Description
Fen mires belong to the most threatened European ecosystems, affected by climate change by for instance changes in precipitation and frequency of catastrophic events. The MIRACLE project, a co-operation between the Faculty of Biology, the University of Warsaw and the Museum of Natural History and Archaeology of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, aims to improve the knowledge on the mechanisms of ecological resilience of fens and propose strategies for long-term enhancement of fen biodiversity and their ecosystem services. The project plans to produce ecological models based on analyses of large data sets of palaeoecological data (metaanalysis approach) as well as new data on current vegetation and site conditions collected in Polish and Norwegian mires. The models will be tested by analysing resilience capacities of fens in the Biebrza National Park (NE Poland) as a base to propose adaptation scenarios. A total of 15 researchers will be involved. Tasks in the project demand close collaboration of Polish and Norwegian researchers during the whole project. Several study visits of Norwegian researchers in Poland and of Polish researchers in Norway, as well as four workshops are planned. Both research teams will contribute with their knowledge and datasets from long-term study areas. Combining different types of data in a work-space database will create an utility for next scientific projects and for nature management planning.
Summary of project results
Brown moss-sedge fens are semi-stable ecosystems, which due to external disturbance can shift to alternative states: forest, poor fen, bog or reedbed. During the project we explored mechanisms of ecosystem resilience of fen mires, ecosystems which play a key-role in the conservation of European biodiversity and provide vital regulatory services. Using a multidisciplinary and multiple temporal-scale approach we demonstrated that several factors which help fens withstand disturbance without such a shift, are situated both outside the mire (landscape and climate) and within it (functional diversity mechanisms). Based on catchment landscape and climate data of 120 European fens, we showed that hydrological resilience of mires differ in sensitivity to either of these two components. An analysis of subfossil communities revealed that one can predict an approaching catastrophic shift from gradual changes in fen vegetation. Analyses of vegetation data from the Biebrza Valley (NE Poland) showed that functional traits indicating root anoxia and nutrient limitation distinguish well-preserved fens from more eutrophic or drained sites and can be used for assessment of fen ecosystem health. The results of s long-term fertilisation experiment in Norway pointed to the importance of nitrogen – phosphorous co-limitation as an important mechanism of fen resilience against eutrophication. Time series data from Norway revealed that fens are more stable under harsh continental climate than in milder oceanic climate. We also found that some traits respond differently, sometimes even oppositely, to environmental factors in Polish and Norwegian fens. Using functional indices, we also found that the effectiveness of fen restoration in re-establishing fen mire resilience is limited and functional diversity of reference sites is hardly reached. Mowing management has enhances conservation values in low-diversity fens but can lower them in high-diversity sites. Within the project, we also analysed the impact of bryophyte diversity on mire hydrological functioning, demonstrating differences in water balance traits and temperature transmissivity of different species. Conclusions from the project were utilised within a predictive Bayesian model of fen ecosystems in the Biebrza NP. All project objectives were achieved. The outcomes are being used to produce >15 scientific manuscripts, 2 of them already published in international scientific journals.
Summary of bilateral results
The co-operation between research groups from UW and NTNU generated synergistic effects, by merging different expertise from the partner groups. Long-term series of botanical observations of the Norwegian team were analysed by means of functional diversity methods recently developed by the Polish team; moreover, the comparision between boreal (Norway) and nemoral (Poland) fens offered an excellent opportunity for deriving climate parameters from regional biogeographical differences, thus addressing possible effects of climate change by space for time substitution. The collaboration of our groups resulted in several joint manuscripts (one submitted as far) and the organization of a special session at an international conference. Research carried out within the project and contact made in due course helped to successfully apply for a Horizon 2020 project within EraNet Co-fund scheme (BiodivERsA), co-ordinated by UW and with involvement of one Norwegian partner (NIBIO). the mobility component of the project was very important for the career development of researchers involved in the project and knowledge transfer; the project involved study visits, joined fieldwork, workshops and conferences. The main added value of the partnership lies in the establishment of a long-term collaboration, which will result in future joined projects and publications. Of high importance is also involvement of members from both research groups in the international mire conservation activity through International Mire Conservation Group. Bringing results of the project and new ideas emerging from joined research to this international expert forum will enrich global conservation movement.