The artificial water catchment "Chicken Creek" as an observatory for critical zone processes and structures

Abstract. In order to better understand the processes of the "Critical Zone" investigations are mainly carried out in watersheds as they represent parts of the landscape having more or less defined outlines. However, natural watersheds must, in some cases, be characterized as "black boxes" with respect to e.g. structures in the underground or catchment boundaries which are generally unknown and need great efforts to be explored. Artificially created watersheds might, thus, be an appropriate alternative as boundaries and inner structures can be planned and defined in advance. This paper presents a recently launched project dealing with the initial phase of ecosystem development with a man-made catchment as central research site. The research site has an area of 6 ha and can be regarded as one of the largest artificial watersheds developed for scientific purposes worldwide. It was completed in 2005 and left for an unrestricted ecosystem succession. This paper introduces the creation and main properties of this site as well as first results of an ongoing monitoring program.