Ecology and Nature Management
The research group conducts basic and applied research and teaching in systems ecology, conservation and restoration of habitats for flora and fauna in a wide range of natural, semi-natural and managed ecosystems.
Ecology and Nature Management - Research Area
The Ecology and Nature Management research group conducts basic and applied research in system ecology in natural, semi-natural and managed ecosystems and interactions with drivers of change both as climate, nutrients and invasive species. Research is conducted at process and organism level to ecosystem and landscapes level and thus covers many topics:
- System Ecology: We study the relationship and feedbacks between organisms, ecosystem structure, processes and abiotic and biotic factors under natural and anthropogenic influence.
- Habitats and biodiversity: We conduct research to identify landscape elements, ecosystem structures and processes that maintain and promote biodiversity (water, dead wood, soil nutrients, topography, grazing).
- Organisms: We study organisms and their interactions with the environment and interactions with other organisms (indicator species, invasive species, herbivory, grazing, competition, symbiosis).
- Biological processes: We study biological processes and how these can be used in management and restoration of habitats (succession, un-managed forests, natural hydrology, grazing).
- Adaptation: We study how ecosystems, ecological processes and organisms respond to drivers of change (climate, nutrients, catastrophic events etc) and evaluate the resilience and feed-back mechanisms.
- Management and restoration: We provide research in management and restoration of habitats for flora and fauna to quantify ecosystem service (e.g. biodiversity, plant protection, water protection, C-sequestration) and dissemination of best practice to inform land managers and policy makers. Hereby we work with Natura 2000 (Habitats and Bird Directives) and the national Danish §3.
The experimental basis: We deliver basic and applied research based on long-term monitoring and large scale experiments in natural and semi-natural ecosystems in forest, landscape and urban areas.
- Nørholm Heath – Long term succession from heathland to forest
- INCREASE - An Integrated Network on Climate Change REsearch Activities on Shrubland Ecosystems. We coordinate the EU-funded infrastructure project www.increase.ku.dk of 7 long-term and large scale climate manipulation experiment in shrublands across Europe.
- CLIMAITE – VKR-Climate Centre of Excellence -Climate change effects on biological processes in terrestrial ecosystems. www.climaite.dk
- Ecological restoration of the upper river Øle Å, Bornholm, Denmark. www.olea.ku.dk
- Invasive arters introduktionsveje
- Cryphalus - about Cryphalus piceae
Semi natural vegetation for urban environments
Read more about our major research and PhD projects
Completed projects
- VULCAN
- Vildt og Landskab
- Inger Kappel Schmidt, Professor
- Erik Dahl Kjær, Professor
- Jørgen Bo Larsen, Professor
- Karsten Raulund-Rasmussen, Professor
- Rita Buttenschøn, Senior adviser
- Vivian Kvist Johannsen, Head of research
- Hans Peter Ravn, Associate professor
- Hanne Rasmussen, Senior researcher
- Jane Kongstad Pedersen, Assistent professor
- Mona Chor Bjørn, Adjunkt
- Torben Riis-Nielsen, Data manager
- Sebastian Kepfer Rojas, Postdoc
PhD
The human-induced pressures on ecosystems have increased dramatically. These pressures act alone or in combination and diminish ecosystem function and capacity to deliver important ecosystem services.
The Ecology and Nature Management research group investigates how different environmental factors under change impact flora and fauna, biodiversity, ecosystem processes, function and stability and thus the services they provide.
Our research focuses on developing fundamental and practical knowledge on how different management, conservation and restoration options either diminish pressures, improve services, and/or improve ecosystem robustness. The research has special focus on climate change and invasive species, which threaten the native flora and fauna and their habitats. Research span from species to landscape level and is based on long term monitoring or conducted in long term and large scale manipulation experiments in natural, semi-natural, urban and forest ecosystems.
Head of Research Group
Inger Kappel Schmidt
Professor
Phone: +45 35331668
Mobile: +45 61703293
E-mail: iks@ign.ku.dk
Associated laboratories
Collaboration
The group collaborates with a large number of national and international institutes, scientists and land managers. Read more about collaboration.
Master and Bachelor projects
We offer projects within a wide range of topics. See our suggestions
Ongoing project
Nina Bonke Mikkelsen - Succession in forest floor vegetation under 5 tree species in Vestskoven.