Ecology, Research, Management and Biodiversity of Wadden Sea Salt Marshes

Dr. Jan Bakker is Emeritus Professor in the Conservation Ecology Group of the University of Groningen, the Netherlands. He obtained his PhD in Plant Ecology from the University of Groningen and has worked at the university for his entire career, which has enabled him to maintain long-term field research on the Wadden Sea. His research focuses on conservation and management of coastal ecosystems. Dr. Bakker co-initiated the international annual Coastal Ecology Workshop for PhD and MSc students. He chaired the Geoscience Group to prepare the Trilateral Research Agenda and has been a member of the Trilateral Program Committee on Wadden Sea Research since its initiation in 2020. Dr. Jesper Bartholdy is Emeritus Professor in the University of Copenhagen Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management. He obtained his PhD in Physical Geography from the University of Copenhagen and has worked at the university for his entire career. Dr. Bartholdy’s research interests include sediment transport and morphodynamics in fluvial and estuarine environments. He chaired the Geoscience Group to prepare the Trilateral Research Agenda and has been a member of the Trilateral Program Committee on Wadden Sea Research since its initiation in 2020. Dr. Peter Esslink is a researcher and consultant of land management at PUCCIMAR Ecological Research & Consultancy. He obtained in PhD in coastal salt marsh management at the University of Groningen. He assists in the preparation of Quality Status Reports on salt marshes of the Trilateral Monitoring and Assessment Program for the Wadden Sea. Dr. Kai Jensen is Professor of Plant Ecology at the University of Hamburg. He studies salt marsh ecology and his current research examines the effects of warming on salt marshes of the Hamburger Hallig. Dr. Jensen is spokesperson for the DFG-funded Research Training Group 2530, which investigates the role of biotic interactions in carbon cycling in estuaries. Since 2012, he has chaired the expert group for salt marshes and dunes of the Trilateral Monitoring and Assessment Program for the Wadden Sea. Dr. Stefanie Nolte is Lecturer in Marine Ecosystem Services at the University of East Anglia. She obtained her PhD in Plant Ecology from the University of Groningen and conducted post-doctoral research on coastal ecosystem services at the University of Hamburg. She established the Coastal Ecology Junior Research Group at the University of Hamburg and led the development of an ecosystem warming experiment. At the University of East Anglia, she continues her research on the effects of global change on biodiversity, ecosystem functions, and ecosystem services in coastal wetlands.

• Section I: Mechanisms in Functioning of Salt-Marsh Ecosystems1. Introduction2. Salt-Marsh Biodiversity3. Salt Marshes in the World4. Biodiversity5. Salt-Marsh Types in the Wadden Sea6. Diachronic Development of Salt Marshes and their Position in a Landscape Triangle7. Biogeomorphology of Salt Marshes8. Back-Barrier Salt Marshes9. Foreland Salt Marshes10. Interaction Between Sediment Input, Surface Elevation Change and Plants11. Zonation and Succession12. Dispersal of Seeds in Relation to the Established Vegetation13. Soil Conditions, Nutrients, and Succession14. Elytrigia ahterica and succession15. Elevation, Salinity, and Precipitation16. Invertebrate Animals and Succession17. Geese, hare and succession18. Foraging of geese19. Hare retard succession20. Food webs and successionSection II: Effects of Management on Mechanisms Functioning in Salt-Marsh Ecosystems21. Introduction22. Factors affecting accretion and surface elevation change23. Effects on surface-elevation change24. Effects on soil compaction25. Effects on mineralization26. Effects on moisture conditions27. Grazing intensity and structure of the vegetation28. Forage quality affecting structure of the vegetation29. Effects on intermediate-sized herbivores and food webs30. Grazing, mowing and plantsSection III: Management for Biodiversity and Coastal Protection31. Introduction32. To Graze or Not to Graze? Cessation of Livestock Grazing: Effects on Plants33. To Graze or Not to Graze? Renewed Grazing34. Grazing with Different Stocking Densities: Effects on Plants35. What Regime Harbors Highest Plant Species Richness?36. Grazing Effects on Invertebrate Animals37. Effects of Livestock Grazing on Geese, Waders and Passerines38. Effects of Grazing on Vegetation and Invertebrates in Foreland Salt Marsh of Leybucht39. Effects of Grazing on Communities in Foreland Salt Marsh of Hamburger Hallig40. Effects of Grazing on Communities in Foreland Salt Marsh of Noord-Friesland Buitendijks41. Sea-Level Rise and Vertical Accretion42. Sea-Level Rise and Horizontal Accretion (Coastal Realignment) in Noord-Friesland Buitendijks43. Implications for Management

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