**6. Main future tasks and problems of desert research in solving the global problems of our time**

Global problems of our time are basically human ecological ones with the interplay of environmental and social factors. The most important global crisis phenomena are closely connected with each other, form a coherent system, and are associated with the anthropogenic disorders of the healthy functioning of the biosphere.

Main crisis phenomena are:


**Carbon stock C t/ha Carbon sequestration C t/ha/year Species number/10,000 km<sup>2</sup>**

**America**

et al. ([13])

Goldewijk et al. ([17])

— Brink ([14]);

**Europe Pacific**

— Hannah et al.

**Species number**

([13])

Goldewijk et al. ([17])

—

FRA ([12]) — See at Asia

Tchebakova et al. ([15]); Golubyatnikov et al. ([16])

Goldewijk et al.

([17])

Lowland rainforest 210 13–17 2750 Deserts 3 1.15–2.69 457 Tundra 2.5 1.94 227 Human areas 5 2.2 1684

**Africa Asia North America South** 

America

Hannah et al. ([13]) Hannah et al. ([13]) Hannah

Brink ([14]); Tchebakova et al. ([15]); Golubyatnikov et al. ([16])

Goldewijk et al.

**Carbon stock C t/ha Carbon sequestration C t/**

Lowland rainforest http://www.esd.ornl.gov Girardin et al. ([18]) Barthlott et al. ([19]) Deserts Melillo et al. ([20]) Ito and Oikawa ([21]) Ellis et al. ([22]) Tundra Melillo et al. ([20]) Ito and Oikawa ([21]) Ellis et al. ([22]) Human areas Melillo et al. ([20]) Haberl et al ([23]) Ellis et al. ([22])

**Table 5.** Sources of carbon stock, carbon sequestration and species number per unit area values.

**Carbon stock Assimilated carbon**

Tundra 4.08 × 1010 4.08 × 1010 3.17 × 1010 3.17 × 1010 Alpine vegetation 5.76 × 1010 2.95 × 1010 2.41 × 1010 1.23 × 1010 Urban area 2.75 × 108 1.09 × 1010 1.21 × 108 4.78 × 109

Lowland rainforest 1.23 × 1013 3.76 × 1012 7.64 × 1011–9.99 × 1011 3.76 × 1011–4.92 × 1011 Deserts 4.76 × 1011 2.77 × 1011 1.83 × 1011–4.27 × 1011 1.06 × 1011–2.48 × 1011

**ha/year**

**\$ on potential area \$ on current area \$ on potential area \$ on current area**

([17])

FRA ([12]) FRA ([12]) See at South

Tchebakova et al. ([15]); Golubyatnikov et al. ([16])

Goldewijk et al.

([17])

Lowland rainforest

Human areas

Deserts Hannah

et al. ([13])

6 Community and Global Ecology of Deserts

Tundra — Brink ([14]);

Goldewijk et al. ([17])

**Table 3.** Sources of data shown in **Table 2**

**Table 6.** Monetary value of carbon dioxide in \$

**Table 4.** Carbon stock, carbon sequestration and species number per unit area.


Several of these problems are linked to the ecological research of deserts. Among the anthropogenic causes of desertification, overpopulation plays an important role; however, this

**Figure 1.** Number of articles with keywords desert + ecology in their abstracts in the Scopus database (downloaded on April 18, 2018).

increases the global social crisis as feedback. Global climate change is a cause and a consequence at the same time, since draught results in desertification, however, low plant production decreases carbon sequestration, which further enhances climate change. This group of phenomena is apparently closely connected with the biodiversity crisis also as a cause and an effect. Global information crisis makes itself felt in this area as well, since new data and knowledge are increasing exponentially, see **Figure 1**. It shows the yearly number of international scientific articles with keywords desert + ecology in their abstracts according to the Scopus database, for the period 1912–2018 (downloaded on April 18, 2018, thus data for 2018 are quarterly ones).

**Author details**

**References**

Levente Hufnagel1,2\*, Ferenc Mics1

\*Address all correspondence to: leventehufnagel@gmail.com

2016;**14**(4):269-284. DOI: 10.15666/aeer/1404\_269284

2015;**13**(1):99-113. DOI: 10.15666/aeer/1301\_099113

Research. 2017;**15**(3):901-909. DOI: 10.15666/aeer/1503\_901909

eration of *Acacia gerrardii*. Plant Ecology. 2018;**219**(5):591-609

Journal of Animal Ecology. 2018;**87**(3):660-671

Environmental Research. 2013;**11**(1):79-122

Environmental Research. 2014;**12**(2):255-422

, Melinda Pálinkás1

1 Laboratory of Biometrics and Quantitative Ecology, Institute of Crop Production, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Science, Szent István University, Gödöllő, Hungary 2 ALÖKI Applied Ecological Research and Forensic Institute Ltd, Budapest, Hungary

[1] Wang M, Jiang P, Niu PX, Chu GM. Changes in spatial distribution and interactions of two woody plants during the sandy desertification process in the south margin of Junggar Basin, Northwest China. Applied Ecology and Environmental Research.

[2] Zhou CB, Song Y. Influence of different longitudinal dune positions in the reproduction of *Haloxylon ammodendron* seedlings. Applied Ecology and Environmental Research.

[3] Zhou CB, Gong W. Effect of provenance and climate on xylem anatomy of *Haloxylon ammodendron* (C. A. MEY) BUNGE, in the Gurbantungut desert, China. Applied Ecology and Environmental Research. 2017;**15**(3):1309-1321. DOI: 10.15666/aeer/1503\_13091321 [4] Abtahi M, Zandi E. Effects of phonological stage on forage quality of halophyte species *Salsola arbuscula* pall. In the central desert of Iran. Applied Ecology and Environmental

[5] Suleiman MK, Kingsley D, Lucy C. Seed germinability and longevity influences regen-

[6] Rivas-Arancibia SP, Carrillo-Ruis H, Arce AB, Figueroa-Castro DM, Andres-Hernández AR. Effect of disturbance on the ant community in semiarid region of Central Mexico. Applied Ecology and Environmental Research. 2014;**12**(3):703-716. DOI: 10.15666/aeer/1203\_703716 [7] Danae M, Adam S, Ray KM. Under the weather?-the direct effects of climate warming on a threatened desert lizard are mediated by their activity phase and burrow system.

[8] Garamvölgyi Á, Hufnagel L. Impacts of climate change on vegetation distribution no 1 climate change induced vegetation shifts in the Palearktic region. Applied Ecology and

[9] Hufnagel L, Garamvölgyi Á. Impacts of climate change on vegetation distribution no 2, climate change induced vegetation shifts in the new world. Applied Ecology and

and Réka Homoródi2

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.78368

9

Introductory Chapter: Global Aspects and Scientific Importance of Desert Ecological Research

When examining the genre of these publication data (rate of document types, **Figure 2**), one can see that 90.7% of the publications are made up of primary publications (journal articles) and pre-publication (conference papers), and only 7.4% of them is synthesis (review articles, book chapters, or books). Thus, new information is produced much faster than we can organize it into a system of thought.

Solving global problems (among them desertification problems) of mankind is mainly hindered by the lack of global coordination, which would serve the protection of the common interest and align the efforts of mankind. Solving global problems needs efficient international cooperation, aligned scientific research, aligned political decision-making, legislation and economic regulation.

**Figure 2.** Distribution of articles with keywords desert + ecology in their abstracts according to a document type in the Scopus database (downloaded on April 18, 2018).
