The SASSCAL ObservationNet offers data and user friendly information regarding the temporal changes within ecosystems and their biological diversity. The data have been collected by a variety of different scientific disciplines jointly using standardized research infrastructures for long-term observation, called Biodiversity Observatories.
In the frame of the "Global observation system of systems" (
GEOSS) and its "Global Biodiversity Observation network" (
GEO BON) such plot-based observation sites are important research infrastructures. They provide information on the health of ecosystems and on the intactness of biodiversity.
The
SASSCAL ObservationNet with its
65 Biodiversity Observatories forms one of the largest contributions to the global network of plot based observatories. Other large networks are listed here. SASSCAL also supports the use of
Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs).
Each "Biodiversity Observatory" forms an exactly surveyed square kilometer representative for a ecological zone. All "Biodiversity Observatories" serve for long-term observation of the change of diversity and composition of organisms and essential environmental key variables (regarding e.g. soil, climate, land use). Information, gained at these observatories can be extrapolated to a larger space.