Functional Ecology | Ecosystem Functions
What is an Ecosystem Function?
... a technical term to define the ecological (= biological, geochemical and physical) processes (e.g., energy flow, matter cycling) that take place or occur within an ecosystem. Ecosystem functions relate to the dynamics of the structural components of an ecosystem (e.g., in the oceans: water, seafloor, and biota) and how they interact with each other, both within and across ecosystems. Moreover, they are important to maintaining the capacity of an ecosystem to supply ecosystem services that benefit, sustain and support the well-being of people.
Research Profile
- What are the effects of climate change on key functions (e.g., biodiversity, energy and matter fluxes) of marine ecosystems?
- What is the significance of these changes for ecological goods and services that the oceans provide for man?
- How can scientific knowledge on these issues be best transferred to other stakeholders and the general public?
These are key questions that our research group is addressing, with focus on marine seabed ecosystems in the Arctic, North Sea and Antarctic.
We explore the impact of environmental factors on the variability of ecosystem functions in space and time. Our core tools are CRITTERBASE, a science-driven data warehouse for marine biotas, and spatial models. CRITTERBASE (© AWI) is open source shareware and can be used as global and local application.
In addition, we build customized information products for the knowledge transfer
Research Group
Jan Beermann
Kerstin Beyer
Thomas Brey
Jilda Alicia Caccavo
Jennifer Dannheim (Dep. Head)
Eilish Farrell
Diego Filun
Birgit Glückselig
Manuela Gusky
Kerstin Jerosch
Paul Kloss
Ricarda Kluge
Rebecca Konijnenberg
Ruben Lietzau
Hendrik Pehlke
Dieter Piepenburg (Head)
Katharina Teschke
Sheng Wang
Maryam Weigt
Jann Malte Zöllner
