Dr Michael Dodd

Recent research has aimed to describe the hydrological niches of individual species or communities to aid their conservation management (e.g. Stroh et al., 2012). The assumptions made in these studies, particularly the relative importance of water regime in the growing versus the non-growing season and the role of management (cutting, grazing) in determining the hydrological niche, need to be examined in other environments. To test these assumptions adequately, it is necessary to study a system with a contrasting climate and a contrasting management regime. The floodplain grasslands of Western Siberia provide the ideal opportunity for such a test. Whilst having some botanical similarity to the floodplain meadows of Western Europe, they have a markedly contrasting growing season (May-September compared to March-October in UK) and almost no management (occasional burning in spring as compared to annual mowing and grazing in the UK.). Data describing the hydrological niches of species in Siberia will either act to confirm that the current approach to quantifying niches is robust and suitable for use across a range of climatic zones and a variety of vegetation-management regimes; or they will reveal weaknesses in the assumptions that can be used to refine the current approach.