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Pubblicazioni Scientifiche

Filtri di ricerca 5 risultati
Pubblicazioni per anno
CrowNet: a trail-camera canopy monitoring system
Mostra abstract
Continuous monitoring of forest canopy structure and phenology is pivotal for the assessment of ecosystem responses to environmental variability and changes. The present study evaluated the use of repeat digital trail cameras as a low-cost, flexible, and accessible in situ monitoring solution for quantifying daily canopy attributes, including effective leaf area index (Le) and canopy cover. A trial camera monitoring network (CrowNet) was established encompassing 20 forest stands in Italy, under different management and environmental conditions, resulting in over 44,000 daily images collected over three years. We demonstrated that taking the mean daily canopy attribute allowed to obtain smooth time series from trail cameras, from which phenological transition dates can be inferred. Daily canopy attributes were validated against manual digital cover photography measurement. To further explore the applicability of this monitoring solution, we performed a comparison between daily Le time series derived from a subset of trail cameras located in beech forests and data collected by multitemporal UAV LiDAR. Results demonstrated the close agreement between the two methods across the entire phenological period (start and end of season). We also illustrated use of continuous trail camera estimates to calibrate a vegetation index (NDVI) to infer leaf area and canopy cover from optical multi-temporal UAV data. We further investigated use of trail camera to detect species-specific differences in tree phenology from time series acquired in a mixed oak-hornbeam forest. We found different canopy structure and phenological transition dates in three broadleaved species (oak, ash, hornbeam), supporting the effectiveness of trail cameras for species-oriented phenology monitoring. We conclude that trail cameras provide a reliable solution for daily canopy monitoring, offering a significant cost-effective and flexible alternative to traditional field methods and providing potential to calibrate, validate or integrate remotely-sensed information. However, camera failures during adverse weather, and the need for more efficient image data quality checking procedures, still represent open challenges. Future improvements, such as weatherproof housing and automated pre-processing screening procedures, are therefore recommended for making trail camera fully operational in ground canopy and phenology monitoring. © 2025 Elsevier B.V.
Repeated mapped tree inventory in an oak-hornbeam planted forest in Po Valley (Foresta Carpaneta, Italy)
Mostra abstract
Stand structure and tree spatial patterns are key elements to understand natural dynamics and competition processes in forest ecosystems. We performed repeated, mapped tree inventory measures (x, y, height, diameter, vitality, etc.) to allow analysis of the spatial and temporal structure and diversity in 1 ha oak-hornbeam planted forest with pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.), established in 2003 also for the conservation of a variety of oak genotypes. Two inventories were carried out in 2009 and 2019. The use of repeated and mapped tree measures allows to investigate the changes in spatial pattern processes through time in this forest. © 2024 Istituto Sperimentale per la Selvicoltura. All rights reserved.
MASTREE+: Time-series of plant reproductive effort from six continents
Hacket-Pain , Andrew J. , Foest , Jessie J. , Pearse , Ian S. , LaMontagne , Jalene M. , Koenig , Walter D. , Vacchiano , Giorgio , Bogdziewicz , Michał , Caignard , Thomas , Celebias , Paulina , van Dormolen , Joep , Fernández-Martínez , Marcos , Moris , Jose V. , Palaghianu , Ciprian , Pesendorfer , Mario B. , Satake , Akiko , Schermer , Éliane , Tanentzap , Andrew J. , Thomas , Peter A. , Vecchio , Davide , Wion , Andreas P. , Wohlgemuth , Thomas , Xue , Tingting , Abernethy , Katharine A. , Aravena Acuña , Marie Claire , Barrera , Marcelo Daniel , Barton , Jessica H. , Boutin , Stan A. , Bush , Emma R. , Donoso Calderón , Sergio R. , Carevic , Felipe S. , Castilho , Carolina V. , Manuel Cellini , Juan , Chapman , Colin A. , Chapman , H. M. , Chianucci , Francesco , Costa , Patricia Da , Croisé , Luc , Cutini , Andrea , Dantzer , Ben J. , DeRose , Robert Justin , Dikangadissi , Jean Thoussaint , Dimoto , Edmond , da Fonseca , Fernanda Lopes , Gallo , Leonardo Ariel , Gratzer , Georg , Greene , David F. , Hadad , Martín Ariel , Huertas Herrera , Alejandro , Jeffery , Kathryn J. , Johnstone , Jill F. , Kalbitzer , Urs , Kantorowicz , Władysław , Klimas , Christie Ann , Lageard , Jonathan G.A. , Lane , Jeffrey E. , Lapin , Katharina , Ledwoń , Mateusz , Leeper , Abigail C. , Lencinas , María Vanessa , Lira-Guedes , Ana Cláudia , Lordon , Michael C. , Marchelli , Paula , Marino , Shealyn , Schmidt van Marle , Harald , McAdam , Andrew G. , Momont , Ludovic R.W. , Nicolas , Manuel , de Oliveira Wadt , Lúcia Helena , Panahi , Parisa , Martínez Pastur , Guillermo J. , Patterson , Thomas W. , Luis Peri , Pablo , Piechnik , Łukasz , Pourhashemi , Mehdi , Espinoza Quezada , Claudia , Roig , Fidel Alejandro , Peña-Rojas , Karen A. , Rosas , Yamina Micaela , Schueler , Silvio , Seget , Barbara , Soler , Rosina M. , Steele , Michael A. , Toro Manríquez , Mónica Del Rosario , Tutin , Caroline E.G. , Ukizintambara , Tharcisse , White , Lee J.T. , Yadok , Biplang Godwill , Willis , John L. , Zolles , Anita , Żywiec , Magdalena , Ascoli , Davide
Mostra abstract
Significant gaps remain in understanding the response of plant reproduction to environmental change. This is partly because measuring reproduction in long-lived plants requires direct observation over many years and such datasets have rarely been made publicly available. Here we introduce MASTREE+, a data set that collates reproductive time-series data from across the globe and makes these data freely available to the community. MASTREE+ includes 73,828 georeferenced observations of annual reproduction (e.g. seed and fruit counts) in perennial plant populations worldwide. These observations consist of 5971 population-level time-series from 974 species in 66 countries. The mean and median time-series length is 12.4 and 10 years respectively, and the data set includes 1122 series that extend over at least two decades (≥20 years of observations). For a subset of well-studied species, MASTREE+ includes extensive replication of time-series across geographical and climatic gradients. Here we describe the open-access data set, available as a.csv file, and we introduce an associated web-based app for data exploration. MASTREE+ will provide the basis for improved understanding of the response of long-lived plant reproduction to environmental change. Additionally, MASTREE+ will enable investigation of the ecology and evolution of reproductive strategies in perennial plants, and the role of plant reproduction as a driver of ecosystem dynamics. © 2022 The Authors. Global Change Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Relationships between overstory and understory structure and diversity in semi-natural mixed floodplain forests at Bosco Fontana (Italy)
Mostra abstract
The "Bosco Fontana" natural reserve includes the last remaining mixed floodplain forest in northern Italy and one of the most endangered ecosystems in Europe. Its effective management is hindered by the complexity of interactions of mixed-tree species and the influence of environmental factors on understory plant diversity. In this study we analyzed the patterns of natural evolution in semi-natural floodplain forest stands at Bosco Fontana with the aim of better understanding its current natural processes and dynamics. Stand structure, taxonomic and functional diversity, species composition, and leaf area index (LAI) of overstory and understory layers were surveyed in permanent plots over two inventory years (1995, 2005). The influence of environmental factors on understory plant diversity was assessed using Ellenberg’s indices for light, soil moisture, soil nutrient and soil reaction. Results indicated that overstory species composition varies according to the soil moisture, with hornbeam prevailing in xeric sites and deciduous oak species in mesic sites. Xeric sites showed high functional dispersion in both drought and shade tolerant traits, while it was significantly lower in both overstory and understory in the moist site. Functional dispersion of drought tolerance in the overstory and understory layers was positively correlated, while species richness was negatively correlated between the two layers. Diversity in the understory was mainly correlated with soil conditions. Understory LAI was positively correlated with overstory LAI in xeric and mesic plots, while no correlations were found in the moist plot. Overall, our results suggest that site conditions (soil conditions and water availability) are the major drivers of understory and overstory dynamics in the study forest. Hence, local site conditions and the understory should be carefully considered in the management of mixed floodplain forests. © SISEF.