Analysis and synthesis of palaeoecological data revealing patterns of mountain vegetation and plant diversity dynamics and its response to climate, fire, land use changes in biodiversity hotspots through space and time

未来全球气候和土地利用变化可能对热带生物多样性热点地区产生强烈影响，需要科学地加以解决。古生态学方法可以重建过去的环境变化及其在生态系统发展和动态中的作用，有助于了解生态系统的功能。本文将利用前一阶段在Podocarpus国家公园（PNP）地区提供的大量古生态数据集，以及一些额外的数据集和现代植被/花粉雨研究来揭示山地植被和植物多样性动态的模式。它们对过去气候、火灾、土地利用变化的反应将被详细调查。将比较和综合在南厄瓜多尔安第斯山脉和南美洲Mata Atlantica生物多样性热点地区的研究结果，为生物多样性热点地区的管理和保护概念做出贡献。将填补PNP东部地区植被重建和其他环境变化方面的空白。将扩大对数据的可视化和建模以及对过去森林上层线动态的研究。

Future global climate and land use changes will probably have strong impacts on tropical biodiversity hotspots and need to be addressed scientifically. Past environmental changes and their role in the development and dynamic of ecosystems can be reconstructed by palaeoecological methods, which help to understand ecosystem functioning. A relatively large number of palaeoecological data sets from the Podocarpus National Park (PNP) region, provided during previous phase, and a few additional data sets as well as modern vegetation/pollen rain studies will be used to reveal patterns of mountain vegetation and plant diversity dynamics. Their response to past climate, fire, land use changes will be investigated in detail. Results of in the southern Ecuadorian Andes and the Mata Atlantica biodiversity hotspot in South America will be compared and synthesised as a contribution for management and conservation concepts in biodiversity hotspots. Gaps regarding the reconstruction of vegetation and other environmental changes in the eastern PNP region will be filled. The visualisation and modelling of the data as well as studies on the upper forest line dynamics during the past will be extended.