SubjectsSubjects(version: 978)
Course, academic year 2025/2026
   
Biodiversity of heavily disturbed sites - MB162P32
Title: Biodiverzita silně narušených stanovišť
Czech title: Biodiverzita silně narušených stanovišť
Guaranteed by: Department of Ecology (31-162)
Faculty: Faculty of Science
Actual: from 2023
Semester: summer
E-Credits: 3
Examination process: summer s.:
Hours per week, examination: summer s.:2/1, Ex [DS]
Capacity: unlimited
Min. number of students: 6
4EU+: no
Virtual mobility / capacity: no
State of the course: taught
Language: Czech
Explanation: V letnim semestru 2023/24 probíhá předmět formou individuálních konzultací.Studenti si individuální konzultace domluvili v únoru 2024.Pro ostatní zájemce v tomto semestru předmět NEPROBÍHÁ.
Note: enabled for web enrollment
the course is taught as cyclical
Guarantor: doc. RNDr. Robert Tropek, Ph.D.
Annotation -
This course focuses on the biodiversity of heavily disturbed and anthropogenically created habitats and their importance for nature conservation in current landscapes. Students are introduced to ecological principles of disturbance and succession and their relationships to biodiversity, with particular emphasis on post-industrial habitats, as well as urban, agricultural, and other secondary habitats. The course synthesises current knowledge from both habitat-based and organism-based perspectives, highlighting environmental factors and species traits that determine the ability of different taxonomic and ecological groups to colonise disturbed habitats. Attention is also paid to negative effects of anthropogenic habitats on biodiversity, including the concept of ecological traps. A substantial part of the course is devoted to practical applications of ecological restoration, assisted succession, and near-natural management approaches, placed within the legislative and socio-economic framework of nature conservation in the Czech Republic. The course also includes two one-day field excursions, linking theoretical concepts with real-world examples.
Last update: Tropek Robert, doc. RNDr., Ph.D. (28.01.2026)
Literature -

Řehounek J., Řehounková K., Tropek R., Prach K. (Eds.) 2015: Ekologická obnova území narušených těžbou nerostných surovin a průmyslovými deponiemi. Calla, České Budějovice.

Tropek R., Řehounek J. (Eds.) 2012: Bezobratlí postindustriálních stanovišť: význam, ochrana a mangement. Entomologický ústav BC AV ČR a Calla, České Budějovice.

Last update: Tropek Robert, doc. RNDr., Ph.D. (23.10.2019)
Requirements to the exam -

Oral examination and attendance of at least one excursion.

Last update: Tropek Robert, doc. RNDr., Ph.D. (23.10.2019)
Syllabus -
  • Disturbance: definitions, classification, and ecological roles; natural vs. anthropogenic disturbance; ecological succession and climax theory; relationships between disturbance and biodiversity.
  • Threatened biodiversity of Central Europe: current status of biodiversity; negative and positive roles of disturbance; historical development of disturbance regimes in Central European landscapes; examples of threatened habitats and species.
  • Role of anthropogenic habitats for threatened biodiversity: anthropogenic habitats as biodiversity refugia; examples of threatened habitats and species; causes and mechanisms underlying the conservation value of different anthropogenic habitats; overview of key studies; synthesis of available knowledge across organism groups; examples of negative impacts on some taxa; concept of ecological traps.
  • Ecological restoration of disturbed habitats: terminology and definitions; principles of ecological restoration; comparison of different restoration approaches and their effects on habitats, species, and communities; concepts and methods of assisted succession; principles of near-natural restoration; overview of key studies and practical case examples.
  • Legislative and socio-economic aspects of restoration of disturbed habitats.
  • Restoration and management of disturbed habitats from the perspective of a conservation NGO.
Last update: Tropek Robert, doc. RNDr., Ph.D. (28.01.2026)
Learning outcomes -

KNOWLEDGE

After completing the course, the student will be able to:

  • Explain the ecological significance of disturbance, its types, and its role in shaping biodiversity, including relationships between disturbance, succession, and biodiversity.
  • Understand the current status of threatened biodiversity in Central Europe and the historical and contemporary roles of anthropogenic disturbances in the landscape.
  • Describe the importance of anthropogenic and secondary habitats, particularly post-industrial sites, as refugia for biodiversity and their role in the conservation of threatened species.
  • Understand ecological mechanisms underlying the colonisation of heavily disturbed habitats by different taxonomic and ecological groups of organisms.
  • Know the principles of ecological restoration of disturbed habitats, including assisted succession and near-natural restoration approaches.
  • Be familiar with the basic legislative and socio-economic frameworks relevant to the restoration and management of disturbed habitats in the Czech Republic.

SKILLS

After completing the course, the student will be able to:

  • Interpret the effects of different types of anthropogenic habitats on biodiversity at the level of species, communities, and ecological processes.
  • Critically evaluate scientific studies addressing biodiversity and restoration of heavily disturbed habitats.
  • Compare different restoration approaches and assess their ecological consequences.
  • Apply ecological concepts (disturbance, succession, ecological traps) to concrete case studies.
  • Interpret ecological data and syntheses in the context of nature conservation and landscape planning.

COMPETENCES

After completing the course, the student will be able to:

  • Develop the ability to comprehensively assess anthropogenically disturbed habitats from a biodiversity and conservation perspective.
  • Evaluate the potential of heavily disturbed habitats for the conservation of threatened species and communities.
  • Propose ecologically sound recommendations for the restoration and management of disturbed habitats.
  • Integrate ecological knowledge with practical, legislative, and socio-economic aspects of nature conservation.
  • Communicate ecological findings clearly to both scientific audiences and stakeholders from practice (nature conservation authorities, public administration, NGOs).
Last update: Tropek Robert, doc. RNDr., Ph.D. (28.01.2026)
 
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