Valuing wetland conservation: A contingent valuation analysis among Iranian beneficiaries

Wetland ecosystems conservation is a critical environmental policy and practice challenge. Though policy protection mechanisms ostensibly establish a commitment to long-term protection, the level and types of wetland threats are growing. Management of sustainable wetland resources requires community commitments to protection amongst predominantly rural stakeholders that draw upon wetland ecosystem services for their livelihoods and is vital to forming a policy strategy. This empirical study uses contingent valuation methodology with rural residents around four key wetlands areas in the ecologically fragile Khuzestan province in Iran. We find that 65% of the residents are willing to pay an amount of personal income to protect wetland ecosystems. The estimated Logit model with 84% prediction accuracy showed the variables of education and job relationship with the wetland had a positive effect on the probability of price acceptance, and the variables of living costs and marital status had a negative effect on the probability of price acceptance. In total, the conservation value of wetlands is estimated at 103351.52 USD. Finally, we assess the policy-relevance of our findings towards community windfall payments, tax disbursements, community resource management schemes, public participation, and social outreach programs to improve social learning buy-in to long-term conservation practices.     

Vulnerability, livelihood assets and institutional dynamics in the management of wetlands in Lake Victoria watershed basin

This paper uses data from 600 households in the Lake Victoria watershed in Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda to analyze the effects of vulnerabilities and shocks on the management and exploitation of wetlands within the context of agricultural activities and high poverty levels. A multinomial logit model is used to determine variables that influence the perception of wetlands degradation, while a tobit model is used to establish the determinants of willingness to pay for wetland conservation and the imputed value of wetland product extracts. The model results show that although the perception of wetland degradation is modest, it is influenced by attributes of social capital. Variables such as floods, diseases and droughts significantly influence the households’ willingness to pay for wetland conservation. Land size and ownership, education level and household size all influence households’ likelihood to actively engage in wetland resource exploitation and willingness to pay for its conservation. The implications of these results hinge on measures that would moderate the effects of shocks, mobilize collective action, and improve physical infrastructure within the context of sustainable wetland resource use.     

时空变化视角下北京市湿地优先保护格局

气候变化通过改变湿地水文过程等影响湿地的空间分布,城市化进程加剧了湿地破碎化程度并导致湿地生境退化,构建连续的湿地生态保护网络体系有利于应对气候变化和城市发展带来的负面影响、提高生物多样性保护水平。北京市现有湿地空间分布呈现斑块面积小、破碎化程度高等特点,为优化湿地保护区格局并应对气候变化和城市发展对北京市湿地生物多样性的影响,基于系统保护规划方法,以Marxan作为空间优化模型,结合PLUS模型和MaxEnt模型,模拟预测北京市湿地优先保护格局、识别湿地保护空缺并构建湿地分级保护区格局。研究表明:2020年北京市湿地存在80.15km²的保护空缺、2035年和2050年优化后湿地保护区占比分别为87.54%和85.95%,在满足本研究预设的生物多样性保护目标的前提下符合北京市湿地保护规划对湿地保护率的要求。为最优化资源分配,综合时空变化对湿地保护区空间分布的影响,构建了湿地分级保护区格局,将湿地保护区分为湿地永久保护区、湿地一级临时保护区和湿地二级临时保护区三个等级,以期为北京市分期建设湿地保护区、优化湿地生态保护网络体系和保护湿地生物多样性提供依据。     

The role of wetland policies in the conservation of waterbirds: the case of Uganda

Mafabi, P. 2000. The role of wetland policies in the conservation of waterbirds: the case of Uganda. Ostrich 71 (1 & 2): 96–98.

Wetlands in Uganda provide important habitats for birds including several endemic species. With the ever increasing pressure to convert wetlands to agricultural lands, several species have lost their habitats, while others have become pests due to their opportunistic behaviour in modified habitats. The causes of wetland drainage and conversion in Uganda include population growth, economic reforms and a severe lack of information, legislation and inter-sectoral co-ordination. Community uses of wetlands have clear impacts on waterbirds. At Busolwe (case study 1) there is competition for land-use between Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum and man. Priority community uses of wetlands include fish-farming, agro-forestry and bee-keeping. There is a need for integrating bird conservation into overall wetland conservation objectives, especially with the aim of maintaining conditions suitable for waterbird survival during critical stages of the life-cycle. National wetland policies can play an important role in the conservation of waterbirds, as learned from Uganda's experiences. Recommendations for integrating bird conservation into the national wetland policy framework (as well as into national, district and local level planning processes) are made, which point to close co-operation between stakeholders for better management and on improved appreciation of wetlands values.     

The missing link between awareness and the implementation of wetland policy and legislation in communal areas of Zimbabwe

This paper explores stakeholders’ perceptions of the efficacy of the current policies and legislation meant to conserve wetlands in the communal areas of Zimbabwe. A questionnaire was administered to one hundred and twenty three households adjacent to six wetlands studied including key informants who were interviewed. The existing laws were analysed to determine their appropriateness in light of peoples’ livelihood aspirations and principles of wetland protection. Zimbabwe has no national wetland policy per se but only wetland legislation, however inimitable policies shaped by indigenous tradition and practice were present at each wetland site. The majority of the people were not aware of the existence and rationale of laws governing the conservation of wetlands due to limited awareness education and enforcement by responsible institutions. Therefore, there was a disjuncture between legal provisions and the practical implementation resulting in less impact. Poor implementation of legislation was due to inadequate resources for regulatory agencies, political interference, social conflicts and high incidences of poverty among other factors. The results of the study highlighted that even if awareness was improved, enforcement was likely to remain a challenge unless adequate resources for regulatory institutions and alternative livelihood strategies for communities were availed. The paper thus recommends that development planners should therefore initiate other rural survival options such as restoration of dryland agricultural productivity by introducing water harvesting and conservation farming techniques. This would help to reduce community dependency on already vulnerable wetland ecosystems. Overall, a national wetland policy should be developed through a participatory process, if the legislation is to be used as an effective tool in wetland management.     

湿地生态旅游研究进展

湿地富有生物多样性和文化多样性,具有较高的旅游价值、环境教育功能及社区参与功能,湿地生态旅游体现了旅游经济与湿地保护的可持续协调发展,目前已引起国内外政府和学者的普遍关注. 本文对国内外相关研究理论和实践进行了总结,对湿地生态旅游的研究意义、进程、内容、方法和结果等进行了综述,并对湿地生态旅游研究进行了展望,以期推动湿地生态旅游研究的发展,为湿地及相关旅游区的资源开发、环境保护和科学管理提供参考.     

Impacts of human‐induced environmental change in wetlands on aquatic animals

Many wetlands harbour highly diverse biological communities and provide extensive ecosystem services; however, these important ecological features are being altered, degraded and destroyed around the world. Despite a wealth of research on how animals respond to anthropogenic changes to natural wetlands and how they use created wetlands, we lack a broad synthesis of these data. While some altered wetlands may provide vital habitat, others could pose a considerable risk to wildlife. This risk will be heightened if such wetlands are ecological traps – preferred habitats that confer lower fitness than another available habitat. Wetlands functioning as ecological traps could decrease both local and regional population persistence, and ultimately lead to extinctions. Most studies have examined how animals respond to changes in environmental conditions by measuring responses at the community and population levels, but studying ecological traps requires information on fitness and habitat preferences. Our current lack of knowledge of individual‐level responses may therefore limit our capacity to manage wetland ecosystems effectively since ecological traps require different management practices to mitigate potential consequences. We conducted a global meta‐analysis to characterise how animals respond to four key drivers of wetland alteration: agriculture, mining, restoration and urbanisation. Our overarching goal was to evaluate the ecological impacts of human alterations to wetland ecosystems, as well as identify current knowledge gaps that limit both the current understanding of these responses and effective wetland management. We extracted 1799 taxon‐specific response ratios from 271 studies across 29 countries. Community‐ (e.g. richness) and population‐level (e.g. density) measures within altered wetlands were largely comparable to those within reference wetlands. By contrast, individual fitness measures (e.g. survival) were often lower, highlighting the potential limitations of using only community‐ and population‐level measures to assess habitat quality. Only four studies provided habitat‐preference data, preventing investigation of the potential for altered wetlands to function as ecological traps. This is concerning because attempts to identify ecological traps may detect previously unidentified conservation risks. Although there was considerable variability amongst taxa, amphibians were typically the most sensitive taxon, and thus, may be a valuable bio‐indicator of wetland quality. Despite suffering reduced survival and reproduction, measures such as time to and mass at metamorphosis were similar between altered and reference wetlands, suggesting that quantifying metamorphosis‐related measures in isolation may not provide accurate information on habitat quality. Our review provides the most detailed evaluation to date of the ecological impacts of human alterations to wetland ecosystems. We emphasise that the role of wetlands in human‐altered ecosystems can be complex, as they may represent important habitat but also pose potential risks to animals. Reduced availability of natural wetlands is increasing the importance of altered wetlands for aquatic animals. Consequently, we need to define what represents habitat quality from the perspective of animals, and gain a greater understanding of the underlying mechanisms of habitat selection and how these factors could be manipulated. Furthermore, strategies to enhance the quality of these wetlands should be implemented to maximise their conservation potential.     

Ensuring the adaptive potential of Coastal wetlands of India- the need of the hour for sustainable management

India is endowed with a variety of coastal wetlands viz., mangroves, seagrasses, saltmarshes, coral reefs, lagoons and tidal flats, and the country is also a signatory to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands and the Convention of Biological Diversity, besides having a robust framework of laws and policies, governing the wetland conservation. However, the conservation strategies can better be improved in the context of increasing pressures and threats and limited success of restoration/rehabilitation. Land conversion and ecological degradation of coastal wetlands are the stressors, associated with rapid coastal developmental activities and climate change. The coastal wetlands require desired habitat niche and hence, the conversion of coastal wetlands to other land uses (including agricultural and urban lands) may lead to permanent loss, whereas ecologically degraded coastal wetlands may be resilient if supported by effective protection measures. Preventing the habitat conversion and maximizing the adaptive potential (viz., the ability of populations or species to adapt to rapid environmental change with minimal disruption) by preserving the ecological health are the need of the hour to safeguard the existing coastal wetlands and sustain the provisional ecosystem services offered by them rather than short-term increase in area by unproductive restoration/rehabilitation efforts. Since coastal wetlands are flow through ecosystems, preserving the hydrological connectivity, facilitating the connectivity between adjacent ecosystems and protection of natural corridors are potential strategies that are required to enhance the adaptive potential of coastal wetlands. This analysis calls for site-specific, long-term and integrated ecosystem-based protection, management and rehabilitation strategies based on scientific principles and enforcing the effective legislative measures to regularize the coastal developmental activities in India.

     

黄河三角洲湿地生态系统的形成及其保护

通过对黄河三角洲新生湿地的野外调查,利用TM陆地卫星影像图的判读,结合黄河尾闾变动的历史资料分析,结果表明,黄河三角洲新生湿地是多泥沙的黄河淤积和海岸蚀退所形成.受区域气候、地貌、地质沉积、土壤、植被的相互作用和互相影响,形成4.5×10⁵hm²的湿地,其中有6.84×10⁴hm²的人工湿地.湿地生态类型随着黄河尾闾摆动和海退陆进程度而变化,自海洋向陆地依次为潮下带水生生态系统潮间带湿地生态系统潮上带盐生生态系统芦苇獐茅湿地生态系统草甸湿地生态系统陆上农田生态系统.该系统资源丰富,共有野生动物1524种,鸟类300种,鱼类1040种.石油开发和近年来黄河断流对湿地产生一定影响,应在开发利用中加强管理和保护.     

基于水鸟保护的长江流域湿地优先保护格局模拟

基于系统保护规划的理论和方法,以长江流域湿地为研究区,构建了基于气候、地貌分异的湿地生态地理综合分类单元,并将其作为宏观尺度湿地生态系统保护目标,同时考虑以湿地鸟类为代表的物种保目标,依托Marxan系统保护规划工具,确定了长江流域湿地保护具有不可替代性的优先保护格局。该格局能以最小的社会经济和土地资源代价最大程度的保护湿地生物多样性,对比现有湿地保护格局,最终确定了游离于现有保护体系外的湿地保护空缺。研究结果表明:长江流域源区和长江三角洲地区的湿地保护体系完善,无需新建保护区;金沙江流域湿地保护空缺主要分布在现有保护区周围,可以适当扩充保护区外围或调整边界;嘉陵江流域和长江上游干流流域的保护空缺严重,大面积集中在重庆西北部,乌江流域的贵州省习水县北部湖泊湿地存在保护空缺,这些区域建议适当新建保护区或者保护小区;长江中下游湿地保护空缺主要分布在湖北、湖南、江西与安徽境内的沿江湖泊湿地,建议建立湿地公园及合理进行河流岸坡修复。研究结果可为长江流域湿地保护体系调整、保护规划制定提供参考依据,从宏观层面上为长江流域湿地统筹保护及合理开发利用提供科学依据。     

黄河三角洲湿地生态系统的形成及其保护

通过对黄河三角洲新生湿地的野外调查,利用TM陆地卫星影像图的判读,结合黄河尾闾变动的历史资料分析,结果表明,黄河三角洲新生湿地是多泥沙的黄河淤积和海岸蚀退所形成.受区域气候、地貌、地质沉积、土壤、植被的相互作用和互相影响,形成4.5×105hm2的湿地,其中有6.84×104hm2的人工湿地.湿地生态类型随着黄河尾闾摆动和海退陆进程度而变化,自海洋向陆地依次为潮下带水生生态系统潮间带湿地生态系统潮上带盐生生态系统芦苇獐茅湿地生态系统草甸湿地生态系统陆上农田生态系统.该系统资源丰富,共有野生动物1524种,鸟类300种,鱼类1040种.石油开发和近年来黄河断流对湿地产生一定影响,应在开发利用中加强管理和保护     

The missing wetlands: using local ecological knowledge to find cryptic ecosystems

Small, temporally dynamic, biologically diverse isolated wetlands are among the most imperiled ecosystems, yet their conservation is hindered by lack of protective legislation and mapping. As part of an effort to better understand isolated wetland ecology in an area undergoing dramatic land use change, we mapped isolated wetlands in South Carolina’s Piedmont and Blue Ridge regions using remote sensing and local ecological knowledge (LEK). Remote detection of isolated wetlands was limited by digital resource resolution, topography, and wetland size. LEK was the most useful tool for locating small isolated wetlands. We sampled 10% of the study area using LEK and discovered 44 wetlands with “isolated” characteristics, none of which had been identified by remote sensing. Only 8 of 44 wetlands found through LEK could be identified using remote sensing after their discovery. LEK fills a gap in cryptic ecosystem detection when adequate remotely sensed data are not available. Though effective, using LEK is neither as rapid nor as repeatable as remote sensing. We suggest a two-pronged approach for finding cryptic ecosystems: remote sensing coupled with LEK where data resolution is inadequate. For remote detection of isolated wetlands, we suggest a minimum resolution of 0.33 m for Color Infrared, leaf-off, high-water photography. Despite great advances in remote sensing, data are not uniformly available worldwide and LEK may serve as an effective tool for locating cryptic resources for biodiversity conservation. Mapping cryptic resources will allow for more accurate resource and biodiversity conservation planning under current and future climate scenarios.     

Perceived benefits of littoral wetlands in Uganda: a focus on the Nabugabo wetlands

Wetlands, commonly called swamps in Uganda, are estimated to cover about 13% of the total land surface area (about 30,000 km²) of the country and represent a considerable ecological, social and economic value. In 1989, the Ugandan government formerly recognised that wetlands need to be conserved and contribute considerably to the National economy and rural livelihood. The present analysis is focused on the Nabugabo wetland ecosystem. Located in Central Uganda, it is an important part of the extensive system of wetlands that surround Lake Victoria. The Nabugabo wetland is a source of important resources that are basic to the local economy, including fishing, water utilization, agriculture, livestock, wetland plants for construction and more recently, tourism. Investment in the area is low and a large percentage of the local community depends on the wetland resources for basic sustenance needs. After achieving Ramsar status, demarcation and conservation activities were initiated by the local and national leaders. However, these conservation efforts have provoked conflicts between the land owners and the policy makers, in particular to the demarcation of areas for conservation In the present analysis, we examine the benefits, perceived by local leaders and community members, of the wetland and its services, as well as views towards its conservation and management. The results show that differences between the community leaders and member exist regarding the perceived benefits of the wetlands. Tourism, while providing some opportunities for local persons is not always viewed positively. Conservation activities are viewed positively but some questions remain as to whether such efforts help or hinder the local population, in particular regarding access to basic resources.     

Reduction of avian diversity in created versus natural and restored wetlands

Natural wetland ecosystems continue to suffer widespread destruction and degradation. Many recent studies argue that artificial or restored wetlands compensate for wetland loss and are valuable for waterbird conservation. However, detailed comparisons of the value of natural, artificial and restored wetlands are lacking. Our aim was to assess if the restoration or creation of wetlands can fully compensate for the loss of natural wetlands for waterbirds. We compared the waterbird communities in a set of 20 natural, restored and artificial wetlands, all of which are considered important for waterbirds and are located within the same protected area (Doñana Natural Space, south‐west Spain). We used different measures of diversity, including phylogenetic relatedness, and the proportion of threatened species at national, European and international levels. We found that artificial wetlands have consistently lower value than restored and natural wetlands, with little difference between the latter two. Natural wetlands are essential for conserving diversity across the tree of life and for threatened species, but restored wetlands can be of similar value and can assure maintenance of key ecological processes. Thus, when economic costs per unit area are similar, resources for wetland conservation are better invested in restoration projects than in wetland creation, and caution is required when suggesting that artificial wetlands compensate for the loss of natural wetlands.     

互花米草入侵对滨海湿地生态系统的影响研究进展

滨海湿地受海、陆生态系统的交互影响,是典型的生态脆弱带和敏感区。互花米草是全球海岸带最为成功的外来入侵物种,对滨海湿地生态系统已经产生了重要的影响。本文对已有相关研究进行了系统梳理,揭示了互花米草入侵对滨海湿地生态系统生物地球化学循环(碳循环、氮循环、磷循环及土壤重金属迁移)和入侵地生物群落(微生物、植物和动物)的影响。并在此基础上对今后研究的重点提出了展望: 加强互花米草入侵对滨海湿地生态系统健康影响机制研究;重点关注全球变化背景下互花米草群落与湿地环境互馈耦合;开展长时序定位监测,厘清滨海湿地生态系统对互米草不同入侵阶段的响应差异,以期对互花米草的生态利用和治理提供指导。     

雄安新区白洋淀生态属性辨析及生态修复保护研究

湿地是自然界生物多样性最丰富的生态系统之一,与社会发展和人类福祉息息相关。近年来,由于全球气候变化和人类活动的过度干扰,湿地正面临着面积萎缩、功能减弱、多样性降低等诸多问题,湿地退化已经成为制约区域可持续性发展的重大阻碍。伴随着生态文明建设逐渐成为中国特色社会主义建设的重要支柱,湿地生态修复工作得到前所未有的制度保障。深入剖析湿地属性,结合政策保障,有针对性的提出湿地保护与修复的治理措施,对区域的生态环境建设和可持续性发展具有重要意义。选择国家级新区-雄安新区的水命脉-白洋淀湿地为研究对象,在深入剖析其生态属性和已存在的生态问题的基础上,结合生态修复的原则、方法和步骤,提出生态修复与保护的可行性策略。研究结果表明,白洋淀本质是典型的湖泊湿地,同时兼具沼泽湿地特征,由于人类活动的剧烈干扰,白洋淀有向沼泽湿地逆向演替的变化趋势。湿地内存在面积萎缩、水资源量短缺、水环境污染问题突出及生物多样性减少等生态问题。本研究建议:为顺利建设雄安新区,首先,白洋淀湿地在算清"水账"、"污账"和"生态账"的前提下,进一步加强流域水资源调配,科学确定白洋淀湿地最佳水位,恢复淀区水量;其次,通过使用清洁生产技术和限制高排污企业建设等措施,加强污染防治,恢复湿地水质;最后,依据生态承载力理论,划分白洋淀流域的生态功能红线、环境质量红线和资源利用红线等国家生态保护红线体系,为尽快恢复湿地结构与功能提供制度保障。     

基于CVM的三江平原湿地非使用价值评价

基于条件价值评估法(CVM)这一当前国际上流行的生态系统经济价值评价方法,对三江平原湿地的非使用价值进行了研究。研究中采用实地调研的方式,进行支付意愿问卷调查,共发放支付卡式CVM问卷552份,回收有效问卷513份。分别采用非参数估计和参数估计方法对调查数据进行分析处理,评价了三江平原湿地的非使用价值,得出三江平原湿地2007年人均支付意愿为71.66元/a,并进一步计算出三江平原湿地的非使用价值为24.638亿元/a。该值仅为三江平原湿地部分,如果扩大到三江平原涵盖的所有自然资源,其值还将大幅上扬。三江平原蕴含的自然资源价值是巨大的,保护三江平原的生态环境也将创造巨大的价值,研究结论使得湿地环境保护和开发的价值对比成为可能,为政府相关政策的制定提供理论基础。     

浙江秀山岛湿地生态系统初探

秀山岛位于东海舟山渔场海域,岛上有大片的湿地资源分布,其滨海部分与舟山渔场的生物资源特别是渔业生物资源密切联系,具有罕见的海岛特色。海岛的特殊地理位置为秀山岛湿地赋予了独特的生态特征。秀山岛湿地内动植物资源丰富,生物多样性高,共有植物种类300余种,栖息的鸟类共有26个科108种,包括国家一级保护动物东方自鹳（Ixobrychus minutus）。还有国家二级保护动物獐（Hydropotes inermis）等珍贵动物自然栖息。秀山岛湿地包括潮下带湿地（浅海湾）、潮间带湿地（泥滩、芦苇丛）、潮上带湿地（咸水沼泽、半咸水沼泽）、异化湿地（盐田、养殖池、稻田）等几个紧密联系的部分。具有多方面的生态功能。由于对湿地的生态功能重视不够,湿地生态系统破碎化严重。目前在秀山岛湿地已经建立了湿地自然保护区,湿地生态系统得到了较好的发展。     

图们江下游湿地生态系统健康评价

湿地是世界上具有独特结构与功能的生态系统,图们江流域湿地生态系统的健康对该区乃至东北亚地区综合生态系统网络的建设具有重要意义。选择图们江流域下游为研究区,基于压力-状态-响应(PSR)模型,在压力系统、状态系统、响应系统三个层面选取30个指标构建了图们江下游湿地生态系统健康评价指标体系,运用层次分析法和多级模糊综合评判法对研究区湿地生态健康状况进行综合评价,其结果为0.5878,处于亚健康状态。其中,压力系统的健康指数为0.5292,响应系统的健康指数为0.6866,状态系统的健康指数为0.5116,各等级隶属度S=(16.83%, 25.37%, 16.76%, 16.97%,24.07%)。主要表现在研究区域湿地的补水水质差,导致湿地水质污染加重,富营养化现象严重;并且由于人为因素,湿地大面积退化,景观破碎化加剧,功能逐渐丧失,生产力水平下降;急需对本区域湿地进行保护与管理。     

The ecology of The Netherlands wetlands: characteristics,threats, prospects and perspectives for ecological research

Wetlands are among the worlds' most important, but also most threatened, environmental resources. Wetland losses have been in progress particularly from the industrial revolution onwards, because wetland functions could not successfully compete for space with other land uses. Wetlands became recently foci of conservation efforts because of the increased awareness of their importance in water management and wildlife conservation, and because of the diversity of their habitats. The Netherlands are relatively rich in wetlands: 16% of its' territory is regarded as internationally important wetland and 7% has been registered as such. The major Dutch wetland types are: coastal ecosystems, large riverine systems, base-rich freshwater systems, and nutrient-poor freshwater systems. Most threats to the Dutch wetlands are of man-made origin. They comprise: (1) Changes in hydrology leading to changed discharges, currents and desiccation; (2) Acidification; (3) Eutrophication; and (4) Toxification. Long-term threats are largely climate-change related, and concern temperature rise and the UV-B increase in irradiation. General conservation goals also apply to wetlands but Ramsar-registered wetlands have a special status. Conservation of the Dutch wetlands is difficult, because of the high population density of the country and its inherent threats. However, ecological targets and standards are increasingly set in national Policy Plans and international agreements. Rehabilitation and creation of wetlands is presently widely advocated, and sometimes realised. For ecological research, the sustainability of wetlands should get top priority. Such a research programme would focus on understanding the underlying ecological processes in natural and man-dominated wetland systems to prescribe conservation, rehabilitation and management strategies that would enhance the sustainability of these systems. Within this framework special attention should be directed to studies (1) At the ecosystem level of ecosystem parameters, of which natural oscillations and trends in time, and on which the impact of disturbances are quantified. Particularly these studies, in which often simulation models are used as tools for interpretation, can provide the basis for extrapolations in space and time; (2) On adaptation capacity and mechanisms of (groups of) species to extreme environmental conditions; (3) On (mutual) relationships between plants, animals and microorganisms (e.g. competition, grazing and mineralization); (4) On dispersion between small wetlands. For the contemporary quantitative assessment of the long-term effects of climate changes, the effects of temperature rise and increase in UV-B irradiation on individual species, communities and ecosystems should also be studied.