Effects of disturbance patterns and deadwood on the microclimate in European beech forests

Thom, Dominik; Sommerfeld, Andreas; Sebald, Julius; Hagge, Jonas; Müller, Jörg; Seidl, Rupert

doi:10.1016/j.agrformet.2020.108066

Cited by 66 publications

(60 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“…Our finding that a 10% reduction in canopy closure causes an increase in forest interior temperature is consistent with results from Thom et al. (2020), who found that an increase in surface light by 10%, resulting from the opening of the canopy in European beech forests, caused an increase in maximum temperature by 0.42°C. A study in Chinese forests revealed a 0.83 K increase in surface temperature (Kong et al., 2014).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

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Forestry contributed to warming of forest ecosystems in northern Germany during the extreme summers of 2018 and 2019

Blumröder

Ibisch

2021

Ecol Sol and Evidence

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1. Forest management influences a variety of ecosystem structures and processes relevant to meso-and microclimatic regulation, but little research has been done on how forest management can mitigate the negative effects of climate change on forest ecosystems.2. We studied the temperature regulation capacity during the two Central European extreme summers in 2018 and 2019 in Scots pine plantations and European beech forests with different management-related structural characteristics.3. We found that the maximum temperature was higher when more trees were cut and canopy was more open. Logging 100 trees per hectare increased maximum temperature by 0.21-0.34 K at ground level and by 0.09-0.17 K in 1.3 m above ground.Opening the forest canopy by 10% significantly increased T max, measured 1.3 m above ground by 0.46 K (including pine and beech stands) and 0.35 K (only pine stands). At ground level, T max increased by 0.53 K for the model including pine and beech stands and by 0.41 K in pure pine stands. Relative temperature cooling capacity decreased with increasing wood harvest activities, with below average values in 2018 (and 2019) when more than 656 (and 867) trees per hectare were felled. In the pine forests studied, the relative temperature buffering capacity 1.3 m above ground was lower than average values for all sample plots when canopy cover was below 82%. In both study years, mean maximum temperature measured at ground level and in 1.3 m was highest in a pine-dominated sample plots with relatively low stand volume (177 m 3 ha −1 ) and 9 K lower in a sample plot with relatively high stock volumes of Fagus sylvatica (>565 m 3 ha −1 ). During the hottest day in 2019, the difference in temperature peaks was more than 13 K for pine-dominated sample plots with relatively dense (72%) and low (46%) canopy cover. 4. Structural forest characteristics influenced by forest management significantly affect microclimatic conditions and therefore ecosystem vulnerability to climate change. We advocate keeping the canopy as dense as possible (at least 80%) byThis is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…Minimizing the temperature of the forest interior contributes to climate regulation in the wider landscape and positively influence water and carbon cycles (Ellison et al., 2017). Microclimate regulation can therefore buffer adverse effects of climate change (Thom et al., 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forestry contributed to warming of forest ecosystems in northern Germany during the extreme summers of 2018 and 2019

Blumröder

Ibisch

2021

Ecol Sol and Evidence

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“…Measuring the specific microclimatic conditions at the edge (e.g., Thom et al. 2020, Zellweger et al. 2020) could, for instance, provide an important means toward understanding the processes driving the patterns identified here.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…2016, Thom et al. 2020). Consequently, communities are adapting to the altered climatic conditions at the edge, for example, with light‐demanding species being favored by edges (Laurance et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of stand edges on the structure, functioning, and diversity of a temperate mountain forest landscape

Pöpperl

Seidl

2021

Ecosphere

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Human land use is fragmenting forests around the globe, increasing the edge density in forest landscapes. More frequent natural disturbances also increase the presence of edges in forest ecosystems. Studying a mountain landscape in the Eastern Alps, we contrasted 661 plots situated at varying distances from a stand edge with 615 plots sampled in forest interiors. Our objectives were (1) to analyze the strength of edge effects on forest structure, functioning, and diversity; (2) to determine the penetration depth of edge effects into the forest interior; and (3) to quantify the difference between permanent edges (i.e., to a different land cover type) and transient edges (as created e.g., by natural disturbances). Edges affected forest biomass accumulation negatively (basal area, litter depth, live tree carbon), but had positive effects on diversity (variation in tree diameter, effective plant species number, plant species richness, number of red‐listed plant species). Biodiversity indicators responded most strongly to the presence of edges. The maximum distance of a significant edge effect was <50 m across all indicators. Effects on forest structure and functioning were generally stronger at transient edges compared to permanent edges. Our findings highlight that both permanent and transient edges have a considerable influence on forest ecosystems and should be considered more explicitly in the analysis and management of forest landscapes.

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“…The reduction of canopy cover negatively impacts the thermal buffering effect of the understory (Figure 2; Zellweger et al, 2020). Therefore, declines and diebacks would attenuate and even annihilate this buffer effect in the understory but we currently lack surveys to establish this link directly (Thom et al, 2020). In addition, the degradation of tree crown condition is expected to disturb considerably the vertical temperature profile from the ground to the upper canopy layer.…”

Section: Decline-driven Modifications In Canopy Habitats and Cascading Effects On Arthropod Communitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate Change Alters Temperate Forest Canopies and Indirectly Reshapes Arthropod Communities

Sallé

Cours

Souchu

et al. 2021

Front. For. Glob. Change

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Global change challenges the adaptive potential of forests. Large-scale alterations of forest canopies have been reported across Europe, and further modifications are expected in response to the predicted changes in drought and windstorm regimes. Since forest canopies are dynamic interfaces between atmosphere and land surface, communities of canopy-dwelling insects are at the forefront of major changes in response to both direct and indirect effects of climate change. First, we briefly introduce the factors shaping arthropod communities in the canopy of temperate forests. Second, we cover the significant impacts of a forest decline on canopy structure and functioning, and more specifically its contrasted effects on insect microhabitats, trophic resources and forest microclimates. Deleterious effects may be expected for several guilds of leaf-dwelling insects. Nonetheless, a forest decline could also lead to transient or long-lasting resource pulses for other canopy-dwelling guilds, especially saproxylic species depending on deadwood substrates and tree-related microhabitats. The novel microclimates may also become more favorable for some particular groups of insects. We pinpoint current knowledge gaps and the technological locks that should be undone to improve our understanding of the canopy biotope and biodiversity in temperate forests. We highlight the need for integrative approaches to reveal the mechanisms at play. We call for cross-scale studies and long-term collaborative research efforts, involving different disciplines such as community and disturbance ecology, plant and insect ecophysiology, and thermal ecology, to better anticipate ongoing functional and conservation issues in temperate forest ecosystems.

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Effects of disturbance patterns and deadwood on the microclimate in European beech forests

Cited by 66 publications

References 85 publications

Forestry contributed to warming of forest ecosystems in northern Germany during the extreme summers of 2018 and 2019

Forestry contributed to warming of forest ecosystems in northern Germany during the extreme summers of 2018 and 2019

Effects of stand edges on the structure, functioning, and diversity of a temperate mountain forest landscape

Climate Change Alters Temperate Forest Canopies and Indirectly Reshapes Arthropod Communities

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