Martin Reiss

Geisenheim University · Department of Landscape Planning and Nature Conservation

Climate-induced retreat of glaciers will affect the macroinvertebrate composition in glacier‐fed rivers and lead to an increase in α-diversity and abundance as well as to an upward migration of downstream macroinvertebrates. In Arctic regions, where climate change is expected to cause major environmental changes, snow is becoming increasingly important for aquatic ecosystems, and the influence of glacier meltwater is declining. The consequences for macroinvertebrate composition are still largely unresolved, mainly because long-term studies in Arctic regions are also lacking. Therefore, this research project will investigate temporal changes in macroinvertebrates along an Arctic glacier-fed river and a snow-fed river on the basis of Gíslason et al. (2001) who mapped macroinvertebrate, hydrophysical and -chemical parameters in 1996 and 1997 along the arctic rivers Vestari- and Austari-Jökulsá River. Since these first investigations the hydrological and climatic conditions have changed significantly. As a repetitive investigation the abiotic variables electrical conductivity, water temperate, -level, DOC (conc., absorbance, fluoresce.), stable isotopes, dissolved silica, nutrients (PO4, NO3, NO2, and NH4), ions (Ca, Mg, Na, K), chlorophyll α and suspended sediment as well as macroinvertebrates will be investigated at the same locations (21) as in 1996 and 1997 during 6 seasonal sampling campaigns (spring, summer, autumn) over a time period of two years. For future monitoring of fauna in glacial rivers, the innovative and non-invasive method of environmental DNA-metabarcoding is being tested and further developed. This approach has already been successfully applied in other aquatic ecosystems, but not yet in glacier-fed rivers. A range of statistical techniques (e.g., one-way/two-way ANOVA) will be applied, to identify differences in longitudinal changes of macroinvertebrate assemblages between the several investigations and to detect environmental drivers. Different water sources and their relative runoff contribution will be identified by end-member mixing analysis, whereby the impact of climate change induced variations of water sources on macroinvertebrates can be assessed. This intensive cross-scale study of the hydrobiological and biogeochemical properties of two Arctic streams with different hydrology and their spatial and temporal dynamics will close the knowledge gap regarding the long-term change of longitudinal variation of macroinvertebrate communities in arctic glacier-fed streams.

The aim of the project is to develop local and, above all, inter-communal cooperations and to develop them into concerted action to adapt to climate change in viticulture using the example of Rheingau as an example. Within the network, effective, future-oriented action and implementation concepts for climate adaptation in viticulture will be developed for various stakeholder groups and justified on the basis of free natural services with the help of the ecosystem services concept. The resulting impulses lead to measures to reduce climate damage under the premise of climate protection and the best possible provision of ecosystem services.

To enhance the global prediction of glacial organic carbon export, this pilot project aims to quantify the export of glacial dissolved and particulate organic carbon (DOC, POC) of Icelandic glaciers for the first time and to establish new cooperation with Icelandic scientists for common future research projects.Thus, a total of 4 field campaign during different seasons will be carried out together with face-to-face meetings with the Icelandic scientists. At each field campaign ice samples of 23 glaciers of the ice caps Vatnajökull, Langjökull, Hofsjökull, Myrdalsjökull, and Snæfellsjökull will be taken to investigate the biogeochemical diversity of glacial organic matter and to calculate an average export of DOC and POC along with the annual mass balances.