Stephen Venn | University of Helsinki (original) (raw)

Papers by Stephen Venn

Palaearctic Grasslands – Journal of the Journal of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group

Global Ecology and Conservation

Many biological responses may develop over long periods of time, and annual community variation s... more Many biological responses may develop over long periods of time, and annual community variation should therefore be controlled in ecological research. We sampled carabid beetles over ten years in Norway spruce dominated forests in Southern Finland, harvested using replicated logging treatments of different intensities. We collected carabids in 1995 (prior to logging) and during four post-harvest seasons, 1996-98 and in 2006. The treatments were clear-cutting (no retained trees), modified clear-cutting (retention of three groups of 20-30 trees within one-hectare core) and gap cutting (three 0.16-ha openings within a one-hectare core), and control (mature unharvested forest). 1. Carabids showed remarkable annual and regional variation at assemblage, ecological-group and species levels, such that was independent of treatments. 2. The total species richness, and that of open-habitat carabids, were higher in cleared sites of all treatments than in control stands in 1997-1998 but not in 2...

Hacquetia, 2015

Most semi-natural open habitats in Europe have been traditionally maintained by anthropogenic act... more Most semi-natural open habitats in Europe have been traditionally maintained by anthropogenic activities, such as grazing or mowing, preventing the establishment of woody vegetation. These habitats harbour a remarkably rich biodiversity in terms of both plant and animal species, but are also highly threatened, mainly by agricultural intensification and land abandonment. With this Editorial we introduce a Special Issue initiated by the European Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) at the Open Landscapes Conference (Hildesheim, 2013) and the 11th European Dry Grassland Meeting (Kulikovo Pole, 2014). We aim to give a short introduction to the current conservation status, significance and research of semi-natural open habitats in Europe and present the collected articles of the Special Issue. These papers cover a wide range of different semi-natural open habitats, including wood-pastures, heathlands, steppes, semi-dry and dry grasslands across the Palearctic region and address issues related to t...

Palaearctic Grasslands - Journal of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group, 2022

Nature Ecology & Evolution, 2021

Landscape Ecology, 2022

Context Structural and functional connectivity, as subconcepts of landscape connectivity, are key... more Context Structural and functional connectivity, as subconcepts of landscape connectivity, are key factors in biodiversity conservation and management. Previous studies have focused on the consequences of connectivity for populations of terrestrial organisms, which may not be appropriate for aquatic organisms. Objectives As landscape connectivity critically affects the potential value of ponds for biodiversity, here we used diving beetles (Dytiscidae), an indicator taxon of wetland biodiversity, to investigate how structural connectivity affects functional connectivity to aquatic invertebrates in an urban landscape. Methods We assessed pairwise similarities of dytiscid community, i.e. the variation of species composition between clustered and isolated ponds in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Finland. We investigated how dytiscid community similarity is affected by Euclidean distances between ponds, as an indicator of structural connectivity. Results We found that clustered ponds shar...

Hacquetia, 2021

This report summarizes the activities and achievements of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG)... more This report summarizes the activities and achievements of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) from July 2019 to December 2020. During this period, Covid-19 allowed only one live event, the 14th EDGG Field Workshop to the alpine vegetation of Switzerland, organised ad hoc as a replacement for the cancelled Field Workshop in the Ukrainian steppes. The cancelled Eurasian Grassland Conference in Spain found a partial replacement in “Talk Grasslands!”, a series of online talks during winter 2020/2021. EDGG’s own diamond open access periodical, Palaearctic Grasslands, is a novel combination of scientific journal, photo magazine and member newsletter. With five issues during the reporting time it contributed much to EDGG’s attractiveness. EDGG edited four Special Features in international journals (Tuexenia, Hacquetia, Flora) and contributed 13 chapters on grasslands and shrublands of the Palaearctic biogeographic realm to the Encyclopedia of the world’s biomes. EDGG’s vegetation-plot ...

Hacquetia, 2021

This special issue is a collection of articles about the conservation, restoration and biodiversi... more This special issue is a collection of articles about the conservation, restoration and biodiversity of Palaearctic grasslands and was initiated by the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group at the 15th Eurasian Dry Grassland Conference (EDGC), held at Graz, Austria in 2019. The papers in this special issue cover a range of grassland habitats from montane dry grasslands to lowland sandy grasslands, feathergrass steppes and meadow steppes, and focus on the biodiversity values, conservation issues and restoration prospects of Palaearctic grasslands. We hope that the articles in this special issue will contribute to a better understanding of the ecology of grasslands and support their more effective conservation.

Aquatic plants are important prey refugia for aquatic organisms, and their species richness is po... more Aquatic plants are important prey refugia for aquatic organisms, and their species richness is positively related with aquatic invertebrate species richness. Yet, little is known about how the quantity of refugia, i.e. aquatic vegetation cover, affect aquatic invertebrate assemblages and their habitat use in different levels of predation risks. Here, we investigated how provision of refugia affects diving beetle (Dytiscidae) species richness and abundance in the presence and absence of fish predators. We found that plant cover affected dytiscid populations differently: (1) At the pond level, dytiscid presence was positively correlated with increasing plant cover, both with and without fish, indicating the importance of emergent plants for aquatic biodiversity. (2) At the microhabitat level, dytiscid species richness and abundance responded positively to increasing plant cover in ponds with fish, but there was no such relationship in fishless ponds, emphasizing that the level of pred...

Palaearctic Grasslands - Journal of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group, 2021

Ambio, 2020

This article provides a perspective on nature-based solutions. First, the argument is developed t... more This article provides a perspective on nature-based solutions. First, the argument is developed that nature-based solutions integrate social and ecological systems. Then, theoretical considerations relating to relational values, multifunctionality, transdisciplinarity, and polycentric governance are briefly outlined. Finally, a conceptual model of the social–ecological system of nature-based solutions is synthesised and presented. This conceptual model comprehensively defines the social and ecological external and internal systems that make up nature-based solutions, and identifies theoretical considerations that need to be addressed at different stages of their planning and implementation The model bridges the normative gaps of existing nature-based solution frameworks and could be used for consistent, comprehensive, and transferable comparisons internationally. The theoretical considerations addressed in this article inform practitioners, policymakers, and researchers about the es...

Conservation Biology, Dec 6, 2017

Biodiversity and Conservation, 2020

Blue infrastructure is an important component of urban green infrastructure, due to its capacity ... more Blue infrastructure is an important component of urban green infrastructure, due to its capacity for water cycle regulation and soil formation, as well as supporting unique biodiversity. Urban ponds, as part of urban blue, can harbour a diverse assemblage of aquatic macroinvertebrates. As yet, it is not clear how urbanisation affects macroinvertebrate diversity. In this study, we focus on diving beetles (Dytiscidae) in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Finland, to investigate how urbanisation affects their diversity, as well as the effects of margin steepness and the presence or absence of fish on urban dytiscids. We sampled dytiscids using 1-L activity traps in 14 fishless ponds and 11 ponds with fish, at ten sites. We applied generalised linear mixed models (GLMM) and non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) to analyse the effects on dytiscid assemblages. We found that urbanisation had a negative effect on species richness but not on abundance. Steepness of pond margins and the pr...

ARPHA Conference Abstracts, 2019

Grassland ecosystems of Europe comprise a variety of mostly semi-natural habitats, which have dev... more Grassland ecosystems of Europe comprise a variety of mostly semi-natural habitats, which have developed over long periods of traditional land-use regimes, such as grazing and mowing, and they support a remarkable level of biodiversity. At some scales, the species diversity of these habitats is greater than that of tropical rain forests. Such valuable habitats are currently facing several threats, some natural but mostly anthropogenic, and many of them are threatened with extinction. The Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG, www.eddg.org) was established in 2008 by scientists, conservationists and others who are involved in the study and conservation of grassland habitats. The organization currently has 1299 members from a total of 64 countries. Since 2004, the EDGG has organized an annual scientific conference in different parts of Europe. Since 2009, the EDGG has also organized international field workshops to collect diversity data on the plant species composition of dry grasslands ...

Palaearctic Grasslands – Journal of the Journal of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group

Global Ecology and Conservation

Many biological responses may develop over long periods of time, and annual community variation s... more Many biological responses may develop over long periods of time, and annual community variation should therefore be controlled in ecological research. We sampled carabid beetles over ten years in Norway spruce dominated forests in Southern Finland, harvested using replicated logging treatments of different intensities. We collected carabids in 1995 (prior to logging) and during four post-harvest seasons, 1996-98 and in 2006. The treatments were clear-cutting (no retained trees), modified clear-cutting (retention of three groups of 20-30 trees within one-hectare core) and gap cutting (three 0.16-ha openings within a one-hectare core), and control (mature unharvested forest). 1. Carabids showed remarkable annual and regional variation at assemblage, ecological-group and species levels, such that was independent of treatments. 2. The total species richness, and that of open-habitat carabids, were higher in cleared sites of all treatments than in control stands in 1997-1998 but not in 2...

Hacquetia, 2015

Most semi-natural open habitats in Europe have been traditionally maintained by anthropogenic act... more Most semi-natural open habitats in Europe have been traditionally maintained by anthropogenic activities, such as grazing or mowing, preventing the establishment of woody vegetation. These habitats harbour a remarkably rich biodiversity in terms of both plant and animal species, but are also highly threatened, mainly by agricultural intensification and land abandonment. With this Editorial we introduce a Special Issue initiated by the European Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) at the Open Landscapes Conference (Hildesheim, 2013) and the 11th European Dry Grassland Meeting (Kulikovo Pole, 2014). We aim to give a short introduction to the current conservation status, significance and research of semi-natural open habitats in Europe and present the collected articles of the Special Issue. These papers cover a wide range of different semi-natural open habitats, including wood-pastures, heathlands, steppes, semi-dry and dry grasslands across the Palearctic region and address issues related to t...

Palaearctic Grasslands - Journal of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group, 2022

Nature Ecology & Evolution, 2021

Landscape Ecology, 2022

Context Structural and functional connectivity, as subconcepts of landscape connectivity, are key... more Context Structural and functional connectivity, as subconcepts of landscape connectivity, are key factors in biodiversity conservation and management. Previous studies have focused on the consequences of connectivity for populations of terrestrial organisms, which may not be appropriate for aquatic organisms. Objectives As landscape connectivity critically affects the potential value of ponds for biodiversity, here we used diving beetles (Dytiscidae), an indicator taxon of wetland biodiversity, to investigate how structural connectivity affects functional connectivity to aquatic invertebrates in an urban landscape. Methods We assessed pairwise similarities of dytiscid community, i.e. the variation of species composition between clustered and isolated ponds in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Finland. We investigated how dytiscid community similarity is affected by Euclidean distances between ponds, as an indicator of structural connectivity. Results We found that clustered ponds shar...

Hacquetia, 2021

This report summarizes the activities and achievements of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG)... more This report summarizes the activities and achievements of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) from July 2019 to December 2020. During this period, Covid-19 allowed only one live event, the 14th EDGG Field Workshop to the alpine vegetation of Switzerland, organised ad hoc as a replacement for the cancelled Field Workshop in the Ukrainian steppes. The cancelled Eurasian Grassland Conference in Spain found a partial replacement in “Talk Grasslands!”, a series of online talks during winter 2020/2021. EDGG’s own diamond open access periodical, Palaearctic Grasslands, is a novel combination of scientific journal, photo magazine and member newsletter. With five issues during the reporting time it contributed much to EDGG’s attractiveness. EDGG edited four Special Features in international journals (Tuexenia, Hacquetia, Flora) and contributed 13 chapters on grasslands and shrublands of the Palaearctic biogeographic realm to the Encyclopedia of the world’s biomes. EDGG’s vegetation-plot ...

Hacquetia, 2021

This special issue is a collection of articles about the conservation, restoration and biodiversi... more This special issue is a collection of articles about the conservation, restoration and biodiversity of Palaearctic grasslands and was initiated by the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group at the 15th Eurasian Dry Grassland Conference (EDGC), held at Graz, Austria in 2019. The papers in this special issue cover a range of grassland habitats from montane dry grasslands to lowland sandy grasslands, feathergrass steppes and meadow steppes, and focus on the biodiversity values, conservation issues and restoration prospects of Palaearctic grasslands. We hope that the articles in this special issue will contribute to a better understanding of the ecology of grasslands and support their more effective conservation.

Aquatic plants are important prey refugia for aquatic organisms, and their species richness is po... more Aquatic plants are important prey refugia for aquatic organisms, and their species richness is positively related with aquatic invertebrate species richness. Yet, little is known about how the quantity of refugia, i.e. aquatic vegetation cover, affect aquatic invertebrate assemblages and their habitat use in different levels of predation risks. Here, we investigated how provision of refugia affects diving beetle (Dytiscidae) species richness and abundance in the presence and absence of fish predators. We found that plant cover affected dytiscid populations differently: (1) At the pond level, dytiscid presence was positively correlated with increasing plant cover, both with and without fish, indicating the importance of emergent plants for aquatic biodiversity. (2) At the microhabitat level, dytiscid species richness and abundance responded positively to increasing plant cover in ponds with fish, but there was no such relationship in fishless ponds, emphasizing that the level of pred...

Palaearctic Grasslands - Journal of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group, 2021

Ambio, 2020

This article provides a perspective on nature-based solutions. First, the argument is developed t... more This article provides a perspective on nature-based solutions. First, the argument is developed that nature-based solutions integrate social and ecological systems. Then, theoretical considerations relating to relational values, multifunctionality, transdisciplinarity, and polycentric governance are briefly outlined. Finally, a conceptual model of the social–ecological system of nature-based solutions is synthesised and presented. This conceptual model comprehensively defines the social and ecological external and internal systems that make up nature-based solutions, and identifies theoretical considerations that need to be addressed at different stages of their planning and implementation The model bridges the normative gaps of existing nature-based solution frameworks and could be used for consistent, comprehensive, and transferable comparisons internationally. The theoretical considerations addressed in this article inform practitioners, policymakers, and researchers about the es...

Conservation Biology, Dec 6, 2017

Biodiversity and Conservation, 2020

Blue infrastructure is an important component of urban green infrastructure, due to its capacity ... more Blue infrastructure is an important component of urban green infrastructure, due to its capacity for water cycle regulation and soil formation, as well as supporting unique biodiversity. Urban ponds, as part of urban blue, can harbour a diverse assemblage of aquatic macroinvertebrates. As yet, it is not clear how urbanisation affects macroinvertebrate diversity. In this study, we focus on diving beetles (Dytiscidae) in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Finland, to investigate how urbanisation affects their diversity, as well as the effects of margin steepness and the presence or absence of fish on urban dytiscids. We sampled dytiscids using 1-L activity traps in 14 fishless ponds and 11 ponds with fish, at ten sites. We applied generalised linear mixed models (GLMM) and non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) to analyse the effects on dytiscid assemblages. We found that urbanisation had a negative effect on species richness but not on abundance. Steepness of pond margins and the pr...

ARPHA Conference Abstracts, 2019

Grassland ecosystems of Europe comprise a variety of mostly semi-natural habitats, which have dev... more Grassland ecosystems of Europe comprise a variety of mostly semi-natural habitats, which have developed over long periods of traditional land-use regimes, such as grazing and mowing, and they support a remarkable level of biodiversity. At some scales, the species diversity of these habitats is greater than that of tropical rain forests. Such valuable habitats are currently facing several threats, some natural but mostly anthropogenic, and many of them are threatened with extinction. The Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG, www.eddg.org) was established in 2008 by scientists, conservationists and others who are involved in the study and conservation of grassland habitats. The organization currently has 1299 members from a total of 64 countries. Since 2004, the EDGG has organized an annual scientific conference in different parts of Europe. Since 2009, the EDGG has also organized international field workshops to collect diversity data on the plant species composition of dry grasslands ...

Review of two books: The Routledge Handbook of Urban Ecology. Douglas, I., D. Goode, M.C. Houck, ... more Review of two books: The Routledge Handbook of Urban Ecology. Douglas,
I., D. Goode, M.C. Houck, and R. Wang, editors.
2015. Routledge, Oxon, U.K. 664 pp. US$87.95 (paperback).
ISBN 978-1-138-82442-3 and
Handbook of Road Ecology. Van der Ree, R., D.J.
Smith, and C. Grilo, editors. 2015. Wiley Blackwell,
Chichester, West Sussex, U.K. 522 pp. €118.00 (hardcover).
ISBN 978-1-118-56818-7.