Research

The European-wide important mussel population of Unio crassus in the Amstettner Mühlbach is being analysed using the e-DNA method from water samples. The orientation of the project is both fundamentally orientated and also includes approaches to solutions for applied questions. Module 1 (Optimisation of the documentation of FFH species in a larger spatial context) tests and evaluates e-DNA samples for their usability in the context of nature conservation issues such as the occurrence of protected species, e.g. in acute water interventions such as flood protection structures, etc., as well as an essential tool for field mapping of protected organisms. Module 2 - Impact of mussel populations on aquatic ecology issues such as purification performance and effects on the nutrient content of watercourses is intended to deepen basic knowledge of ecosystem services in the context of nature-based solutions and is anchored more in basic research.

80 years after the catastrophic Danube flood of 1954, the extent of the flooding at that time and how the population and the protective water management authorities dealt with it are examined from an environmental historical, hydrological and aquatic ecological perspective. Numerous structural protection measures have been implemented since 1954, which have reduced the areas flooded by similarly large floods to this day. The comparison with the 2013 flood is intended to illustrate these differences.

Springs and spring brooks are sensitive special ecological sites and biodiversity hotspots. However, these habitats are highly endangered by anthropogenic influences and many of the spring specialists are on the Red List of endangered species. The reasons for the threat are manifold: backfilling, enclosures, groundwater abstraction, overgrazing, cattle trampling and increased organic pollution. As part of this project, two impaired spring systems are to be restored to a near-natural state and the typical spring communities re-established. The planned implementation measures include the construction of a buffer zone around the spring area (pasture fence), the introduction of dead wood along the upper reaches of the spring stream and the partial cessation of riverbank management. Continuous monitoring of two indicator groups - stoneflies and caddisflies - serves to verify the effect of the measures. The interested public is involved in the project through local information campaigns and public relations work. In dialogue with scientific experts, a supra-regionally applicable action guide on the topic of spring protection and renaturation is also being developed, which will make a decisive contribution to the long-term improvement of this endangered habitat.