Plain of Jars – the world’s oldest man-made biological experiment

Biotic communities, which can be found in the most extraordinary places, are assemblages of species that interact at a given location. The environment and isolation influence communities by selecting for species with the right traits enabling them to reach and thrive in a given ecosystem.

Scattered across the landscape in central Laos, thousands of large stone jars have been left from ancient burial rituals. Together, these jars form a massive biological experiment: for 2000 years, rainwater has interacted with geology to create unique yet perfectly replicated ecosystems that include organisms ranging from microbes to aquatic plants. The age and high number of replicates offers a unique opportunity for unfolding one of ecology’s long-standing questions: What shapes biological communities? Using novel sampling techniques, the project will strengthen the understanding of the importance of environmental conditions and habitat isolation for biodiversity in aquatic ecosystems.