Lichens, lichens everywhere in the mountains of Dovre

Wide views, rolling hills, rocky mountain tops: we are proud to introduce you to Dovrefjell in the Norwegian mountains, backdrop of a new branch of our fascinating mountain research.

At high elevations: rocks as far as the eye can see

It provides the wild scenery enjoyed by Ronja, Ilias (thank him for the pictures!) and the Norwegian team this summer, when they were up there to dive deeper into the effects of mountain trails on the fragile alpine vegetation.

A mountain trail running through the wide landscapes of Dovre

I had introduced the area already in an earlier blogpost, when we visited the place for a kick-off meeting of Ronja’s PhD research. That time, however, the mountains were covered in a soft, white blanket.

Dovrefjell in winter, an otherworldly beauty

Little did I know how beautiful the place would look in summer, up till the pictures from the fieldwork crew started seeping through.

Studying mountain plants up close – a dedicated fieldwork team at work in the mountains

Of course it is more than just pretty pictures we hope to get from the area, these only form the stunning decor for even more breathtaking science: Ronja is leading several observational and experimental studies on species distribution dynamics along mountain trails.

Little flowers of Antennaria and Erigeron in the rocky alpine zone

Yet the results have to wait till later – after a deep dive into the statistics. Until then, we offer you these pictures to make you think ‘damn, I wish I was a mountain ecologist!’