017-4384.pdf N1 - EGU2017-4384 PB - European Geophysical Society CY - Katlenburg-Lindau ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Veste, Maik A1 - Hüttl, Reinhard F. ED - Ukonmaanaho, Liisa ED - Nieminen, Tiina Maileena ED - Starr, Michael T1 - The artificial catchment 'Chicken Creek' ('Hühnerwasser') as a tool for understanding the interactions of processes and structures of initial ecosystem development T2 - 6th International Symposium on Ecosystem Behaviour BIOGEOMON 2009 Y1 - 2009 UR - http://www.metla.fi/julkaisut/workingpapers/2009/mwp128.pdf SN - 978-951-40-2177-0 SP - S. 332 PB - Finnish Forest Research Institute CY - Vantaa, Finland ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang T1 - An ecosystem approach to evaluate restoration measures in the lignite mining district of Lusatia/Germany T2 - European Geosciences Union, General Assembly 2015, Vienna, Austria, 13 April - 17 May 2015 KW - restoration measures KW - lingite mining Y1 - 2015 UR - http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2015/EGU2015-8693.pdf N1 - EGU2015-8693 PB - European Geophysical Society CY - Katlenburg-Lindau ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Gerwin, Werner A1 - Kögel-Knabner, Ingrid A1 - Gerke, Horst H. A1 - Schulin, Rainer A1 - Schloter, Michael A1 - Hüttl, Reinhard F. T1 - Point zero: the missing link in initial soil formation concepts T2 - EGU General Assembly 2009, Vienna, Austria, 19 – 24 April 2009 Y1 - 2009 N1 - EGU2009-8310 PB - European Geophysical Society CY - Katlenburg-Lindau ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Zimmermann, Claudia A1 - Dümig, Alexander A1 - Schaaf, Wolfgang A1 - Kögel-Knabner, Ingrid T1 - Heterogeneity of chemical and physical soil properties of an artificial catchment during initial soil formation T2 - EGU General Assembly 2009, Vienna, Austria, 19 – 24 April 2009 Y1 - 2009 N1 - EGU2009-11278 PB - European Geophysical Society CY - Katlenburg-Lindau ER -