300672 VO The Main Habitats of the World (2005W)

ECTS-points: 2
Overview on the main ecological subsystems of the earth. The first chapters are dealing with general subjects, esp. with functional aspects of nutrient cycling and energy flow within the ecosphere and with the phenomenon of biodiversity and the patterns of species distribution on earth. Thereupon, special chapters are following:
Terrestrial habitats: classification, zone of tropical forests, substropical ecosystems with deciduous forests, grasslands and deserts, mediterranean ecosystems, warm and cool temperate zones with evergreen and deciduous forests, montane and boral forests, tundra and polar deserts.
Limnic habitats: their role for the global water budget, history and evolution, principles of classification and systemic features of limnic ecosystems, chemical characteristics with respect to the geological underground, the features of the catchment area and the contribution of anthropogenic pollutants, importance of limnic systems with regard to landscape ecology in general, possibilities for restauration measures.