Edit Kovács-Láng
György Kröel-Dulay
Institute of Ecology and Botany, Hungarian Academy of Sciences
H-2163 Vácrátót
Tel: 36 28-360-122, Fax: 36 28-360-110
E-mail: lange@botanika.hu;
gyuri@botanika.hu
Scope of KISKUN LTER
Kiskunság covers 14000 km2 in the Danube-Tisza Interfluve, and a quarter of the region is the Homokhátság (Sand Ridge). Most of the area covered by coarse calcarious sand soil and, in lesser extent, various salt effected soils. The Homokhátság mainly consists of dry sand dune areas and temporarily or permanently wet depressions, as well as smaller salt affected areas. The natural vegetation of Kiskunság is extremely heterogeneous mosaic-like forests-steppe, with wetlands and patches of salt affected vegetation. Since this is the least fertile region of the Hungarian Plane, the human impact is relatively mild comparing to the other part of the lowland. However, the land use pattern is also very heterogeneous, consists of natural and seminatural vegetation, pastures, arable lands, orchards, and vineyadrs, abandoned fields, and settlements. Large parts of the area belong to the Kiskunság National park.
The scientific research in KISKUN LTER focuses on the human impact on the living communities of natural and semi-natural landscapes. The two main direction of the activity is studying and predicting the effects of climate change and land-use change at stand, landscape, and regional scales.
Host instititution of KISKUN LTER
Institute of Ecology and Botany, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Vácrátót
Participating institutions