Insights about past forest dynamics as a tool for present and future forest management in Switzerland

Conedera, Marco; Colombaroli, Daniele; Tinner, Willy; Krebs, Patrik; Whitlock, Cathy (2017). Insights about past forest dynamics as a tool for present and future forest management in Switzerland. Forest Ecology and Management, 388, pp. 100-112. Elsevier 10.1016/j.foreco.2016.10.027

	Text ForEcol.pdf - Published Version Restricted to registered users only Available under License Publisher holds Copyright. Download (3MB)
Preview	Text Conedera_etal_FORECO_accepted_manuscipt.pdf - Accepted Version Available under License Publisher holds Copyright. Download (1MB) | Preview

Mountain forest ecosystems in central Europe are a product of millennia of land use and climate change, and this historical legacy shapes their vulnerability to projected climate change and related disturbance regimes (e.g. fire, wind throw, insect outbreaks). The transitional and highly dynamic state of present-day forests raises questions about the use of modern ecological observations and modeling approaches to predict their response to future climate change. We draw on records from the different subregions (northern, central and southern Alps and their forelands) in and around the Swiss Alps, which has one of the longest evidence of human land-use in Europe, to illustrate the importance of paleoecological information for guiding forest management and conservation strategies. The records suggest that past land use had different impacts on the abundance and distribution of woody species, depending on their ecology and economic value. Some taxas were disadvantaged by intensified burning and browsing (e.g. . Abies alba, Ulmus, Tilia, Fraxinus, . Pinus cembra and the evergreen . Ilex aquifolium and . Hedera helix); others were selected for food and fiber (e.g. . Castanea sativa, Juglans regia) or increased in abundance as consequence of their utility (charcoal, acorns, litter and other products) or resistance to disturbance (e.g. . Picea abies, . Fagus sylvatica, . Pinus sylvestris, and deciduous . Quercus). Another group of trees increased in distribution as an indirect result of human-caused disturbance (e.g. . Betula, . Alnus viridis, . Juniperus, and . Pinus mugo). Knowledge of past species distribution, abundance and responses under a wide range of climate, land use and disturbance conditions is critical for setting silvicultural priorities to maintain healthy forests in the future

Interest & Impact

Downloads

235 since deposited on 20 Dec 2016
25 in the past 12 months

Citations

5 Citations in Web of Science ®
6 Citations in Scopus

Search

in Google Scholar™

Services

Actions (login required)

Edit item

Actions (login required)

Edit item