No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.
Erasing a European biodiversity hot-spot: Open woodlands, veteran trees and mature forests succumb to forestry intensification, succession, and logging in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
Abstract
Open woodlands are among the biologically richest habitats of the temperate zone. Although open woodlands were much more common in the past and covered large areas of Europe, their original cover and magnitude of their loss remain mostly unknown. Here, we quantify the loss of open woodlands and assess the potential for their restoration in an internationally protected biodiversity hot-spot, floodplain woodlands of lower Thaya and March rivers of Dolní Morava UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in Czech Republic. Aerial photographs from years 1938 and 2009 were used to analyse changes in forest canopy closure across an area of 146 km2 and separately for 270 ha of nature reserves found in the area. Forestry maps and aerial photographs were used to analyse changes in forest age structure. Between 1938 and 2009, expansion of closed-canopy forest reduced open woodlands cover from 41% to 5.7% of total wooded area, or 68.5% to 14.1% in the state reserves respectively. Logging has led to a decrease in mature forest cover from 45% to 26% between 1990 and 2009. State reserves prevented logging, but not open woodlands loss. The magnitude of open woodlands loss parallels that of tropical habitats, but has gone unabated by nature conservation. Opportunities to restore open woodlands and conserve associated biodiversity in the internationally protected (e.g. UNESCO, Natura 2000), mostly state-owned, woodlands are being compromised by rapid logging. Our results also point to the low efficiency of international conservation measures in post-communist members of European Union.
... A characteristic of these open forests was large, old sunlit trees which created a high number of different microhabitats such as hollows, deadwood within the crown and cavities caused by decaying wood and bark loss (Bütler et al., 2013;Siitonen and Ranius, 2015). These are essential for maintaining the diversity of fungi, lichens and saproxylic beetles (Lassauce et al., 2011;Bütler et al., 2013;Bouget et al., 2013;Horak et al., 2014), but they are extremely lacking in contemporary floodplain forests (Miklín and Čížek, 2014). ...
... This process involves harvesting of all trees, including stumps, removal of vegetation and wood residues and subsequent soil ploughing which is now relatively straightforward in the flat and fertile areas of floodplains. Mechanical site preparation supports non-forest ruderal communities that may persist at the site for >15 years and increases the number of invasive species (e.g., Aster lanceolatus and Acer negundo) (Miklín and Čížek, 2014;Šebesta et al., 2021). Such intensive management interventions have been shown to be harmless to the majority of small mammals (Suchomel et al., 2020) and most open-woodland specialists from saproxylic organisms (Miklín and Čížek, 2014). ...
... Mechanical site preparation supports non-forest ruderal communities that may persist at the site for >15 years and increases the number of invasive species (e.g., Aster lanceolatus and Acer negundo) (Miklín and Čížek, 2014;Šebesta et al., 2021). Such intensive management interventions have been shown to be harmless to the majority of small mammals (Suchomel et al., 2020) and most open-woodland specialists from saproxylic organisms (Miklín and Čížek, 2014). One of the major shortcomings of the modern forestry, is the underappreciation of the practice of retaining dead wood and old hollow trees in the forest understory (Miklín and Čížek, 2014). ...
Floodplain forests offer a diversity of habitats and resources for a very wide range of plant and animal species. They also offer many benefits to humankind and are considered essential to the mitigation of the effects of climate change. Nevertheless, throughout the world they are suffering the most intense of anthropogenic pressures so are, of all ecosystems, among the most endangered. Here, we bring together and synthesise existing ecological understanding of the mechanisms underlying the high heterogeneity and diversity of temperate floodplain forests and of the pressures threatening their high biological value due to habitat homogenisation. Floodplain forests depend on the periodic disturbances under which they evolved, including fluvial dynamics, traditional management practices and the activities of herbivores. However, they have been heavily degraded by climate change, invasion of exotic species, river-flow regulation, landscape fragmentation, eutrophication and the cessation of traditional management. We can now observe two general trends in temperate floodplain forests: (1) Due to intensive landscape exploitation, they are now more open and thus prone to the spread of competitive species, including of invasive exotics and (2) Due to the cessation of traditional management, along with modified hydrological conditions, they are composed of species in the later successional stages (i.e., more shade-tolerant and mesic) while light-demanding species are quickly vanishing. Restoration practices have brought about contrasting results when restoration of floodplains to their natural states has been problematic. This is likely because of interplay between various natural and artificial processes not previously taken into proper consideration. We would like to draw attention to the fact that restoration projects or the preservation of existing floodplain forest ecosystems should combine the restoration of watercourses with the mitigation of other important threats acting at different scales of the landscape (spread of invasive species, eutrophication of watersheds and inappropriate forest management).
... Woodlands are pertinent to explore these effects because rural abandonment has resulted in stands differing in structural development of vegetation (e.g. Miklín and Čížek, 2014;Conedera et al., 2016;Gilliam, 2016). Weaker effects of local conditions are expected for the more mobile groups and for those with the wide trophic spectrum. ...
... Streams shape many temperate forests and woodlands around the world (Likens and Bormann, 1974;Mills, 1980) and forests in this region are no exception (García et al., 2014). The focal chestnut woodlands are typical examples of rural abandonment and fragmentation, two threats affecting other temperate deciduous woodlands especially in Europe and North America (Miklín and Čížek, 2014;Gilliam, 2016;Sebek et al., 2016). We expected stream distance to be an important factor in forest management if there are clear associations with arthropods after accounting for the effects of other determinants of forest diversity (Table 1). ...
... The focal chestnut forest patches exemplified one of the major biodiversity challenges in temperate regions, namely, the conservation of open old-growth woodlands (Gondard et al., 2001;Lindenmayer et al., 2010;Miklín and Čížek, 2014;Sebek et al., 2016). Given the high influence of surrounding habitats on open forests (Murcia, 1995;Wright et al., 2010), chestnut woodlands are an exemplar to explore the influence of streams in the complex dynamics of non-riparian arthropods. ...
Streams are likely to be increasingly important for the conservation of non-riparian forest diversity with increased aridity due to climate change in many parts of the world. However, the importance of streams as promoters of non-riparian forest diversity has not been explored in detail. Given the likely stronger effect of surrounding habitats on open forests, we examined chestnut woodlands in northern Spain (n = 32) to explore the contribution of streams to variation in arthropod measures. We captured 5,490 arthropods (21 orders and 63 families) from which we calculated total abundance and richness and the abundance of trophic guilds. Vegetation structure at the tree and understory levels often made the largest independent contributions to explained variation in arthropod numbers and effects suggested alterations in arthropods’ food-web. Negative effects of stream-distance on taxon richness and the abundance of predators, omnivores and phytophages seemed to be largely mediated by vegetation structure. The exception was a strong univariate inverse association between the abundance of aerial predators and stream distance, possibly because wasps might be exploiting riverine habitats. Overall, effects of stream-distance were weaker for ground than for aerial arthropod groups. Moreover, arthropod numbers were greater at sites with low tree species richness and tall and species-rich understories, raising concerns for the ecological consequences of the abandonment of traditional forest practices in these woodlands. Gains in arthropod diversity and ecosystem services (e.g. pest control, nutrient cycling, pollination) might be had if non-riparian forests are managed in a way that depends on stream-distance. Inferences may improve with a more complete knowledge of the biology of poorly studied groups, such as flies.
... OHFs are of key importance for biodiversity conservation because they serve as refugia for nemoral biota, especially in largely deforested lowlands (Vera, 2000;Kolb & Diekmann, 2004;Stefańska-Krzaczek et al., 2016;Chytrý et al., 2019). They harbour numerous narrow-range (limited to less than 20% of the study region, typically less than 10%) and relict forest plant species (Coldea, 2015;Gholizadeh et al., 2020;Novák et al., 2019Novák et al., , 2020a as well as rare semi-shade species (Garbarino & Bergmeier, 2014;Miklín & Čížek, 2016;Kiedrzyński et al., 2017). They are classified as near threatened (NT) for EU28 and EU28+ countries, as their abiotic and biotic quality has decreased significantly over the last fifty years (Janssen et al., 2016). ...
... canopy closure, eutrophication, nitrogen deposition) have been reported at numerous places across the continent (e.g. Vera, 2000;Hédl et al., 2010;Miklín & Čížek, 2016). ...
Aims
Oak–hornbeam forests and related vegetation types (phytosociological order Carpinetalia betuli ) are widespread in temperate western Eurasia. However, their national classification systems are poorly compatible, and a broad‐scale classification based on numerical analyses is lacking. Therefore, we aimed to establish a unified formalized classification system based on a large data set of vegetation plots covering the entire range of these forests.
Location
Europe, Anatolia, Caucasus and northern Iran.
Methods
We compiled a data set of 15,817 vegetation plots from the European Vegetation Archive and the Hyrcanian Forest Vegetation Database, using the formal definition of the EUNIS habitat type T1E Carpinus and Quercus mesic deciduous forest. We classified the data set using TWINSPAN. Biogeographically and ecologically similar plot clusters were merged into oak–hornbeam forest types, which were interpreted as alliances. We also developed expert systems for automatically classifying vegetation at the alliance level for both the EuroVegChecklist (EVC) system and the revised classification. In addition, we calculated ordinations to show the major gradients in the species composition of the data set.
Results
We present a revised classification system of the order Carpinetalia betuli with nine alliances, including basic descriptions of their species composition, distribution, ecology and syntaxonomy. The analyses largely supported the biogeographic concept of classification, analogous to EVC. Compared to EVC, we recognized an additional alliance Physospermo verticillati‐Quercion cerridis (southern Italy) but found no support for the alliances Astrantio‐Carpinion , Erythronio‐Carpinion and Scillo‐Quercion . The greatest difference in species composition was found between the southern and northern‐northeastern Carpinetalia types. Expert systems for the revised classification system (~89% of plots classified) and the EVC system (~72%) are also included.
Conclusions
We provide the first comprehensive overview of alliances of the order Carpinetalia betuli across its whole distribution range. The associated expert systems allow consistent application of the classification of these forests in nature conservation, habitat monitoring, and biodiversity and ecological research.
... The ecosystem site Lanžhot-Forest contributes to ICOS (Integrated Carbon Observation System) network. (Miklín and Čížek, 2014). In addition to these trees, all economically high-quality wood is removed during the clearcutting process. ...
... Our work represents conditions where all vegetation cover is removed from the AOI, the bare soil surface is leveled, and dense planting of English oak seedlings follows. Study (Brychta et al., 2020) show that some loggings methods such as Shelterwood cutting may improve the efficiency of water management in stands and limit the often inappropriate interventions during its logging with regard to the biodiversity of the area (Roleček and Řepka, 2020), which is significantly suppressed in the current forestry procedures of extraction and restoration of forests in the floodplain areas (Miklín and Čížek, 2014). ...
Actual evapotranspiration (ETa) is a key component of the water balance, and its accurate quantification of spatiotemporal variation is essential to improve the understanding of soil–plant-atmosphere-hydrosphere interactions. While in situ point measurements allow for the determination of the ETa of a particular ecosystem or land cover type, remote sensing methods make it possible to divide and evaluate the rate of ETa of different ecosystems in the landscape and would allow better management of the water resource system, especially if those are partly or permanently limited. The goal of this paper was to analyze the impact of clearcutting during standard forest management practices in floodplain forests and its effect on the water regime of the area. We selected the Lanžhot floodplain forest area (48.681°N 16.950°E, 155 m a.s.l.) that represents a biologically and hydrologically unique area of remnant floodplain forest within the upper Danube River basin. Since clearcutting represents a drastic intervention into the ecosystem including changes in canopy structure and local microclimate, we hypothesized that the impact of the clearcut on the overall water balance is long-term in the order of decades as a result consequence of logging of the mature forest and changes in local microclimatic conditions in disturbed areas. To analyze the impacts of clearcutting on ETa, we applied the METRIC (Mapping EvapoTranspiration at high Resolution with Internalized Calibration) remote sensing model. METRIC was validated in the Central European climatic conditions using two ground eddy covariance measurements systems over grassland and floodplain forest. The evaluated model METRIC was then applied to quantify ETa in three areas of interest in the floodplain forest, where in 2015–2021, mature vegetation was targeted for removal, modification of the soil surface, and subsequent planting of a new generation of English oak trees (Quercus robur L.). Immediately after the removal of vegetation cover, METRIC detected an annual decrease in ETa by 35–40%, while leaf area index (LAI) decreased by 70–80%. This was followed by a quick recovery of the ETa/ETo (where ETo represents FAO-56 reference evapotranspiration), reaching similar values as uncut surrounding vegetation during the third year, while LAI recovery was detected in the fifth year after the removal of vegetation cover. The rapid recovery of the ETa/ETo rejected the initial hypothesis, and studies showed that the newly formed stand replaced the ETa/ETo rate of the mature stand in the floodplain forest conditions of Central Europe in the fourth year, suggesting that the impacts of clearcutting on the hydrology may be temporally relatively limited.
... At the same time, habitats of high conservational value, such as softwood riparian forests, close-to-natural wetlands and wet or mesic grasslands are in the second, or even in the priority category (B, A) if they are lying outside of the National Park. As habitats in Natura 2000 areas are found in priority category B, it is questionable whether the Natura 2000 network provides adequate protection for these valuable habitat types (Wesolowski, 2005;Miklín and Čížek, 2014) especially in preventing the spread of IAS (Guerra et al., 2018). The situation is deteriorated by the fact that Natura sites are often fragmented and located in landscapes that are heavily invaded (Pyšek et al., 2013). ...
... They indispensably need regular inundation of 2-8 weeks per year, so in their case conservational and certain FRM aspects are synergetic. Regular waterlogging, as a natural disturbance agent, is needed to maintain their continuously changing architectural structure with many deadwoods, rich tree regeneration and typical biota (Miklín and Čížek, 2014). ...
The necessity of plural valuation of costs for flood risk management is widely acknowledged, but practical case studies are still scarce. We developed a GIS-based plural valuation framework to determine spatially explicit priority categories for flood risk management intervention schemes on the Drava River, Southern Hungary. A conventional economic evaluation, including land market prices and additional costs due to legal conservation restrictions, was complemented by ecological valuation of vulnerability. The inclusion of ecological vulnerability significantly changed the proposed priority areas for flood risk management interventions: in this case, softwood riparian forests face far less threat, together with other Natura 2000 habitats, in comparison to unprotected wetlands and grasslands. This valuation framework also highlights priority habitats and areas for joint conservation and water management projects, utilising the synergies between several EU Directives as the Birds Directive, Habitats Directive, Flood Directive, and Water Framework Directive. Our framework is adaptable for the other floodplains along major or medium-sized European rivers, assuming that specific local settings are considered.
... This area of ca. 146 km 2 is composed of mostly managed hardwood forests interspersed with stands with open canopies or wooded meadows (Miklín & Čížek, 2014). Also, several small minimum intervention reserves with a total area of 250 ha are located here, but this is only 1.7% of the whole study area, so its effect on results is negligible. ...
... These practices were abandoned 60-150 years ago in favour of high forest with a 90-to 120-year rotation. Due to the variation in stand characteristics and to the presence of old trees (Miklín et al., 2018), the area is a biodiversity hotspot of saproxylic organisms in Central Europe (Miklín & Čížek, 2014). ...
Aim
Understanding the processes that structure biological communities along environmental gradients remains one of the main aims of ecological research. A leading question is how differences in species composition between sites, that is, β‐diversity, change in habitats ordered along environmental gradients and how such changes vary with species relative abundances. The existing literature remains descriptive, mostly comparing communities from different parts of a gradient, but not tracking sequential changes of β‐diversity along the entire gradient.
Location
Temperate deciduous forests in Central Europe.
Taxa
Saproxylic beetles.
Methods
We applied a generalized concept of Hill numbers to data on the distribution of saproxylic beetles to test (i) whether community dissimilarities correlate with dissimilarities in major environmental variables (canopy openness, tree diameter and tree genus) and (ii) which mechanisms explain sequential changes of β‐diversity along these environmental gradients. Furthermore, we illustrate changes in the mean (α‐diversity) and total (γ‐diversity) number of species along the gradients.
Results
Dissimilarities in saproxylic beetle communities were positively correlated with dissimilarities in all studied environmental variables. Changes in β‐diversity along the gradients differed for different weighting of rare, common and dominant species, with rare and dominant species always showing opposite trends. β‐diversity increased simultaneously with increasing γ‐diversity when weight was given to dominant species. On the other hand, β‐diversity decreased when weight was given to rare species.
Main conclusions
The different response of rare and dominant species indicates a similar importance of stochastic and deterministic processes in determining β‐diversity. Although the changes in β‐diversity detected along the environmental gradients were relatively slight, major community dissimilarities were found when comparing communities in different locations of the environmental gradients.
... Our study shows that successional development and spatial connectivity of the habitat are the two main factors to consider in the conservation of O. eremita. In areas with numerous ancient trees there is often a comparatively low number of young trees (Miklín and Čížek 2014;Ranius et al. 2009a), indicating a potential decrease in ancient trees in the future (Gibbons et al. 2008;Miklín and Čížek 2014). For maintaining O. eremita metapopulations in the long term, existing hollow trees should be preserved and, if possible, their life-time prolonged (Keymer et al. 2000). ...
... Our study shows that successional development and spatial connectivity of the habitat are the two main factors to consider in the conservation of O. eremita. In areas with numerous ancient trees there is often a comparatively low number of young trees (Miklín and Čížek 2014;Ranius et al. 2009a), indicating a potential decrease in ancient trees in the future (Gibbons et al. 2008;Miklín and Čížek 2014). For maintaining O. eremita metapopulations in the long term, existing hollow trees should be preserved and, if possible, their life-time prolonged (Keymer et al. 2000). ...
Osmoderma eremita is a species of beetle that inhabits hollows in ancient trees, which is a habitat that has decreased significantly during the last century. In southeastern Sweden, we studied the metapopulation dynamics of this beetle over a 25 year period, using capture-mark-recapture. The metapopulation size had been rather stable over time, but in most of the individual trees there had been a positive or negative trend in population development. The probability of colonisation was higher in well-connected trees with characteristics reflecting earlier successional stages, and the probability of extinction higher in trees with larger diameter (i.e. in later successional stages), which is expected from a habitat-tracking metapopulation. The annual tree mortality and fall rates (1.1% and 0.4%, respectively) are lower than the colonisation and extinction rates (5–7%), indicating that some of the metapopulation dynamics are due to the habitat dynamics, but many colonisations and extinctions take place for other reasons, such as stochastic events in small populations. The studied metapopulation occurs in an area with a high density of hollow oaks and where the oak pastures are still managed by grazing. In stands with fewer than ten suitable trees, the long-term extinction risk may be considerable, since only a small proportion of all hollow trees harbours large populations, and the population size in trees may change considerably during a decade.
... Moreover, we observed that the surface in commercial stands is much more flat, probably as a result of milling and other terrain adjustments carried out by silviculture activities during stand establishment. We suggest that these activities maintain various level of micro-topography, thus significantly affect species diversity and compositional variation in hard-wood floodplain forest as shown also by other studies (Janík et al. 2008;Miklín and Čížek 2014). ...
... The ruderal communities persist for at least 15 years. Similar conclusions were also reached by Miklín and Čížek (2014). ...
To understand how different management interventions influence the forest structure and biodiversity, various components of vascular plant communities were studied and compared in differently managed forest stands and clearings. The number of species, the percentage of the overall cover of alien species, different Raunkier’s life forms’, CRS strategists, the amount of litter and canopy openness were monitored and used for assessment of forest stands condition. We discovered that the species richness and composition of intensively managed forests significantly differ from those with extensive management. Intensive management interventions in commercial plantations, such as mechanical site preparation and the application of herbicides significantly contribute to the decrease of diversity and the spread of alien and ruderal plant species at the expense of native species. On the other hand, when new stands are founded and cared for sensitively, common types of floodplain forests show good regeneration abilities and their species diversity is preserved or quickly renewed. Thus, extensive floodplain forest management results in higher biodiversity and better conditions for the fulfillment of both wood-producing and non-wood-producing functions as well as for sustainable management. We further propose that mechanical site preparation with soil milling and application of herbicides may have a very strong negative impact on the overall biodiversity in forest plantations.
... w h at s c i e n c e c a n t e l l u s [46]. Similarly, in Slovenia, Slovakia [47] and Lithuania [48], forest managers report restrictions on timber-oriented forest management and economic burdens due to the im- [50]. Although the intensity of timber logging was reported as technically in accordance with the applicable forest law, it is unlikely to meet conservation objectives in these Natura 2000 forest sites. ...
... The issue of how and to what extent to involve stakeholders and/or the public in the implementation process (section 3.3.2) was a major institutional challenge for the authorities[27, 32]. This question is in fact one of the prominent research topics in the recent studies related to Natura 2000 implementation[37,44,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53,54,55,56,57].The question of how to reconcile the contradiction between conservation goals and voluntary implementation approaches is still an open issue in relation to Natura 2000 management. ...
Natura 2000 is the core pillar in the European Union’s (EU) biodiversity conservation policy. It is an EU-wide ecological network of protected areas that cuts across countries’ borders, administrative levels, policy sectors and socio-economic contexts. The network is established and managed according to the legally-binding provisions of the 1979 EU Birds Directive (79/409/EEC, revised in 2009) and the 1992 EU Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC). Natura 2000 aims to achieve biodiversity conservation and to combine it with the sustainable development of land and natural resources. It can allow for continuation of land uses (eg agriculture, forestry) as long as they do not significantly compromise conservation objectives for habitats and species within and beyond the network. The Natura 2000 network now covers almost 18% of the EU’s territory. Forests are of crucial importance for Natura 2000 and vice versa. Almost 50% of the whole coverage of the network is comprised of forests. This means that nearly 25% of the total forest area in the EU-28 is part of the EU-wide network of protected areas. Yet knowledge about the implementation of Natura 2000 in forests and its effects on biodiversity, forest management and other land uses across the EU is fragmented. This science-based study aims to narrow the gaps in the scholarly, practical and policy- related knowledge. It looks from policy, economic and ecological perspectives at the monitoring of forest biodiversity in Europe, as well as the challenges, achievements, effectiveness and efficiency of the implementation of Natura 2000 in forests in the EU- 28. The study provides conclusions and recommendations that can support decisionmaking in policy and practice.
... It is a particularly tempting option for abandoned coppices which have not been transformed to plantations and have preserved some ancient features, such as their characteristic biota (Vild et al., 2013;Roleček et al., 2017). Unfortunately, this option has not been yet implemented into management plans of many protected lowland forests in the Czech Republic, and the efforts to restore historical forest management meets considerable resistance not only from forestry institutions, but sometimes also from nature conservation authorities (Řepka, 2009;Miklín and Čížek, 2014). We suppose that besides economic reasons this resistance also stems from a lack of experience with alternative management forms, absence of consistent policy in this area and inability to communicate effectively with the stakeholders (Dušek, 2014;Miklín and Čížek, 2014). ...
... Unfortunately, this option has not been yet implemented into management plans of many protected lowland forests in the Czech Republic, and the efforts to restore historical forest management meets considerable resistance not only from forestry institutions, but sometimes also from nature conservation authorities (Řepka, 2009;Miklín and Čížek, 2014). We suppose that besides economic reasons this resistance also stems from a lack of experience with alternative management forms, absence of consistent policy in this area and inability to communicate effectively with the stakeholders (Dušek, 2014;Miklín and Čížek, 2014). ...
Forest vegetation is dominated by long-lived species in the tree layer, which facilitates its relatively high inertia and ability to conserve traces of its history in its structure and species composition. Central European lowland forests have been the subject of diverse human use for millennia and some of the present stands still show remnants of historical management forms practised before the onset of modern forestry. In the past decades, biodiversity decline has become a major concern, and restoration of historical uses has been proposed as a nature-friendly alternative for forest management. We explored the consequences of the transformation of an old oak coppice, historically linked to ancient wood pasture system, to oak plantation. We focused on vascular plant species richness and differences in ecological spectra of the plant assemblages, with the goal of evaluating the consequences for biodiversity conservation and identifying possible environmental drivers behind the observed patterns. The study was performed in the best preserved complex of lowland steppic oak forests in the Czech Republic, protected as a Site of Community Importance. We fully inventoried plant species in 135 oak stands classified into three management-age classes: (1) clear-cuts, (2) young growth stands after area-wide site preparation , and (3) old growth stands. For some analyses, old growth stands were divided into those showing signs of past coppicing and the others. We found that species richness was the highest in clear-cuts, the lowest in young growth stands, and intermediate in old growth stands. Clear-cuts showed the highest uniqueness in species composition, with a high share of ruderal species. Young growth stands showed the lowest uniqueness, with a high proportion of competitive species. Old growth stands showed intermediate uniqueness and the coppiced ones had a high share of stress-tolerant species, often of high conservation value. While it is hardly surprising that the establishment of oak plantations has profound effects on biodiversity, we suggest that clear-cutting itself may not be a key issue. Destructive site preparation in clear-cuts, and competition for resources in dense young oak stands are suggested as the main factors threatening the survival of ancient biota of steppic oak forests in our study area. In contrast, continuity of site conditions in formerly coppiced old growth stands facilitates species survival. We suggest that restoration of historical management forms such as coppicing and wood pasture may support this continuity. Where oak planting is still applied, we advise minimising site preparation and applying early thinning of young growth stands.
... Wood pasture similarly results in forest gaps and open canopies as here large herbivores are thinning the understory vegetation. These habitat types are recognized as biodiversity hotspots in Central Europe (Horák et al. 2018;Miklín and Čížek 2014;Sebek et al. 2015), yet, they have vanished in many areas, as these traditional managements cannot cope with modern forest management systems when it comes to economical gain. Remaining open forest areas are threatened by nutrient input, non-native species, and natural succession processes (Chudomelová et al. 2017). ...
The European Biodiversity Strategy has set the key goal to maintain and promote biodiversity. Managed forests here play a key role, as they are among the most diverse ecosystems. To create biodiversity rich managed forest landscapes, we need a deep understanding on how management affects forest structure and subsequently habitat quality on the local and landscape level. However, to date a confusingly large amount of different terms for various management systems exist and it remains unclear how forest structure and composition affected by specific management systems affect biodiversity. Here, we first aim to clarify forest management systems terminology. Second, we link existing management systems with forest structure and review at European level how these structures affect local α-, as well as landscape-scale β- and γ-biodiversity. We found that research and derived management guidelines have a strong focus on local forest stand heterogeneity and related α-diversity, while ignoring the importance of landscape-scale heterogeneity and therefore β- and γ-diversity. Instead of promoting one management system as an all-in-one-solution, a diversity of different forest management systems seems the most promising way to create biodiversity rich forest landscapes. We finally discuss how a combination of different management systems might help to create structurally rich forest habitats and landscapes, simulating different successional stages and promoting species rich communities.
... La majorité de ces sites font partie des milieux ruraux européens (Sundseth & Wegefelt, 2008). Dans cette étude, les sites Natura 2000 sous gestion et occupation civile suivent les tendances générales européennes avec une intensification des complexes agricoles et des pratiques sylvicoles (Jepsen et al., 2015;Kuemmerle et al., 2016), or ces deux activités ont été citées dans diverses études comme des facteurs de dégradation et de perte d'habitats au sein du réseau Natura 2000 (Santos et al., 2008;Iojă et al., 2010;Halada et al., 2011;McKenna et al., 2014;Miklín & Čížek, 2014). Ainsi, de nombreux auteurs se sont questionnés sur l'efficacité de protection de ces sites (Dimitrakopoulos et al., 2004;Rosati et al., 2008;Trochet & Schmeller, 2013;McKenna et al., 2014;Pechanec et al., 2018). ...
Les terrains militaires constituent des espaces potentiels de conservation dont le ministère des Armées cherche à optimiser la gestion. Le statut militaire implique à la fois un effet réserve (interdiction d’accès) et des niveaux de perturbations liés aux activités d’entraînement. Ils constituent des socio-écosystèmes complexes dont l’analyse implique des études à plusieurs échelles spatiales et temporelles (Dynamiques paysagères, évaluation de l’état de conservation des habitats et étude des communautés animales et végétales. Initié dans le cadre du Life NaturArmy, cette thèse s’appuie sur des observations réalisées sur six habitats au sein de six camps d’entraînement militaires pour répondre à trois questions de recherches principales :
- Comment les emprises militaires, par leur expansion ou régression, la diversité d’activités qui s’y déroulent et les changements d’occupants ont impacté les paysages au cours du temps ?
- Quel est l’impact des emprises militaires sur la structure, les diversités et la composition des différents habitats présents ?
- Comment les emprises militaires impactent l’état de conservation des habitats présents ?
Les résultats ont confirmé le rôle conservatoire des terrains militaires mais en le nuançant selon les contextes et pratiques locales.
... In holzwirtschaftlich optimierten Wäldern sind BMH deshalb seltener als im Naturwald derselben Altersphase (Scherzinger 1996). Auch die flächige Aufgabe historischer Waldnutzungsformen wie Huteoder Mittelwälder, die heute vom völligen Verschwinden bedroht sind (Finck et al. 2017), führte zu einem Rückgang strukturreicher Waldlebensräume (Miklín, Čížek 2014;Ranius, Jansson 2000;Röder et al. 2021). Aber die Hauptursachen sind der flächige Verlust natürlicher Waldgesellschaften, das flächige Fehlen von Altbäumen und Zerfallsphasen im Wald sowie der Umstand, dass beschädigte Bäume als Initial für die Entstehung von BMH nur in sehr geringem Umfang belassen werden. ...
Baummikrohabitate (BMH) sind biodiversitätsfördernde Strukturelemente an Einzelbäumen und haben eine wichtige Funktion für den Artenschutz. Zu den BMH zählen bspw. Specht-und Faulhöhlen, Kronentotholz und epiphytischer Bewuchs. Durch technisierte und ertragsorientierte Waldbewirtschaftungsformen liegen Quantität und Qualität von BMH in Wäldern in der Regel deutlich unter dem natürlichen Potenzial. Die natürliche Entstehung und Entwicklung von BMH dauert oft Jahrzehnte und unterliegt zufälligen Einwirkungen. Um dennoch BMH in größerer Anzahl und unabhängig von natürlichen Wirkungsgefügen und Zeiträumen bereitzustellen, können BMH künstlich erzeugt oder ihre Entwicklung kann durch technische Maßnahmen beschleunigt werden. Die häufigsten und bekanntesten künstlichen BMH sind Nistkästen für diverse Vogelarten sowie Fledermausquartiere. Weit weniger gängig sind die künstliche Schaffung von Kronentotholz und Stammhöhlungen oder das Bereitstellen komplexer Habitatimitate für totholznutzende Gliederfüßer (Arthropoden). Seltenere Zielarten künstlicher BMH sind auch andere Säugetiere wie Bilche (Gliridae), verschiedene Pilzarten und Flechten. Inwiefern künstlich geschaffene BMH ihre natürlichen Vorbilder erfolgreich imitieren können, ist bislang nicht abschließend bekannt, auch wenn die Zielarten der für diesen Beitrag untersuchten Literatur überproportional häufig gefährdete bzw. seltene Arten umfassen. Der teilweise geringe Kenntnisstand zu den künstlichen BMH ist ein beschränkender Faktor bei deren Anlage und Standortwahl. Insbesondere fehlen präzise Anleitungen für deren Schaffung oder Initiierung. Die vorliegende Literaturstudie trägt die vorhandenen wissenschaftlichen Kenntnisse zur Anlage und Wirksamkeit künstlicher und künstlich initiierter BMH im Wald zusammen.
... Despite its importance, re management has been sporadically used in commercial or protected areas to maintain and restore biodiversity across various habitat types, such as steppes and heaths (Marková et al. 2011;Miklín and Čížek 2014;Reed-Dustin et al. 2016;Folharini et al. 2023). Currently, psammophilous assemblages are indirectly preserved through human activities without an explicit goal of biodiversity conservation, such as railway corridors or military training areas (Culek et al. 2013;Hustáková 2015). ...
Psammophilous beetles, a group endangered in temperate ecosystems, are mainly threatened by habitat loss. These beetles thrive in areas formed by the weathering of marine or fluvial sediments. Historically, practices such as slash-and-burn method or litter raking have exposed and destabilized sediments. In Central Europe, the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) has been used to stabilize sand dunes, improve soil composition and create shadier environments. This has led to the degradation of psammophilous communities and a decline in biodiversity. Our study examines whether fire can help restore and maintain psammophilous beetle populations.
Our research focused on two aspects: (i) the long-term effects of wildfire in 2012 on beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in the "Moravská Sahara–Bzenec district" of South Moravia (period 2013–2021), and (ii) the effects of environmental factors, influenced by the aforementioned wildfire on the distribution of these beetles in the period 2016 to 2021.
The study compared species composition, life-history traits, and functional diversity between three forest stages: (i) newly disturbed areas with Coarse Wood Debris (CWD) left to naturally decay; (ii) semi-decayed mid-aged stands and (iii) reference mid-aged stands.
Our findings indicate that fire was important factor influencing species assemblages. Interestingly, post-fire changes in food availability emerged as the second important factor, leading to the formation of two distinct species clusters: granivorous species thrived on site dominated by graminoids, and site with accumulated CWD was attracted predominantly by carnivorous species.
Implications for insect conservation: We suggest that fire management is an effective strategy for conserving and enhancing the diversity of post-fire early-successional beetle assemblages in areas where these species exist. Consequently, the increase in forest canopy closure in these habitats should not be solely regarded as regeneration or a return to a natural state. Instead, it should be considered a potential threat to their richness and diversity.
... In such socioecological circumstances, there was an increased need for hay cutting in neighbouring forests. However, it should also be noted that forests in lower-lying regions were probably more open than mountain forests (Miklín and Čížek 2014), and such open stands provided favourable conditions for hay cutting (Jamrichová et al. 2013), even under coppice management. According to the practical forestry guide attached to the 1754 Czech forest law-the first of its kind in the country-the best quality grass grew in coppice woods, arguably not because of coppicing per se but rather because such woods occurred in regions that favoured grasslands. 2 Forest grazing was typical at higher elevations under high forest management and on soils of lower fertility, which confirmed the traditional image of this AF use as a highland activity in the Czech Republic (Nožička 1957). ...
Traditional agroforestry on agricultural land was common in the past in Central Europe. However, much less is known about agroforestry on forested land, especially because it was often banned by forestry authorities during the 20th century. We used data from the so-called stable cadastre to map the occurrence of agroforestry uses (litter raking, hay cutting and forest grazing) on forested land in the mid-19th century in Moravia (eastern part of the Czech Republic, ca. 27,000 km²) in high spatial resolution. We combined machine learning algorithms and logistic models to reveal which environmental, land use and forest management factors could be linked to the occurrence of individual agroforestry uses. Results showed that agroforestry on forested land was very common in the 19th century: only 9.2% of townships with forests had no agroforestry uses. The distribution of agroforestry uses was clearly connected to environmental factors and to the availability of agricultural products that agroforestry uses were meant to supplement (e.g. hay cutting in forests was the most common in townships with large forests and few grasslands). However, the ubiquity of some uses (especially litter raking) made it more difficult to arrive at straightforward conclusions. In addition, we discussed the limitations inherent in the stable cadastre and how these might influence the interpretation of the results.
... With diversity-friendly management, variegated treed landscapes can exhibit higher resistance to environmental hazards than vast tracks of structurally simplified dense forests and act as supplementary carbon sinks and biodiversity hubs [26][27][28]. The latter particularly refer to the role of semi-open woods and veteran, sun-exposed, trees [29,30]. ...
Recent Socio-economic changes resulted to mass abandonment of agricultural lands in Central-Eastern Europe. This leads to landscapes homogenisation, especially the disappearance of semi-open habitats of the farmland-woodland interface. The information on potentials of transforming feral, abandoned landscapes to wood-pastures is limited. We studied the ecological features and silvopastoral benefits of a landscape subjected to intensive cattle grazing after ~20 years of abandonment, i.e. the mosaic of habitats, cattle’s preference for habitats and for arboreal forages. The nutritional characteristics of arboreal forage and herbaceous forage were compared. After the initial increase in the landscape’s woodland share, cattle grazing halted further woody succession and stabilised the landscape structure, with treeless grassland occupying 49% of the landscape (most preferred by cattle with regard to the time spent), followed by treed grassland (19%), pioneering birch/alder groves (13%), riparian vegetation (12%, least preferred by cattle), and close-canopy woods (6%). The consumption intensity of arboreal forages was on about 4.5 folds higher than that of herbaceous forage. Our study proved that the grazing herd of arobust cattle breed can turn a feral, post-agricultural land into a working wood pasture, consisting of interconnected open grasslands and various facets of woodland, which seldom occur in contemporary high forests. We advocate for the transition management of abandoned farmlands towards integrated silvopastoral landscapes for sustainable provision of multiple ecosystem services that cannot be provided by segregated agriculture and forestry.
... Therefore, there is a worldwide concern regarding the loss of biodiversity [15], and there is also an increasing need to evaluate the role that different habitats play in ensuring a certain balance and maintaining existing biodiversity [16][17][18]. As human activities have put many species at risk, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has emphasized the need to protect existing environments (natural, seminatural, and even "man-made" areas) from further change and destruction [18][19][20]. ...
Simple Summary
In the present work, we considered areas located in a park of 4000 ha in northern Italy in a suburban area, with an altitude between 190 and 960 m asl. Our aim was to update the list of insect species and to evaluate the influence of habitat and the locality on the beetle fauna present in the park. We therefore monitored the insects using different collection techniques. A total of 409 different species were collected. Species in Coleoptera were the most abundant, followed by Lepidoptera and Hymenoptera, with other orders in smaller numbers. The analysis showed that the habitat influenced the communities more than the locality. Unfortunately, as there is no detailed historical information on the presence of the species in the area, we cannot hypothesize an effect of the area on the communities. This research, therefore, allowed us to list numerous species for the area, among which some are important, as they were never detected in this area, and constitutes a new starting point for future research on the biodiversity in the prealpine areas.
Abstract
Human activities and habitat fragmentation are known to greatly influence biodiversity. The aim of this study was to update an entomological checklist of a prealpine area in Italy, and also to evaluate the influence of different habitats and the proximity to cities on the entomological fauna. This study included different areas of a local park in Northern Italy, covering about 4000 ha, and situated at altitudes between 190 and 960 m asl. The surveys were carried out between 2010 and 2013 using different monitoring techniques (pitfall traps, car mounted nets, light traps, direct catches on soil and vegetation, visual sampling, gall collection). Furthermore, to assess the effect of habitat and locality on the composition of epigeic beetles, pitfall traps were set and inspected from April to September. All captured specimens were classified to species level. A total of 409 species were recorded, belonging to 7 orders and 78 families. A total of 76.1% were represented by Coleoptera, 13% Lepidoptera, 9.4% Hymenoptera, followed by other orders. In particular, some species with peculiar characteristics, or whose presence in the area had not been previously reported, were detected, such as Atheta pseudoelongatula, Ocypus rhaeticus, Tasgius tricinctus, Euplagia quadripunctaria, Scotopteryx angularia, Elachista constitella, Parornix bifurca, Oegoconia huemeri, and Lasius (Lasius) alienus. It seems possible that the habitat affected the community more than the locality. The woods showed a reduced biodiversity, and a simplified community structure. The comparison of the same habitats in different localities did not show significant differences.
... Vedle různých způsobů pařezení udržovaly otevřenou strukturu lesů evropského mírného pásu i další způsoby využití -zejména lesní pastva a postupy jako sklizeň letniny (=osečné hospodaření, valašení), travaření, či sběr klestu a steliva , Hartel et al. 2015, Čížek et al. 2016. V našich zemích sice tyto postupy potlačily již Tereziánské lesní patenty, ale v reálné praxi leckde pokračovaly mnohem déle (Miklín a Čížek 2014). Za specifický typ pastevních lesů můžeme pokládat i některé historické obory (Čížek et al. 2016). ...
Materiál spojuje aktuální poznatky o pěti druzích lesních denních motýlů patřících do fauny ČR a chráněných evropskou legislativou s klimatickými modely jejich rozšíření a projekcemi těchto modelů pro očekávané scénáře budoucí klimatické změny. Ze syntézy aktuálních poznatků a projekcí pak navrhuje další postup při jejich ochraně. Všechny diskutované druhy jsou ohrožené, nebo dokonce vymřely v důsledku změn hospodaření v lesích nížin a pahorkatin v průběhu XX. století, konkrétně vinou zániku lesní pastvy a upuštění od výmladkového hospodaření. Klimatické koreláty jejich výskytu však jsou různé, diverzifikovaná musí být i strategie jejich další ochrany, ať už in situ, nebo ex situ s následnými reintrodukcemi či asistovanými kolonizacemi.
• Coenonympha hero, okáč hnědý (v ČR vyhynulý) je motýl s boreálním typem areálu. Jeho výskyt v prostoru ČR byl reliktem chladnějších období. Přestože jeho poslední lokality byly situovány v nížinných lesích, jeho klimatické optimum leží v současnosti v podhůří. Modely předpokládají další posun klimatického optima do vyšších poloh. Případná repatriace by měla směřovat do příhodných biotopů (pastevní lesy, křovinaté rašelinné louky apod.) v Pošumaví či ve Slavkovském lese.
• Euphydryas maturna, hnědásek osikový (kriticky ohrožený). Recentně zanikla jeho poslední autochtonní populace v PR Dománovický les (Polabí), probíhající repatriace v NPR Libický luh (rovněž Polabí) je závislá na záchranném chovu. Klimaticky zůstane území ČR pro motýla vhodné, včetně historických nížinných lokalit. Rozsah péče o stanoviště v Polabí je nedostatečný, motýl bude schopen dlouhodobé existence jen vznikem fungující metapopuace zahrnující větší množství lesních celků. Doporučujeme pokračovat v záchranném chovu, z něj rekonstruovat funkční polabskou populaci, souběžně přistoupit k repatriaci jak na historické lokality v nížinách jižní a střední Moravy, tak do výše položených perspektivních oblastí. Pro moravské lokality může být vhodnější získat materiál z východněji položených populací, potřebná je genetická studie.
• Lopinga achine, okáč jílkový (kriticky ohrožený). Přežívá v poslední autochtonní populaci v NPP Hodonínská Dúbrava. Problémem jsou změny lesního podrostu dané dlouhodobou absencí pastvy a eutrofizací. Jeho lokality v ČR, včetně historických, jsou v současnosti v klimatickém optimu, ale scénáře klimatické změny predikují zhoršení situace v nejteplejších regionech a posun druhu do vyšších nadmořských výšek. Na stávající lokalitě je třeba začít pracovat s pastevním managementem. Dále je třeba zřídit záchranný chov ex situ a připravit translokace na historické lokality na Moravě (Bílé Karpaty, Litovelské Pomoraví), ve Slezsku (polonské doubravy na Opavsku) i v Čechách (lokality v širším Polabí, ale i Křivoklátsko, Českolipsko). K repatriacím využít potenciál lokalit refaunovaných velkými kopytníky a potenciál existujících obor.
• Parnassius mnemosyne, jasoň dymnivkový (ohrožený). Větší počet metapopulací na Moravě, od nížinných a pahorkatinných lesů po podhůří. V Čechách vyhynulý. O některé regionální metapopulace je pečováno vzorně, některé populace v podhůří jsou zbytečně decimovány např. aplikací biocidů při péči o dopravní tělesa nebo rekreačním rozvojem. Populacím v podhůří (Nízký Jeseník, části Českomoravské vrchoviny) pomáhá probíhající kůrovcová kalamita – otevření souvislých lesních porostů. Klimatické modely předpokládají zhoršení podmínek v nejnižších polohách ČR a přesun těžiště výskytu do podhůří. Doporučujeme repatriaci na poslední českou lokalitu (Libický luh), ale ruku v ruce s tím i transfery do chladnějších oblastí – připravovaný NP Křivoklátsko, Orlicko-krkonošské podhůří aj. Horské a podhorské populace na Moravě si zaslouží péči, jaká je dnes vzorově věnovaná populacím v CHKO Beskydy, částečně i CHKO Bílé Karpaty.
• Zerynthia polyxena, pestrokřídlec podražcový (téměř ohrožený). Druh s pontomediteránním areálem, který bude z předpokládané klimatické změny jednoznačně profitovat. Očekáváme expanzi na střední a postupně i severní Moravu, později do Polabí. Není výhradně lesním motýlem, je s to osídlovat i polostinné lokality ruderálního charakteru. Limitujícím faktorem může být pomalejší expanze jeho živné rostliny, podražce křovištního (omezená disperze semen). V případě pokračujícího oteplení navrhujeme zahájit diskusi o vhodnosti záměrného šíření této rostliny. V oblasti stávajícího výskytu omezit aplikace herbicidů na potenciální stanoviště typu železničních a silničních těles či říčních navigací.
... In recent years, locations with scattered old trees have seen a significant increase in scientific interest [18,30,31,[33][34][35][36][37]. Traditional management of scattered massive trees has been abandoned, which naturally leads to a gradual shading of the grounds and a subsequent loss of biodiversity [38,39]. The newly formed environment then fails to meet the demands of sunny-habitat species, which leads to the homogenization of invertebrate communities [40], and, at the same time, brings about the faster death rate of large trees [10] and the failure of other ecosystem functions [41]. ...
Intensive forest and agroforestry management has greatly reduced the biodiversity of saproxylic organisms. Large trees are one of the most important refuges of saproxylic beetles. These large trees that grow outside and inside the forest are declining in the wider landscape. Heritage trees are one of the essential groups of beneficial trees in the landscape. We investigated saproxylic beetles associated with 35 selected oak heritage trees in Litovelské Pomoraví in the eastern Czech Republic. The study aimed to investigate the distribution of saproxylic beetles on trees growing inside or at the edge of forest stands, or on free-growing heritage trees. The other studied variables were the height, DBH, and light condition (sunny or shady) of heritage trees. The results showed that sunny habitats were the only significant factor found for all saproxylic species. However, the significance of increasing tree trunk dimension was found for the endangered species. Diversity indices q = 0 (species richness) and q = 1 (exponential of Shannon entropy index) were also higher for sunny trees, while solitary trees showed a high Shannon index value despite the low number of samples. Redundancy analysis of saproxylic species showed that the preferred habitats of most species were sunny massive solitary oaks. The results indicated that strictly protected heritage trees scattered in the landscape are crucial sanctuaries for many species—especially in landscapes where there are not enough suitable habitats for saproxylic beetles. Finding, conserving, and protecting these rare types of massive trees in the landscape has a significant impact on the conservation of saproxylic beetle biodiversity.
... These areas have been limitrophe to cities or around existing clearings, leading to the fragmentation of the highest habitat from within the Plateau. Landscape and habitat fragmentation is also the result of silviculture and agriculture development in order to ensure consistency and continuity to forests with closed structures by limiting cuttings (Miklín & Čížek, 2014), up to 3 ha for our country. This tendency to reduce habitats at a European level can also be observed by analyzing military maps and different satellite images (Hooftman & Bulloc, 2012;Biró, 2018). ...
Protected areas pose a major interest in the current context in which natural habitats are very fragmented as a result of economic development. The ROSCI0076 Dealul Mare-Hîrlău site represents the largest protected area from Moldova’s Plateau where forest habitats occupy a majority surface. A total number of 10 Natura 2000 forest habitats were identified on the site’s surface. Among them, the majority are 91Y0 - Dacian oak hornbeam forests and 9130 - Asperulo-Fagetum beech forests. These are comprised of 79% natural forests, while planted forests represent 19%. The main age ranges between 40 and 80 years, with compact areas with young forests, as well as with forests older than 100 years. Forest habitats are stable from an ecological point of view, ensuring optimum conditions for the development and colonization of species presented on the site’s map.
... Since there is a lack of information about these habitats, we believe the respondents emphasised them due to their species richness, which is, however, endangered and has an uncertain future. The decline of open forests as well as that of old-growth forests has been well presented in literature (e.g., open forests: Miklín & Čížek 2014, Šebek et al. 2015, and old-growth forests: Hofmeister et al. 2015, Seibold et al. 2015, which is similar for the loss of species bound to these precious disappearing environments (Bengtsson et al. 2000, Seibold et al. 2015. In relation to open forests, it has to be mentioned that the survey confirmed the importance of waterinfluenced sites, permanent forest-free areas as well as the importance of certain forms of glades and cleared areas. ...
... The floodplain or riparian woodlands of the lower March and Thaya Rivers represent one of the largest and richest remaining areas of lowland hardwood forest in Central Europe (Miklín & Čížek 2014). The area is renowned as a refuge for numerous rare invertebrate species, such as saproxylic beetles. ...
We report recent findings of two rare species of saproxylic beetles in the family Eucnemidae from Austria. Microrhagus pyrenaeus Bonvouloir, 1872 and Otho spondyloides (Germar, 1818) were collected from the lower March River floodplains at the WWF Auenreservat Marchegg (Weinviertel, Lower Austria). Otho spondyloides was also collected in Drösing (Weinviertel, Lower Austria) and Schallendorf near Rauchwart (Güssing, Burgenland).
Microrhagus pyrenaeus is a new record for Austria and Otho spondyloides has not been
recorded in Austria for about fifty years. Both species are considered indicators of relict
primeval forest. Their presence highlights the conservation value of floodplain wetlands
along the lower March and their associated riparian woodlands within the reserve. Here
we describe these findings and summarise the natural history of the two species.
... Despite worldwide recognition, populations of large old trees are rapidly declining [9,10]. They are under threat due to both natural mortality increased by global change [10][11][12] and by direct human impact, mostly felling, which leads to problems with the spatiotemporal continuity of their populations at the landscape level [9,13,14] and jeopardizes ecosystems' integrity, functioning and biodiversity [10], including loss of tree species genetic variability [15][16][17]. ...
Large trees are keystone structures for the functioning and maintenance of the biological diversity of wooded landscapes. Thus, we need a better understanding of large-tree-other-tree interactions and their effects on the diversity and spatial structure of the surrounding trees. We studied these interactions in the core of the Białowieża Primeval Forest-Europe's best-preserved temperate forest ecosystem, characterized by high abundance of ancient trees. We measured diameter and bark thickness of the monumental trees of Acer platanoides L., Carpinus betulus L., Picea abies (L.) H. Karst, Quercus robur L., and Tilia cordata Mill., as well as the diameter and distance to the monumental tree of five nearest neighbor trees. The effects of the monumental tree on arrangements of the surrounding trees were studied with the help of linear models. We revealed that the species identity of a large tree had, in the case of C. betulus and T. cordata, a significant impact on the diversity of adjacent tree groupings, their distance to the central tree, and frequency of the neighboring trees. The distance between the neighbor and the large trees increased with the increasing diameter of the central tree. Our findings reinforce the call for the protection of large old trees, regardless of their species and where they grow from the geographical or ecosystem point of view.
... The temperate forest is an important habitat for several animal species (Ishii et al., 2004;Avery and Leslie, 2010). Woodland areas are decreasing in Europe due to human activities, and some European forest types belong to the most endangered ecosystems in the world (Bengtsson et al., 2000;Miklín and Čížek, 2014). Particularly affected are woodlands located in lowland areas, because those areas are more affected by urban development, new industrial districts, and agriculture intensification (Paoletti and Lorenzoni, 1989;Camarretta et al., 2018;Romano et al., 2020). ...
We studied the distribution of an endangered species of bat strongly associated with woods in NW Italy. A species distribution model
(SDM) was built on data collected in 2015–2016 using a presence-only technique (maximum entropy) incorporating environmental
variables (19 habitat categories, and 4 topography variables). Barbastelle bat presence (132 sites) was associated with woods
(beechwoods, oak-hornbeam woods, and wood arboriculture), while there was a negative selection of built or cultivated areas and
open space categories. The model was highly successful when predicting the presence/absence of the species in 43 new sites sampled
in 2017–2018. SDM was utilized to calculate resistance surfaces and to assess potential suitable connections among the currently
utilized areas. The currently protected areas of NW Italy showed a moderate overlap both with high environmental value areas
(23.5%) or high connection areas (11.3%). This study highlights a moderate effectiveness of the protected areas network for
conservation of barbastelle bat, and suggests preventing land-use change in current woodland areas and increasing connections in
the lowland areas of the region. Our results from predicted species occurrence obtained through SDM can be utilized for targeting
survey efforts to identify new barbastelle bat sites.
... For example, Svensson et al. (2019) used digitized satellite images to analyze a 50-60-year period of forest fragmentation and loss within a large forest landscape in northern Sweden. Due to its high spatial resolution, aerial photography is a useful tool, and time series of photos have recently been used to study landscape dynamics (Garbarino et al. 2013;Legaard et al. 2015), vegetation changes (Rhemtulla et al. 2002), habitat loss (Ecke et al. 2013) and changes in canopy closure (Miklín and Čížek 2014). Furthermore, previous studies have shown that ownership (along with other factors such as site conditions, natural disturbances and other forms of land use) should be taken into account when studying the effects of forest management. ...
Modern forestry, which mainly consists of clear-cutting, is one of the most important factors influencing todayâs boreal forests. In Sweden, the breaking point for modern forestry is generally considered to be around 1950. Recently, our common knowledge of the implementation of clear-cutting in Sweden has increased, and new research indicates that clear-cutting systems were already applied before the 1950s. In this case study, we used aerial photographs from the 1940s to analyze the extent of contemporaneous clear-cuts and even-aged young forests in an area in northern Sweden. Our results show that almost 40% of the study area had already been clear-cut by the end of the 1940s, but also that clear-cutting had been applied to 10% of the forest land in the early 1900s. This implies that the historical development of forestry in northern Sweden is more complex than previously thought, and that certain proportions of the forest land were already second-generation forests in the 1950s. Our results have implications for the use of concepts such as âcontinuity forestâ, suggesting that this concept should employ a time frame of at least 100 years.
... However, this increase in growing stock was accompanied by forest management strategies that structurally homogenized forests and led to dramatic alterations in species composition. Naturally broadleaf-dominated forests were turned into conifer-dominated plantations (Dirkx 1998;Radkau 2007), and closed forests replaced most natural dynamic open and semi-open woodlands (Miklin and Cizek 2014). Over-mature trees, which had often survived as pollards or in wood pastures, and other open wooded habitats, were compromised by increased canopy closure or their deliberate removal (Buse et al. 2008;Sebek et al. 2016). ...
Identification of forest stands with priority for the conservation of biodiversity is of particular importance in landscapes with a long cultural and agricultural history, such as Central Europe. A group of species with a high indicator value for the naturalness of forest ecosystems are saproxylic insects. Some of these species, especially within the order Coleoptera, have been described as primeval forests relicts. Here, we compiled a list of 168 “primeval forest relict species” of saproxylic beetles based on expert knowledge. These species can serve as focal and umbrella species for forest conservation in Central Europe. They were selected because of their dependence on the continuous presence of primeval forest habitat features, such as over-mature trees, high amounts of dead wood, and dead wood diversity, as well as their absence in managed Central European forests. These primeval forest relict species showed a moderately strong clumping pattern within the phylogeny of beetles, as indicated by phylogenetic signal testing using the D-statistic. When we controlled for phylogenetic relatedness, an ordinal linear model revealed that large body size and preference for dead wood and trees of large diameter are the main characteristics of these species. This list of species can be used to identify forest stands of conservation value throughout Central Europe, to prioritize conservation and to raise public awareness for conservation issues related to primeval forests.
... Logging has been the major driver of tree downsizing for at least 8,300 years (Yasuda, Kitagawa, & Nakagawa, 2000) and is still dominant in much of the world today . Today, these long-term drivers of megatree losses are complemented by novel stressors such as modern forestry, aiming for economic optimization of timber production by cutting trees well before they reach maximum size (Miklín & Čížek, 2014). Furthermore, global climate change is driving drought-and/or heat-induced tree mortality, often with particularly strong effects on large trees, causing their selective loss (McIntyre et al., 2015). ...
Large‐sized animals (megafauna) and trees (megatrees) are key ecosystem components with high cultural and economic importance going back millennia. Once common, both groups of megabiota have been massively reduced in pre‐historic and historic times, with human‐induced downsizing still ongoing.
Key ecosystem services provided by megafauna and megatrees include nutrient and seed transfer, carbon allocation, climate regulation and biodiversity facilitation. Socio‐cultural services include food and timber provisioning and the ‘charisma’ of large‐sized organisms, with its associated high cultural, recreational and nature conservation values for human societies worldwide.
Conservation and restoration of megafauna and—trees in a socio‐ecological framework are needed to counteract past and ongoing analogous downsizing of both groups of megabiota and the loss of important ecosystem services in a human‐dominated world. Importantly, synergistic megatree–megafauna restoration promotes self‐regulating biodiverse ecosystems across the full range of land use intensities ranging from current downsized wildlands to highly human‐modified landscapes.
We propose an integrative rewilding‐based restoration framework applicable across the whole range of human land use intensity. This includes individual‐based protection, assisted colonisation and facilitation of urban wildlife. Active management of megafauna and ‐trees can be economically beneficial and necessary to minimize human–wildlife conflicts in highly human‐dominated landscapes. Societal acceptance and adaptation to old big trees and wild megafauna are prerequisites for successful megabiota restoration in human‐modified landscapes and elsewhere where human–wildlife conflicts are hard to avoid.
The prime goal of such integrative rewilding activities should be a proactive facilitation of the self‐regulation potential of natural and novel ecosystems for which large‐sized trees and animals would be some of the most important components for enhancing biodiversity and societal value in the Anthropocene. Such megabiota restoration needs to be done on a wide scale to restore functional effects on the biosphere.
A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
... Abandonment and intensification of agricultural and forestry activities were cited by many studies as main driving forces of habitat loss and degradation within the N2000 network (e.g. Young et al. 2007;Santos et al. 2008;Iojă et al. 2010;Halada et al. 2011;Fischer et al. 2012;Beilin et al. 2014;Miklín and Čížek 2014;Plieninger et al. 2014;Touloumis and Pantis 2014). Often, post-agricultural and abandoned areas are afforested, which, in a very short time, causes destruction of many valuable habitats, especially farming-related biodiversity (Tomaz et al. 2013;Moreira and Russo 2007). ...
To assess the dynamics of changes in CORINE Land Cover classes in areas of the Natura 2000 ecological network, three landscape metrics were examined. Traditional pixel-based classification, with majority rules aggregation based on the example of the CORINE Land Cover dataset, was applied. To identify the possible differences in the considered metrics, according to the year as well as to the country, statistical analysis between the linear mixed model and the variance model with repeated measurements was performed. The results of both tests are very similar. In the 1990-2012 period, the share of CORINE Land Cover class "Artificial areas" in all tested areas increased by 21.1% (the highest growth ratios were recorded in Poland, Portugal, Slovenia and in Spain). On the other hand, such countries as Slovakia, Romania, Germany, Lithuania and Estonia are characterised by the loss of artificial areas. At the same time, the share of "Forest and semi-natural areas" as well as "Water bodies" increased slightly. Negative trends that took place in the periods 1990-2000 and 2000-2006 were effectively stopped in the subsequent period, 2006-2012. Overall, for all the analysed countries, a minimal loss in environmental and landscape diversity was observed. Our results may be used as a basis for drawing conclusions on the effectiveness of environmental and landscape management systems in various countries. They might also constitute the starting point for detailed analysis of the management process.
... Preventing natural disturbances and conducting salvage logging can cause habitat loss for many forest specialist species, and it has a detrimental effect on a broad array of forest communities, including birds, saproxylic beetles, springtails, wood-inhabiting fungi, and epixylic lichens Mikoláš et al., 2017b). Some forest specialist species are dependent on the continuous presence of primary forest habitat features, such as old trees, high amounts and diversity of deadwood, and natural dynamics often result in open to semi-open structure of the forest canopy (Miklin and Cizek, 2014;Zemanová et al., 2017). For these species, conservation of primary forests is critical. ...
Given the global intensification of forest management and climate change, protecting and studying forests that develop free of direct human intervention-also known as primary forests-are becoming increasingly important. Yet, most countries still lack data regarding primary forest distribution. Previous studies have tested remote sensing approaches as a promising tool for identifying primary forests. However, their precision is highly dependent on data quality and resolution, which vary considerably. This has led to underestimation of primary forest abundance and distribution in some regions, such as the temperate zone of Europe. Field-based inventories of primary forests and methodologies to conduct these assessments are inconsistent; incomplete or inaccurate mapping increases the vulnerability of primary forest systems to continued loss from clearing and land-use change. We developed a comprehensive methodological approach for identifying primary forests, and tested it within one of Europe's hotspots of primary forest abundance: the Carpathian Mountains. From 2009 to 2015, we conducted the first national-scale primary forest census covering the entire 49,036 km 2 area of the Slovak Republic. We analyzed primary forest distribution patterns and the representativeness of potential vegetation types within primary forest remnants. We further evaluated the conservation status and extent of primary forest loss. Remaining primary forests are small, fragmented, and often do not represent the potential natural vegetation. We identified 261 primary forest localities. However, they represent only 0.47% of the total forested area, which is 0.21% of the country's land area. The spatial pattern of primary forests was clustered. Primary forests have tended to escape anthropogenic disturbance on sites with higher elevations, steeper slopes, rugged terrain, and greater distances from roads and settlements. Primary forest stands of montane mixed and subalpine spruce forests are more abundant compared to broadleaved forests. Notably, several habitat types are completely missing within primary forests (e.g., floodplain forests). More than 30% of the remaining primary forests are not strictly protected, and harvesting occurred at 32 primary forest localities within the study period. Almost all logging of primary forests was conducted inside of protected areas, underscoring the critical status of primary forest distribution in this part of Europe. Effective conservation strategies are urgently needed to stop the rapid loss and fragmentation of the remaining primary forests. Our approach based on precise, field-based surveys is widely applicable and transferrable to other fragmented forest landscapes.
... In Europe much of the past forested area was open woodland with veteran trees, a landscape that was rapidly lost due to intensive agriculture and forest management (Miklin & Cizek 2014). In the hemiboreal zone, traditional open woodland parks were centered around manor houses, with cropland in the surrounding area (Lohmus et al. 2014). ...
Most of the forest area dominated by pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) in Latvia was lost to arable land several centuries ago and the remnant patches of Q. robur stands are small and spatially scattered. We hypothesized that a large part of the present Q. robur stands in the Eastern Baltic area of the hemiboreal forest zone developed around the past manor houses in the period of social and political turmoil and subsequent agricultural land abandonment. Our aim was to determine the relationship of Q. robur stand occurrence with soil properties, climatic conditions and proximity to past manor houses. Our study area was the entire territory of Latvia (64.589 km2), divided into 16 landscape regions. We used the State Forest Inventory database to filter out all stands dominated by Q. robur (n=3746). Spatial aggregation of the stands was tested by multi-distance spatial clustering analysis (Ripley’s K method). Mean stand area and Euclidean nearest-neighbour distance for stands were calculated for landscape regions. Binary logistic regression with the calculation of autocovariates showed that winter temperature, soil texture, carbonate concentration and distance to closest manor house were the independent factors significantly (p
Veteran and ancient trees are key structures sustaining biodiversity in wooded landscapes. Their value depends on tree‐related microhabitats (TreMs) such as hollows, cracks and other structures related to wounds and wood decay. Decline and loss of veteran trees results in the loss of TreMs thus threatening the biodiversity associated with them.
Veteranisation , that is, interventions aimed at creating or accelerating formation of rare TreMs in live trees, are thus increasingly applied to bridge gaps in habitat continuity and sustain the biodiversity associated with veteran trees. Several studies investigated the use of artificially created TreMs by various organisms. No study has, however, investigated saproxylic beetles attracted to freshly veteranised trees, and how different veteranisation techniques affect attractivity of veteranised trees to saproxylic beetles.
We veteranised 48 sessile oaks using two types of deep and two types of shallow cuts and trapped saproxylic beetles on the veteranised and control trees in the first season after the intervention. The sampling yielded 280 species (6171 individuals) of saproxylic beetles, including 64 that are threatened. Veteranised trees attracted more abundant and diverse communities than control trees. Community composition differed between shallow and deep cuts and between the two types of deep cuts.
Freshly veteranised trees thus attract diverse and abundant communities of saproxylic beetles consisting mainly of species potentially exploiting the wounds. The high proportion of threatened species, often associated with old oaks, suggests that veteranised trees benefit even some threatened saproxylic biodiversity already during the first year after the veteranisation.
Floodplain forests are among the most endangered ecosystems worldwide, even though they are hotspots for numerous taxa. The abandonment of traditional management and large‐scale timber extraction, such as clear‐cutting, has led to a decline in floodplain forest biodiversity. Retention forestry has the potential to facilitate the implementation of an ecologically sustainable forest management approach. Despite the increasing popularity of this method, its potential for spider diversity conservation, especially its comparison with the widespread practice of clear‐cutting, is still poorly studied.
We studied the short‐term effect of forestry treatments (dispersed retention with 60% retained trees and clear‐cutting) on the diversity of ground‐dwelling spiders in the floodplain forests along the Lower Morava (March) and Dyje (Thaya) rivers in the Czech Republic. Spiders were sampled using pitfall traps during 2021 (pre‐harvest year) and 2022 (post‐harvest year).
A total of 10,005 specimens from 167 species were recorded. Both forestry treatments simplified habitat structure compared with pre‐harvest conditions, resulting in lower beta‐diversity within sites. However, dispersed retention had higher alpha‐ and beta‐diversity than clear‐cuts, indicating that retention provided a more complex‐structured habitat. Dispersed retention and clear‐cuts hosted distinct spider assemblages with characteristic indicator species. Species typical of open and significantly disturbed habitats preferred clear‐cuts, while species typical of forests and (semi‐) open habitats, including threatened species, showed a preference for dispersed retention.
Our results demonstrated, for the first time, that dispersed retention forestry could serve as an effective management tool for conserving the ground‐dwelling assemblages of spiders in floodplain forests.
Despite the significance of saproxylic beetle species for ecosystems, the investigation of fine‐scale population genetics within the stag beetle, Lucanus cervus , remains notably limited. Because of their limited dispersal distances and habitat fragmentation, high genetic structure and low genetic diversity are expected in its populations.
To evaluate the impact of habitat fragmentation on genetic diversity and structure, we examined 150 specimens of L. cervus from three sites in western Poland: two forest stands and one stand located in an Oak avenue. We utilised 19 microsatellite DNA loci for this examination.
Results of neighbour‐joining analysis and principal coordinates analysis, values of differentiation indexes ( G' ST , D (Jost) and F ST ) and rare/private allele frequencies indicated weak genetic differentiation among individuals collected from the tree sites. A spatial component to the genetic structure was identified through STRUCTURE (LOCPRIOR), isolation by distance tests and spatial autocorrelation analysis. The genetic diversity remained relatively high (H E : 0.49–0.51), with no inbreeding observed and no significant differences in mean relatedness among individuals from sampling sites.
Limited genetic differentiation between the individuals of L. cervus from the investigated sites may result from a lag time since fragment isolation, unrestricted gene flow and marker/sample size limitations. Though weak, the significant differentiation between two of the sites may be linked to environmental differences and distance. Genetic data support treating individuals from forests as a single management unit. Non‐invasive sampling suffices for genetic studies, but achieving balanced sampling is crucial for precise historical demography estimates of endangered species.
Over the past 60 years, natural habitats have been affected by various anthropogenic pressures. However, little is known about how these pressures have influenced the species composition of whole floras across large areas. We used a large database of the Czech flora to assess broad-scale temporal trends in temperate European flora over the last 60 years. We extracted over 4.6 million occurrence records of 1912 species collected over the past six decades and analysed the changes in species occurrence frequency over time using dynamic occupancy models within a Bayesian framework that accounted for various biases in the data. Five main patterns of temporal change were revealed. The increasing species were supported by different environmental changes that peaked at different periods. Competitively strong, nutrient-demanding generalist species that successfully colonize new and highly disturbed habitats supported by eutrophication and anthropogenic disturbances strongly increased in 1961–1980. Shade-tolerant species of less disturbed habitats increased between 1981 and 2000, indicating an effect of habitat abandonment, and thermophilous species began to spread in the last 20 years, reflecting rising temperatures. Competitively strong species of less frequently disturbed habitats with higher moisture and nutrient requirements and low light requirements increased gradually over the last six decades. In contrast, specialized species of nutrient-poor habitats with low colonization and competitive ability, associated with more frequent but less severe disturbances, steadily decreased due to the ongoing decline of habitat quality after the cessation of traditional management, and many of them have been included in the national Red List.
Psammophilous beetles, a group endangered in temperate ecosystems, are mainly threatened by habitat loss. These beetles thrive in areas formed by the weathering of marine or fluvial sediments. Historically, practices such as slash-and-burn method or litter raking have exposed and destabilized sediments. In Europe, the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) has been used to stabilize sand dunes, improve soil composition and create shadier environments. This has led to the degradation of psammophilous communities and a decline in biodiversity. Our study examines whether fire can help restore and maintain psammophilous beetle populations.
Our research focused on two aspects: (i) the long-term effects of wildfire in 2012 on beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in the "Moravská Sahara–Bzenec district" of South Moravia (period 2013–2021), and (ii) the effects of environmental factors, influenced by the aforementioned wildfire on the distribution of these beetles in the period 2016 to 2021.
The study compared species composition, life-history traits, and functional diversity between three forest stages: (i) newly disturbed areas with Coarse Wood Debris (CWD) left to naturally decay; (ii) semi-decayed mid-aged stands and (iii) reference mid-aged stands.
Our findings indicate that fire was important factor influencing species assemblages. Interestingly, post-fire changes in food availability emerged as the second important factor, leading to the formation of two distinct species clusters: granivorous species thrived on site dominated by graminoids, and site with accumulated CWD was attracted predominantly by carnivorous species. We propose, that fire management could be an effective strategy for conserving and promoting the diversity of psammophilic beetles.
Forestry faces the challenge of balancing the increasing demand for timber, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity protection. Biodiversity plays a crucial role in the stability and adaptability of forest ecosystems, enabling them to withstand disturbances and recover from them. Preserving biodiversity is essential for long-term survival and well-being. Enhancing biodiversity in managed forests is important because they occupy a significant area of forests in Europe. Understanding the relationships between forest production and biodiversity from various perspectives is crucial for developing effective multi-taxa management concepts. Biodiversity loss due to management practices can result in habitat destruction, fragmentation, and species displacement. Biodiversity enhances ecosystem services linked to biomass production, such as pollination, nutrient cycling, and carbon sequestration. This study reviews the relationships between biodiversity and production in Europen forests, emphasising the impacts of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning and production, as well as the effects of production indicators on biodiversity. The effects of biodiversity on productivity are often studied in the same population, most often in the tree layer. However, a lack of knowledge on how biomass production affects the diversity of other ecosystem components limits our understanding of the multifacet relationships. Forest management significantly impacts biodiversity and production, and different management systems have varying effects on forest ecosystems. Diverse ecosystems exhibit niche complementarity, resulting in increased biomass production. Sustainable practices, including land-use planning, habitat protection, agroforestry, and non-invasive species use, can mitigate the adverse effects of biomass production on biodiversity.
Historical woodland management practices like coppicing and grazing have formed the diversity and structure of oak-hornbeam woodlands. We analysed large-scale, high-resolution spatial data on the distribution of woodland communities in Czechia to find out whether past human impacts influenced the distribution of oak-hornbeam woodlands in present-day landscapes. We tested the relation of oak-hornbeam woodlands to the past and cur rent settlement distribution pattern, woodland continuity since about 1840 and distance to the woodland edge, on top of natural environmental predictors, using generalized additive mixed-effects models (GAMM).
A mosaic of patches in various successional stages is key to maintaining high biodiversity in open temperate woodlands. The abandonment of traditional management, such as once widespread coppicing, has caused biodiversity loss and a shift to ecologically homogeneous communities. Invertebrates are one of the taxonomic groups that suffered the most from the lack of a regular disturbance regime. Despite the obvious importance of active management in maintaining high biodiversity in open temperate woodlands, our knowledge on its contribution to spider conservation is still poor. We investigated how the coppicing restoration affects the diversity of ground-dwelling spiders in the oakwoods of Podyjí National Park in the Czech Republic. We sampled the spider assemblages using pitfall traps within 10 plots in three successional stages: initial, advanced, and late successional stage (control). We collected a total of 9 919 individuals belonging to 143 spider species. The species richness was positively influenced by restoration and reached the highest values in the advanced successional stage. Each successional stage hosted distinct spider assemblages. The trait diversity (RaoQ) was very low in the late successional stage, primarily accommodating small spider species with a preference for shaded and humid habitats. On the other hand, canopy thinning supported high trait diversity of light-demanding and threatened species. Our results showed that the restoration of traditional coppicing could be an appropriate tool for maintaining biodiversity of ground-dwelling spiders in open oakwoods.
IntroductionThe present changes in climate and land use have led to an increase in pest population densities. The oak pinhole borer, Platypus cylindrus, is one of the ambrosia beetles, which are known to infect wood tissue with fungi from their mycangia. These fungi are responsible for cellulose degradation. This species is now responsible for more frequent timber damage throughout Europe. Therefore, it is assumed that there is a high risk of P. cylindrus outbreaks in the future with possible subsequent oak diebacks. We focused on (1) the influence of stump diameter on P. cylindrus attraction and abundance; (2) the trapping efficacy by a specific pheromone and the impact on nontarget arthropods; and (3) interannual changes in trap catches.Methods
The research was performed from 2015–2017 with a postharvest survey of stumps. We further analyzed the catches of P. cylindrus and of nontarget arthropods on pheromone traps compared to ethanol-baited traps.Results and discussionIn total, 12,504 adults were trapped during the 3 years of the study. P. cylindrus abundance was positively correlated with stump diameter and interannual changes. The type of compound used for trapping positively affected the trapping efficacy. However, the pheromone type did not have an impact on nontarget beetles. We consider oak stumps to be a reservoir the oak pinhole borer. Therefore, we recommend their debarking or removal, especially in the case of stumps with a larger diameter (over 61 cm).
Open forests are among the world's most species-rich ecosystems but these are now suffering from strong environmental pressure. With the increasing frequency of drought events accompanying climate change, open forests are now at high risk of canopy openness, an associated increase in nutrient load, and a consequent reordering of the plant community. Based on an 11-year field manipulative experiment, we examined whether the reintroduction of traditional forest uses, in particular the regular removal of litter which has been practiced for many centuries in Europe, may mitigate eutrophication and protect the ancient plant diversity of open forests. We examined vascular plant composition in 64, 3 × 3 m plots in 32 randomized blocks, each consisted of one litter-removal and one control plot in a subcontinental thermophilous oak forest dominated by Quercus petraea (Czech Republic, Central Europe). We analyzed how regular litter removal influenced the changes in topsoil nutrients and diversity and abundances of perennial, short-lived monocarpic and open oak forest plant species after eleven years of the annual application of this management. The regular litter removal significantly mitigated eutrophication by a reducing total nitrogen, and significantly decreased the amounts of base cations Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ in the topsoil. The studied plant species groups responded differently. Perennial and open oak forest species significantly increased their richness and abundances in the litter-removal plots and at the same time their diversity did not change significantly depending on inter-annual weather conditions. In contrast, litter removal negatively affected abundances of short-lived monocarpic species, whose richness was also considerably influenced by weather conditions (decreased the most in years with spring droughts). Moreover, we have found a protective effect of regular litter removal on drought-sensitive open oak forest species that survived in the litter-removal plots, whereas some completely disappeared from control sites during the period of repeated drought events. Our study thus demonstrates that litter removal is a tool with high potential in maintaining biodiversity in open forests affected by climate change.
The reduction of deadwood due to forest management threatens saproxylic diversity. Therefore, deadwood needs to be preserved and enriched. While the importance of deadwood tree identity is well investigated, the value of different object types and microclimate for diversity is insufficiently understood. Conservation-oriented forest management, therefore, requires guidelines on how deadwood types under various microclimatic conditions can help to sustain saproxylic diversity. We set up an experiment in sub-montane beech forest to disentangle effects of microclimate (sun vs. shade) and deadwood types (logs, stumps, snags). By surveying beetles, fungal fruiting bodies, and fungal molecular taxa (amplicon sequence variants, ASVs) in early-decomposition stage deadwood, we asked: (i) What is the relative importance of deadwood types vs. microclimate on saproxylic α-and β-di-versity? (ii) What is the importance of stumps, logs, and snags for saproxylic α-and β-diversity? (iii) Which combinations of microclimate and deadwood type maximize γ-diversity? Deadwood types had a stronger effect on α-and β-diversity of all groups than microclimate, which was not significant in most cases. Among deadwood types, α-diversity was higher on logs than on other deadwood types for beetles and fungal fruiting species. Fungal ASVs reached high α-diversity on snags. Considering effective combinations of deadwood types and microclimate in their contribution to γ-diversity, shaded and sunny logs showed most importance for beetles and fruiting fungi, while sunny snags were important for fungal ASVs. Maintenance of saproxylic diversity is therefore best achieved via enrichment of different deadwood types and by emphasizing logs and snags under variable microclimates.
Invasive, alien trees threaten native biodiversity, but detailed information about the patterns and mechanisms of diversity loss remain unknown. We explored the impact of an invasive tree on vascular plants and saproxylic beetles. We compared their species richness, community composition, and selected biological characteristics between stands of invasive black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), a nitrogen-fixing clonal tree, and native oak-dominated, broadleaf forests in the SE Czech Republic and W Slovakia.
Compared to native forests, R. pseudoacia stands were characterised by low canopy cover, high light and soil nutrient availability, and similar deadwood volumes. R. pseudoacacia had species-poor, dense understorey vegetation composed of tall, nitrophilous herbs. Saproxylic beetles, on the other hand, were similarly diverse and abundant in both R. pseudoacacia stands and native forests. Their communities were mainly shaped by forest structure, as overall beetle diversity and guilds exploiting more decayed wood benefited from the open canopies and high deadwood volumes. Richness and abundance of threatened plants and beetles requiring fresh wood, together with total richness of threatened beetles were, however, substantially lower in R. pseudoacacia stands.
The adverse impacts of R. pseudoacacia on plants partly contrasted with its much less pronounced effects on saproxylic beetles. In intensively exploited landscapes, R. pseudoacacia stands can offer refuge to saproxylic beetles. However their lower diversity and lower incidence of threatened species show that R. pseudoacacia contributes to homogenization and impoverishment of plant and insect assemblages. Robinia stands thus should be eliminated from protected areas and minimalised wherever biodiversity conservation is of concern.
Lowland oak forests host high biodiversity throughout Europe, and to maintain their high biodiversity potential we need to understand how current silviculture practices influence these ecosystems. The most common harvest approach in oak woodlands remains clear-cutting followed by site preparation for reforestation. The site preparation can vary in intensity and possibly affect forest biodiversity in various ways. We studied the impact of site preparation intensity on ground-dwelling arthropod predators and detritivores in commercial oak woodlands. The intensive management included mechanical site preparation with soil milling, stump removal, and herbicide application. The extensive management consisted of natural succession after reforestation with only such slight disturbances as regular hand-provided mowing of vegetation. We recorded 120 spider species, 92 species of ground beetles, 10 species of centipedes, 17 species of millipedes, and 7 species of woodlice, including a relatively large number of threatened species. We found that intensive post-logging management strongly homogenized the habitat structure, and this led to low multi-trophic taxonomic and functional diversity in comparison to that under extensive management. At sites with extensive management, there was not only high functional diversity but also high functional redundancy. Species of conservation concern almost vanished from clearings under intensive management. The high multi-trophic diversity and functional redundancy indicate that extensive site preparation may enhance ecosystem multi-functionality, including primary productivity and ecosystem resilience. Extensive post-harvest management is therefore strongly preferable, and it is also economically more feasible. Intensive post-harvest management should be prohibited in lowland forests within transition zones to localities under nature protection or in natural oak forests.
Lowland forests of Central Europe had been managed by diverse traditional practices for millennia. Such management helped to maintain heterogeneous habitat conditions suitable for a wide variety of arthropod species. Modern approaches to conservation, however, with their strategies of nonintervention, unintentionally caused an overall habitat homogenization within protected areas in many ecosystem types during the 20th-century. As a result, the diversity of organisms, including several large groups of arthropods, has gradually declined. Active interventions that would diversify homogenized lowland forest reserves are increasingly being reintroduced. A question remains as to whether the traditional management restoration at various intensities will maintain conditions suitable for high diversity of functionally important groups of arthropods. Here, we studied the effect of canopy thinning, aimed at coppice restoration, on ground-dwelling spider assemblages. Sampling was based on experimental plots distributed equally in an abandoned coppice-with-standards among three canopy thinning intensities: strong thinning, moderate thinning, and nonintervention as a control. We recorded 116 species of spiders, including a high proportion of Red-listed and threatened species. The species richness and presence of rare and threatened species increased with the intensity of canopy thinning. The abundance of spiders was greater in plots with moderate thinning than in control plots. Functional richness was greatest in open habitats with strong canopy thinning, however functional traits were equally distributed across all habitats. Although ordination analyses revealed that species of conservation concern tended to be associated with open habitats, some conservation-valuable species had affinities also for nonintervention plots. Overall, our results indicated that the best silviculture practice for biodiversity conservation is a combination of various management intensities that would support functional groups ranging from open habitat specialists to species typical for dense and more humid forest patches. We demonstrated that returning to active coppicing management can be a successful strategy for biodiversity restoration in lowland forests.
Forest-steppe landscapes are formed of a complex mosaic of physiognomically contrasting habitats (forests and grasslands) and thus are generally species-richer than the landscapes formed of habitats of similar physiognomy. In the northern Pannonian Basin, the majority of forest-steppes are exposure-related, i.e. steppe is occupying different proportions of the south-facing slopes of the otherwise forested hills. Historically most of these sites were influenced by extensive farming but nowadays most of them are abandoned or managed for conservation purposes. They harbour a high number of rare or endangered species and supply a wide spec-trum of ecosystem services. This study is aiming at: (i) identifying sites in the northern Panno-nian Basin in which the exposure-related forest-steppe vegetation mosaics are well developed; (ii) describing individual habitats of the exposure-related forest-steppe landscapes; (iii) char-acterizing vegetation dynamics at the forest-steppe boundary in the exposure-related forest-steppe by analysing the pattern of woody species regeneration; (iv) comparing plant species diversity of exposure-related forest-steppe sites on different bedrocks. The study was con-ducted in different regions of the northern Pannonian Basin: the loess hilly landscape of south-ern Moravia (CZ), limestone hills of the westernmost Carpathians (AT, CZ, SK), Transdanubian Mts (H) and the Transcarpathian Lowland (UA). Sixteen sites with well-developed exposure-related forest-steppe ecosystems were chosen, and on each of them, all physiognomy-defined habitats of the south-facing slope (i.e. forest, steppe and the ecotones between them) were sampled along a transect. All individuals of woody species including juveniles were sampled in 1 m intervals. The floristic differentiation of forest-steppe habitats was assessed using prin-cipal coordinate analysis (PCoA) and calculating the fidelity of species to certain habitats. The density of woody seedlings was compared among the habitats. It was found that the floristic differentiation between habitats in the forest-steppe mosaic is relatively low, and a high number of species is shared between neighbouring habitats. Species composition of ecotones was intermediate between steppe and forest. The species richness of the ecotones was higher on the sites with hard rocks, while on deep soils, it was similar to those of both steppe and forest. Juveniles of woody species were most abundant in forest, while in steppe they were sparse or missing. Several woody species appeared to have an affinity to some forest-steppe habitat. This study contributes to the understanding of the patterns and processes that maintain plant diversity in the exposure-related forest-steppe landscapes by comparing individual compo-nents of this landscape mosaic in various regions at the western border of the Eurasian forest-steppe biome.
On the 19th November 2004, a wind disaster caused extensive damages, especially in the forests of the Tatra National Park. Despite that windstorm consequences of natural processes impact the spatial structure of landscape excessively, their studies have been subject only to a minor interest so far. The aim of this paper is to characterize the land cover changes in the Štrbské Pleso - Tatranská Lesná area, before the wind disaster and after its impacts have been processed. We also analyze the relationship between wind-caused damages to the vegetation and the natural landscape structure, using various landscape metrics.
Land use/land cover (LULC) changes in the Pálava Protected Landscape Area (PLA) and in the proposed PLA (pPLA) Soutok are discussed in this paper. The LULC data were obtained from maps (for the years 1841 and 1876) and aerial photographs (1938 and 2006). The general trends in both study areas are as follows: (i) a distinct decrease in grass-covered areas; (ii) an increase in forested areas; (iii) extensive changes in forest management; (iv) almost complete substitution of agricultural land by a mosaic of very small patches in 1938; and, (v) an increase in linear vegetation corridors in 2006. The forest age structure of Soutok pPLA is also analyzed. The results demonstrate distinct changes in both the natural and cultural landscape structures in the study areas, and can be used as a basis for the future management of the protected areas.
An increasing demand for bioenergy has stimulated interest in harvesting of tree stumps after felling operations. To reduce the amount of soil disturbance, it is recommended to retain stumps in wet areas. We wanted to evaluate if that strategy is beneficial also for saproxylic (wood-living) insects, which will have less habitat to breed in at stump harvest, and therefore also need mitigation. We tested if stumps in wet positions on a clear-cut harbour fewer species and a different assemblage of saproxylic insects than do stumps in dry positions. Insects were reared out from wood pieces taken from 100 stumps (50 Norway spruce, Picea abies and 50 birch, Betula spp.) sampled in pairs: one stump from wet and one from dry soil in each pair. In the lab 2201 individuals representing 49 beetle and 6 moth species were encountered. Fewer species were found in spruce stumps on wet soil than on dry soil, both when measured per stump or as an accumulated value over all stumps within the categories. No difference was detected between the number of species found in wet and dry birch stumps. However, three beetle species that live mainly in birch were more common in dry stumps than in wet. No species showed an association with wet stumps. We conclude that stumps in wet positions form an inferior habitat to stumps in dry positions, and that this should be considered when making recommendations concerning the harvesting of stumps for bioenergy.
The strongly increasing demand for biofuel from forests poses new challenges for biodiversity conservation. Methods that may combine biofuel production with conservation goals need to be tested for various forest types. One possible conservation-oriented management alternative is partial cutting of closed canopy oak-rich forests (may also be called conservation thinning). Such cutting may counteract succession and restore a semi-open canopy structure, which may favor epiphytes. We evaluated this possibility by surveying the epiphyte community of lichens and bryophytes on large oaks in 24 oak-rich temperate forests in southern Sweden. Treatment plots, and reference plots with no cutting, were surveyed before, and 6 years after cutting. In the treatment plots, about 25% of the basal area was harvested, and mainly small and intermediate sized successional trees were removed. We detected significant positive effects of partial cutting on species density for both lichens and bryophytes. The additional variation in light influx at tree level (after the cutting) could not explain the change in species density. The increase in density of lichen species was highest on oaks with small trunk diameter and on oaks with deep bark crevices. The pooled frequency of species of conservation concern increased after the cutting, but the change in species composition was weak; colonization events occurred over mean minimum distances of 63.5 m to the nearest potential source tree (n = 22 events and 9 species). Overall, we found significantly higher colonization rates, and significantly lower extinction rates per tree for lichens in the treatment plots. We conclude that partial cutting influenced epiphytes of large oaks positively, as was the case for several other organism groups at the same study sites (previous studies). A mild form of biofuel harvesting may represent sustainable resource-use in these forests, compatible with conservation. However, part of the forest should be kept untouched for species vulnerable to changes in microclimatic conditions, and for evaluation of long-term effects.
Trees with hollows are key features sustaining biodiversity in wooded landscapes. They host rich assemblages of often highly specialised organisms. Hollow trees, however, have become rare and localised in Europe. Many of the associated biota is thus declining or endangered. The challenge of its conservation, therefore, is to safeguard the presence of hollow trees in sufficient numbers. Populations of numerous species associated with tree hollows and dead wood are often found in habitats that were formed by formerly common traditional silvicultural practices such as coppicing, pollarding or pasture. Although it has been occasionally mentioned that such practices increase the formation of hollows and the availability of often sun-exposed dead wood, their effect has never been quantified. Our study examined the hollow incidence in pollard and non-pollard (unmanaged) willows and the effect of pollarding on incremental growth rate by tree ring analysis. The probability of hollow occurrence was substantially higher in pollard than in non-pollard trees. Young pollards, especially, form hollows much more often than non-pollards; for instance, in trees of 50 cm DBH, the probability of hollow ocurrence was ∼0.75 in pollards, but only ∼0.3 in non-pollards. No difference in growth rate was found. Pollarding thus leads to the rapid formation of tree hollows, a habitat usually associated with old trees. It is therefore potentially a very important tool in the restoration of saproxylic habitats and conservation of hollow-dependent fauna. If applied along e.g. roads and watercourses, pollarding could also be used to increase landscape connectivity for saproxylic organisms. In reserves where pollarding was formerly practiced, its restoration would be necessary to prevent loss of saproxylic biodiversity. Our results point to the importance of active management measures for maintaining availability, and spatial and temporal continuity of deadwood microhabitats.
Mediterranean cork oak savannas, which are found only in southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa, are ecosystems of high socioeconomic and conservation value. Characterized by sparse tree cover and a diversity of understory vegetation — ranging from shrub formations to grasslands — that support high levels of biodiversity, these ecosystems require active management and use by humans to ensure their continued existence. The most important product of these savannas is cork, a non-timber forest product that is periodically harvested without requiring tree felling. Market devaluation of, and lower demand for, cork are causing a decline in management, or even abandonment, of southwestern Europe's cork oak savannas. Subsequent shrub encroachment into the savanna's grassland components reduces biodiversity and degrades the services provided by these ecosystems. In contrast, poverty-driven overuse is degrading cork oak savannas in northwestern Africa. "Payment for ecosystem services" schemes, such as Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification or Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation and enhancement of carbon stocks (REDD+) programs, could produce novel economic incentives to promote sustainable use and conservation of Mediterranean cork oak savanna ecosystems in both Europe and Africa.
Coppicing was one of the most important forest management systems in Europe documented in prehistory as well as in the Middle Ages. However, coppicing was gradually abandoned by the mid-20(th) century, which has altered the ecosystem structure, diversity and function of coppice woods.
Our aim was to disentangle factors shaping the historical growth dynamics of oak standards (i.e. mature trees growing through several coppice cycles) in a former coppice-with-standards in Central Europe. Specifically, we tried to detect historical coppicing events from tree-rings of oak standards, to link coppicing events with the recruitment of mature oaks, and to determine the effects of neighbouring trees on the stem increment of oak standards. Large peaks in radial growth found for the periods 1895-1899 and 1935-1939 matched with historical records of coppice harvests. After coppicing, the number of newly recruited oak standards markedly grew in comparison with the preceding or following periods. The last significant recruitment of oak standards was after the 1930s following the last regular coppicing event. The diameter increment of oak standards from 1953 to 2003 was negatively correlated with competition indices, suggesting that neighbouring trees (mainly resprouting coppiced Tilia platyphyllos) partly suppressed the growth of oak standards. Our results showed that improved light conditions following historical coppicing events caused significant increase in pulses of radial growth and most probably maintained oak recruitment.
Our historical perspective carries important implications for oak management in Central Europe and elsewhere. Relatively intense cutting creating open canopy woodlands, either as in the coppicing system or in the form of selective cutting, is needed to achieve significant radial growth in mature oaks. It is also critical for the successful regeneration and long-term maintenance of oak populations.
Knowledge of habitat and nest site selection of secondary hole nesting birds under primeval conditions may aid in managing forests and in conservation biology. We studied location (n = 768) and dimensions (n = 624) of Collared Flycatcher nests in natural tree holes in a lime-hornbeam-oak stand of the Białowieża National Park, Poland. Collared Flycatchers bred most often in hombeam Carpinus betulus, in holes that were on average 8.1 m above the ground in trees of a mean diameter at breast height (DBH) of 43 cm. The majority of nest holes were situated in tree trunks (79%), with most of these (87.9%) in living trees. Nest holes were either originally made by woodpeckers (17.4%), or created by natural decaying processes. The minimum diameter measurement of the entrance hole for all Collared Flycatcher nests was 4.6 cm on average. The average distance between the outer rim of the entrance hole and the floor of the nest cavity (danger distance) was 25 cm. The median floor area of the nest cavity was 96 cm2. Differences between orientations of the hole entrances were insignificant.
HABITAT destruction is the major cause of species extinctions13. Dominant species often are considered to be free of this threat because they are abundant in the undisturbed fragments that remain after destruction. Here we describe a model that explains multispecies coexistence in patchy habitats4 and which predicts that their abundance may be fleeting. Even moderate habitat destruction is predicted to cause time-delayed but deterministic extinction of the dominant competitor in remnant patches. Further species are predicted to become extinct, in order from the best to the poorest competitors, as habitat destruction increases. More-over, the more fragmented a habitat already is, the greater is the number of extinctions caused by added destruction. Because such extinctions occur generations after fragmentation, they represent a debta future ecological cost of current habitat destruction.
1. The European stag beetle, Lucanus cervus, is thought to be widely distributed
across its range, but a detailed description of its occurrence is lacking.
2. Researchers in 41 countries were contacted and information sought on various
life history characteristics of the insect. Data on adult body size were collected from
seven countries.
3. Habitat associations differ between the United Kingdom and mainland Europe.
Larvae are most commonly associated with oak, but the duration of the larval stage
and the number of instars varies by up to 100% across Europe.
4. Adult size also varies; beetles from Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands are
larger than those from Belgium or the UK. In the former countries, populations are
composed mainly of large individuals, while in the UK, the majority of individuals
are relatively small. Allometric relations between mandible size and total body length
differ in Germany compared with the rest of Europe.
5. Distribution maps of the insect, split into records pre- and post-1970, from 24
countries are presented. While these inevitably suffer from recorder bias, they indicate
that in only two countries, Croatia and Slovakia, does the insect seem to be
increasing in range.
6. Our data suggest that the insect may be in decline across Europe, most likely
due to habitat loss, and that conservation plans need to be produced that focus on
the biology of the insect in the local area.
The forest ecosystems in northern Europe have undergone extensive changes over the last 200 years. We present the first detailed account on how modern forest management has transformed a beech (Fagus sylvatica) dominated forest landscape in southern Sweden. Specifically, we analyse changes in forest distribution, composition and structure since 1840 at Skabersjo estate and discuss the implications for forest biodiversity. Skabersjo estate is a representative example for the development of semi-open wood pastures into managed dense forests for timber production. This development was part of a long-term process during which changing socio-economic conditions initiated a pervasive change of the Swedish forest landscape, including increasing total forest areas and timber stocks but decreasing relative shares of broadleaved trees. The successful transition to net reforestation starting in the mid-nineteenth century benefitted from a new scientific approach to forest management and the banning of forest grazing. At Skabersjo estate, the introduction of organised forestry resulted in steadily increasing timber yields, but the associated changes in forest structure and composition also changed habitat conditions for many species associated to temperate broadleaved trees. A strong decline of old beech trees has resulted in a lower habitat availability for specialised epiphytic and saproxylic species.
Aim Lowland woodlands in Europe went through dramatic changes in management in the past century. This article investigates the influence of two key factors, abandonment of coppicing and increased pressure of ungulates, in thermophilous oakwoods. We focused on three interconnected topics: (1) Has the assumed successional trend lead to impoverishment of the vegetation assemblages? (2) Has it resulted in vegetation homogenization? (3) Are the thermophilous oakwoods loosing their original character?
Location Czech Republic, Central Europe.
Methods The vegetation in 46 semi‐permanent plots was recorded three times: firstly, shortly after the abandonment of coppicing (1953) and then, after four to six decades of secondary succession and strong game impact (1992 and 2006). Overall trends and changes in species spectra were analysed.
Results There is a marked successional shift towards species‐poorer communities growing in cooler, moister and nutrient‐richer conditions. The change was significantly different in parts affected and unaffected by high numbers of ungulates yet only for herbs, not the woody species. However, observed change in species composition was not accompanied by significant homogenization process that is the general process reported from elsewhere. A sharp decline in plant species typical for thermophilous woodland communities and in endangered species indicates that the original character of the woodland has been gradually lost.
Main conclusions Thermophilous oakwoods have been largely replaced by mesic forests. Lowland oakwoods in continental parts of Europe historically depended on active management, which kept the understorey conditions light and warm. Successional processes in the 20th century caused a critical loss of species diversity at various spatial levels. However, artificially high numbers of ungulates, which otherwise have a negative impact, probably held up succession, so that the changes may still be reversible.
The distribution of Lopinga achine (Lepidoptera Nymphalidae, Satyrinae) in the Czech Republic has declined from thirty grid squares before 1950 to just one extant population,
restricted to a single area of deciduous woodland. A review of historical sites shows that this species used to occur in various
types of deciduous woodland with a relatively sparse canopy maintained by coppicing and/or grazing. The extant population
inhabits mature woodland with a mean canopy cover of 60% (quartiles 50% and 65%), sparse shrubs and a species-rich herb layer
containing plant species requiring dry, warm and nutrient-poor conditions. The larval host plants are the fine-leafed sedges,
Carex fritschii and C. michelii. In 2006, the total population contained about 10,000 adults but this may be an over-estimate, biased by male behaviour.
Measurements of adult mobility, well approximated by an inverse-power function, suggested that all existing colonies are interconnected
by dispersal. Continuing existence of the population depends on two conditions; nutrient-poor conditions for a diverse ground
flora and a sparse tree canopy. While canopy closure is gradually increasing, the herb layer is threatened by soil enrichment
due to the demise of traditional grazing, litter raking and grass mowing in woodlands. Any future management to favour Lopinga achine should include both measures to maintain a sparse canopy and measures to export biomass, such as raking or mowing of ground
flora or, preferably, re-establishment of grazing.
The paper deals with the issue of the spontaneous development of Central-European floodplain forests. The research object
was the Cahnov–Soutok National Nature Reserve situated on the confluence of Dyje R. and Morava R. in the Czecho–Slovak-Austrian
borderland area. This locality has been left to spontaneous development since the beginning of the 1930s. In the years 1973,
1994 and 2006, the surveyed site was subjected to the measurement of standing and lying, live and dead trees reaching a diameter
at breast height of 10cm and the whole area regeneration of woody species. The work objective is to describe the most pronounced
trends in tree layer changes having occurred in the period of study and to capture changes in the total tree volume and production
of dendromass during the disintegration of the old grazing oak layer. The survey into the near-natural floodplain forest of
Cahnov–Soutok showed that (1) the most significant trend is a decreased representation of Quercus robur in all monitored indicators and conversely an expanding representation of Acer campestre, Carpinus betulus and Tilia cordata and (2) that the floodplain forest ecosystem demonstrates a high-level stability in the total volume of tree biomass with
an essential change in the tree species composition, spatial structure and average stem volume of individual trees.
Oaks host the richest fauna of saproxylic insect in Europe. We studied habitat preferences of two beetle families, Buprestidae
and Cerambycidae, by rearing the beetles from standardised oak timber baits. Species density was higher in the understorey
than in the canopy; and in sun-exposed baits if within the understorey. Insolation was the most important factor affecting
the composition of reared assemblages (explaining ca. 30% of variation in the data), followed by vertical stratum (ca. 10%).
Local dead wood volume had no effect. The high preference for sun-exposed wood located near the ground suggests that: (i)
open-canopy woodlands had to be rather common in temperate Europe; (ii) oak-utilising xylophages would benefit from restoration
of management practices such as coppicing or woodland pasture; (iii) the policy of increasing dead wood volume in commercial
forests is principally correct, but its success will depend on dead wood location within the forests.
The demise of traditional woodland management techniques, such as coppicing or woodland pasture, is causing a gradual closure of formerly sparse lowland woods across Central Europe. It is established that these processes threaten such organisms as butterflies and higher plants. Effects on other groups, such as epigeic invertebrates, are little known, hindering rational conservation decisions. We investigated the effects of stand openness on three epigeic groups, carabids (Carabidae), arachnids (Araneae + Opiliones) and myriapods-isopods (Chilopoda + Diplopoda + Oniscidea), in a lowland deciduous wood in the Czech Republic. Situating some of the traps in an intensive deer park allowed a simultaneous assessment of effects of high vs. low ungulate densities. Carabids reached the highest species richness in either sparse stands with low game or dense stands, high game. More arachnids occurred under low game and in sparse stands than under high game density and in dense stands. The highest richness of myriapods-isopods was in sparse stands with low game. Ordinations revealed that species of conservation concern (‘relic species’ according to C. European authors) tended to be associated with sparse stands and low game. A considerable proportion of epigeic woodland invertebrates, including many species of conservation concern, depends on preserving highly heterogeneous sparse canopy conditions. Restoring such conditions in selected areas will benefit these sensitive open woodland specialists while causing minimum harm to specialists of dense stands, that likely prosper in commercially managed high forests.
We used aerial photographs from 1939, 1974, and 1990 to examine how land cover has changed on the 5,286-ha Charles C. Deam Wilderness of Hoosier National Forest over this time span. Digital elevation models were used to examine changes in land-cover class (closed-canopy forest, open forest, agriculture/old-field, clearcut, and pine plantation) within each land type (flat uplands, bottoms, mesic slopes, and dry slopes). In 1939 most of the Deam Wilderness lands consisted of agriculture/old fields (33%) and open forest (25.6%), with only 41.4 % in closed-canopy forest. By 1974 most of the wilderness area had become closed-canopy forest (77.5%), and an even greater proportion was in that class in 1990 (86.3%). Since 1939 the forest of the Deam Wilderness has become much less fragmented with larger patch sizes, less total edge, and more total core area (area within a patch > 50 m from the edge). In 1939 land cover varied by land type: flat uplands and bottoms had the highest proportion of agriculture and old-fields (42.4% and 63.3%, respectively), and dry and mesic slopes had the highest proportion of open forests (30.2% and 28.3%, respectively). By 1974 closed-canopy forest was the dominant land cover on all land types.
Abandoned management has caused many sites with free-standing, large oaks (Quercus robur) to become more shaded. This study shows how forest regrowth affects beetle species associated with old oaks in south-eastern Sweden. Beetles were trapped by pitfall traps placed in hollows and window traps placed near hollows in oak trunks in pasture woodlands. We assessed the influence of forest regrowth, tree size and original canopy cover on the species richness of saproxylic beetles (a total of 120 species identified) and the occurrence of 68 saproxylic beetle species in particular. Species richness was greatest in stands with large, free-standing trees. Large girth as well as low canopy cover increased frequency of occurrence for several species. Forest regrowth was found to be detrimental for many beetle species. As most localities with endangered beetles living in old oaks are small and isolated, ongoing management and the restoration of abandoned pasture woodlands should have a high priority in nature conservation.
Spatial distribution of arthropods in woodlands has crucial implications for biodiversity conservation and
forest management. However, its determinants are insufficiently known. In particular, studies on arthropod
vertical distribution in temperate woodlands report contrasting patterns that are difficult to explain
in the current theoretical framework. Using flight intercept traps, we investigated vertical and horizontal
distribution and diversity of saproxylic beetles in the understorey and the upper canopy at the edge and
in the interior of a temperate, closed-canopy, deciduous forest in South-Eastern Czech Republic. At the
forest edge, number of species was >60% higher than in the interior. Preference for forest edge were better
pronounced in the understorey than in the canopy. Although number of species did not differed between
the forest strata, vertical distribution of individual species as well as the whole assemblages differed
between edge and interior. In the forest interior, most (�80%) species exhibited higher preference for
the canopy than at its edge. Multivariate analysis indicated that beetle distribution was affected by variables
related to habitat openness and light availability. The results suggest that: (i) Vertical stratification
of arthropod assemblages and individual species is context-dependent and variable even within a single
forest patch. (ii) Vertical and horizontal distribution of arthropods is driven mainly by sunlight availability
and habitat openness. (iii) In the closed canopy forest, the horizontal edge-interior gradient affects
distribution of saproxylic beetles more than the vertical understorey-canopy gradient.
Saproxylic insects are characterised by their exceptional diversity and high proportion of threatened species. No recent studies have demonstrated the validity of habitat suitability analysis for scientifically based habitat management for these species. We studied the habitat requirements of the endangered longhorn beetle Cerambyx cerdo, a species with a supposed keystone function for the saproxylic insect community living on oaks. We used species distribution modelling based on datasets from Central Europe to understand the species–habitat relationships and to find the environmental variables responsible for habitat selection of C. cerdo. Our results show that the most important parameters, insolation, presence of oak sap, bark depth and the distance from the next colonised tree, are able to predict the presence of C. cerdo very well. A spatial validation procedure revealed very similar predictive power, indicating the general validity of our model. Tree-level parameters were shown to have a stronger effect on the occurrence probability than landscape-level predictors. To improve the tree-level conditions (e.g. insolation on the trunk) habitat management in the form of semi-open pasture landscapes is recommended from which many other taxa will also draw considerable benefit. The provision of such conditions over decades is the essential key in the conservation of this longhorn beetle species. The success of the European network of conservation areas “Natura 2000” heavily depends on broad biological knowledge of the designated protected species. The present paper shows that species distribution models can give valuable contributions for conservation in saproxylic insects.
Background: Mature trees often provide ecological niches of value to specialised flora and fauna, signalled by such attributes as epiphytes, trunk rot and dead branches. In Britain, they are often found in parklands and wood pastures, which are rare habitats in Europe.Aims: As species differences in veteran attributes of such trees have not been studied, we surveyed eight Holarctic tree species in Chillingham Park, in north-east England, where the stems are of broadly similar age (200–250 years).Methods: The following variables were scored for 779 trees: presence or absence of veteran attributes, community status (alone, in a group, or in a linear feature), stem diameter, altitude at which growing, and the ground vegetation.Results: Trees were generally of only moderate mean diameter. Alder (Alnus glutinosa) and ash (Fraxinus excelsior) had the most veteran attributes (4.30 and 4.16, respectively), followed by oak (Quercus sp.) (3.65), then by birch (Betula agg.) (3.49), beech (Fagus sylvatica) (3.12), sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) (2.77), larch (Larix sp.) (2.47) and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) (1.92). Trees growing at middle altitudes and alone, or in linear features (rather than in groups), had most veteran attributes; 32% of trees exhibited three or more.Conclusions: To capture the veteran tree interest of a site, a survey protocol must consider the history of a site as well as the numbers of veteran attributes exhibited by individual trees, which may differ among species. Finally, alder has not attracted particular attention in these habitats, and we suggest that its fast-growing and rot-prone nature may make it of particular interest for conservation of saproxylic biodiversity.
Questions
We discovered forests with very high local numbers of vascular plant species in southern Siberia. Are these the most species-rich forests of the Eurasian boreal and temperate zones, and which factors cause such high species richness?
Location
Altai Mountains in southern Siberia, Altai Republic, Russia.
Methods
We sampled vegetation and measured environmental variables across the Altai Mountains in plots of 100 m² and established series of nested plots of the size from 1 to 1000 m² at sites with the highest species richness. We compared the richest forests with other forests of the Altai and with literature records of species-rich vegetation types from elsewhere.
Results
The richest forests contained 45 vascular plant species per 1 m², 82 per 10 m², 114 per 100 m² and 149 per 1000 m². They are open hemiboreal forests dominated by Pinus sylvestris, with an admixture of Betula pendula, and sparse shrub and moss layers. About 95% of their vascular plant species are in the herb layer. All species are native. These forests occur in a forest-steppe landscape of the northern Altai, where the mean January temperature is between –12.5 and –10 °C, mean July temperature is 16–18 °C, and total annual precipitation is 560–610 mm. Soils are deep and mesic, with a pH of 6.2–6.4.
Conclusions
Hemiboreal forests of the northern Russian Altai are probably the most species-rich forests in boreal and temperate Eurasia. Such a high concentration of many species in small plots probably results from the incidental combination of several factors conducive to high species richness. These factors include the rich regional flora of the Altai Mountains, stability of the environment of this region since the Pleistocene, heterogeneity of the mountainous forest-steppe landscape with a combination of forested areas on north-facing slopes and steppes on south-facing ones, an open canopy that ameliorates microclimate conditions but does not exclude light-demanding species through strong shading, a macroclimate that is not too harsh, mesic soils with near-neutral pH, and limited competition within the herb layer.
Montane Norway spruce forests of Central Europe have a very long tradition of use for timber production; however, recently there has been increasing concern for their role in maintaining biological diversity. This concern, coupled with recent severe windstorms that led to wide-spread bark beetle outbreaks, has brought the management of montane spruce forests to the forefront of public policy discussions in Central Europe. In order to shed light on the natural development and current structure of mature montane spruce forests, we established four 0.25 ha research plots in a semi-natural montane spruce forest in the Šumava Mountains (The Bohemian Forest), Czech Republic. We mapped all trees, extracted increment cores for age and growth-pattern analyses, and inventoried all current tree regeneration, including the substrates on which it was found. Stands were characterized by uni-modal tree diameter distributions and high basal areas (56.6 m2 ha−1 on average), indicating a natural transition from the stem exclusion phase towards the understory reinitiation phase. The stands showed largely single-cohort recruitment age structures, however, with recruitment spanning seven decades. Our analyses suggest that this cohort existed as advance regeneration prior to major disturbances in the late 1800s, which included post-bark beetle salvage logging. Spatial pattern analyses of living and dead stems combined, showed an increase in uniformity of living trees, pointing to the role of natural density-dependent mortality. However, past growth patterns and historical documentation suggest that low intensity canopy disturbances (wind and snow) also caused mortality and diversified canopy structure. Because the stands developed naturally over the past 120+ years and thus escaped thinning operations, high volumes of coarse woody debris (94 m3 ha−1) and snag densities (546 stems ha−1) have accrued. Advance spruce regeneration was quite abundant and existed primarily on deadwood substrates, even though these occupied only a small percent of stand area. Because of salvage logging in the late 1880s, these stands do not qualify, according to the traditional paradigm, as natural spruce forests. As a result, they are recently subject to active management practices including salvage logging that remove dead and dying trees. Given the importance of deadwood for forest regeneration and recovery from disturbance, as demonstrated in this study, we argue that dead wood removal may limit future natural regeneration in these stands. Thus, the purported benefits of removing dead and dying trees from semi-natural forests must be carefully weighed against the potential detrimental impacts on natural spruce forest regeneration and biodiversity.
To allow for long-term metapopulation persistence, a network of habitat fragments must satisfy a certain condition in terms of number, size, and spatial configuration of the fragments. The influence of land-scape structure on the threshold condition can be measured by a quantity called metapopulation capacity, which can be calculated for real fragmented landscapes. Habitat loss and fragmentation reduce the metapop-ulation capacity of a landscape and make it less likely that the threshold condition can be met. If the condi-tion is not met, the metapopulation is expected to go extinct, but it takes some time following habitat loss be-fore the extinction will occur, which generates an extinction debt in a community of species. We show that extinction debt is especially great in a community in which many species are close to their extinction thresh-old following habitat loss because the metapopulation-dynamic time delay is especially long in such species. A corollary is that landscapes that have recently experienced substantial habitat loss and fragmentation are ex-pected to show a transient excess of rare species, which represents a previously overlooked signature of extinc-tion debt. We consider a putative example of extinction debt on forest-inhabiting beetles in Finland. At present, the few remaining natural-like forests are distributed evenly throughout southern Finland, but the number of regionally extinct old-growth forest beetles is much greater in the southwestern coastal areas, where human impact on forests has been lengthy, than in the northeastern inland areas, where intensive for-estry started only after World War II. Ignoring time delays in population and metapopulation dynamics will lead to an underestimate of the number of effectively endangered species.
Protected areas are one of the cornerstones for conserving the world's re-maining biodiversity, most of which occurs in tropical forests. We use multiple sources of satellite data to estimate the extent of forest habitat and loss over the last 20 years within and surrounding 198 of the most highly protected areas (IUCN status 1 and 2) located throughout the world's tropical forests. In the early 1980s, surrounding habitat in the 50-km unprotected or less highly protected ''buffers'' enhanced the protected areas' effective size and their capacity to conserve richness of forest-obligate species above the hypothetical case of complete isolation. However, in nearly 70% of the surrounding buffers, the area of forest habitat declined during the last 20 years, while 25% experienced declines within their administrative boundaries. The loss of habitat occurred in all tropical regions, but protected areas in South and Southeast Asia were most severely affected because of rela-tively low surrounding forest habitat in the early 1980s and high subsequent loss, particularly in dry tropical forests. The future ability of protected areas to maintain current species richness depends on integrating reserve management within the land use dynamics of their larger regional settings.