Pre-industrial composition of woodlands and modern deforestation events in the southern part of the Western Carpathians

Wiezik, Maroš; Hájková, Petra; Jamrichová, Eva; Hrivnák, Richard; Hájek, Michal

doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2018.10.009

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…This difference could be explained by a difference in the local conditions or by the different altitude of Hypkaňa site which could have promoted an earlier development of beech forest (Magyari, 2002). Our results still fit with records in several other sites in the Western Carpathians including in Slovakia (Dabkowski et al, 2019; Wiezik et al, 2019) or in Northern Romanian Carpathians (Fărcaş et al, 2013). This expansion coincides with wetter climate broadly reconstructed in Europe (Azuara et al, 2015; Magny et al, 2007), including in the Western Carpathians (Kołaczek et al, 2020) and in Slovakia (Dabkowski et al, 2019).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Development of high diversity beech forest in the eastern Carpathians

Lestienne

Jamrichová

Kuosmanen

et al. 2023

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim In recent decades, a surge in the number of significant and uncontrolled wildfires has occurred worldwide. Global warming may amplify this trend and threaten most ecosystems worldwide. Deciduous forests are characterized by high plant diversity, and understanding their long‐term dynamics is crucial to anticipate changes in these ecosystems during ongoing global warming. The aim of this study is to understand how European beech forests have colonized the inner Eastern Carpathians and how changes in fire regime and human activities have affected their biodiversity. Location Inner Eastern Carpathian Mountains, Slovakia. Taxon Plantae, gymnosperms, angiosperms. Methods Peat core was extracted from the centre of Ďurova mláka mire in 2018. A multi‐proxy approach has been applied to investigate the development of beech forest. Charcoal analysis has been done each centimetre to reconstruct the fire signal. Pollen analysis has been done at 2 cm resolution to reconstruct the vegetation composition and dynamics, and the variation in palynological richness (PRI), evenness and turnover has been analysed. Macro‐remains analysis has been performed at 10 cm resolution to add more information about the local vegetation. Results Low diversity spruce forest was dominant until 5200 cal. BP during a fire‐prone period due to specific climatic conditions (drier climate than the following period). The higher fire frequency and intensity following this period is simultaneous with the first expansion of Fagus which indicate that Fagus could occupy post‐fire habitats, at least at the local scale. However, its dominance coincided with major gaps in fire events from 3900 cal. BP. The PRI has increased during the transition from spruce to beech forest highlighting the importance of beech forests in maintaining plant biodiversity. However, the stronger increase in the richness is synchronous with the increase in human activities around 2000 cal. BP, and then 350 cal. BP. Main Conclusions Climate‐driven fire frequency has been a natural driver of vegetation changes in the Carpathians by promoting the emergence of high diversified beech forest. These changes were significantly modified by later increase in human activities.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Development of high diversity beech forest in the eastern Carpathians

Lestienne

Jamrichová

Kuosmanen

et al. 2023

Journal of Biogeography

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“…A similar pattern of presence of pollen and macrofossils of A. alba and F. sylvatica was also recorded at other sites in the Western Carpathians (e.g. Kołaczek et al, 2020; Šímová et al, 2019; Wiezik et al, 2019). A. alba seeds germinate better and seedlings thrive preferentially on acidic and strongly acidic humus (Dobrowolska et al, 2017) and may survive in very low amounts of diffused light (<5%; Rozenbergar et al, 2007).…”

Section: Discussion: Development Of Submontane Forestsupporting

confidence: 80%

Development and degradation of a submontane forest in the Beskid Wyspowy Mountains (Polish Western Carpathians) during the Holocene

et al. 2021

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Mountain regions harbour high biodiversity; however, in numerous areas, they are strongly degraded by human activity. Our study reconstructs the development of the submontane forest belt (400 and 650 m a.s.l.) in the Beskid Wyspowy Mountains (Western Carpathians, Central Europe) affected by climate, humans, fire, and parasitic fungi during the Holocene. This forest belt is considered the most transformed by the human in the Carpathian region. Our multi-proxy study included analyses of pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs (NPPs), plant macrofossils, micro- and macrocharcoal (size fraction >100 µm, analysed in contiguous sampling), geochemical, and sedimentological markers. The results revealed that Picea abies dominated on the fen subjected to study at ca. 8510–5010 cal. BP. Tilia cordata was a substantial component of the submontane forest between ca. 8510 and 2970 cal. BP and it survived a probable Kretzschmaria deusta outbreak, as well as a period of increased fire activity (ca. 6000 cal. BP). The final retreat of forests with a substantial contribution of Tilia was induced by the expansion of Abies alba, Fagus sylvatica, and partly Carpinus betulus and was preceded by the period of increased fire activity and erosion. From ca. 900 cal. BP human-induced deforestations and agricultural and pastoral activity increased. The modern presence of woodlands with Pinus sylvestris and Larix decidua, in the submontane zone in the Beskid Wyspowy Mountains, is a result of sub-recent anthropogenic afforestation on overgrazed areas. The example of the Zbludza site reveals that changes related to fire and pathogen infections, if they have low magnitudes and new competitive taxa are absent, may be reversible in a forest composed of fire-intolerant tree taxa as Tilia. Nonetheless, the widespread submontane ecosystem degradation and the introduction of alien species hamper the regeneration of forest vegetation typical of the submontane zone.

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“…Based on the paleoecological record, significant climate change, hence reorganisation of vegetation zones in the past 1500 years, cannot be proved. However, the climate played an increasing role through human land use, deforestation and selective logging (Wiezik et al 2019). Nevertheless, the beginning of medieval alpine shepherding in the Romanian Carpathians overlapped with a climatic optimum in Europe (Medieval Climatic Anomaly (MCA), AD 950-1250, Mann et al 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social Context of Late Medieval and Early Modern Deforestation Periods in the Apuseni Mountains (Romania) based on an Integrated Evaluation of Historical and Paleobotanical Records

Jakab

Pál

Silye

et al. 2021

Environmental Archaeology

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Coeval changes in the reconstructed bog surface wetness and the pollen record of a peat sequence extracted from an ombrothropic bog (Calul de Piatră, 1630 m, Apuseni Mountains) allowed the natural and anthropogenic environmental changes over the past 1500 years to be assessed. The assessment of the social and economic context was also possible due to the exceptionally detailed documentary evidence of the investigated region. Four major deforestation periods in the past 1500 years were identified. Significant phases of deforestation coincided with particular social and political changes: (1) between AD 810 and 850, with the collapse of the Avar Khaganate and the expansion of the Bulgarian Empire in the southern areas of the Carpathian Basin; (2) between AD 1060 and 1170, with the establishment of the Kingdom of Hungary (AD 1000) and the foundation of royal, territorial administrative (county) and ecclesiastical centres of the feudal state; (3) in the sixteenth century (AD 1500-1570); and (4) after AD 1700, with population growth and economic development. Our results suggest that the observed deforestation and the consequent spread of subalpine farming were not necessarily related to the warmer or drier climatic periods, but to socioeconomic changes in nearby communities.

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Pre-industrial composition of woodlands and modern deforestation events in the southern part of the Western Carpathians

Cited by 7 publications

References 43 publications

Development of high diversity beech forest in the eastern Carpathians

Development of high diversity beech forest in the eastern Carpathians

Development and degradation of a submontane forest in the Beskid Wyspowy Mountains (Polish Western Carpathians) during the Holocene

Social Context of Late Medieval and Early Modern Deforestation Periods in the Apuseni Mountains (Romania) based on an Integrated Evaluation of Historical and Paleobotanical Records

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