Loading...
Pubblicazioni Scientifiche
Filtri di ricerca 3 risultati
Pubblicazioni per anno
Multiple drivers of functional diversity in temperate forest understories: Climate, soil, and forest structure effects
Chelli
,
Stefano
,
Bricca
,
Alessandro
,
Tsakalos
,
James L.
,
Andreetta
,
Anna
,
Bonari
,
Gianmaria
,
Campetella
,
Giandiego
,
Carnicelli
,
Stefano
,
Cervellini
,
Marco
,
Puletti
,
Nicola
,
Wellstein
,
Camilla
,
Canullo
,
R.
climate change
functional diversity
bud bank
forest management
plant height
seed mass
specific leaf area
Mostra abstract
In macroecology, shifting from coarse- to local-scale explanatory factors is crucial for understanding how global change impacts functional diversity (FD). Plants possess diverse traits allowing them to differentially respond across a spectrum of environmental conditions. We aim to assess how macro- to microclimate, stand-scale measured soil properties, forest structure, and management type, influence forest understorey FD at the macroecological scale. Our study covers Italian forests, using thirteen predictors categorized into climate, soil, forest structure, and management. We analyzed five traits (i.e., specific leaf area, plant size, seed mass, belowground bud bank size, and clonal lateral spread) capturing independent functional dimensions to calculate the standardized effect size of functional diversity (SES-FD) for all traits (multi-trait) and for single traits. Multiple regression models were applied to assess the effect of predictors on SES-FD. We revealed that climate, soil, and forest structure significantly drive SES-FD of specific leaf area, plant size, seed mass, and bud bank. Forest management had a limited effect. However, differences emerged between herbaceous and woody growth forms of the understorey layer, with herbaceous species mainly responding to climate and soil features, while woody species were mainly affected by forest structure. Future warmer and more seasonal climate could reduce the diversity of resource economics, plant size, and persistence strategies of the forest understorey. Soil eutrophication and acidification may impact the diversity of regeneration strategies; canopy closure affects the diversity of above- and belowground traits, with a larger effect on woody species. Multifunctional approaches are vital to disentangle the effect of global changes on functional diversity since independent functional specialization axes are modulated by different drivers. © 2024 The Authors
Silvicultural regime shapes understory functional structure in European forests
Chianucci
,
Francesco
,
Napoleone
,
Francesca
,
Ricotta
,
Carlo
,
Ferrara
,
Carlotta
,
Fusaro
,
Lina
,
Balducci
,
Lorenzo
,
Trentanovi
,
Giovanni
,
Bradley
,
Owen
,
Kovács
,
Bence
,
Mina
,
Marco
,
Cerabolini
,
Bruno Enrico Leone
,
Vandekerkhove
,
Kris
,
de Smedt
,
Pallieter
,
Lens
,
Luc
,
Hertzog
,
Lionel R.
,
Verheyen
,
Kris
,
Hofmeister
,
Jeňýk
,
Hošek
,
Jan
,
Matula
,
Radim
,
Doerfler
,
Inken
,
Müller
,
Jörg C. C.
,
Weisser
,
Wolfgang W.
,
Helback
,
Jan
,
Schall
,
Peter
,
Fischer
,
Markus
,
Heilmann-Clausen
,
Jacob
,
Riis-Hansen
,
Rasmus
,
Goldberg
,
Irina
,
Aude
,
Erik
,
Kepfer-Rojas
,
Sebastian
,
Kappel Schmidt
,
Inger
,
Riis-Nielsen
,
Torben
,
Mårell
,
Anders
,
Dumas
,
Yann
,
Janssen
,
Philippe
,
Paillet
,
Yoan
,
Archaux
,
Frédéric
,
Xystrakis
,
Fotios
,
Tinya
,
Flóra
,
Ódor
,
Péter
,
Aszalós
,
Réka
,
Bölöni
,
János
,
Cutini
,
Andrea
,
Bagella
,
Simonetta
,
Sitzia
,
Tommaso
,
Brazaitis
,
Gediminas
,
Marozas
,
Vitas
,
Ujházyová
,
Mariana
,
Ujházy
,
Karol
,
Máliš
,
František
,
Nordén
,
Björn
,
Burrascano
,
Sabina
functional diversity
functional redundancy
forest understory
sustainable forest management
unmanaged forests
ecosystem resilience
silvicultural regime
Mostra abstract
Managing forests to sustain their diversity and functioning is a major challenge in a changing world. Despite the key role of understory vegetation in driving forest biodiversity, regeneration and functioning, few studies address the functional dimensions of understory vegetation response to silvicultural management. We assessed the influence of the silvicultural regimes on the functional diversity and redundancy of European forest understory. We gathered vascular plant abundance data from more than 2000 plots in European forests, each associated with one out of the five most widespread silvicultural regimes. We used generalized linear mixed models to assess the effect of different silvicultural regimes on understory functional diversity (Rao's quadratic entropy) and functional redundancy, while accounting for climate and soil conditions, and explored the reciprocal relationship between three diversity components (functional diversity, redundancy and dominance) across silvicultural regimes through a ternary diversity diagram. Intensive silvicultural regimes are associated with a decrease in functional diversity and an increase in functional redundancy, compared with unmanaged conditions. This means that although intensive management may buffer communities' functions against species or functional losses, it also limits the range of understory response to environmental changes. Policy implications. Different silvicultural regimes influence different facets of understory functional features. While unmanaged forests can be used as a reference to design silvicultural practices in compliance with biodiversity conservation targets, different silvicultural options should be balanced at landscape scale to sustain the multiple forest functions that human societies are increasingly demanding. © 2024 The Author(s). Journal of Applied Ecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Ecological Society.
Relating forest structural characteristics to bat and bird diversity in the Italian Alps
Rigo
,
Francesca
,
Paniccia
,
Chiara
,
Anderle
,
Matteo
,
Chianucci
,
Francesco
,
Obojes
,
Nikolaus
,
Tappeiner
,
Ulrike
,
Hilpold
,
Andreas
,
Mina
,
Marco
Mostra abstract
The global decline of biodiversity has affected European forests, involving many tree species and forest-dwelling threatened animals. An integrated approach linking forest structure and multi-taxon diversity is increasingly needed to maintain the multifunctionality of forest ecosystems. We investigated the relationship between forest structure, deadwood elements, canopy attributes, and tree-related microhabitats on bat and bird communities in the north-eastern Italian Alps. We collected forest attributes, bats, and bird data on 40 forest plots encompassing the diversity of forest types. To assess the different contributions of each forest attribute variables we performed a two-step statistical analysis using generalised and linear models, including bat and bird taxonomical and functional diversity indices as response variables. Our findings reveal that bats and birds respond differently to variation in forest structural characteristics. Specifically, bat species richness was higher in forests with both higher standing tree and lying deadwood volume. The Shannon diversity index for bird community was higher in forests with high volumes of coarse lying deadwood and stumps. Moreover, plots with mature trees, gaps, and heterogeneous diameter distribution fostered the presence of generalist species of bats and birds, while the abundance of tree-related microhabitats was not significant for these two taxa. This study demonstrates that the optimal habitat conditions for bats and birds in Alpine forests are multifaceted. Promoting distinctive elements within forest stands and a complex forest structure through adaptations in forest management interventions would enhance the conservation of multi-taxon forest biodiversity. © 2024 The Authors