Plants, herbivores and climate change

Ingibjörg Svala Jónsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences

Predictions on the effects of climate change on ecosystems and potential response plans must be based on solid ecological knowledge. Temperatures have risen in Arctic regions faster than elsewhere and all predictions suggest that this trend will continue. It is therefore important to emphasise research into tundra regions. This was the inspiration behind the research of Ingibjörg Svala Jónsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences. 

"The goal is to acquire knowledge of the interaction between plants and herbivores and how this shapes the response of tundra ecosystems to climate change. This research links several collaborative projects being conducted in the Low Arctic and alpine tundra regions of Iceland and northern Norway and the High Arctic tundra of Svalbard. This collaboration provides us with the opportunity to investigate different herbivores in different conditions. We approached the topic on the one hand by comparing regions with different levels of grazing, and on the other hand through experiments in which we simulated a warming climate and either controlled or simulated the grazing," says Ingibjörg. 
 

She says that previous research has indicated that herbivores are able to shape the reaction of an ecosystem to climate change. "Herbivores of various kinds have a tremendous impact on the workings of ecosystems which often dominates the reaction to climate change, but this impact differs depending on the circumstances, which herbivores are involved and whether they are wild or domesticated. It is thus necessary to research the interaction between herbivores and plants in different circumstances," says Ingibjörg. 

The research has a high practical value, according to Ingibjörg, for example with regard to Icelandic sheep. "Ecological questions related to sheep grazing in Iceland have long been close to my heart. Sustainable sheep grazing must be based on solid knowledge of the ecology of grazing," she concludes. A review article on the ecological impact of sheep grazing in Iceland by Ingibjörg and her colleagues has recently been published in Icelandic Agricultural Science.