Braila Research Station
As part of the Research Center in Systems Ecology and Sustainability (RCSES), and as a result of numerous research projects implemented by the research center, Braila Research Station is now offering a unique combination of ongoing long-term measurements of regional climate, hydrology, nutrients in sediments and water, benthic community structure, aquatic, terrestrial and wetland vegetation structure and productivity, aquatic birds community structure, coupled with more recent developments in monitoring sensors and research infrastructure. The facility is equipped with the necessary communication and transport facilities for the field work, it has a series of field and research monitoring stations (sampling points) covering the spatial heterogeneity of the LTSER in terms of habitat types (terrestrial, i.e. farms, grasslands and forests, aquatic, i.e. shallow lakes and the Danube river and marshes). On top of this, the site has a complex intensive monitoring and research station equipped with meteorological, soil measuring including depth wells sensors for real time measurements as well as with portable equipment for long term CO2 soil measurement (LICOR).
Contact details
Adress: No. 4, Ciprian Porumbescu Street, Braila, Romania
Tel/fax: 0239/670046
History
Established in 1955 under the name of Hydrobiological Station to meet the needs arising from the development of university education and scientific research, Braila research station has served as a foundation for the practical training of biology students and for the research of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems associated with the Lower Danube System. Under the direction of academician Nicolae Botnariuc and later Professor Angheluță Vădineanu, the station encouraged, through its staff and facilities, the training and research activities of teams that have distinguished themselves with results at both national and international levels: research projects conducted, papers published, scientific presentations both in the country and abroad, and awards from the Romanian Academy. The current infrastructure of the station is highly efficient and can even support complex programs across a study area that includes not only the Lower Danube System but also the adjacent regional ecosystem complexes of the Romanian Plain, as well as the Plateau and Mountains of Dobrogea and it’s capable of addressing all categories of ecosystems (terrestrial or aquatic) in Romania.
Research directions
The research directions that will be addressed at Braila Research Stations, will focus on ecological complexity and involve the following specific research activities:
- investigation of biological diversity – specific diversity, genetic analysis;
- investigation of ecological processes;
- designing and creating an informational system to manage large sets of data and knowledge, related to the wetland systems of the Danube floodplain.
Braila Research Station will be the entity of Bucharest University that will manage the monitoring activities within the socio-ecological complexes in the Long-Term Socio-Ecological Research areas of the Danube floodplain (LTSER Bălțile Brailei – see below). At the same time, the infrastructure developed here is an infrastructure that is actually a new concept of colocation (the development of the intensive research area that meets the requirements for the operation of several research infrastructures: Lifewatch, ICOS, Danubius, LTER) for analysing the relationships between ecological systems and their long-term sustainability.
Mobile telemetry and remote sensing module
This module aims to develop the capacities to collect data with a high degree of precision about the dispersal or migration capacity of some species as well as the data needed to identify different types of ecosystems and their spatial extension. This will allow […]
Bird population-biodiversity identification and monitoring at the species level
This module aims to provide an long-term, large-scale data base for biodiversity identification at the species level and it is composed of two monitoring techniques: an audio-recording identification and a fauna video-recording identification.
Investigating ecological processes (sensors, advanced processing) and ecosystem experimentation
This module is part of an integrated vision developed for the entire project, which involves field data acquisitions using automated stations, drones for data collection, satellite systems, along with devices used by researchers, and other types of data (including historical data).
Sensors for in situ experiments-investigation of ecological processes and ecosystem experimentation
This module aims to provide scientific data regarding in situ experiments by using a wide range of sensors that can determine parameters such as soil moisture, temperature, conductivity. It will also be equipped for carrying out chemical analyses […]
Genetics laboratory for ecosystem studies in wetlands
The genetics and molecular biology module incorporates a wide range of cutting-edge equipment with versatile applicability, allowing for studies in taxonomy, phylogeny, biodiversity, proteomics, and metabolomics on macro- and microorganisms from terrestrial and aquatic environments.
