Type of ecosystem

Different types of ecosystems can be defined through the use of the methodology and classification system proposed by Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, (2005).

Aim of the method/technique	The aim of the description of ecosystems is to assess the degree of protection of the soil from erosion, the ability of plants to withstand drought, the vulnerability of the land to degradation. The maps of vegetation constitute one of the basic components of the description of a SES. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment classification system characterizes different types of ecosystems and different landscape components (LULC classes) using existing land cover classification as the MEA classification and CORINE Land Cover maps or remote sensing image classification.
Scale – spatial and temporal	The types of ecosystems can be defined based on the method and classification system proposed by the Millennium Assessment (MEA 2005). A practical approach to the spatial delimitation of an ecosystem is to build up a series of overlays of significant factors, mapping the location of discontinuities, such as in the distribution of organisms, the biophysical environment (soil types, drainage basins, depth to a water body), and spatial interactions (home ranges, migration patterns, fluxes of matter). A useful ecosystem boundary is the place where a number of these relative discontinuities coincide. A detailed or semi-detailed map of vegetation cover or the existing ecosystems at the scale 1:20,000 or 1:50,000 can be useful for regional studies in the LEDDRA project. Since human interventions can change ecosystems rapidly, by changing land use, fires, etc., spatial and  temporal changes may occur frequently in ecosystems. Existing maps of ecosystems have to be updated frequently.
Brief description	Type of ecosystems can be characterized using the global assessment being undertaken by the MA, which is based on the following 10 categories: marine, coastal, inland water, forest, dryland, island, mountain, polar, cultivated, and urban. (Table 1) These categories are not ecosystems themselves, but each contains a number of ecosystems. Types of ecosystems can be defined by combining field observations and interpretation of aerial photographs or remote sensing images. Table 1. Ecosystem classification and delineation methodology (Source: UNEP-MA) Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Reporting Categories Category Central Concept Boundary Limits for Mapping Marine Ocean, with fishing typically a major driver of change Marine areas where the sea is deeper than 50 meters. Coastal Interface between ocean and land, extending seawards to about the middle of the continental shelf and inland to include all areas strongly influenced by the proximity to the ocean. Area between 50 meters below mean sea level and 50meters above the high tide level or extending landward to a distance 100 kilometers from shore. Includes coral reefs, intertidal zones, estuaries, coastal aquaculture, and sea-grass communities. Inland water Permanent water bodies inland from the coastal zone, and areas whose ecology and use are dominated by the permanent, seasonal, or intermittent occurrence of flooded conditions. Rivers, lakes, floodplains, reservoirs, and wetlands; includes inland saline systems. Note that the Ramsar Convention considers “wetlands” to include both inland water and coastal categories. Forest Lands dominated by trees; often used for timber, fuel wood, and non-timber forest products. A canopy cover of at least 40 percent by woody plants taller than 5 meters. The existence of many other definitions is acknowledged, and other limits (such as crown cover greater than 10 percent, as used by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) will also be reported. Includes temporarily cut-over forests and plantations; excludes orchards and agroforests where the main products are food crops. Dryland Lands where plant production is limited by water availability; the dominant uses are large mammal herbivory, including livestock grazing, and cultivation. Drylands as defined by the Convention to Combat Desertification, namely lands where annual precipitation is less than two thirds of potential evaporation, from dry sub-humid areas (ratio ranges 0.50–0.65), through semiarid, arid, and hyper-arid (ratio <0.05), but excluding polar areas; drylands include cultivated lands, scrublands, shrublands, grasslands, semi-deserts, and true deserts. Island Lands isolated by surrounding water, with a high proportion of coast to hinterland. As defined by the Alliance of Small Island States. Mountain Steep and high lands. As defined by Mountain Watch using criteria based on elevation alone, and at lower elevation, on a combination of elevation, slope, and local elevation range. Specifically, elevation >2,500 meters, elevation 1,500–2,500 meters and slope >2 degrees, elevation 1,000–1,500 meters and slope >5 degrees or local elevation range (7 kilometers radius) >300 meters, elevation 300–1,000 meters and local elevation range (7 kilometers radius) >300 meters, isolated inner basins and plateaus less than 25 square kilometers extent that are surrounded by mountains. Polar High-latitude systems frozen for most of the year. Includes ice caps, areas underlain by permafrost, tundra, polar deserts, and polar coastal areas. Excludes high altitude cold systems in low latitudes. Cultivated Lands dominated by domesticated plant species, used for and substantially changed by crop, agroforestry, or aquaculture production. Areas in which at least 30 percent of the landscape comes under cultivation in any particular year. Includes orchards, agroforestry, and integrated agriculture-aquaculture systems. Urban Built environments with a high human density. Known human settlements with a population of 5,000 or more, with boundaries delineated by observing persistent night-time lights or by inferring areal extent in the cases where such observations are absent.
Data requirements	For the definition of types of ecosystems, aerial photographs or remote sensing images are needed. The existing vegetation maps of CORINE can be used to derive the previous ecosystem characteristics.
Main applications in cropland, grazing and forests & shrubland regions	Description of an ecosystem can be useful in assessing the impacts of an applied response assemblage.  Many processes related to land degradation have been documented for various ecosystems such as excessive soil loss, change in vegetation composition and reduction in vegetative cover, deterioration of water quality and reduction in quantity, and changes in the regional climate system. The UNCCD mentions loss of complexity as a form of land degradation but, unlike productivity loss, this aspect has not been addressed in the desertification context yet. On the other hand, farmland landscape heterogeneity as well as management intensity are known to be connected to farmland biological diversity (Beton et al. 2003, Hendrickx. 2007, Persson et al. 2010), although this does not hold for specific  species (Filippi-Codaccioni et al. 2010).
Strengths and weaknesses	Types of ecosystems definition in cropland regions face many difficulties in describing and assessing their performance due to many man induced changes.

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