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Trait-Based Response of Deadwood and Tree-Related Microhabitats to Decline in Temperate Lowland and Montane Forests

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Abstract

Forest decline caused by climate change has been a growing challenge for European foresters for decades. The accumulation of tree-related microhabitats (TreMs) and deadwood during decline can enhance stand structural heterogeneity and provide crucial habitat features for many forest ecological guilds. We analysed changes in deadwood and TreM assemblages using a trait-based approach in three case studies: drought-induced decline in highland Pyrenean fir and lowland oak forests, and windstorm/pest-induced dieback in highland Bavarian spruce forests. Decline caused significant changes in deadwood and TreM characteristics and composition in three forest contexts. However, tree density with cavities, exudates, or crown deadwood was not linked to decline intensity. Declining conifer forests had more large deadwood and downed woody debris, and their TreM assemblages were more saproxylic, less epixylic, and included more cracks and exposed sapwood. TreM assemblages in drought-declining forests had higher diversity, functional richness, and more dead tops than healthy stands. In Bavarian spruce forests, there was more decayed downed deadwood, and the TreM assemblages were more associated with the base of the tree, snags, and logs. Overall, forest decline significantly boosts ecological niche resources, typically scarce in managed forests, which could benefit many forest biodiversity groups. Though post-disturbance management should respect tree species-dependent economic balance and avoid phytosanitary risks, it should also consider the ecological benefits of decline-induced heterogeneity.

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Data Availability

Data have been posted on the Zenodo repository (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7816953). R code for statistical analyses is available on https://github.com/J-Cours/Forest_decline_deadwood_TreMs.git.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank C. Moliard and B. Nusillard for their help in data collection, S. Ladet for managing the GIS data, W. Heintz, L. Burnel, J. Molina, J. Willm, G. Sajdak for field work, C. Lopez-Vaamonde, L. Sire and S. Thorn for fruitful interactions within the CLIMTREE project. This research is part of i) the CLIMTREE project, “Ecological and Socioeconomic Impacts of Climate-Induced Tree Dieback in Highland Forests”, included in the Belmont Forum call for collaborative research action: “Mountains as Sentinels of Change”, funded by the French National Research Agency (ANR) (ANR-15-MASC-002-01); and (ii) the CANOPEE project, supported by the Région Centre-Val de Loire (Project no. 2018-00124136).

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Author notes

  1. C. Bouget and J. Cours have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. INRAE, UR EFNO, Domaine des Barres, Nogent-sur-Vernisson, France

    C. Bouget, J. Cours, G. Parmain & V. Speckens

  2. Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland

    J. Cours

  3. School of Resource Wisdom, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland

    J. Cours

  4. INRAE, UMR DYNAFOR, University of Toulouse, Castanet-Tolosan, France

    L. Larrieu

  5. CNPF-CRPF Occitanie, Tarbes, France

    L. Larrieu

  6. Department of Nature Conservation and Research, Bavarian Forest National Park, Grafenau, Germany

    J. Müller

  7. Ecological Field Station, University of Würzburg, Rauhenebrach, Germany

    J. Müller

  8. Laboratoire de Biologie des Ligneux et des Grandes Cultures, INRAE, Université d’Orléans, 45067, Orléans, France

    A. Sallé

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Author Contribution: CB, LL, JM and AS conceived the ideas and designed methodology; LL, JM, GP and JC collected the data; VS and JC analysed the data; CB led the writing of the manuscript. All authors contributed critically to the drafts and gave final approval for publication.

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Bouget, C., Cours, J., Larrieu, L. et al. Trait-Based Response of Deadwood and Tree-Related Microhabitats to Decline in Temperate Lowland and Montane Forests. Ecosystems 27, 90–105 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-023-00875-9

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