Defining the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert (B02)

• Subject Area: Ecology and Biodiversity of Animals and Ecosystems, Organismic Interactions
• Term: since 2016
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 268236062

Results with extensive trap systems clearly indicate that in the Atacama Desert is virtually no “death zone” without animals. Instead, a gradual transition was found from complex food webs via very simple food webs to extremely hyper-arid habitats solely inhabited by the enigmatic Maindronia. We plan to systematically analyze comprehensive material collected in trap systems. Abiotic variables within and outside the boundaries of this hyper-arid core will be studied to determine the key factors and boundary conditions responsible for the collapse of more complex food webs. We will be able to define ranges and thresholds for biological life, and to identify forcing factors for the biological evolution.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1211: Earth - Evolution at the Dry Limit
• Applicant Institution: Universität zu Köln
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Hartmut Arndt, from 7/2020 until 6/2024; Professorin Dr. Christine Heim; Professor Dr. Reinhard Predel; Dr. Benedikt Ritter, since 7/2024; Alvaro Zuniga-Reinoso, since 7/2024