Where are Europe’s last primary forests?

Abstract

Aim Primary forests have high conservation value but are rare in Europe due to historic land use. Yet many primary forest patches remain unmapped, and it is unclear to what extent they are effectively protected. Our aim was to (1) compile the most comprehensive European‐scale map of currently known primary forests, (2) analyse the spatial determinants characterizing their location and (3) locate areas where so far unmapped primary forests likely occur. Location Europe. Methods We aggregated data from a literature review, online questionnaires and 32 datasets of primary forests. We used boosted regression trees to explore which biophysical, socio‐economic and forest‐related variables explain the current distribution of primary forests. Finally, we predicted and mapped the relative likelihood of primary forest occurrence at a 1‐km resolution across Europe. Results Data on primary forests were frequently incomplete or inconsistent among countries. Known primary forests covered 1.4 Mha in 32 countries (0.7% of Europe’s forest area). Most of these forests were protected (89%), but only 46% of them strictly. Primary forests mostly occurred in mountain and boreal areas and were unevenly distributed across countries, biogeographical regions and forest types. Unmapped primary forests likely occur in the least accessible and populated areas, where forests cover a greater share of land, but wood demand historically has been low. Main conclusions Despite their outstanding conservation value, primary forests are rare and their current distribution is the result of centuries of land use and forest management. The conservation outlook for primary forests is uncertain as many are not strictly protected and most are small and fragmented, making them prone to extinction debt and human disturbance. Predicting where unmapped primary forests likely occur could guide conservation efforts, especially in Eastern Europe where large areas of primary forest still exist but are being lost at an alarming pace.

Genetic diversity and genetic structure of Decalobanthus boisianus in Hainan Island, China

“…The eight forests are located in Wuzhishan National Nature Reserve (WZS), Bawangling National Nature Reserve (BWL), Yinggeling National Nature Reserve (YGL), Diaoluoshan National Nature Reserve (DLS), Jianfengling National Nature Reserve (JFL), Limushan Nature Reserve (LMS), Baishiling Nature Reserve (BSL), and Ganshiling Nature Reserve (GSL) (Figure ). We took the proportion of natural primary forest area occupying the whole land area in each region as a measure of the degree of human disturbance, and assumed that the greater proportion of natural primary forest means the smaller degree of human disturbance, and vice versa (FAO, ; Sabatini et al, ) (Table ). In light of the human disturbance intensity, we categorized D. boisianus in these eight forests into three groups, including low disturbance intensity group (WZS), moderate disturbance intensity group (YGL, BWL, JFL, and DLS), and high disturbance intensity group (LMS, BSL, and GSL).…”

The climatic drivers of primary Picea forest growth along the Carpathian arc are changing under rising temperatures

“…The Carpathian Mountains constitute Europe's largest continuous montane forest ecosystem (Kuemmerle, Hostert, Radeloff, Perzanowski, & Kruhlov, 2007) and Europe's largest remaining assemblage of temperate primary forests (Sabatini et al, 2018). However, investigations of tree growth across the international boundaries dividing the Carpathians have been difficult.…”

Carbon Pools in a Hemiboreal Over-Mature Norway Spruce Stands

“…Under unmanaged conditions, ageing forests slowly develop stand structures that are typical for old-growth forests [11]. In these conditions, species and age composition as well as the occurrence of natural disturbances play a key role in the formation of carbon stock and carbon fluxes [12][13][14].…”