Model implementation of a citizen science concept for the management of valuable habitat trees
Keywords: land use, biodiversity conservation, habitat tree management, citizen science, knowledge and experience sharing
Subject and objectives of the project
Old trees, often designated as tree monuments, are of considerable importance for biodiversity. As so-called habitat trees, they provide a habitat for numerous animal and plant species, for example in orchards, but also in semi-open forests as well as in protected areas and in communal forest landscapes. In recent years, the Grüne Liga Osterzgebirge e. V. has succeeded in establishing a network of tree patrons who look after such old trees. This includes recording biodiversity, but also management and maintenance measures. This concept is now to be transferred to the Pol’ana biosphere reserve in Slovakia as a model and supplemented by intensive scientific monitoring.
Work steps:
- Comparison of knowledge and exchange of experience between Saxony in Germany and Slovakia,
- Recording of tree monuments/habitat trees,
- Development and qualification of a network of tree patrons,
- scientific project support and communication.
In detail, the objectives are as follows:
- Active participation of citizen scientists/tree monument patrons in the conservation and management of habitat trees. This should also include attending local government meetings, submitting expert opinions or writing articles and editorials.
- Provide tools and training to analyze the data collected by citizen scientists to enable them to draw meaningful conclusions and contribute to scientific understanding.
- Establish partnerships between citizen scientists and professional arborists, foresters and ecologists/scientists to improve the quality and impact of the data collected.
The tree register will be implemented on the server of the State Nature Conservation Administration of Slovakia or on servers of Comenius University and will thus be easily and free of charge available for relevant partners and interested parties in Slovakia. The project will be accompanied by extensive public relations work.
Innovation and exemplary nature of the project
The model character of the project lies in particular in the transfer of know-how from the German region (Eastern Ore Mountains) to Slovakia. The following project steps are planned: Recruitment of tree sponsors, further training for existing and potential tree sponsors, support from experts, active exchange between tree sponsors from the German and Slovakian project areas and between experts from Germany and Slovakia. A major and important step will be the development of the tree monument register in Slovakia – adapting the German tree monument register to Slovakian conditions and specifics, creating a Slovakian version of the internet-based website, test operation, further adaptations and elimination of relevant problems. At the end of the project, a system should be available that can be used in other large protected areas. As part of the project, the “citizen science” approach to the conservation of old, particularly valuable trees is to be further developed and its transferability tested outside the rather narrow context to date. The tree register will be implemented on the server of the State Nature Conservancy of Slovakia or on the server of Comenius University; thus it will be easily and free of charge available for relevant partners and interested parties in Slovakia.
Special aspects of the project
The Green League of the Eastern Ore Mountains, as a protagonist of environmental civil society, can point to many years of excellent cooperation with scientific institutions such as the TU Dresden and the Comenius University in Bratislava. What is particularly important in the activities of the Grüne Liga Osterzgebirge is to reconcile the predominantly voluntary work of a regional nature conservation association with the regulated structures of a large state organization – and this across borders.
Project implementation:
- Grüne Liga Osterzgebirge e. V., Dippoldiswalde, Saxony, Germany
- Comenius University Bratislava (CU), Faculty of Natural Sciences, Chair of Environmental Ecology and Landscape Management, Bratislava, Slovakia
Associated partners:
Places of activity: Saxony in Germany and Slovakia
Funding period: April 2024 to May 2026
Project costs: total volume: 192,996 euros, funding from DBU: 169,113 euros
DBU-AZ: 39362
Status: 30.04.2024
Cover picture: Správa CHKO Poľana