• Key message
Understanding forest genetic diversity and national legislation on trade and utilization of forest reproductive material (FRM) are key aspects for management and adapting forests to ...climate change. Despite concerns about the negative effects of climate change on forests, awareness of the role of genetic diversity in climate change adaptation is limited.
• Context
Adaptive forest management strategies such as afforestation and reforestation depend on the selection of appropriate FRM and their knowledge among the relevant stakeholders.
• Aims
To analyze the perceptions among the forest, conservation, and nursery managers of six Central European countries on awareness of genetic diversity and practical and legislative issues of afforestation and reforestation in climate change.
• Methods
A survey was conducted with structured questionnaires.
• Results
Around 80% of the respondents believe in climate change. Local FRM is preferred for reforestation. Although 80% of the conservation and forest managers perceive the importance of forest genetic diversity, almost half of them feel unaware of it. The majority of respondents believe that national and European legislation on seed transfer is not adapted to climate change.
• Conclusion
Inadequacy in the awareness of genetic diversity and policies on FRM is likely to influence forest adaptation to climate change in Europe.
Abstract This paper presents non-native (NN) coniferous and deciduous tree species growth and vitality assessment on experimental research plots established in 1980, 1982 and 1985 in the Danube ...Lowland over an extended time period. For NN coniferous tree species, Douglas fir, grand fir and eastern white pine reached significantly higher values of diameter at breast height (dbh) and height (H) than Austrian pine. For NN deciduous tree species markedly higher values of H and dbh for black walnut compared to sweet chestnut and red oak were recorded. Damage observed in larger extent on examined NN tree species stands included illegal removal of top of stem for grand fir and presence of necrosis on trunks of sweet chestnut. Comparison of NN coniferous and deciduous tree species growth with native reference tree species showed that NN Douglas fir, grand fir, eastern white pine, red oak and black walnut were capable to achieve similar or even higher values of assessed parameters than native reference tree species. The results suggest, that cultivation of NN coniferous, including Douglas fir, eastern white pine, as well as NN deciduous tree species, including red oak and black walnut in Danube Lowland could contribute to diversification and stabilisation of wood production potential of local forest formations.
We present a range-wide synthesis of our own research and related work on the complex postglacial history of
Abies alba Mill. It is based on macroremains, fossil pollen records as well as on ...different genetic markers. The geographic distribution of genetic lineages and allele frequencies together with the fossil records confirm multiple refugia with at least three of them being sources for the Holocene range expansion into Central Europe, representing so-called effective refugia. One is located in the northern Apennines. A long-term refugium in the southern Balkans contributes to northward expansion with a branch along the Carpathians in the East and the Dinaric Alps in the West. Furthermore, new allozyme data indicate a third effective refugium in the northern or western Balkans, respectively. Using different genetic marker categories the differentiation of
A. alba populations could be attributed to different time scales. A separation of maternal lineages took place in previous glacial cycles of the Quaternary, while a second pattern of genetic differentiation is the result of isolation processes during the last glaciation and subsequent gene flow after range expansion. Suture and introgression zones of refugial gene pools were clearly recognised. The patterns of genetic variation and genetic diversity spanning between rear and leading edges of the present range are discussed for evolutionary implications and conservation strategies.
Climate change is currently perceived as the most important challenge faced globally by ecosystems and human society. The predicted changes of temperature and precipitation patterns are expected to ...alter the environmental conditions to which forest trees in Europe are adapted, and expose them to new pests and pathogens. This would unavoidably lead to a huge loss of ecosystem services provided to society, and at the local scale may potentially endanger the very existence of forests. In this study, we reviewed biological background and limits of mechanisms by which tree populations may cope with climate change: adaptation by natural selection, gene flow, epigenetic phenomena and phenotypic plasticity, as well as forest management strategies, which rely on these mechanisms. We argue that maintaining genetic diversity is important in the long-term view but natural selection cannot ensure sufficiently rapid response to environmental change. On the other hand, epigenetic memory effects may change adaptively relevant traits within a single generation, while close-to-nature forestry practices are the basic requirement to make use of epigenetics. Assisted migration, as a frequently suggested mitigation option, relies primarily on the knowledge gained from provenance research; the review analyses potential pitfalls of this strategy. We suggest that all approaches, i.e., leaving a part of forests without management, close-to-nature forestry, and transfer of forest reproductive materials from sources presumably adapted to future climates are combined across the landscape in an integrative manner.
The review article deals with the silvicultural and phytosanitary risks, which may influence the use of oak and walnut species in the Czech Republic in the climate change. The study covers 12 ...species: eight oak species native to Central and South-Eastern Europe along with the North-American northern red oak, eastern black walnut, Persian walnut, and hybrids of the two walnut species. Future risks associated with cultivation of northern red oak and eastern black walnut were found to be most serious. On the contrary, Turkey oak and Hungarian should be considered a species suitable for most drought-exposed sites. Growing of the studied species in new areas and sites should follow adjusted silvicultural designs. These could include creation of mixed stands managed with due care of individual trees. The coppice with standards, coppice, and even transformation towards agroforestry systems may be suitable systems for the studied species.
A transnational network of genetic conservation units for forest trees was recently documented in Europe aiming at the conservation of evolutionary processes and the adaptive potential of natural or ...man‐made tree populations. In this study, we quantified the vulnerability of individual conservation units and the whole network to climate change using climate favourability models and the estimated velocity of climate change. Compared to the overall climate niche of the analysed target species populations at the warm and dry end of the species niche are underrepresented in the network. However, by 2100, target species in 33–65 % of conservation units, mostly located in southern Europe, will be at the limit or outside the species' current climatic niche as demonstrated by favourabilities below required model sensitivities of 95%. The highest average decrease in favourabilities throughout the network can be expected for coniferous trees although they are mainly occurring within units in mountainous landscapes for which we estimated lower velocities of change. Generally, the species‐specific estimates of favourabilities showed only low correlations to the velocity of climate change in individual units, indicating that both vulnerability measures should be considered for climate risk analysis. The variation in favourabilities among target species within the same conservation units is expected to increase with climate change and will likely require a prioritization among co‐occurring species. The present results suggest that there is a strong need to intensify monitoring efforts and to develop additional conservation measures for populations in the most vulnerable units. Also, our results call for continued transnational actions for genetic conservation of European forest trees, including the establishment of dynamic conservation populations outside the current species distribution ranges within European assisted migration schemes.
Growth rates of European silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) rapidly increased in the last century. At the same time, ring widths declined at the species southern distribution limits in the Mediterranean. ...Such diverse growth trends and responses have largely been attributed to regional climate conditions, but this was prior to considering the species' post‐glacial phylogeny. A dendrochronological network composed of 1961 tree‐ring width series (TRW) from 78 silver fir sites between 365 and 1400 m a.s.l. along the Carpathian Arc was compiled. Spatial differences in the species' genetic diversity were investigated from genetic data of 69 silver fir populations in the region. Differences in growth variability and climate sensitivity were then related to post‐glacial phylogeny and genetic diversity. Significant differences in interannual and longer‐term growth trends and climate responses across the Carpathian Arc were found to coincide with the geographical north–south separation of two post‐glacial populations from effective refugia originating from the Apennine and Balkan peninsulas. Summer temperature was the main driver of growth in the western (Apennine) lineage, whereas ring widths in the Balkan population from the east were predominantly controlled by summer drought. Fir specimens that originated from the Balkan lineage exhibited higher genetic diversity and more regular growth dynamics and also appeared to be less sensitive to air pollution during the 1970s. Synthesis. Although the phylogeny of forest trees has largely been neglected in most dendroecological studies, results here indicate the importance of different post‐glacial histories for the growth sensitivity and adaptability to varying environmental factors. Decision‐making under future climate warming scenarios (for building resilience through forest management) should therefore consider different phylogenetic origins.
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