
Identifying cost-effective management practices to enhance biodiversity
EucFACE – Testing the Effects of Elevated Atmospheric CO2 and Soil Phosphorus on Native Ground Cover in Cumberland Plain Woodland
Lead Investigator: Associate Professor Paul Rymer (WSU)
Co-Investigators: Dr Hannah Carle (WSU)
Project Summary: Understanding how natural ecosystems shift under global change is essential to be able to manage biodiversity and ecological processes. The EucFACE experiment established in remnant Cumberland Plain Woodland is the largest climate change experiment in Australia. It has been running for over a decade providing fundamental insights into ecosystem processes. To test the hypothesis that low soil nutrients is limiting plant growth under elevated CO2 a phosphorus addition has recently been established. This proposal will investigate the response of ground cover to the combined effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 and soil phosphorus. The composition, abundance and greenness of different species will be quantified through time. The findings will be combined with long-term variation in plot greenness to explore how extremes of heat, drought and flood impact ecosystem health. Outcomes will contribute to management of critically endangered ecosystems in the Cumberland Plain.