Kim André Vanselow

Predictive Mapping of Dwarf Shrub Vegetation in an Arid High Mountain Ecosystem Using Remote Sensing and Random Forests

In many arid mountains, dwarf shrubs represent the most important fodder and firewood resources; therefore, they are intensely used. For the Eastern Pamirs (Tajikistan), they are assumed to be overused. However, empirical evidence on this issue is lacking. We aim to provide a method capable of mapping vegetation in this mountain desert. We used random forest models based on remote sensing data (RapidEye, ASTER GDEM) and 359 plots to predictively map total vegetative cover and the distribution of the most important firewood plants, K. ceratoides and A. leucotricha. These species were mapped as present in 33.8% of the study area (accuracy 90.6%). The total cover of the dwarf shrub communities ranged from 0.5% to 51% (per pixel). Areas with very low cover were limited to the vicinity of roads and settlements. The model could explain 80.2% of the total variance. The most important predictor across the models was MSAVI2 (a spectral vegetation index particularly invented for low-cover areas). We conclude that the combination of statistical models and remote sensing data worked well to map vegetation in an arid mountainous environment. With this approach, we were able to provide tangible data on dwarf shrub resources in the Eastern Pamirs and to relativize previous reports about their extensive depletion.

Preserving a Comprehensive Vegetation Knowledge Base - An Evaluation of Four Historical Soviet Vegetation Maps of the Western Pamirs (Tajikistan)

We edited, redrew, and evaluated four unpublished historical vegetation maps of the Western Pamirs (Tajikistan) by the Soviet geobotanist Okmir E. Agakhanjanz. These maps cover an area of 5,188 km2 and date from 1958 to 1960. The purpose of this article is to make the historic vegetation data available to the scientific community and thus preserve a hitherto non available and up to now neglected or forgotten data source with great potential for studies on vegetation and ecosystem response to global change. The original hand-drawn maps were scanned, georeferenced, and digitized and the corresponding land cover class was assigned to each polygon. The partly differing legends were harmonized and plant names updated. Furthermore, a digital elevation model and generalized additive models were used to calculate response curves of the land cover classes and to explore vegetation-topography relationships quantitatively. In total, 2,216 polygons belonging to 13 major land cover classes were included that are characterized by 252 different plant species. As such, the presented maps provide excellent comparison data for studies on vegetation and ecosystem change in an area that is deemed to be an important water tower in Central Asia.

Effects of Microclimatic Thresholds on the Activity-Abundance and Distribution Patterns of Alpine Carabidae Species

The goal of our study was to close gaps in knowledge regarding Carabidae distribution and activity in response to microclimate. We aimed to characterise the spatiotemporal distribution of Carabidae species along multiple gradients, and explain the activity-abundance of assemblages and their indicator species using microclimatic measurements to identify key determinants of Carabidae activity-abundance and distribution. We sampled 32 alpine sites using pitfall traps and data loggers, and identified species assemblages linked to distinct habitat types that follow the snow-cover patterns and dynamics. Moreover, we linked the activity-abundance and distribution of assemblages and characteristic species to different temperature thresholds using mixed models and spatial cross-validation to assess variable importance. Our results demonstrate that alpine Carabidae species show markedly different responses to thermal thresholds, which reflect the patterns of snow cover. The importance of snow cover for species distributions should thus be considered a hypothesis for future studies.

Who Is Mapping the Pamirs? A Review on Plant and Vegetation Sciences

This paper is part of the aim to set up a literature and knowledge database for research on plants and vegetation in the Pamirs. The author reviewed the history of plant and vegetation sciences, including exploration during the Russian colonization, the Soviet era, and the post-Soviet era. The core part of this article is a quantitative bibliometric analysis, which focuses on the main subjects and the main contributors in this field, today and in the past. Particularly, the publishing landscapes of the czarist, Soviet, and the post-Soviet period were compared, and interconnections between authors from the Soviet Union and/or post-Soviet countries with authors from other countries were revealed. It could be shown that the importance of the different research subjects did not change considerably, that the number of authors per paper increased in the post-Soviet period, which includes many coauthorship relations between authors from post-Soviet and other countries, and that authors and institutions from the post-Soviet countries are still the most productive.