Microtopography plays an important role in various ecological, hydrologic, and biogeochemical processes. However, quantifying the characteristics of microtopography represents a data-intensive challenge. Over last decade, high-resolution or close-range remote sensing data techniques have emerged as powerful tools to quantify microtopography. Traditional field surveys were mostly limited transec...

plants and arthropods are the main elements of biodiversity in ecosystems. in order to evaluate structural biodiversity of plants and arthropods in natural systems of arid land, a study was carried out in shirvan, mashhad and gonabad, three regions of razavi and northern khorasan provinces, iran. in each region, 10 areas of natural systems selected and sampling was done in these selected areas....

Nitrate is a key component of synthetic fertilizers that can be beneficial to crop production in agro-ecosystems, but can also cause damage to natural ecosystems if it is exported in large amounts. Stable isotopes, both oxygen and nitrogen, have been used to trace the sources and fate of nitrate in various ecosystems. However, the oxygen isotope composition of synthetic and organic nitrates is ...

Although Phytophthora species cause serious diseases worldwide, until recently the main focus on disease in natural ecosystems in southern Australia has been on the distribution and impact of P. cinnamomi. However, new Phytophthora pathogens have emerged from natural ecosystems, and there is a need to better understand the diversity and distribution of these species in our natural forests, wood...

To achieve an ‘ecosystems approach’ for marine resource management, we need to disentangle human impacts from natural variability, over a range of temporal and spatial scales. This Theme combines physical modelling and trophic dynamics to re-assess past changes in marine ecosystems and predict their future development. It includes consideration of the ecological impacts of renewable energy sche...