Browsing by master's degree program "Magisterprogrammet i ekologi och evolutionsbiologi"

Boreal mires are natural sources of methane and contribute considerably to the global methane budget. Therefore, in order to comprehend the overall impact that these ecosystems have on climate change, it is essential to understand the factors that influence processes involved in methane production and consumption. Factors affecting methane flux vary between different mires, but there is also great spatial and temporal variation in flux within mires. In previous studies, temperature and water table position have been shown to influence methane flux, but vegetation could aid in explaining the small-scale variation. Vegetation can indicate spatial variation in water table position, but also affect methane flux directly by the transportation of methane through plant tissues, and by providing substrate for microorganisms through primary production. Furthermore, redox potential is a poorly studied factor that can reflect if chemical conditions in peat are suitable for methane production or consumption, making it a useful tool in predicting methane flux. In this thesis, I seek to identify if small-scale spatial variation in the methane flux occurs within the studied mire area. In addition, I strive to identify important controllers of the observed spatiotemporal variation in methane flux, with a specific focus on the effect of vegetation properties and redox potential. Methane and carbon dioxide fluxes were measured with the closed chamber technique at a boreal fen in Sodankylä (67°22'06.6"N 26°39'16.0"E) during the growing season in 2019. Flux measurements were carried out at nine measurement plots belonging to three different vegetation types: flark, lawn and string. Coverage and height of plant functional groups were followed during the summer and continuous redox potential was measured for each plot. CH4 fluxes of different plots and vegetation types were compared to study the spatial variation in methane flux. Generalized additive models (GAM) were used to determine which variables are best to explain spatiotemporal variation in methane flux over the growing season. Mean methane flux during the summer was 0.94 ug CH4 m-2 s-1 which is in the same magnitude as observed in a previous study at the fen. Some small-scale spatial variation in the methane fluxes was observed at the study site, with strings having lower flux than flaks and lawns. However, overall the spatial variation was small, while temporal variation in methane flux over the growing season was considerable. The best model, that was a combination of vegetation, redox potential and environmental variables, and it explained 72 % of the observed variation in methane flux. Vascular plant variables were the most important variables in the model, whereas moss functional groups were of lesser importance. Redox potential in deeper peat layers was also important in the model, but redox potential closer to the surface was not found to be significant. Vegetation is an important controller of methane flux, and this information could potentially be used when predicting methane flux over larger areas by using remote sensing to map vegetation characteristics. Redox potential, on the other hand, is relatively easy to measure, and the result suggests that it could provide a useful tool for improving the predictions of methane flux.

Life-history decisions, and trade-offs, are affected by resource acquisition, which can vary among individuals, and during the life cycle of an individual. In Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) many life-history decisions, such as age-of-maturity, are strongly associated with two genomic regions, vgll3 and six6. Previously, these genomic regions have been associated with food acquisition in adult sea-run Atlantic salmon; however, this has not yet been studied in juvenile salmon. Furthermore, population density strongly affects the food availability of juvenile salmon through resource competition. Here, using controlled crosses reared in semi-natural stream conditions, I investigated the effect and relationship of life-history genetics and population density on juvenile Atlantic salmon food acquisition. Stomach contents from 148 juvenile Atlantic salmon were quantified for their prey item composition, total number of prey items and dry weight, and environmental and genetic basis of food acquisition were analysed using mixed effects models. Late maturing six6 genotype fish had higher stomach-content dry weights and fuller stomachs than early maturing individuals, in low densities. Furthermore, low density fish were of better condition and had higher growth rates than high density fish. There was no association between six6 and vgll3 genotypes and food acquisition in high densities. The results support the existing knowledge of the negative effect of increasing population density on juvenile Atlantic salmon growth and condition. Furthermore, the density dependent association of six6 and food acquisition suggest a trade-off between early maturation and maximised food acquisition.

Even though bats have no specialized predators in the temperate zone, they are still predated on. In fact, 11% of their annual mortality is caused by avian predators, especially owls. Bats are particularly vulnerable at emergence from their roost because this behaviour is very predictable. Because a successful predation event is mortal, it would be expected that bats need antipredatory responses to avoid it. The time and focus for these responses need to be shared with foraging in a way that maximizes survival. I studied antipredatory responses of bats in two settings: 1. during roost emergence and 2. during foraging at tawny owl territories and at places where there have been no tawny owl sightings. I collected acoustic data from 24 roosts and 11 foraging grounds for 10-13 nights. The roost emergence data was collected with the help of citizen science. Two controlled predation threats, recorded tawny owl calls and nestling sounds, were used. Nestling sounds were only played during roost emergence. In both tests music and silence were used as controls. Owl calls, music or tawny owl territory have no effect on bat presence when they are foraging. However, bats alter their emergence time and leave over 20 minutes later when tawny owl calls are played outside the roost. There is no difference in exit time when music or nestling sounds are played. These results show that bats have antipredatory responses. They also suggest that bats may be able to recognize high-risk situations and allocate their behaviour accordingly or that they place higher importance on foraging than avoiding predation.

Cities are novel and fragmented environments that offer a wide range of habitats and resources for urban dwellers, such as birds. Previous work shows that the size and vegetation structure of urban forest patches and parks play an important role in urban bird abundance and diversity. The aim of the thesis was to find out the role of major urban greenspaces and which local and landscape-scale drivers in the urban greenspace network are influencing bird species richness and composition in the city of Lahti. A breeding bird survey was conducted in Lahti, including 60 survey points and 15 urban greenspaces. A total of 41 bird species were observed, and the most common species were Fieldfare, Common Chaffinch, and Great Tit. On the local-scale, the size of trees was positively correlated with bird species richness, indicating that bigger and older trees support higher bird diversity in urban greenspaces. On the landscape-scale, I found that the size of the greenspace, its distance to the urban continuum border, and the amount of green neighbouring the greenspace were the significant drivers explaining bird species richness. The findings indicate that both local and landscape-scale drivers are significant for urban bird communities in Lahti. Furthermore, to better understand the resources that urban communities need, a comprehensive study of different urban dweller species is important – not just the few sensitive species – to achieve effective management. Urban greenspaces host most of the urban bird species in the city; thus, it is important to preserve these urban greeneries as well as protect the green areas around the city proactively to sustain them while the urban development continues sprawling.

During the last century, a decline in the canopy-forming foundation species Fucus vesiculosus has been observed in the Baltic Sea. The widely studied typical form of F. vesiculosus, that lives anchored to hard substrata, is at risk of further declines in the following century due to eutrophication and changes in water temperature and salinity. Fucus vesiculosus also exists in the Baltic Sea as a less common free-living form, which lives deposited in sheltered and shallow bays. This free-living form has been left understudied and little is known about their role in the ecosystem or the potential consequences of its disappearance. However, their occurrence may be equally or more under threat in the event of the aforementioned environmental changes. Additionally, it is currently unknown if mats of F. vesiculosus cause anoxia in the sediment below. This thesis will investigate the macroepifaunal and macroinfaunal communities associated to the presence of free-living F. vesiculosus across different sites in both Finland and Sweden. We will also estimate if F. vesiculosus causes anoxia. For this study, replicate frames of F. vesiculosus, including all vegetation and epifaunal community, were collected using mesh bags. Infaunal samples were randomly collected using benthic cores, both under the mat of F. vesiculosus and the adjacent bare soft bottom. All macroinvertebrates were identified to the lowest possible taxa, counted and weighed. Morphological measurements of F. vesiculosus thalli, such as length of thallus and wet weight, were recorded for every frame. Our results showed that the presence of free-living F. vesiculosus has a consistent effect across the two study locations. We found that increasing wet weight of F. vesiculosus significantly increased the abundance and biomass of the macroepifauna. The highest infaunal animal abundance and biomass were found in the bare sediment with high occurrence of opportunistic taxa. However, we found potential evidence to suggest that the presence of F. vesiculosus mats does not cause anoxia in the sediment. This study provides a much-needed first look into the macrofaunal communities associated to the free-living Fucus vesiculosus. Our study demonstrated that free-living F. vesiculosus is a potential foundation species in shallow, sheltered bays of the Baltic Sea by increasing the number of present taxa compared to adjacent bare sediment. Higher F. vesiculosus biomass directly increased the abundance and biomass of the macroepifaunal community, and the presence of free-living Fucus vesiculosus was not found to have significant negative effects on the associated macroinfaunal community.

Metsokantojen (Tetrao urogallus) huomattava taantuminen Suomessa ja etenkin maan eteläosassa on liitetty metsä- ja maatalouden aiheuttamaan metsien pirstoutumiseen. Pirstoutuminen muokkaa elinympäristöä voimakkaasti vähentäen sopivan elinympäristön määrää ja vaikuttaen siten saatavilla olevan ravinnon, sopivien pesäpaikkojen sekä soidinpaikkojen määrään. Elinympäristön rakenteen muuttuminen ja pirstoutumisen aiheuttama reunavaikutus voivat myös suosia erilaista petoyhteisöä kasvattaen saalistuspainetta, ja etenkin pesäaikaisen saalistuksen eli pesäpredaation on havaittu olevan yleisempää peltojen ja hakkuuaukkojen pirstomissa metsissä. Pesäpredaatio on monille lintulajeille tärkein syy pesinnän epäonnistumiseen, ja huono pesintämenestys puolestaan tuottaa tappioita koko populaation lisääntymismenestykselle. Luontaisten petojen lisäksi saalistuspaine myös vieraslajien toimesta voi olla suurempi pirstoutuneessa ympäristössä. Haitalliseksi vieraslajiksi määritelty supikoira (Nyctereutes procyonoides) on nykyään Suomessa jo yleisin keskikokoinen peto, ja pesäsaalistajana se voi runsastuessaan vaikuttaa myös lintukantoihin. Myös Etelä-Suomessa sijaitsevan Nuuksion metsokanta on taantunut, mutta syytä ei tunneta. Tarkoituksenani oli selvittää, mikäli pesäpredaatio tai vieraslajin läsnäolo voisivat olla Nuuksion metsokannan ongelmia. Tutkimuksen tavoite oli selvittää 1) muistuttaako Nuuksio pesäpredaatioasteeltaan Keski-Suomeen sijoittuvan Karstulan karua yhtenäistä metsäaluetta vai pääkaupunkiseudun pirstoutuneita viherkäytäviä, 2) vaikuttaako ympäristön rakenne maisematasolla pesien selviytymiseen, ja 3) vaikuttaako ympäristön rakenne maisematasolla supikoiran vierailuihin koepesillä. Toteutin tutkimuksen Nuuksiossa pesäpredaatiokokeilla, ja mittasin petojen paikallista tiheyttä ja aktiivisuutta hajupostikokeella. Koepesiä ja hajuposteja seurattiin riistakameroilla. Vertasin Nuuksion pesäkoe- ja hajupostiaineistoa Karstulasta ja pääkaupunkiseudun viherkäytäviltä vuotta aiemmin saatuihin pesäpredaatiokoeaineistoihin. Pesäpredaatioaste oli Nuuksiossa matala, noin kahdeksan prosenttia. Kolmesta tutkimusalueesta Nuuksion pesäpredaatioaste oli alhaisin, ja kaupungin viherkäytävillä puolestaan korkein, sillä pesistä saalistettiin lähes puolet. Nuuksiossa havumetsällä oli negatiivinen vaikutus pesäpredaatioon pienemmällä mittakaavalla, ja viherkäytävillä puuttoman alueen osuuden vaikutus pesäpredaatioon oli positiivinen. Maisemalla ei sen sijaan ollut vaikutusta supikoirahavaintoihin Nuuksion hajuposteilla, eikä supikoiria havaittu Nuuksion koepesillä lainkaan. Hajupostien supikoirahavainnot vaikuttivat painottuvan yhtenäisen metsäalueen reunoille, mutta tutkimuksen aineistolla reunavaikutus ei ollut havaittavissa. Viherkäytävien koepesillä supikoira oli kuitenkin yleisin vierailija. Yhdistettäessä Nuuksion ja viherkäytävien pesäkoeaineistot maisema vaikutti supikoirahavaintoihin koepesillä, mutta vaikutus riippui tarkasteltavasta mittakaavasta. Maisematasolla havumetsä vaikutti negatiivisesti supikoirien vierailuihin koepesillä, mutta pienemmällä mittakaavalla kosteikot vetivät supikoiria puoleensa. Tutkimuksen tulokset viittaavat siihen, ettei pesäpredaatio yksinään olisi syy Nuuksion metsokannan taantumiseen. Pesäpredaatio vaikuttaakin olevan verrattain pieni ongelma karuilla metsäalueilla, kuten Nuuksiossa ja Karstulassa, johon Nuuksio on hyvin verrattavissa huolimatta sijainnistaan lähellä pääkaupunkiseutua. Nuuksion metsokannan pienenemisen taustalla saattaakin pesäpredaation sijaan olla muita, vaikeammin ratkaistavia ongelmia, joita on syytä tutkia metsojen säilyttämiseksi Nuuksiossa.

Phylogenetics is the study of the evolutionary history of life on Earth, which has shifted from relying on morphological characteristics to molecular data with the advancements in sequencing technology. Understanding Earth's biodiversity is crucial, as it has important implications for conservation, ecology, and evolution. Speciation occurs when barriers restrict gene flow between previously interbreeding populations. One such barrier may be endosymbiotic bacteria, like Wolbachia, which can manipulate host reproduction and create incompatibilities between host lineages. Wolbachia is widely distributed among arthropods and is the most common endosymbiont of insects. The bacterium is known to alter its hosts' biology, serving as a master manipulator of reproduction. Wolbachia-induced phenotypes can lead to the divergence of host lineages and speciation events. The genus Cotesia (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Microgastrinae) is a highly diverse group of parasitoid wasps, where several species parasitize Melitaeini butterflies, including two cryptic species complexes. The current phylogenies of these species are 20 years old and need an update, as they were built with few markers and contain unresolved nodes. Wolbachia has been observed in this system, but its role remains largely unexplored. In this study, I aim to reconstruct the phylogeny of Cotesia species parasitizing Melitaeini butterflies, using two mitochondrial markers and eight nuclear markers to update our understanding of the differentiation of the cryptic Cotesia species. Additionally, I screened the specimens for Wolbachia to determine its possible role in shaping the Cotesia host phylogeny. I expect different Cotesia lineages to carry divergent Wolbachia strains or have different infection statuses (infected vs. uninfected). With fresh Cotesia specimens collected from various locations in Europe, I amplified and sequenced two mitochondrial markers (16s, COI) and eight nuclear markers (18s, 28s, CfCN, CfEN, EF1A1, LwRh, SLD5, TCEB) for phylogenetic analysis. The phylogenetic analysis revealed two main clades: Clade A, where Cotesia acuminata forms a polyphyletic group, and Clade B, where Cotesia melitaearum forms a monophyletic group. Wolbachia was detected only in one species, Cotesia melitaearum Sp. G, where the strain has persisted for over 20 years. The strains infecting Cotesia belong to supergroup B and are all closely related. The close relationship and low infection rate suggest that Wolbachia is not responsible for the original divergence but may play an ongoing role in restricting gene flow between species. The updated phylogeny is in concordance with the previous works but also strengthens our understanding of the relationships within Clade B. Further work is required to resolve some relationships within Clade B and understand the cryptic species' divergence.

Nitrogen fixation by Sphagnum mosses in a boreal fen ecosystem Emmi Tuokko Master’s Programme in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences University of Helsinki May 2022 Faculty: Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences Degree programme: Master’s Programme in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Study track: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Author: Emmi Tuokko Title: Nitrogen fixation by Sphagnum mosses in a boreal fen ecosystem Level: Master’s thesis Month and year: May 2022 Number of pages: 34 pages + 4 appendix pages Keywords: nitrogen fixation, Sphagnum, boreal fen, acetylene reduction, diazotroph Supervisor: Dr. Juha Mikola Where deposited: HELDA – Digital Repository of the University of Helsinki Abstract: Ecosystems in the North are heavily constrained by nitrogen (N) and the main pathway of N for plants is biological N2 fixation by Sphagnum mosses. Mosses fix N with either free-living, associated or symbiotic diazotrophs and convert it to a plant-accessible form. This way N2 fixation contributes significantly to the level of photosynthesis and carbon sequestration that these ecosystems can maintain. However, diazotrophs are exposed to large fluctuations in abiotic factors and earlier findings have suggested that to affect the rate of N2 fixed. Only a few studies have focused on boreal Sphagnum-dominated fens and thus, I wanted to figure out what environmental factors control N2 fixation activity in this habitat type. Most of the N2 fixing bacteria are heterotrophs but also methanotrophs have been shown to participate in N2 fixation. Therefore, I tested if methane (CH4) flux was connected to N2 fixation activity. As N is a necessary nutrient for plants, I also wanted to see whether the variation in N2 fixation can explain the variation in plant growth and productivity and on the other hand, if the productivity can explain the rate of N2 fixation by providing more energy. To test these interactions, we established the acetylene reduction assay (ARA) on a fen in Northern Finland to measure, how much N2 is fixed. We also recorded environmental factors (soil moisture, soil temperature, air temperature, relative humidity and radiation), measured CO2 and CH4 fluxes and calculated vascular plant coverage and Sphagnum growth from 20 study plots. I expected to find a correlation especially between soil moisture and N2 fixation because earlier studies have shown it to control the fixation activity the most. I found out that leaf area index (LAI) of vascular plants was explained by N2 fixation. This is a significant finding because it has not been proved before. It supports the earlier findings about the connection between N2 fixation and vascular plant photosynthesis. I also discovered that radiation (PAR) and potential gross primary production (GPP1200) explained the variation in N2 fixation in the first measurement. This shows the dependency of N2 fixation on the energy that photosynthesis provides. Contrary to my predictions, none of the other factors explained N2 fixation or were explained by N2 fixation. Further studies about moss-associated N2 fixation are needed especially in the light of future changes in climate and N deposition. Tiedekunta: Bio- ja ympäristötieteellinen tiedekunta Koulutusohjelma: Ekologian ja evoluutiobiologian maisteriohjelma Opintosuunta: Ekologia ja evoluutiobiologia Tekijä: Emmi Tuokko Työn nimi: Rahkasammalten typensidonta boreaalisessa suoekosysteemissä Työn laji: Maisterin tutkielma Kuukausi ja vuosi: 5/2022 Sivumäärä: 34 sivua + 4 sivua liitteitä Avainsanat: typensidonta, rahkasammal, boreaalinen, suo, ARA, diatsotrofi Ohjaaja: Dr. Juha Mikola Säilytyspaikka: HELDA - Helsingin yliopiston digitaalinen arkisto Tiivistelmä: Pohjoisen ekosysteemit ovat erittäin typpirajoitteisia, ja kasvit saavat suurimman osan typestä rahkasammalten biologisen typensidonnan kautta. Sammalet sitovat typpeä joko vapaana elävien tai symbionttisten diatsotrofien välityksellä ja muuttavat typen kasvien käytettävissä olevaan muotoon. Tätä kautta typensidonta vaikuttaa merkittävästi koko ekosysteemin fotosynteesin ja hiilensidonnan tasoon. Diatsotrofit ovat kuitenkin alttiita abioottisten tekijöiden suurelle vaihtelulle, ja aikaisemmat tutkimukset ovat todenneet sen vaikuttavan typensidonnan tasoon. Vain harvat näistä tutkimuksista ovat keskittyneet boreaalisiin minerotrofisiin soihin, joilla rahkasammalet dominoivat, joten halusin selvittää, mitkä ympäristötekijät kontrolloivat typensidonnan aktiivisuutta tällaisessa elinympäristössä. Suurin osa typpeä sitovista bakteereista on heterotrofeja, mutta myös metanotrofien on osoitettu osallistuvan typensidontaan. Sen vuoksi halusin tutkia, onko metaanivuo yhteydessä typensidonnan tasoon. Typen ollessa välttämätön ravinne kasveille halusin myös nähdä, voiko vaihtelu typensidonnan tasossa selittää kasvien kasvua ja tuottavuutta, ja toisaalta, voiko tuottavuus selittää typensidonnan vaihtelua tarjoamalla sille lisää energiaa. Testataksemme näitä yhteyksiä mittasimme typensidontaa asetyleenin pelkistysmenetelmällä Halssiaavalla Sodankylässä. Mittasimme myös ympäristötekijöitä (maan kosteus, maan lämpötila, ilman lämpötila, suhteellinen kosteus, säteily), hiilidioksidi- ja metaanivuota, putkilokasvien peittävyyttä ja rahkasammalten kasvua 20 tutkimusruudulta. Odotin löytäväni korrelaation erityisesti typensidonnan ja maan kosteuden väliltä, sillä aikaisemmat tutkimukset ovat todenneet kosteuden olevan merkittävin typensidontaa säätelevä tekijä. Sain selville, että typensidonta selitti ruutujen välistä vaihtelua putkilokasvien lehtipinta-alassa. Tämä on tärkeä löydös, sillä yhteyttä ei olla todistettu aiemmin. Tulos tukee aiempia löydöksiä typensidonnan ja putkilokasvien fotosynteesin yhteydestä toisiinsa. Ensimmäisten mittausten tulokset osoittivat, että säteily ja potentiaalinen bruttoperustuotanto selittivät typensidontaa. Tämä todistaa typensidonnan riippuvuuden fotosynteesin tarjoamaan energiaan. Vastoin odotuksiani muut tekijät eivät selittäneet typensidontaa, eikä typensidonta selittänyt niitä. Lisätutkimukset sammalten typensidonnasta ovat tarpeen erityisesti ilmastonmuutoksen ja lisääntyvän typpilaskeuman valossa.

Biogeography is a crucial aspect to ecological studies, as an ecosystem is comprised of the physical habitat, the organisms living there, and the interactions of these components. Community structure, and therefore functioning, are inherently of a spatial nature. Spatial structure of populations is often crucial basic knowledge for understanding the evolutionary history, dispersal patterns, and resilience of any given species. One aspect of spatial structure, and the topic covered in this study, is community distance decay, or the rate at which community similarity decreases with physical distance. More of the landscape is constantly being altered by humans on a large scale, so it is increasingly important to understand the effects that these anthroprogenic changes to the environment has on local populations. Studying community distance decay helps form understanding of dispersal and establishment limitations for different organisms, which is necessary for mitigating biodiversity loss. Many studies show that habitat fragmentation and loss has greatly impacted the structure of plant and animal communities, but there has been much less focus on fungal communities. There’s no certainty that fungi is impacted in the same ways, given the different lifestyles and dispersal methods, so the aim of this study is to contribute to the much needed research on fungal community structure at various scales. This aim is addressed by examining fungal community distance decay from small scale of a couple kilometers or less to a fairly large scale encompassing a landscape of primarily urban, forest, and agricultural areas. The five main localities of sampling were in middle and southern Finland: Helsinki, Lahti, Tampere, Jyväskylä, and Joensuu. Sampling locations and plot design were chosen to allow the comparison of communities separated by a mosaic, as well as along a short rural to urban gradient, to assess the effects of habitat type. From each location, six plots were decided, two in urban core, one in urban edge, two in natural core, and one in natural edge. The role of dispersal ability and functional traits in distance decay is also studied by comparing results from two different methods of fungi sampling, which were collecting spores from the air using cyclone samplers, and taking soil cores to gather fungal biomass. All samples were DNA analysed with high-throughput sequencing and the results from the DNA barcoding were used to create OTU clusters, by which the 30 plots could be compared through relative abundances of OTU’s. I determined the similarity of fungal communities using an analysis of similarity (ANOSIM) test in R, where all possible variables (site, habitat type, sample type) were used as a grouping in individual tests, thereby indicating which variable is associated with highest community difference. I also determined the differences in functional groups and major taxonomic levels among locations and sampling method using interactive taxanomic (KRONA) charts. Results showed that there are differences in fungal community structure among habitat type and sampling type. However there was greater difference at the level of plots than site locations, so clear patterns of strong community distance decay with physical distance was not measured in this study. The results suggest that fungal communities can be fairly impacted by human caused habitat change, and individual characteristics, such as dispersal methods or lifestyle, effect the rate of community distance-decay. This provides a valuable early insight into fungal community patterns, which need deeper study to understand the complexities and mechanisms behind them.

Ilmastonmuutos koettelee ankarimmin planeettamme pohjoisia alueita. Näiden alueiden eliöyhteisöt ovat ennestään erityisen herkkiä ympäristön muutoksille. Vaikka arktisen ympäristön fysikaaliset muutokset ovat jo monin paikoin nähtävillä, ovat tiedot näiden muutosten vaikutuksista alueen eliöyhteisöihin ja ekologisiin vuorovaikutussuhteisiin edelleen hyvin puutteelliset. Pohjoisten keväiden aikaistuminen altistaa yhteisöt fenologiselle irtautumiselle, jossa läheisessä ekologisessa vuorovaikutuksessa olevat lajit ajautuvat esiintymisaikojensa suhteen erilleen. Pölyttäjähyönteisen sekä pölytettävän kukkakasvin tapauksessa tästä voi olla seurauksena pölytystehon väheneminen. Tämän ja ilmastomuutoksen muiden seurausten ennustamiseksi käytetään usein nk. ajan ja tilan rinnastus –menetelmää. Menetelmän oletuksena on, että eliöt reagoivat ympäristötekijöihin samalla tavalla, tapahtuivatpa ne sitten ajallisesti tai paikallisesti. Selvittääkseni, onko arktisella alueella havaittavissa fenologista irtautumista, tarkastelen lapinvuokon sekä lajin pölyttäjäyhteisöön kuuluvan 14 hyönteisheimon fenologiaa Koillis-Grönlannissa. Tarkastellakseni, miten ilmaston vaihtelu vuosien välillä kuvastuu hyönteisaktiviteetin ajoittumiseen ja lajiryhmien väliseen vaihteluun, hyödynnän kahdenkymmenen vuoden aikasarjaa (jatkossa: aikasarja-aineisto). Selvittääkseni, miten ilmaston vaihtelu tilassa heijastuu paikallisiin eroihin pölyttäjäaktiviteetin fenologiaan, seuraan hyönteisaktiviteetin ajoittumisen yhden kasvukauden aikana maaston eri osissa (jatkossa: tila-aineisto). Molemmista aineistoista selvitän, mikä ympäristötekijä määrittää voimakkaimmin pölyttäjäyhteisön fenologiaa, keskittyen lumenlähtöpäivään ja lämpösummaan. Lopuksi arvioin, kuinka hyvin ajallinen ja paikallinen ulottuvuus vastaavat toisiaan. Näin pyrin selvittämään sitä, kuinka käyttökelpoinen ajan ja tilan rinnastus –menetelmä on pohjoisten pölyttäjäyhteisöjen tutkimuksessa. Totesin lumenlähtöpäivän selittävän lapinvuokon pölyttäjäyhteisön fenologiaa kokonaisuutena parhaiten. Tämä pätee sekä tila- että aikasarja-aineistossa. Lumenlähtöpäivän ja lämpösumman vaihdellessa eri lajiryhmien ajoitus muuttuu eri tavoin. Muutokset tilassa ja ajassa olivat lapinvuokon tärkeimpien pölyttäjäryhmien kohdalla suhteellisen yhteneväiset, mutta eräiden muiden ryhmien (esim. kukkakärpästen) kohdalla ja samalla koko yhteisön tasolla ennusteet olivat heikompia. Tulokseni osoittavat, että ilmaston vaihdellessa arktisissa yhteisöissä on nähtävissä fenologista irtautumista. Yhteisön sisällä eri lajiryhmät reagoivat sekä lumenlähtöpäivään että lämpösummaan eri tavoin. Tämä altistaa yhteisöjä fenologiselle irtautumiselle ympäristön edelleen muuttuessa. Pölyttäjäfenologiaa tutkittaessa ajan ja tilan rinnastus -menetelmä näyttää toimivan hyvin lapinvuokon ja tämän kasvilajin tärkeimpien pölyttäjäheimojen kohdalla. Koko yhteisön tasolla rinnastuksen ennusteet ovat kuitenkin puutteelliset, sillä joidenkin ryhmien ennusteet eroavat toisistaan merkittävästi sekä ajassa että tilassa. Tulevaisuudessa tulisikin selvittää tarkemmin sitä, kuinka nyt havaittu pölyttäjäyhteisön fenologinen epäyhtenäisyys heijastuu lajien välisiin vuorovaikutussuhteisiin eri trofiatasojen välillä.