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NHRP Research Themes

Research conducted by the Natural Heritage Research Partnership (NHRP) falls within four main ‘research themes’ which can be subdivided into specific research areas:
 

Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) in NI

1) NIEA Statutory duties  

• Management of designated sites
  • Impact of management prescriptions on designated site features
  • Restoration and recovery management techniques for unfavourable designated site features
  • Grazing prescriptions for designated site features
  • Assessments of the carrying capacity of activities on designated sites

• Monitoring of designated site features 
  • Quality assurance of condition assessment techniques and comparison of results between monitoring cycle   

• Specialist survey, mapping and monitoring of freshwater and marine designated sites
  • Habitat and species survey, mapping and boundary rationales for proposed Marine Protected Areas
  • Habitat and species survey, mapping and boundary rationales for proposed freshwater designated sites
  • Condition assessment of specialist freshwater and marine designated site features
  • Management schemes for Marine Protected Areas   

• Species distribution, abundance and habitat requirements
  • Species protected under the Habitats and Birds Directive
  • Species protected under the Wildlife Order   

All baleen whales are listed as NI Priority species

2) Biodiversity in the wider countryside

• Northern Ireland Priority Species and Habitats

  • Distribution, abundance and habitat requirements of Northern Ireland Priority Species
  • Delivery of NI Habitat Action plan targets
  • Development and analysis of long-term datasets

• Ecosystem functioning
  • Ecological networks
  • Large scale habitat restoration schemes
  • Ecosystem services and environmental economics   

• Ecological Genetics
  • Genetic diversity within Northern Ireland species
  • Taxonomic status of Northern Ireland species
  • Impacts of habitat fragmentation on gene flow
  • Impacts of non-native genotypes

• Invasive alien species 
  • Distribution, abundance and habitat requirements of invasive alien species
  • Impacts on native species, habitats and ecosystem function
  • Management of invasive alien species, including eradication and containment techniques  

• Human impacts on biodiversity
  • Impacts of disturbance, eutrophication, countryside recreation and access
  • Zonation of human activities

3) Climate Change

• Impacts of climate change and sea level rise on designated site features
• Climate change adaptation techniques for biodiversity

4) Additional themes

• Research projects that do not fall within established themes can be further group ad hoc by mutual consent from NIEA and Quercus.  

NHRP Research Clusters

NHRP research projects are further grouped into discrete ‘Research Clusters’ that are managed by an Advisory Group which provides scientific input into the direction of the work. Some projects do not naturally fit into established clusters and, therefore, are run as one-off projects. Current Research Clusters include:

·         To be determined shortly