Conservation biology unit

Conservation biology is an applied research discipline that provides ecological knowledge that can help to solve problems related to nature conservation, and especially the maintenance of biodiversity. It links to various branches of ecological research and addresses issues at the levels of genes, populations, communities and ecosystems. The research at the unit embraces a variety of different organisms with a special focus on bryophytes, lichens and insects.

At the unit we work primarily with projects related to topical questions in today’s land-use, especially directed towards forestland. At present there are about 20 persons at the unit, out of which 8 are PhD-students. Examples of approaches are metapopulation modelling, cost-efficiency analyses, and various analyses of species communities. Applied research questions that are addressed include impact of forest residue and stump harvest on biodiversity, vegetation effects from introducing exotic tree species, methods for large-scale biodiversity monitoring, extinction risk of lichens and beetles associated with ancient oak pastures, and efficiency of tree retention measures in forestry.

Main projects

Lichen and bryophyte ecology

Saproxylic insect ecology

Biofuel harvest

Strategies for biodiversity conservation in forests

Spatial ecology of species associated with living or dead trees

Life-history and nest predation