Research sites in the Inner Oetz Valley
Rotmoos Valley - Hohe Mut
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Altitude: 2240 m a.s.l. (at the entrance of the valley) - 2450 m a.s.l. (glacier mouth)
Lage: Tyrol, inner Oetz valley, tributary valley of the Gurgler valley
Position: 46° 50' 24'' N, 11° 01' 59'' E
Description: The Rotmoos valley is located at the Alpine divide, directly at the border between North and South Tyrol. It extends about 6 kilometres from South-East to North-West and can be reached from Obergurgl in about 45 minutes.The glaciers Rotmoosferner and Wasserfallferner dominate the appearance of the valley. The Hohe Mut (2650 m a.s.l.) borders the Rotmoos valley in the North-West. The Hohe Mut ridge runs South-East to the foot of the Kirchenkogel.
Research:
Primary succession: Since 1995, the glacier foreland of the Rotmoosferner is intensively studied. Numerous research projects dealing with the primary succession along the terrestrial and aquatic chronosequence were carried out.
Vegetation and climate history: The mires in the surroundings of Obergurgl and Vent were studied in detail in order to reconstruct vegetation and climate history. The profiles of Rotmoos and Schönwies essentially enhanced the knowledge of treeline fluctuations in the holocene. The appaerance of grazing indicators in the mire Gurgler Alm was dated 6300 BP.
Monitoring project Obergurgl: In summer 2000 a monitoring project with 10 sites, including a grazing exclusion experiment, was started from the subalpine zone (Obergurgl) to the subnival zone (Kirchenkogel).