The ecology of ponds in the context of human activity and geography - environmental DNA and beyond

About this project

<p>The sample design in ECOPOND includes five geographic locations, spanning the south of Poland to the middle of Norway, where we will sample five replicates of urban and rural ponds in close geographic proximity, making it possible to test for the impact of urbanization on biodiversity and biotic homogenization across latitude. We will sample all ponds at three<br> different time periods (n=150), making it possible to assess seasonality in biodiversity. Traditional sampling<br> using morphological species identification will be close to impossible for a large set of sites and sampling<br> times, and repeated collections of individuals can potentially cause ecosystem damage. Therefore, ECOPOND<br> will utilize biodiversity screening methods that are not only manageable for a large number of sites within a<br> short time frame, but also gives more detailed results on all the sampled taxa at the same time.<br> All ponds will also be analyzed for over 20 water quality parameters and include data on a range of site characteristics that will be used as explanatory variables in all models.<br> ECOPOND will compare large datasets across large geographic regions and will provide detailed knowledge<br> of biodiversity patterns in vertebrates, invertebrates, fungal and microbial species, as well as genomic<br> composition and skin biodiversity for animals inhabiting the same ponds set in an urban context.</p>

Bilateral cooperation results

The bilateral collaboration between Polish and Norwegian partners was highly effective, fostering strong scientific exchange and mutual learning between 3 Polish and 2 Norwegian scientific institutions. All teams actively contributed to the research, sharing expertise and resources, which significantly enhanced the project's outcomes. The collaboration led to the development of long-term partnerships and laid the groundwork for future joint projects. The close cooperation between the partners was instrumental in addressing challenges and achieving the project's goals, demonstrating the value of international scientific collaboration. The direct proof are numerous joint scientific publications, joint meetings and further joint research applications Biodiversa+ 2022 Call for Proposals https://proposals.etag.ee/biodiversa/ "Improved transnational monitoring of biodiversity and ecosystem change for science and society (BiodivMon)"

Project partners

• Norwegian Veterinary Institute Donor project partner· Norway
• The Norwegian Institute for Nature Research Donor project partner· Norway
• Jagiellonian University Project partner· Poland
• University of Lodz Project partner· Poland