Gerald Jurasinski

Verified

Gerald verified their affiliation via an institutional email.

Learn more

Verified

Gerald verified their affiliation via an institutional email.

Learn more

• Dr.
• Professor at Universität Greifswald

A consistent terminology for species diversity is subject of an ongoing debate. Recently Tuomisto (Oecologia 164:853-860, 2010) stated that a consistent terminology for diversity already exists. The paper comments on recent papers by ourselves (Jurasinski et al. Oecologia 159:15-26, 2009) and by Moreno and Rodriguez (Oecologia 163:279-282, 2010). B...

Wetlands can either be net sinks or net sources of greenhouse gases (GHGs), depending on the mean annual water level and other factors like average annual temperature, vegetation development, and land use. Whereas drained and agriculturally used peatlands tend to be carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) sources but meth...

The growing demand for bioenergy increases pressure on peatlands. The novel strategy of wet peatlands agriculture (paludiculture) may permit the production of bioenergy from biomass while avoiding large green- house gas emissions as occur during conventional crop cultivation on drained peat soils. Herein, we present the first greenhouse gas balances...

Peatlands are strategic areas for climate change mitigation because of their matchless carbon stocks. Drained peatlands release this carbon to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide (CO2). Peatland rewetting effectively stops these CO2 emissions, but also re-establishes the emission of methane (CH4). Essentially, management must choose between CO2 emissi...

Globally accelerating trends in societal development and human environmental impacts since the mid-twentieth century1-7are known as the Great Acceleration and have been discussed as a key indicator of the onset of the Anthropocene epoch6. While reports on ecological responses (for example, changes in species range or local extinctions) to the Great...

Tree stems in both wetland and upland forests are a potentially significant source of the greenhouse gas methane (CH4). Stem CH4 emissions are assumed to play an important role on a global scale. Yet, uncertainties regarding temporal and spatial variability as well as transport processes of stem emissions remain high. Here, we assess the spatial va...

Around 4 % of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions originate from drained peatlands. Unlike rewetting drained peatlands with freshwater, brackish water rewetting of coastal peatlands might not only reduce CO 2 emissions, but also keep methane (CH 4) emissions low. The re-establishment of the natural brackish water regime of coastal peatlands with...

Coastal nutrient loads from point sources such as rivers are mostly well-monitored. This is not the case for diffuse nutrient inputs from coastal catchments unconnected to rivers, despite the potential for high inputs due to intensive land use. The German Baltic Sea coastline consists of numerous peatlands that have been diked and drained. However,...

The rewetting of formerly drained peatlands can help to counteract climate change through the reduction of CO 2 emissions. However, this can lead to resuming CH 4 emissions due to changes in the microbiome, favoring CH 4-producing archaea. How plants, hydrology and microbiomes interact as ultimate determinants of CH 4 dynamics is still poorly under...

The EU Nature Restoration Law (NRL) is critical for the restoration of degraded ecosystems and active afforestation of degraded peatlands has been suggested as a restoration measure under the NRL. Here, we discuss the current state of scientific evidence on the climate mitigation effects of peatlands under forestry. Afforestation of drained peatlan...

Restoration of drained peatlands through rewetting has recently emerged as a prevailing strategy to mitigate excessive greenhouse gas emissions and re-establish the vital carbon sequestration capacity of peatlands. Rewetting can help to restore vegetation communities and biodiversity, while still allowing for extensive agricultural management such...

While peatland rewetting seeks to mitigate emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), it often leads to emissions of methane (CH4). The latter can, depending on their magnitude, exert a considerable climate warming effect. The extent to which the interplay between mitigated CO2 emissions and enhanced CH4 emissions affects the efficacy of peatland rewetting...

Coastal peatlands are believed to exert a substantial influence in mitigating climate change, though their function as carbon sinks is less understood. Many of these valuable ecosystems have been drained for agriculture, becoming significant carbon sources. The impact of rewetting peatlands with brackish water is of growing interest due to the beli...

Land-ocean interactions in the coastal zone are of particular interest regarding the exchange of substances, like nutrients, carbon, sulfur, metals, and water. The rising sea level is and will further increase the influence of salty solutions on previously freshwater ecosystems. Currently, coastal areas in the NE of Germany are increasingly rewette...

Rewetting of drained peatlands is an important climate change mitigation strategy that safeguards existing carbon stocks and can often provide increased net carbon storage already in the short term. However, rewetting also causes increased methane (CH4) release over several years or decades. To reduce the magnitude of CH4 release, one idea often di...

Peatlands are an integral part of the natural carbon cycle, but have often been drained and used for agricultural purposes. Rewetting of drained peatlands can help mitigate anthropogenic climate change, and their health and function as a carbon sink is integral to achieving a sustainable future. Rewetting reduces the output of carbon dioxide (CO2)...

Wetlands are responsible for 20%–31% of global methane (CH4) emissions and account for a large source of uncertainty in the global CH4 budget. Data‐driven upscaling of CH4 fluxes from eddy covariance measurements can provide new and independent bottom‐up estimates of wetland CH4 emissions. Here, we develop a six‐predictor random forest upscaling mo...

Peatlands are an integral part of the natural carbon cycle, but have often been drained and used for agricultural purposes. Rewetting of drained peatlands can help mitigate anthropogenic climate change, and their health and function as a carbon sink is integral to achieving a sustainable future. Rewetting reduces the output of carbon dioxide (CO2)...

The rewetting of formerly drained peatlands is a strategy to fight against global warming through the reduction of CO2 emissions, although this can lead to elevated CH4 emissions. The interplay between plants, hydrology and microbiomes as ultimate determinants of CH4 dynamics is still poorly understood, despite recent progress in field studies. Usi...

The rewetting of formerly drained peatlands is a strategy to fight against global warming through the reduction of CO2 emissions, although this can lead to elevated CH4 emissions. The interplay between plants, hydrology and microbiomes as ultimate determinants of CH4 dynamics is still poorly understood, despite recent progress in field studies. Usi...

Growing Sphagnum on rewetted bogs (=Sphagnum paludiculture) is an alternative to drainage-based land use because it retains its value as productive land while mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, studies on GHG exchange covering the full production system and cycle are missing. Here, we combined data of the establishment phase with n...

Rewetted peatlands are reestablished hot spots for CH4 emissions, which are subject to increased drought events in the course of climate change. However, the dynamics of soil methane-cycling microbiomes in rewetted peatlands during summer drought are still poorly characterized. Using a quantitative metatranscriptomic approach, we investigated the c...

This part provides an overview of ecosystem and landscape functions of the Baltic coast based on recent research in the reed belt of the Darss-Zingst Bodden Chain, a sheltered lagoon system of the southern Baltic Sea. The coastline of these lagoons is dominated by common reed (Phragmites australis). Important physical and chemical functions of thes...

The rewetting of drained peatlands supports long-term nutrient removal in addition to reducing emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O). However, rewetting may lead to short-term nutrient leaching into adjacent water and high methane (CH4) emissions. The consequences of rewetting with brackish water on nutrient and greenhouse gas (...

Environmental circumstances shaping soil microbial communities have been studied extensively. However, due to disparate study designs, it has been difficult to resolve whether a globally consistent set of predictors exists, or context-dependency prevails. Here, we used a network of 18 grassland sites (11 of those containing regional plant productiv...

The nature reserve ‘Heiligensee and Hütelmoor’, located on the German Baltic Sea coast, protects a peatland complex including coastal fens and a peat bog. It is a part of a national biodiversity hotspot area and protected by a number of regulations. In the past, the area has undergone drastic changes, caused by natural processes as well as by anthr...

In recent years, many peatlands in Europe have been rewetted for nature conservation and global warming mitigation. However, the effects on emissions of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N 2 O) have been found to be highly variable and driving factors are poorly understood. Therefore, we measured N 2 O fluxes every two weeks over three years on pai...

Sea-level rise intensifies saltwater influx into coastal wetlands causing osmotic stress and probably changing vegetation composition. To determine especially the impact of salinity pulses that occur during flooding events, Typha latifolia , Carex acutiformis , Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani and Phragmites australis were exposed to different salini...

Wetland CH4 emissions are among the most uncertain components of the global CH4 budget. The complex nature of wetland CH4 processes makes it challenging to identify causal relationships for improving our understanding and predictability of CH4 emissions. In this study, we used the flux measurements of CH4 from eddy covariance towers (30 sites from...

Rewetted peatlands can be a significant source of methane (CH4), but in coastal ecosystems, input of sulfate-rich seawater could potentially mitigate these emissions. The presence of sulfate as an electron acceptor during organic matter decomposition is known to suppress methanogenesis by favoring the growth of sulfate reducers, which outcompete me...

Soils represent a major global source and sink of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Many studies of GHG fluxes between soil, plant and atmosphere rely on chamber measurements. Different chamber techniques have been developed over the last decades, each characterised by different requirements and limitations. In this manuscript, we focus on the non‐steady‐st...

Root phenology influences the timing of plant resource acquisition and carbon fluxes into the soil. This is particularly important in fen peatlands, in which peat is primarily formed by roots and rhizomes of vascular plants. However, most fens in Central Europe are drained for agriculture, leading to large carbon losses, and further threatened by i...

The rewetting of drained peatlands supports long-term nutrient removal in addition to reducing emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O). However, rewetting may lead to short-term nutrient leaching into adjacent water and high methane (CH4) emissions. The consequences of rewetting with brackish water on nutrient and greenhouse gas (...

Coastal wetlands are important for carbon (C) storage and sequestration. Still, there are large knowledge gaps concerning the amount of “blue carbon” in coastal wetlands dominated by common reed ( Phragmites australis ). We quantified carbon stocks at the southern Baltic Sea coast at six representative Phragmites wetland sites at the Darss-Zingst-B...

Rewetted peatlands can be a significant source of methane (CH4), but in coastal ecosystems, input of sulfate-rich seawater could potentially mitigate these emissions. The presence of sulfate as electron acceptor during organic matter decomposition is known to suppress methanogenesis, by favoring the growth of sulfate-reducers, which outcompete meth...

Sea-level rise intensifies saltwater influx into coastal wetlands causing osmotic stress and probably changing vegetation composition. To determine especially the impact of salinity pulses that occur during flooding events, Typha latifolia , Carex acutiformis , Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani and Phragmites australis were exposed to different salini...

Environmental circumstances shaping soil microbial communities have been studied extensively, but due to disparate study designs it has been difficult to resolve whether a globally consistent set of predictors exists, or context-dependency prevails. Here, we used a network of 18 grassland sites (11 sampled across regional plant productivity gradien...

Time series of wetland methane fluxes measured by eddy covariance require gap-filling to estimate daily, seasonal , and annual emissions. Gap-filling methane fluxes is challenging because of high variability and complex responses to multiple drivers. To date, there is no widely established gap-filling standard for wetland methane fluxes, with regar...

Peatlands have been drained for land use for a long time and on a large scale, turning them from carbon and nutrient sinks into respective sources, diminishing water regulation capacity, causing surface height loss and destroying biodiversity. Over the last decades, drained peatlands have been rewetted for biodiversity restoration and, as it strong...

The magnitude and frequency of soil frost events might increase in northern temperate regions in response to climate warming due to reduced insulation caused by declining snow cover. In temperate deciduous forests, increased soil frost severity can hamper tree growth and increase the mortality of fine roots, soil fauna and microorganisms, thus alte...

Climate-warming-driven sea level rise may change the vegetation composition of coastal wetlands, influencing ecosystem functions including photosynthetic activity, biomass production, litter decomposability and nutrient cycling. Litter decomposition rates of the most dominant macrophytes, Phragmites australis, Carex sp. and Schoenoplectus tabernaem...

In the last decades, rewetting of drained peatlands is on the rise worldwide, to restore their significant carbon sink function. Despite the increasing understanding of peat microbiomes, little is known about the seasonal dynamics and network interactions of the microbial communities in these ecosystems, especially in rewetted fens (groundwater-fed...

Small water bodies including drainage ditches can be hotspots for methane (CH4) emissions from peatlands. We assessed the CH4 emissions of a drained and a rewetted temperate fen including emissions of managed and unmanaged drainage ditches over the course of 2.5 years, covering three vegetation periods. Ditch CH4 emissions in the rewetted fen were...

Methane (CH4) emissions from natural landscapes constitute roughly half of global CH4 contributions to the atmosphere, yet large uncertainties remain in the absolute magnitude and the seasonality of emission quantities and drivers. Eddy covariance (EC) measurements of CH4 flux are ideal for constraining ecosystem-scale CH4 emissions due to quasi-co...

Many raised bogs in Central Europe are in an unfavorable state: drainage causes high emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O), while rewetting may result in high methane (CH4) emissions. Also, the establishment of typical bog species is often hampered during restoration. Measures like topsoil removal (TSR) or introduction of target...

Both the frequency and intensity of drought events are expected to increase, with unresolved alterations to peatland methane cycling and the involved microbial communities. While existing studies have assessed drought effects via experimental approaches under controlled conditions, to our knowledge, no studies have examined the in-situ effects of n...

While wetlands are the largest natural source of methane (CH4) to the atmosphere, they represent a large source of uncertainty in the global CH4 budget due to the complex biogeochemical controls on CH4 dynamics. Here we present, to our knowledge, the first multi‐site synthesis of how predictors of freshwater wetland CH4 fluxes (FCH4) vary across we...

Peatlands serve as important ecosystems since they store a substantial fraction of global soil carbon. Through draining the internal biogeochemical processes may be changed impacting the transformation of stored carbon and plant material. Pristine peatlands are primarily associated with methanogenic and iron-cycling conditions, however, minor sulfu...

In the OptiMoor field trial, possible measures for raised bog restoration after intensive grassland use are being tested to identify the best approaches. The trial consists of seven plots (8 m × 24 m) representing the status quo – intensive grassland use – and six restoration approaches with combinations of rewetting either on the original surface...

Fens belong to the most threatened ecosystems in Europe. Maintaining a high water table through rewetting is an effective measure to rehabilitate many of their ecosystem functions. However, the impact of meteorological conditions such as vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and precipitation on water tables is still unclear for rewetted fens. Here, we comp...

In mountain pastures worldwide, studies investigating vegetation changes due to long-term grazing and environmental changes are sparse, especially regarding the effects of changes in snowmelt patterns. The outstanding availability of historical vegetation data from Kyrgyz mountain pastures creates unique opportunities to study past and forecast fut...

The rewetting of peatlands is regarded as an important nature-based climate solution and intended to reconcile climate protection with the restoration of self-regulating ecosystems that are resistant to climate impacts. Although the severity and frequency of droughts are predicted to increase as a consequence of climate change, it is not well under...

Small water bodies including (former) drainage ditches can be hotspots for methane (CH 4 ) emissions from peatlands. We assessed the CH 4 emissions of a drained and a rewetted temperate fen including emissions of active and former drainage ditches over the course of 2.5 years, covering three vegetation periods. Ditch CH 4 emissions in the rewetted...

Methane (CH4) emissions from natural landscapes constitute roughly half of global CH4 contributions to the atmosphere, yet large uncertainties remain in the absolute magnitude and the seasonality of emission quantities and drivers. Eddy covariance (EC) measurements of CH4 flux are ideal for constraining ecosystem-scale CH4 emissions, including thei...

Tree stems can be a source of the greenhouse gas methane (CH4). However, assessments of the global importance of stem CH4 emissions are complicated by a lack of research and high variability between individual ecosystems. Here, we determined the contribution of emissions from stems of mature black alder (Alnus glutinosa (L.) Gaertn.) to overall CH4...

Sulphate (SO42-) concentrations in freshwaters have increased globally over the last decades even though a strong reduction in atmospheric sulphur (S) deposition has occurred across large parts of North America and Europe. However, the extent and effects of increased SO42- concentrations in freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems remain poorly unders...

Drought and heat events, such as the 2018 European drought, interact with the exchange of energy between the land surface and the atmosphere, potentially affecting albedo, sensible and latent heat fluxes, as well as CO 2 exchange. Each of these quantities may aggravate or mitigate the drought, heat, their side effects on productivity, water scarcit...

Peatland rewetting aims at stopping the emissions of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and establishing net carbon sinks. However, in times of global warming, restoration projects must increasingly deal with extreme events such as drought periods. Here, we evaluate the effect of the European summer drought 2018 on vegetation development and the exchange of me...

Tree stems can be a source of the greenhouse gas methane (CH 4 ). However, assessments of the global importance are complicated by a lack of research and a high variability between ecosystems. Here, we determined the contribution of emissions from tree stems of mature black alder ( Alnus glutinosa (L.) Gaertn.) to overall CH 4 exchange in two tempe...

Rewetting is a necessary measure to stop CO2 emissions of degraded peatlands and to restore their natural habitat and C accumulation function. Although the severity and frequency of droughts is predicted to increase as a consequence of climate change, it is not well understood whether such extreme events can jeopardize rewetting measures. The goal...

Drained peatlands are significant sources of the greenhouse gas (GHG) carbon dioxide. Rewetting is a proven strategy used to protect carbon stocks; however, it can lead to increased emissions of the potent GHG methane. The response to rewetting of soil microbiomes as drivers of these processes is poorly understood, as are the biotic and abiotic fac...

Of all terrestrial ecosystems, peatlands store carbon most effectively in long-term scales of millennia. However, many peatlands have been drained for peat extraction or agricultural use. This converts peatlands from sinks to sources of carbon, causing approx. 5% of the anthropogenic greenhouse effect and additional negative effects on other ecosys...

Peatland restoration is seen as an effective contribution to help achieve the aims of the Paris Agreement because currently huge amounts of peatlands in Northern Central Europe are under unsustainable drainage-based land use. If net zero greenhouse gas emissions from peatlands shall be reached by 2050, restoration measures have to be done as soon a...

In the last decades, rewetting of drained peatlands is on the rise worldwide, to restore the significant carbon sink function. Rewetted peatlands differ substantially from their pristine counterparts and can, thus, be considered as novel ecosystems. Despite the increasing understanding of peat microbiomes, little is known about the seasonal dynamic...

Drained peatlands are significant sources of the greenhouse gas (GHG) carbon dioxide. Rewetting is a proven strategy to protect carbon stocks; however, it can lead to increased emissions of the potent GHG methane. The response to rewetting of soil microbiomes as drivers of these processes is poorly understood, as are biotic and abiotic factors that...

Drained organic soils are large sources of anthropogenic greenhouse gases (GHG) in many European and Asian countries. Therefore, these soils urgently need to be considered and adequately accounted for when attempting to decrease emissions from the Agriculture and Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sectors. Here, we describe the methodo...

Of all terrestrial ecosystems, peatlands store carbon most effectively. However, many peatlands have been drained for peat extraction or agricultural use. This converts peatlands from sinks to sources of carbon, causing approx. 5% of the anthropogenic greenhouse effect and additional negative effects on other ecosystem services. Rewetting peatlands...

High-organic drained peatlands are large sources of the greenhouse gas (GHG) carbon dioxide. Rewetting of peatlands is a promising strategy to protect the large C stocks, however, rewetting also causes increased emissions of the potent GHG methane. The net climate effect of rewetting and the role of the microbiome remains uncertain. We aimed at inv...

Drained peatlands are significant sources of the greenhouse gas (GHG) carbon dioxide. Rewetting is a proven strategy to protect carbon stocks; however, it can lead to increased emissions of the potent GHG methane. The response to rewetting of soil microbiomes as drivers of these processes is poorly understood, as are biotic and abiotic factors that...

Peat bogs are among the most threatened biotopes in Germany. The restoration of peat bogs so far has been focusing on former peat extraction sites although most peat bogs are under intensive grassland use (54% in Niedersachsen). From 2016 to 2021 strategies of peat bog restoration after intensive grassland use are currently under exploration within...

There have been widespread attempts to rewet peatlands in Europe and elsewhere in the world to restore their unique biodiversity as well as their important function as nutrient and carbon sinks. However, changes in hydrological regime and therefore oxygen availability likely alter the abundance of enzyme-inhibiting polyphenolic compounds, which hav...