Objective
Oak forests are an extensive forest type in temperate regions worldwide. Forest ecosystems are threatened due to a loss of biodiversity caused by human and environmental factors. It is thus essential to understand which processes and factors are involved in the maintenance of forest soil functional biodiversity to assure their long-term development and sustainability. In boreal and temperate forests nearly all tree roots form mycorrhizas, which play a crucial ecological role by determining nutrient acquisition and drought tolerance of trees. Despite their vital importance, there is a gap of knowledge about the functional significance of mycorrhizal diversity in forest ecosystems. In this project the aims are: 1) to assess the mycorrhizal diversity of European oak forests creating baseline data against future forest changes; 2) to test for relationships between mycorrhizal community composition and forest condition; and 3) to study changes in mycorrhizal biodiversity and biomass across environmental gradients. This will be carried out through field sampling across Europe at intensively monitored long-term oak forest plots from the ICP Forests European network. This project will for the first time combine molecular ecology methods for mycorrhizas and mycelia within this vast network. This will allow to generate essential DNA-based baseline mycorrhizal diversity and distribution data from European oak forests across environmental gradients and to test whether mycorrhizal shifts allow the detection and prediction of future changes in these forests. We expect to identify a set of dominant mycorrhizas that can act as belowground indicators (MYCOIND) of forest condition in oak forests of Europe. Access to Europe’s biomonitoring forest plots and the recent availability of high-throughput molecular ecology tools, lead to a unique opportunity to create a platform of knowledge at a European scale, to provide information for the management and sustainability of these forests.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IEF
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
SW7 2AZ London
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.