Unusual vegetation stability in a lowland pine forest area (Doksy region, Czech Republic)

Abstract

Although the Holocene is characterized by prominent vegetation changes, some vegetation types can reveal surprising stability. We studied Holocene woodland history in a sandstone pseudokarst area (Doksy region, Northern Bohemia, Czech Republic). Twelve soil profiles collected under native or semi-cultural pine forests were analyzed using anthracological methods. In seven of them, the age of profile bases was established using radiocarbon dating. All analyzed samples show a high degree of mutual similarity of species composition regardless of the site or the depth of the sampled soil layer, as well as a good concordance between the composition of fossil and contemporary vegetation. Forest vegetation dominated by Pinus sylvestris with a low but regular occurrence of Picea abies, Quercus sp. and Vaccinium sp. has prevailed since late Boreal up to the present. No considerable vegetation changes were detected during this period, except for succession after fire events. A high content of charcoal within soil profiles indicates that the study area has been affected by forest fires through a substantial part of the Holocene. Recurrent wildfires probably represented a crucial factor sustaining pine forests by cyclic succession, although the relative contribution of human versus natural causes of fire cannot be assessed. In earlier phases of the Holocene, the prevalence of pine in the local vegetation was revealed using palynological data, so that we can conclude that the pine-dominated forests ecosystem existed during the entire Holocene in the study area. This pronounced vegetation stability contrasts sharply with the changeable historical vegetation of Central European lowlands.

The effect of stem girdling on xylem and phloem formation in Scots pine

“…In the Czech Republic, Scots pine forests mixed with a low but regular occurrence of Norway spruce, oaks and shrubs (Vaccinium spp.) have prevailed since the late Boreal period, with an insignificant change in vegetation, except for succession after fire events (Novák et al 2012). Pinewoods cover approximately 17% of the total timber land, the second most widespread after the Norway spruce (Ministry report 2014), taking up a significant position in all vegetation zonas (Chytrý et al 2010;Vacek et al 2016).…”

Holocene matters: Landscape history accounts for current species richness of vascular plants in forests and grasslands of eastern Central Europe

“…Particularly in Western Europe, the role of large herbivores for the persistence of grassland diversity has been debated since the influential book of Vera (). When Central‐European vegetation scientists aim at interpreting current patterns in species distribution or richness, they often consider both the putative northern glacial microrefugia of forest species (Willner et al, ) and the Holocene refugia of grassland or taiga species (Dítě et al, ; Novák, Sádlo, & Svobodová‐Svitavská, ; Poschlod & WallisDeVries, ; Roleček et al, ). Our study demonstrates that all these refugia indeed matter and seem to play leading roles in shaping current species richness patterns.…”

Assessing Forest Classification in a Landscape-Level Framework: An Example from Central European Forests

“…In our opinion, the addition of paleo studies (e.g., [71,[81][82][83][84]) will be necessary for a defensible PNV, certainly in the context of forest assessment for central Europe [85].…”