Landscape change in photographs: A study of aerial photographs and rephotographs of the nature reserve Sätraskogen

The historic usage of Swedish farmlands created a mosaic landscape with many biotopes and a great biological diversity. The landscape is however always changing. Big changes have happened since the 1940s, which has affected the biological diversity which is depending on those biotopes. Sweden’s environmental goals “Levande skogar” and “Ett rikt växt- och djurliv” states that landscape changes can affect the biological diversity. These goals state that the biological diversity should be protected alongside with important habitats and biotopes and that ecosystems should be preserved so that species can survive in the long term. This essay will investigate how the landscape has changed in Sätraskogens nature reserve. By using the method of rephotography an old photo can be compared to a new one that shows the same aspects and objects. By analyzing the results of the rephotography conclusions about how the landscape has changed between the photo-moments can be drawn. The landscape around Sätraskogen has a long history of usage. Sätra gård is known since the 1300s. Historically the forests in Sätraskogen has both been grazed and sparsely lumbered. Signs of these events that are still visible today are oaks with wide crowns and the relatively grassrich flora. The rephotographic study shows that the landscape of Sätraskogen is overgrowing. Trees are growing up in earlier open spaces and the historically grassrich flora has deteriorated. The study of aerial-photographs supports the trend which the rephotographic study shows. The woods that were sparse in the earlier aerial-photograph were overgrown in the latter one. This essay draws the conclusion that the area around Sätraskogen is becoming overgrown, most likely because the usage of the land has changed; sparse lumbering and grazing are no longer used in the managing of the forest.Uppsats för avläggande av filosofie kandidatexamen med huvudområdet kulturvård med inriktning mot landskapsvård, 201