The Last Glacial and Holocene history of mountain woodlands in the southern part of the Western Carpathians, with emphasis on the spread of<i>Fagus sylvatica</i>

Wiezik, Maroš; Jamrichová, Eva; Hájková, Petra; Hrivnák, Richard; Máliš, František; Petr, Libor; Jankovská, Vlasta; Čierniková, Malvína; Hájek, Michal

doi:10.1080/01916122.2019.1690066

Cited by 5 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Our results suggest that Fagus sylvatica was historically more abundant in the Slovak Karst and that charcoal burning associated with massive iron production was probably the main cause of the decline of Fagus during recent centuries. These results are in line with local paleoecological evidence (Němejc, 1936;Wiezik et al, 2019) and findings from other regions with a history of intensive charcoal production (Knapp et al, 2015;Deforce et al, 2018).…”

Section: Historical Charcoal Burning Affected Tree Species Compositionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Climatic conditions in the Slovak Karst are highly suitable for Fagus, which colonised this region earlier than previously thought (Wiezik et al, 2019). This early spread might be related to probable glacial microrefugia of Fagus in this region (Magri, 2008;Hájek et al, 2016;Jamrichová et al, 2017).…”

Section: Historical Charcoal Burning Affected Tree Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 76%

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Historical charcoal burning and coppicing suppressed beech and increased forest vegetation heterogeneity

Máliš

Bobek

Hédl

et al. 2020

J Vegetation Science

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Questions: Long-term legacies of historical human activities in temperate forests are increasingly recognised as an important driver of vegetation diversity and composition. To uncover centuries-old legacies, novel approaches are, however, needed. Here, we combine anthracology of historical charcoal kilns and long-term vegetation resurveys. We asked whether the historical coppicing oriented on charcoal production affected tree-species composition and how the forest understorey vegetation changed after the coppicing was abandoned. Location: Temperate broadleaved forests in the Slovak Karst National Park, central Europe. Methods: To explore the historical forest structure and long-term changes in tree composition, we sampled charcoal remains from 28 historical kilns, identified the burnt tree taxa and estimated the original diameter of the burnt wood. To analyse the vegetation changes over the last four decades, we resurveyed plant composition of 60 quasi-permanent plots established in 1975. Results: Historical charcoal burning was associated with coppicing, which decreased Fagus sylvatica dominance and favoured Quercus spp. in the tree layer. Several decades after the abandonment of coppicing, we observed the decline of Quercus spp. and spread of shade-casting tree species with nutrient-rich litter. This probably triggered the identified demise of light-demanding species, the spread of nitrophytes and taxonomic homogenisation of the forest understorey. Conclusions: The shift from historical coppicing to current high-forest management was likely a main driver of the observed taxonomic homogenisation and decline of light-demanding plants, as in other European lowland forests. Long-term data from charcoal kilns showed, however, that closed-canopy forests dominated by beech were historically more common and observed changes in vegetation thus represent a natural process. Findings also suggest that coppicing taking place over centuries enhanced diversity of forest understorey vegetation. Our novel approach combining a vegetation resurvey and charcoal kiln anthracology thus uncovered otherwise hidden links between current biological processes and the historical human legacies, with consequent important implications for nature protection and management.

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Section: Historical Charcoal Burning Affected Tree Species Compositionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Historical Charcoal Burning Affected Tree Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Historical charcoal burning and coppicing suppressed beech and increased forest vegetation heterogeneity

Máliš

Bobek

Hédl

et al. 2020

J Vegetation Science

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“…On the basis of our current knowledge, the Carpathians were colonized both from southern refugia and from cryptic refugia. The first signs of the beech presence in the Holocene are from Moravia (8900-10,200 cal yr BP, Magri, 2008), from the Vihorlat (11,500 cal yr BP, Wiezik et al, 2019), from the Little Carpathians (11,000-10,000 cal yr BP, Wiezik et al, 2019) and from Western Hungary (8200-11,400 cal yr BP, Magyari, 2002).…”

Section: When Did Beech Colonize the Local Forest? What Are The Chances For Its Survival Under Global Warming?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the northern part of the Carpathians (Tatra) its first detection times (>2%) date back to 9700-8900 cal yr BP (Magyari, 2002;Wiezik et al, 2019), while apparent local presence in Apuseni Mountains dates to ca. 9400-9000 cal yr BP (Bodnariuc et al, 2002;Grindean et al, 2015).…”

Section: When Did Beech Colonize the Local Forest? What Are The Chances For Its Survival Under Global Warming?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure matters: Forest dynamics reveal an early Holocene conifer refugium on a north facing slope in Central Europe

et al. 2020

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Although several studies provide a broad overview of vegetation changes in the Carpathian Basin during the Holocene, stand-scale vegetation changes are lesser known because of the rarity of suitable sampling sites. In this study we investigated the sediment of a small closed-canopy site (Nagy-forrás forest hollow, 685 m a.s.l., 0.1 ha), located in the Mátra Mountains, on the north facing slope of Kékes (1014 m a.s.l.). We carried out detailed pollen, conifer stomata and plant macrofossil analyses, as well as radiocarbon dating to examine Late Glacial and Holocene dynamics of vegetation development. The site dates back to ca. 15,500 cal yr BP, when open boreal forests and wet tundra-like habitats occurred around the hollow. Closed forest cover developed around 14,600 cal yr BP, when a boreal European larch-Swiss stone pine ( Larix decidua-Pinus cembra) forest surrounded the hollow. This vegetation type remained stable up to 7700 cal yr BP. We observed a hiatus between 7700 and 2710 cal yr BP, followed by a beech ( Fagus sylvatica) dominated mixed temperate deciduous forest. Our results confirmed that the area was covered by a primary forest, as human influence was visible only from 175 cal yr BP. The relatively long lasting persistence of Pinus cembra in the Holocene at relatively low altitude was documented, which has never been found in Holocene sediments in the Pre-Carpathians before. We hypothesize that the north facing slope acted as a cold-stage refugium in the Early Holocene and could play the same role for the present-day beech forest that is threatened by recent climate change.

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“…A general geographical scope for the field of forest history must include all areas with woodland vegetation as well as regions where forest products have been imported by humans (e.g., Hellmann et al, 2013Hellmann et al, , 2015Shumilov et al, 2020). Despite earlier attempts for an international approach (Johann, 2006) and occasional studies from Asia (e.g., Liu and Cui, 2002;Sheppard et al, 2004) and Africa (e.g., Stahle et al, 1999;Campbell et al, 2017), the current field of forest history has a strong focus on Europe (e.g., Smith and Whitehouse, 2010;Eckstein et al, 2011;Novák et al, 2019;Wiezik et al, 2020) and North America (e.g., Mackovjak, 2010;Anderson, 2018;Gajewski et al, 2019). Considering that only 14% of today's global forest lie within temperate zones and 61' of the world's primary forests are located outside this area (FAO, 2020), a global perspective should generally be the aim of future forest history research.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forest History—New Perspectives for an Old Discipline

Muigg

Tegel

2021

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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The scientific field of forest history studies the development of woodlands and their interrelationship with past human societies. During the last decades, the subject has experienced a constant decrease of importance, reflected in the loss of representation in most universities. After 200 years of existence, an insufficient theoretical basis and the prevalence of bibliographical and institutional studies on post-medieval periods have isolated the field and hindered interdisciplinary exchange. Here we present possible new perspectives, proposing wider methodological, chronological, thematic, and geographical areas of focus. This paper summarizes the development of the field over time and recommends content enhancement, providing a specific example of application from Roman France. Furthermore, we introduce a topical definition of forest history. Following the lead of other fields of the humanities and environmental sciences focussing on the past, forest history has to adapt to using other available archives in addition to historical written sources. In particular, historical and archeological timber as well as pollen are essential sources for the study of past forests. Research into forest history can substantially add to our understanding of relevant issues like societal responses to climate change and resource scarcity in the past and contribute to future scenarios of sustainability.

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The Last Glacial and Holocene history of mountain woodlands in the southern part of the Western Carpathians, with emphasis on the spread ofFagus sylvatica

Cited by 5 publications

References 69 publications

Historical charcoal burning and coppicing suppressed beech and increased forest vegetation heterogeneity

Historical charcoal burning and coppicing suppressed beech and increased forest vegetation heterogeneity

Exposure matters: Forest dynamics reveal an early Holocene conifer refugium on a north facing slope in Central Europe

Forest History—New Perspectives for an Old Discipline

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