The lives of black-tailed godwits and farmers in the meadow landscapes of the Netherlands are closely entangled. While godwits and other ‘meadow birds’ have lived in around the human shaped meadows for many centuries and, especially in the first half of the 20thcentury, profited from farming practices, from the second half of the 20thcentury, their populations started to decline rapidly. Based on studies to the ecology and ethology of godwits, and interviews with farmers that work to save godwits and other birds on their land, this thesis explores the relationship between godwits and farmers situated in the meadow landscape through lively ethographic storytelling. Storytelling is a powerful method because it leaves open for multiple perspectives, without privileging the one over the other. Through this approach I aim to tell the stories of godwits and farmers alongside each other, in a way that gives individuals agency and presents their lives as meaningful. Through these stories I hope to engage readers with, and (re)connect them to, the lives of godwits and farmers and open up to a ‘capacity for response’.

<p>One of the main reasons for the massive loss in plant species diversity is the fragmentation of habitats. In Europe, open pastures and meadows are the habitats going through the most changes during the 20th century, according to the agricultural changes. In this study vascular plants were invented at five different islands in the Lurö archipelago, Vänern, Sweden. The aim of the study was to sort out whether the diversity of plants has gone through any changes in abandoned managed grasslands compared to continuous managed grasslands. The aim was also to study if a change in the landscape has made any differences for the species development or decline. The results indicate that the number of vascular plants were significantly lower in the abandoned areas than the still managed areas. Results, only from the field layer, showed same results. There was a significant difference between the number of indicators in managed lands than lands that were abandoned for 30-40 and 100 years ago. A comparison from earlier study, from a time when grazing had just ceased at some islands, showed a significant difference in plant species diversity between the years. Just a few decades can impoverish a plant community that might have taken hundreds or even thousands of years to build up. To preserve the biological diversity formed by human impact, one must continue managing the lands.</p> / <p>En av de största orsakerna till den massiva förlusten av växtarter, är fragmenteringen av habitat. I Europa är öppna naturbetesmarker och ängar de habitat som genomgått de största förändringarna i och med jordbrukslandskapets omstruktureringar under 1900-talet. I den här studien inventerades kärlväxter på 5 olika öar i kulturlandskapet Lurö skärgårds naturreservat. Syftet var att ta reda på hur diversiteten bland kärlväxtarter skiljer sig mellan hävdade gräsmarker och f.d. gräsmarker där hävd upphört och hur ett förändrat landskap spelat roll för artantalets utveckling eller tillbakagång. Resultat visade att antalet kärlväxter var signifikant lägre i marker som slutat hävdas, än marker som fortfarande hävdas. Även jämförelser i enbart fältskiktet visade ett signifikant högre artantal hos välhävdade marker än marker där hävd upphört. Det fanns en signifikant skillnad mellan antalet indikatorarter i marker som var under hävd och marker som slutat hävdas för 30-40 år sedan, kontra 100 år sedan. Vid jämförelser med en tidigare studie, som ägt rum precis efter att hävden upphört på ett flertal lokaler visade resultat att det fanns en signifikant skillnad i artantal mellan de båda åren. På några få decennier kan ett helt växtsamhälle som byggts upp under hundratals eller kanske till och med tusentals år utarmas. För att bevara den biologiska mångfald som formas av en störningsregim beroende av människans inverkan, måste hävd fortsätta kontinuerligt.</p>

One of the main reasons for the massive loss in plant species diversity is the fragmentation of habitats. In Europe, open pastures and meadows are the habitats going through the most changes during the 20th century, according to the agricultural changes. In this study vascular plants were invented at five different islands in the Lurö archipelago, Vänern, Sweden. The aim of the study was to sort out whether the diversity of plants has gone through any changes in abandoned managed grasslands compared to continuous managed grasslands. The aim was also to study if a change in the landscape has made any differences for the species development or decline. The results indicate that the number of vascular plants were significantly lower in the abandoned areas than the still managed areas. Results, only from the field layer, showed same results. There was a significant difference between the number of indicators in managed lands than lands that were abandoned for 30-40 and 100 years ago. A comparison from earlier study, from a time when grazing had just ceased at some islands, showed a significant difference in plant species diversity between the years. Just a few decades can impoverish a plant community that might have taken hundreds or even thousands of years to build up. To preserve the biological diversity formed by human impact, one must continue managing the lands. / En av de största orsakerna till den massiva förlusten av växtarter, är fragmenteringen av habitat. I Europa är öppna naturbetesmarker och ängar de habitat som genomgått de största förändringarna i och med jordbrukslandskapets omstruktureringar under 1900-talet. I den här studien inventerades kärlväxter på 5 olika öar i kulturlandskapet Lurö skärgårds naturreservat. Syftet var att ta reda på hur diversiteten bland kärlväxtarter skiljer sig mellan hävdade gräsmarker och f.d. gräsmarker där hävd upphört och hur ett förändrat landskap spelat roll för artantalets utveckling eller tillbakagång. Resultat visade att antalet kärlväxter var signifikant lägre i marker som slutat hävdas, än marker som fortfarande hävdas. Även jämförelser i enbart fältskiktet visade ett signifikant högre artantal hos välhävdade marker än marker där hävd upphört. Det fanns en signifikant skillnad mellan antalet indikatorarter i marker som var under hävd och marker som slutat hävdas för 30-40 år sedan, kontra 100 år sedan. Vid jämförelser med en tidigare studie, som ägt rum precis efter att hävden upphört på ett flertal lokaler visade resultat att det fanns en signifikant skillnad i artantal mellan de båda åren. På några få decennier kan ett helt växtsamhälle som byggts upp under hundratals eller kanske till och med tusentals år utarmas. För att bevara den biologiska mångfald som formas av en störningsregim beroende av människans inverkan, måste hävd fortsätta kontinuerligt.

The object of this thesis was to study plant community structure, especially in relation to vertebrate herbivory, in an altitudinal gradient in the Fennoscandian mountain chain. A sowing experiment in a high alpine Ranunculus glacialis population showed that seeds germinated better in cleared microsites than under established individuals. This is contrasted with a hypothesis that predicts positive plant-plant interactions in high alpine environments. It was concluded that plant-plant interactions in die studied population varied from neutral to negative, whereas no indications for positive interactions were found. An exclosure experiment in a snow-bed showed that a lemming population consumed 33 % of the available graminoids and 66 % of the mosses from August to June during a population peak. The results shows that grazing needs to be considered as a structuring factor in snow-bed vegetation. The vegetation in exclosures in another snow-bed changed from a graminoid-dominated to a herb-dominated plant community during a long-term (six years) experiment No changes of the same magnitude were seen in a tall herb meadow on a lower altitude. Survival of transplanted adult shoots from the tall herb meadow was equally high in the snow-bed as on the meadow, and germination was also high on bare ground in the snow-bed. Grazing seemed to be a more important structuring factor in the snow-bed than in the more productive tall herb meadow. Raising the grazing pressure during one growing season by introducing microtine rodents into enclosures did not cause any large short-term effects on plant community structure in a tall hob meadow or in a snow-bed. Marked shoots showed that some preferred plant species had a high shoot mortality, but biomass for pooled categories of plants was not significantly affected. It was predicted that the tall herb meadow would be more grazing sensitive than die snow-bed, but productivity on the meadow seemed to be sufficiently high for the plants to compensate for the grazing during the growing season. A greenhouse experiment showed that voles, when grazing freely, have the potential to deplete productive field layer vegetation contrary to predictions from plant defence theories. A nitrogen-based defence did not prevent heavy shoot mortality for toxic tall herbs. / <p>Diss. (sammanfattning) Umeå : Umeå universitet, 1993, härtill 5 uppsatser.</p> / digitalisering@umu.se

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Miami University, Dept. of Zoology, 2003. / Title from second page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references.

The best estimates of environmental productivity and their relationship to species diversity on different spatial scales have been studied in grassland communities in an observational study. The fertilization effect on height, growth rate, survival rate and changes in species composition has been studied on an oligotrophic wet meadow in a manipulative experiment.

This thesis deals with the definitions of rural development, rural areas, brownfields, greenfields. In the practical part compares two real locations in South County. Greenfield site is located in the village in the district Vidov Czech Budejovice and borwnfield site is located in the village in the district Želeč Tabor. Both locations are assessed according to the model of South Bohemia, which is based on studies němcekého Ministry of Environment. This model consists zetří criteria - potential sites in terms of community benefit in terms of potential investor and the change in the value space - public interest in the regeneration of brownfield sites. These three criteria are still my sub, under which then determines the significance of the site. Then, by calculating the preference index (PI) to determine which location is more suitable for implementation.

The purpose of this thesis is to elucidate the importance of the enclosure movement for the agricultural development in the area of Mälardalen, Sweden. This is done through a case study of Torstuna härad between the years 1750-1914 by sampling five points in time. By studying the long term development of land reclamation and its correlation with meadow acreage, crop rotation and animal stock the thesis argues that the the radical enclosures in the 1850’s was a course of action to regain opportunities for agricultural expansion. The most intense period of land reclamation was after the implementation of radical enclosure which brought with it a change from communal land use to private ownership. Private property rights meant a new set of advantages for the individual farmer to plan and invest and balance the arable and the meadow.

No description available.

Meadows, as an integral part of the Giant Mountains, depend on regular management, without it they can get degraded. The aim of this thesis was to evaluate the impact of different types of management (mulching, mowing with or without fertilization) on change in coverage, biomass and establishment of plants. The experiment took place in years 1997-2011 on the site called Sněžné Domky in Giant Mountains on 3 sites which differ in humidity and trophy. The effect of management on vegetation change was statistically conclusive. Mulching was preffered the most by Geranium sylvaticum, mulching and fertilization was preffered especially by these species: Holcus mollis, Alopecurus pratensis and Crepis conyzifolia. Mulching and no fertilization: Achillea millefolium. Avenella flexuosa preferred particularly mowing. Mowing and fertilization was preffered by Festuca rubra, Luzula luzuloides, Anthoxanthum odoratum, Agrostis capillaris, Veronica officinalis and Hieracium lachenalii. Mowing without fertilizazion was preffered by Potentilla erecta. The effect of management on the amount of biomass appeared statistically inconclusive (except for amount of old biomass). Biomass is more correlated by the weather and the trophy of the site than the type of management. The effect of management on establishment of plant...