Fine-scale geodiversity in northern environments – connections with biodiversity patterns and land use

Abstract

Geodiversity is gaining recognition in research and is an important addition to holistic ways of understanding and studying nature. However, there is a lack of fine-scale methods to observe and quantify fine-scale geodiversity. This thesis aims to improve our understanding of fine-scale geodiversity in northern environments. First, I explore how fine-scale geodiversity can be observed through geofeatures that are elements of geodiversity. Further, I examine how fine-scale geodiversity varies, and how it can be quantified. Second, I examine how fine-scale geodiversity is connected to biodiversity, explicitly to the species richness of vascular plants, bryophytes, and lichens, in Boreal-Arctic heath ecosystems. Third, I study the impact of ski tourism–related land use on fine-scale geodiversity in Finnish Lapland. Finally, I aim to identify what practitioners can get from information on fine-scale geodiversity and how it can be used in nature conservation and land management. The thesis includes three articles that apply ecological methods to geodiversity research.

I present a new field method for collecting fine-scale geodiversity data from Boreal-Arctic environments. I introduce this method, which produces a quantitative measure  of georichness, i.e. the number of distinct geofeatures (geological, geomorphological, and hydrological features), but also qualitative information about the identities of geofeatures in a study plot (5, 10, and 25 m radii). Fine-scale geodiversity provides unique knowledge of the abiotic environment, geofeatures, and their interplay with biodiversity, and it can be assessed in both undisturbed and human-impacted locations. This thesis reveals that greater georichness indicates greater species richness of vascular plants, bryophytes, and lichens in continuous mountain heaths and tundra. However, this relationship is context-dependent, with other factors playing a larger role in some areas. I also present results from Finnish Lapland ski resorts that revealed geodiversity tends to be lower in areas that are heavily impacted by land use. In addition, observed geofeatures differed between areas of low, medium, and high land use intensity, suggesting geodiversity’s vulnerability to human disturbance. To conclude, the fine-scale geodiversity method can be used to gather comprehensive information about geodiversity and it can be implemented in nature monitoring and evaluations to support land use planning and conservation.