Fig. 7

Suggested timeline for a research study of Q1. The figure illustrates the suggested timeline for studying Q1, including pre-impact monitoring of control as well as impact sites, and a sufficient time period after the treatment to capture time-lag effects that may take more than 10 years for organisms with slow dispersal and population dynamics. While biodiversity monitoring should start before or at least immediately after the treatment starts, analytical evaluation of the impact should preferably be made from a few years after the impact/treatment was initiated but should never stop at that time. The “before” period can be substantially shortened if sites and data from ongoing grassland biodiversity monitoring programs are available (see text)