A new study by Bayreuth scientists Dr. Franz-Sebastian Krah and Prof. Dr. Claus Bässler has shown that temperature has a significant influence on the timing and duration of fungal fruiting in key areas of the world. The research results were published in the journal "Ecology Letters" and shed new light on the global impact of climate change on occurrences of fungi in nature.
For several years, ecological research has argued that climate often has no determining influence on the distribution of forests and savannas in tropical regions. However, an international research team led by Prof. Dr. Steven Higgins at the University of Bayreuth has now succeeded in proving that it depends mostly on climatic factors whether regions in Africa are covered by forest or savanna. The study, published in "Science", thus confirms the dominant role of climate in the formation of global vegetation patterns.
Preserving endangered and typical habitats in Europe with their biodiversity is the goal of Natura 2000, a network of nature reserves established by the EU. By 2030, EU member states want to significantly expand this network. A new biogeographical study by the University of Bayreuth published in the "Journal for Nature Conservation" shows: Expanding Natura 2000 sites in financially weaker EU member states to immediately neighbouring regions can be an effective strategy for increasing species and landscape conservation. Natural habitats in these regions are rarely diminished by settlements and economic infrastructure.
Mountain biking is one of the most popular leisure activities today. Sport ecologists at the University of Bayreuth have now compiled and evaluated a wide range of previously published findings on the ecological consequences of this sport. Numerous direct and short-term effects on animals, plants and soils can be clearly demonstrated. However, estimates of long-term consequences remain difficult because of the complexity of ecosystems and their inherent dynamics. The review article was published in the journal "Global Ecology and Conservation".
Which energy type promotes the biodiversity of beetles living in dead wood in the forest? That depends entirely on where the beetles are in the food chain.
Increasing heat and drought are changing forests faster than expected. Researchers at the University of Würzburg want to keep a better eye on these dynamics. The Bavarian Research Institute for Digital Transformation (bidt) of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities is funding their project with 1.2 million euros.
Redesigning the production of animal foods is at the heart of a transformation of food systems aimed at sustainability. The changes required for this also affect the legal framework for animal feeding. The Simon Nüssel Foundation has therefore recently begun funding a new research project at the University of Bayreuth on innovations in German and European feed law. The project is headed by Prof. Dr. Kai Purnhagen, Chair of Food Law at the University of Bayreuth’s campus in Kulmbach.
A global study published in Ecological Letters shows with hitherto unmatched differentiation the extent to which non-native plants have spread to oceanic and coastal islands over the last 5,000 years. Researchers at the University of Bayreuth and at universities and research institutes in Great Britain, Norway, Austria, Spain, Australia and New Zealand have compiled a dataset covering the vegetation of 29 islands. This was based on analyses of fossil pollen and the current state of research on the classification of plants as native or non-native.
What role do forests play as a feeding habitat for honeybees? A team led by Würzburg biologist Dr. Benjamin Rutschmann investigated this question. For this purpose, the researchers used observation hives inside the Steigerwald.
214 wild bee species, and thus a little more than 40 per cent of the bee species found in Bavaria, were detected last year in the Ecological-Botanical Garden of the University of Bayreuth (ÖBG) as part of a master's thesis. Among them were four species threatened with extinction, such as Ammobates punctatus, as well as numerous other endangered species.
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