The first data in the Matsch| Mazia valley was collected in the year 2008. Originally aimed at studying climatic change impacts on dry mountain grassland, the measuring activities have been strongly expanded throughout the years. Today's activities on the site include process-oriented ecological research covering time (historical analysis, actual processes and future scenarios ) and space (from plot to landscape scale among different ecosystems) within a human-influenced catchment. The valley is situated in the central Alps in the westernmost part of South Tyrol in North Italy. Matsch is a side valley of the Vinschgau valley, and extends over 90 km2 reaching from 950 m.a.s.l. to 3700 m.a.sl. at the highest peak. The main village Matsch is located at 1600 m and has 458 inhabitants.Due to its protected location in the central Alps, the Mazia/Matsch valley represents one of the driest spots within the whole alpine range, with a mean annual precipitation of 525mm at 1500m.a.s.l (1950-2010)