Search results for "FOREST"
showing 10 items of 3780 documents
Which traits allow weed species to persist in grass margin strips ?
2017
EASPEGESTADINRA; Sown-grass margin strips, historically established to limit pesticide drift and soil erosion, are now also promoted for enhancing floral diversity and associated ecosystem services. To better understand weed community assembly in grass margin strips, we performed floral surveys in 75 sown-grass margin strips in two regions in France and characterized each species using information from trait databases. We hypothesized that traits of dominant species would differ between newly sown-grass margin strips and older strips. Weed species were separated into functional groups based on their traits using multiple correspondence analysis and hierarchical ascendant classification. Fun…
Resource use of wood-inhabiting fungi in different boreal forest types
2017
Generalist species are usually widespread and abundant, and thrive in heterogeneous environments. Specialists, in turn, are generally more restricted in their range, and benefit from more stable conditions. Therefore, increasing human-induced disturbance can have more negative effects on specialist than generalist species. We assessed the specialization of 77 wood-inhabiting fungal species across seven boreal forest types and different substratum qualities. A significantly higher number of specialist species was associated with herb-rich forests and afforested fields than with managed coniferous forests and wood pastures, the number of specialists associated with natural coniferous forests …
Variation in timing of breeding of five woodpeckers in a primeval forest over 45 years: role of food, weather, and climate
2020
AbstractClimate warming could lead to ‘mis-matching’ of birds’ breeding times with availability of their invertebrate food resources. Fluctuating spring temperatures could influence variation in the commencement of egg-laying, as well as, in phenology of their resources (e.g., tree bud burst, appearance of folivorous caterpillars). We studied timing of Dendrocopos leucotos, Dendrocoptes medius, Dendrocopos major, Dryobates minor, and Picoides tridactylus breeding in, free of direct human intervention, strictly protected fragments of Białowieża Forest (Poland) in 1975–2019. We related their onset of breeding to inter-year variation in spring weather, trees’ bud burst and timing of folivorous…
Notes on the bryophyte flora and vegetation of the central and south-western Balkans.
2013
Pugl isi, M., Campisi, P., lakus ic , D., surina, B., Di Pietro, R., Privitera, M. Notes on the bryophyte flora and vegetation of the central and south-western Balkans. Lazaroa 34: 107-116 (2013). A study on the bryophyte fl ora and vegetation was carried out in the mountains at the boundary between Al bania, Ma - cedonia and Montenegro. The study area incl uded Maja and jezerces massif (Prokl etije mts., sE Dinaric Al ps) and Mt korab (S ar-Pindos Range) in Macedonia. several records for the bryol ogical fl ora of Macedonia and Al bania are reported. In particul ar Scapania cuspiduligera and Distichium inclinatum are new records for the Al banian fl ora. In addition some bryophytic and bry…
Occupation of wood warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix nests by Myrmica and Lasius ants
2018
Bird nests can provide habitats for various invertebrates, including ectoparasites, scavengers, and predators. Records of ants associating with active bird nests mostly involve the insects searching for food, with some exceptional records of ants raising their broods (eggs, larvae or pupae) within songbird nests in nest-boxes or tree cavities. We present data for a previously undocumented, but apparently regular, occurrence of ants and their broods within the active nests of a songbird, the wood warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix (Bechstein, 1793), which builds domed nests on the ground in European forests. Systematic recording found ants, mostly Myrmica ruginodis Nylander, 1846, in 43% of 80 …
Spatial Variation of Soil Seed Bank under Cushion Plants in a Subalpine Degraded Grassland
2017
Cushion plants can affect wind speed and sediment movement patterns which probably modify the water and sediment redistribution along slopes and increase the accumulation of seeds under and around their canopies. This study was carried out to assess the spatial variability of soil seed bank (SSB) and seed bank composition around cushion plants to estimate the SSB potential for restoration of degraded area. Twenty cushions of Onobrychis cornuta were selected in a mountainous rangelands in northern Alborz in Iran, measuring density, richness and composition of SSB at four locations of each cushion (upslope edge, downslope edge, center and outside). SSB composition and density were determined …
Land Cover Trade-offs in Small Oceanic Islands: A Temporal Analysis of Pico Island, Azores
2017
Livestock production has been highly relevant in the Azores, boosted by European agricultural policies, increasing the demand for pasture and competing for space with other land uses. Therefore, it is important to understand the spatial evolution of pasture and related LULC trade-offs. This study describes a GIS-based LULC change detection approach to identify, map and assess pasture-related land use changes and respective trade-offs in Pico Island in the period between 1998 and 2013 (15 years). Pasture in 1998 occupied a total area of 17131 ha (about 39% of Pico Island surface), while in 2013 this same area was of 17621 ha (about 40% of Pico Island surface). During this period, about 16316…
Spatio-temporal analyses of local biodiversity hotspots reveal the importance of historical land-use dynamics
2017
Woodland key habitats (WKHs) form a network of local biodiversity hotspots in human-dominated landscapes of northern Europe. They have been designated based on the presence of old-growth species and structures, and are considered to indicate long-term forest cover. To test whether WKHs do particularly occur in continuous forest land and to explore the scale dependence of relationships between WKH presence and their historical and environmental properties, we analysed them at five spatial scales (from stand to landscape: 80–2500 m) and referring to four reference years (1790, 1860, 1910, and 2010) using univariate and multivariate analyses. We upscaled the georeferenced data using a moving w…
Lichen communities on Populus tremula are affected by the density of Picea abies
2021
Questions Aspen (Populus tremula) is declining in the old‐growth forests of boreal Fennoscandia. This threatens the numerous taxa that are dependent on old aspens, including many epiphytic lichens. Potential methods to aid epiphytic lichens on aspen are centered around treatments which affect the density of Norway spruce (Picea abies). In this study, we investigated how epiphytic lichen communities on aspen are affected by the variation of spruce density in the immediate vicinity of the focal aspen. Location Southern boreal forests in Finland. Methods We recorded the occurrence of lichens from 120 aspens in 12 semi‐natural forest sites. We used spruce basal area as the measure for spruce de…
The effect of buffer strip width and selective logging on streamside plant communities
2019
Background Riparian forests surrounding streams host high biodiversity values, but are threatened by clear-cut logging. Narrow buffer strips of about 15 m are commonly left between the stream and the clear-cut, but studies suggest that the buffer width should be at least 30 m to protect riparian plant communities. Moreover, selective logging is often allowed on the buffer strips in order to increase economic gain. We used an experiment of 43 riparian sites where buffer strip width and selective logging within the strip were manipulated and supplemented with unlogged control sites. We report the short-term changes in the community composition of vascular plants and mosses near the stream (0–…