EDaSS - European Database of Successional Series

The study of succession, the sequential replacement of species following a disturbance, has much to offer to solve contemporary problems concerning biodiversity loss, climate change, invasive species, and ecological restoration. Results of a single particular study can be exploited immediately for local restoration projects, but the systematic comparison of studies across habitats and larger space-temporal scales can enable extrapolation of the results, formulation of new theoretical principles, and informing restoration efforts.

You are kindly invited to contribute your succesional data to the European Database of Successional Series (EDaSS). We aim to compile existing successional data of changes in vegetation following disturbance (mining, abandonment from agriculture, forest clearing, fire, landslides, dunes, emerged bottoms, glacial retreat, etc.). Synthesis at multiple scales and meta-analysis can allow us to identify overall trends in succession and assess restoration success.

The Restoration Ecology Group has already assembled a unique dataset from multiple human-disturbed sites across different European latitudes considering all biomes. We are enlarging this successional database and you are welcome to collaborate and share our effort.

Disturbance types:

Mining activities Abandoned fields
Post-fire succession Clear cutting
Road verges Landslides
Glacier retreat Dunes
Emerged lake-bottoms Others are welcome

Requirements to include the data:

Vegetation cover data (species) composing successional series of at least 10 years, recording development not later than 5 years after the disturbance.

Only spontaneous succession is considered, without obvious alterations or additional management (e.g. no grazing, no sowing, planting, topsoiling, etc.).

Data from permanent plots or transects (multiple time-points of monitoring) or chronosequences (covering a more or less continuous period), obtained from plots of preferably 5x5 m (other sizes could also be included, e.g. 2x2 - 20x20 m).

Contributors:

Are co-authors of the first paper that uses their data

Are openly invited to be co-authors of the following papers as a product of close collaboration

Are always cited as data contributors 

Contact details:

Please, do not hesitate to contact us for further information about the project.

 

Database administrator

Miguel Ballesteros: miguelballesterosjimenez@gmail.com

Principal investigators

Klára Řehounková: klara.rehounkova@gmail.com

Karel Prach: prach@prf.jcu.cz