Dans le contexte des plans Ecophyto, il est primordial de trouver des alternatives aux traitements phytosanitaires. La lutte biologique par conservation fait partie de ces alternatives et, dans ce cadre, nous nous sommes intéressés à déterminer les rôles possibles des araignées en tant que prédateurs généralistes dans les vergers de pommiers. Pour cela, trois axes de travail ont été définis : (i) d’abord étudier les facteurs locaux (protection phytosanitaire et environnement des vergers) expliquant l’abondance et la diversité des communautés d’araignées; (ii) ensuite déterminer si les araignées sont actives en hiver dans les vergers dans le but d’estimer leur rôle sur les stades hivernants de ravageurs; (iii) et enfin étudier la faisabilité et l’efficacité d’un lâcher d’araignées contre le carpocapse des pommes. Dans le premier axe, nous avons mis en évidence des effets significatifs (abondance, diversité, composition) entre les communautés d’araignées issues des vergers en AB et celles issues des vergers PFI, par contre les effets de l’environnement proche des vergers (haies et parcelles alentour) ne semblent pas prépondérants. Dans le second axe, nous avons démontré que dans les vergers du Sud-est de la France, on trouve des araignées actives même au cœur de l’hiver, les plus abondantes furent les Philodromus sp, les Trachelas sp. et les Clubiona sp. Enfin dans le dernier axe, nous avons montré qu’il était possible de transférer et lâcher des araignées d’intérêt (C. mildei et C. leucapsis) et que l’abondance du carpocapse diminuait quand celle de C. mildei augmentait à l’échelle de l’arbre, au moins la première année après le lâcher. L’ensemble de ces résultats permet de poser les bases d’une gestion active des communautés d’araignée en vue d’augmenter leur contribution à la lutte biologique en verger. / It is now crucial to develop new control tools to replace the use of pesticides. Biological control is one of this tool and we thus studied the possible roles of spiders as generalist predators in apple orchards. Three studies were carried out: the first one to determine which local factors (protection management and characteristics of the surroundings) govern spider communities (abundance, diversity) in apple orchards; the second to determine which spiders remain active in winter to control resting stages of some pests; and the last to assess the feasibility of a transfer and release of some spider species into an orchard. We first showed that organic and IPM orchards hosted very different spider community and that, in contrast, local characteristics (hedges and percentage of orchards in the vicinity) had only minor effects. We further demonstrated that some spiders were active winter-long in apple orchards in South-east of France with high abundances for some genus like Philodromus, Trachelas and Clubiona. Lastly we showed that transferring and releasing some spider species of interest (C. mildei and C. leucapsis) is possible and greatly increased the abundance of the released species for one year in the target orchard. We moreover observed a significantly negative relationship between C. mildei and codling moth abundance at the tree scale. These results proved that spider populations can be managed to increase their role in the biological control of important pests in pomefruit orchards.

Today there is a growing issue of physical inactiveness, especially during the winter period, leading to various health issues. The new-found concept of a Winter Activity Park can be a possible solution for Swedish municipalities, as a means to increase spontaneous physical activity, and improve public health, during the winter season. The concept has originated from the need for increased spontaneous physical activity during winter and includes creating a physical activity facility with the usage of artificial snow. Södertälje is a municipality where a Winter Activity Park could act as a solution in order to increase spontaneous physical activity. The aim of the study is to assess the feasibility of a Winter Activity Park, using artificial snow, in Södertälje municipality. The study sets out to determine what is technically required in order to implement a Winter Activity Park, and by including two specific sites in Södertälje (Stadsparken and Tveta Friluftsgård), it can be assessed how well each site is meeting the requirements. Additionally, the study sets out to assess what possible environmental impacts the implementation may lead to at each site, as well as determining how artificial snow should be obtained to have the least contribution to climate change. The results show that there are several technical requirements that need to be fulfilled at a site in order to implement a Winter Activity Park. Neither of the chosen sites are currently meeting all the technical requirements for a Winter Activity Park, although it is considered possible for both sites to be able to fulfil them at a later stage. By conducting an EIA, it was concluded that Tveta Friluftsgård were likely to experience less negative environmental consequences from the implementation of a Winter Activity Park, compared to Stadsparken. By calculating the carbon footprint for the alternative ways of obtaining artificial snow, it was concluded that producing snow directly at a site, using a lake as a water source, would be the most favourable, in terms of least contribution to climate change. As a final conclusion, it was determined that a Winter Activity Park is feasible in Södertälje municipality, with Tveta Friluftsgård and production directly at the site seemingly being the best way to go. However, depending on what the purpose of the Winter Activity Park is, other sites and methods of obtaining snow can be more suitable. In order to create a more comprehensive view of the feasibility and sustainability of the concept of a Winter Activity Park, future studies should investigate social and economic aspects related to the concept. / Ett växande problem i dagens samhälle är fysisk inaktivitet, främst under vinterhalvåret, vilket leder till flera olika hälsoproblem. Det nyfunna konceptet Vinterparkleken kan vara en möjlig lösning för kommuner i Sverige för att öka spontan fysisk aktivitet under vintersäsongen och därmed förbättra folkhälsan. Konceptet har sitt ursprung från behovet av ökad spontan fysisk aktivitet, och innebär införandet av en anläggning för fysisk aktivitet med användandet av tillverkad snö. Södertälje är en kommun där en Vinterparklek kan vara en möjlig lösning för att öka den spontana fysiska aktiviteten. Syftet med studien är att utvärdera genomförbarheten av Vinterparkleken med konstgjord snö i Södertälje kommun. Studien syftar till att bedöma vad som är tekniskt nödvändigt för att genomföra en Vinterparklek och två specifika platser i Södertälje (Stadsparken och Tveta Friluftsgård) är inkluderade i studien för att bedöma hur väl varje plats uppfyller kraven. Studien syftar även till att bedöma vilka möjliga miljöeffekter implementeringen av en Vinterparklek kan leda till på varje plats, samt bestämma på vilket vis konstgjord snö ska erhållas för att ha minst bidrag till klimatförändring. Resultaten visar att det finns flera tekniska krav som måste uppfyllas på en plats för att kunna genomföra en Vinterparklek. Ingen av de valda platserna uppfyller för närvarande alla tekniska krav för en Vinterparklek, även om det anses möjligt att bägge platserna kommer kunna uppfylla dem i ett senare skede. Resultaten från MKB visade på att införandet av en Vinterparklek vid Tveta Friluftsgård rimligtvis skulle ha mindre negativa miljökonsekvenser jämfört med vid Stadsparken. Genom att beräkna koldioxidavtrycket för de alternativa sätten att erhålla tillverkad snö, drogs slutsatsen att snö producerad direkt på plats, samt använda en sjö som vattenkälla, skulle vara det mest gynnsamma, i form av minst bidrag till klimatförändringar. Den slutliga slutsatsen är att en Vinterparklek är genomförbar i Södertälje kommun, med Tveta Friluftsgård och snötillverkning direkt på plats som till synes bästa tillvägagångssättet. Vilken plats som ska väljas och hur snö ska erhållas kan dock även bestämmas utifrån vad konceptet är menat att bidra med. För att skapa en mer övergripande bild av genomförbarheten och hållbarheten av en Vinterparklek bör framtida studier undersöka sociala och ekonomiska aspekterna som är relaterade till konceptet.

In the temperate region, bats have evolved the strategy of hibernation to survive the harsh winter. During hibernation, bats enter the vulnerable state of torpor that requires specific environmental conditions to function optimally. Bats are known to use caves and anthropogenic structures as hibernation sites. However, the majority of the bat population cannot be accounted for when such structures are surveyed. There is evidence that bats use other natural structures as hibernation sites. To examine bat’s choices of hibernation sites and activity, acoustic monitoring of bats in south-west Sweden was performed during the winter of 2022-2023. Bat activity was measured in areas with potential hibernation sites in natural structures (rock outcrops), as well as inside and outside of known hibernation sites (anthropogenic structures). The level of activity and the ambient temperature were tested for a possible correlation. Additionally, data from 2006-2022 of surveys of bats in hibernation sites were examined for a possible relationship with outside ambient temperature. Bats were found to be active during the winter inside the known sites of hibernation. There was also activity recorded outside one of the known hibernation sites, but no bat activity was found in the areas of potential hibernation sites. No significant correlation was shown between bat activity and outside temperature, nor between number of bats inside a hibernation site and outside temperature. Further research is needed to develop the knowledge about bats’ hibernation behavior which in turn will aid more effective conservation of temperate bat species.

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This diploma thesis is focused on invertebrates' survival and activity during winter; and on methods of their capture. The first part of the theoretical section describes principles of cold hardiness, strategies of winter survival and activity in snow environment. Furthermore, different methods of invertebrates capturing are presented. The practical part of the thesis is focused on the verification of selected invertebrates capturing methods during winter. The results summarize the differences in the diversity and quantity of animals caught; and provide an overview and characteristics of selected captured taxa. Suggestions for a snow fauna excursion and a practical exercise focused on capturing invertebrates during winter are proposed based on the results of the study. KEYWORDS cold hardiness, winter survival, winter activity, snow fauna, invertebrate animals, catching methods, pitfall traps