Supply of beneficial and detrimental nature’s contributions to people and its regulation through ecological networks

• Applicants: Dr. Lisa Lehnen; Privatdozent Dr. Matthias Schleuning; Professor Dr. Marco Tschapka
• Subject Area: Ecology and Biodiversity of Plants and Ecosystems ; Ecology and Biodiversity of Animals and Ecosystems, Organismic Interactions
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 428658210

Our subproject addresses the supply of material and non-material benefits and detriments people derive from nature, also known as nature’s contributions to people (NCP). Our goal in the first phase was to identify biodiversity components providing such NCP at Mount Kilimanjaro, quantify the supply of those NCP, and assess how supply varies with land use intensity, climate and elevation. Key findings for material NCP are that wood product supply strongly depends on tree species richness, which declines with land-use intensity and elevation, whereas crop yields are jointly affected by biodiversity and human inputs like fertilizer and labor. For non-material NCP, we show that overall supply is driven by species and habitat diversity, but also by abiotic features of the mountain, and that nature’s sounds provide diverse NCP such as reminiscence. Our studies have also helped to identify knowledge gaps to be addressed in the second phase. First, it is unclear how biotic interactions like pollination and seed dispersal regulate the supply of material and non-material benefits. To quantify the importance of these interactions, we will apply machine learning to trait and interaction data to build ecological networks between plants providing benefits and animals affecting those plants. Second, previous studies have neglected nature’s detriments. To overcome this bias, we plan a comprehensive assessment of detrimental NCP at Kilimanjaro through a combination of literature and social surveys, and will quantify the supply of a key detriment - disease transmission. Specifically, we will characterize bat and rodent gut microbiomes and track bat movement to assess the potential of those animals to transmit pathogens to humans, and quantify trade-offs between detriments (pathogen transmission) and benefits (seed dispersal) provided by the same bat species. Third, it is unknown whether people’s perceptions of NCP supply match actual supply and how this influences attitudes and behavior towards nature. To address this gap, we will assess perceived NCP supply, attitudes, and behavioral intentions in interviews using a vignette approach (i.e., short descriptions of hypothetical scenarios). Thus, we can compare actual to perceived NCP supply and examine how perceptions of beneficial and detrimental NCP and trade-offs between them influence people’s attitudes and behavior. Our project will contribute to a mechanistic understanding of how nature provides material and non-material NCP, and seeks to identify key synergies and trade-offs in their supply. The identification of biodiversity components and social-ecological factors that shape NCP supply and its perception by people can serve as levers for transforming biodiversity impacts on human well-being and human impacts on biodiversity.

• DFG Programme: Research Units
• Subproject of: FOR 5064: The role of nature for human well-being in the Kilimanjaro Social-Ecological System (Kili-SES)
• International Connection: Tanzania
• Co-Investigators: Professorin Dr. Katrin Böhning-Gaese; Professor Thomas Müller, Ph.D.; Professorin Dr. Simone Sommer
• Cooperation Partners: Neema Robert Kinabo; Dr. Robert Modest Byamungu