Spiekeroog as a research location:

The special dynamics of the Wadden Sea area, the emergence and disappearance of smaller islands and the frequent disturbance of biotic communities (plants and animals) by the tide and storm surges make the natural areas of the Wadden Sea a unique 'open-air laboratory' for biodiversity research. The naturalness of the island and the facilities of the Wittbülten research centre make Spiekeroog the ideal location for ecological and geomorphological studies. Research results obtained here can be transferred to the entire Wadden Sea area and help to better understand the natural processes of the ecosystem and the characteristics of the species living here. Many projects have already taken place here over the past decades, including the "Biogeochemistry of the Wadden Sea" project, as part of which the measuring pile was erected off Spiekeroog. Spiekeroog has a long tradition as a research location, which is also documented in the newly established research centre in the Wittbülten National Park House.

Previous projects have focused primarily on hydrological, sedimentological and biogeochemical issues. The new "BEFmate" project, funded by the state of Lower Saxony, is dedicated to the question of how the diversity of algae, seabed animals and terrestrial plants and animals on newly colonised islands is formed and influenced by storm surges. This is an important topic in times of species extinction and climate change, especially in the Wadden Sea, whose habitats are characterised by much higher dynamics compared to locations on the mainland.

The universities of Oldenburg and Göttingen have pooled their expertise for the joint project BEFmate. A multidisciplinary team of experts consisting of ecologists, geomorphologists and engineers is working together for three years on current scientific issues in biodiversity research on new islands. The spokesperson for the project is Prof Dr Helmut Hillebrand from the ICBM at the University of Oldenburg.

The field experiment near Wittbülten:

In order to be able to answer and prove the questions on biodiversity and colonisation of emerging islands, experimental islands are to be established in which ecosystem processes can be controlled. Experiments are necessary in biodiversity research because so many processes take place simultaneously and side by side in the wild that it is almost impossible to filter out the really relevant factors for the colonisation of new islands. In experiments, individual influencing variables can be kept constant while others are varied. If some of these influencing variables repeatedly show the same effect on plants and animals under repeated conditions, we can assume that they are relevant. Therefore, the BEFmate experiment requires repetitions in the form of 12 similar, small islands. After establishing a test island in the summer of 2013, the scientists decided on 12 islands, each consisting of 12 metal baskets, which will be placed 300-500 metres away from the salt marsh near Wittbülten on a uniform elevation in the mudflats. Each island has a base area of 12 square metres. The baskets have 3 height levels in order to be able to influence the frequency of flooding. The height levels correspond to the height levels of the salt marsh zone and the lower and upper salt marsh zones on Spiekeroog. The metal baskets are filled with tidal flat sediment and fitted with measuring instruments. Over the following years, they will be colonised by plant and animal species. In order to document how tidal flat communities develop into salt marsh communities, the researchers will regularly sample and monitor the islands. In order to be able to make statistically significant statements about the outcome of the experiment, some control areas in the existing salt marsh must also be mapped and sampled. Work on the construction of the islands will take place in August and September 2014.

The islands have been planned in close co-operation with the national park administration. At the end of the experiment, the islands will be completely dismantled. Population counts on the test island have shown that the mudflats regenerate very quickly.

For further information please contact

Dr Thorsten Balke

Tel. 0441 7983258, Email:

Prof Dr Michael Kleyer

Tel. 0441 7983278, Email:

Landscape Ecology Group, Institute of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Oldenburg, 26111 Oldenburg.