Past and present pressures on forest resources have led to a drastic decrease in the surface
area of unmanaged forests in Europe. Changes in forest structure, composition, and dynamics inevitably
lead to changes in the biodiversity of forest-dwelling species. The possible biodiversity gains and losses due to
forest management (i.e., anthropogenic pressures related to direct forest resource use), however, have never
been assessed at a pan-European scale. We used meta-analysis to review 49 published papers containing 120
individual comparisons of species richness between unmanaged and managed forests throughout Europe. We
explored the response of different taxonomic groups and the variability of their response with respect to time
since abandonment and intensity of forest management. Species richness was slightly higher in unmanaged
than in managed forests. Species dependent on forest cover continuity, deadwood, and large trees (bryophytes, lichens, fungi, saproxylic beetles) and carabids were negatively affected by forest management. In contrast,
vascular plant species were favored. The response for birds was heterogeneous and probably depended more
on factors such as landscape patterns. The global difference in species richness between unmanaged and
managed forests increased with time since abandonment and indicated a gradual recovery of biodiversity.
Clearcut forests in which the composition of tree species changed had the strongest effect on species richness,
but the effects of different types of management on taxa could not be assessed in a robust way because
of low numbers of replications in the management-intensity classes. Our results show that some taxa are
more affected by forestry than others, but there is a need for research into poorly studied species groups in
Europe and in particular locations. Our meta-analysis supports the need for a coordinated European research
network to study and monitor the biodiversity of different taxa in managed and unmanaged forests.

/pdf/biodiversity-differences-between-managed-and-unmanaged-1hyz4y4uql.pdf

Biodiversity Differences between Managed and Unmanaged Forests: Meta-Analysis of Species Richness in Europe

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/ddi.12778

Where are Europe's last primary forests?

Changes in forest disturbances can have strong impacts on forests, yet we lack consistent data on Europe’s forest disturbance regimes and their changes over time. Here we used satellite data to map three decades of forest disturbances across continental Europe, and analysed the patterns and trends in disturbance size, frequency and severity. Between 1986 and 2016, 17% of Europe’s forest area was disturbed by anthropogenic and/or natural causes. We identified 36 million individual disturbance patches with a mean patch size of 1.09 ha, which equals an annual average of 0.52 disturbance patches per km2 of forest area. The majority of disturbances were stand replacing. While trends in disturbance size were highly variable, disturbance frequency consistently increased and disturbance severity decreased. Here we present a continental-scale characterization of Europe’s forest disturbance regimes and their changes over time, providing spatial information that is critical for understanding the ongoing changes in Europe’s forests. Changes in forest disturbance affect their sustainability. This study finds that between 1986 and 2016, 36 million disturbances by humans or other causes affected 17% of Europe’s forest area.

/pdf/mapping-the-forest-disturbance-regimes-of-europe-1pvipi8q65.pdf

Mapping the forest disturbance regimes of Europe

Rural landscape, nature conservation and culture: Some notes on research trends and management approaches from a (southern) European perspective

Mortality is a key indicator of forest health, and increasing mortality can serve as bellwether for the impacts of global change on forest ecosystems. Here we analyze trends in forest canopy mortality between 1984 and 2016 over more than 30 Mill. ha of temperate forests in Europe, based on a unique dataset of 24,000 visually interpreted spectral trajectories from the Landsat archive. On average, 0.79% of the forest area was affected by natural or human-induced mortality annually. Canopy mortality increased by +2.40% year–1, doubling the forest area affected by mortality since 1984. Areas experiencing low-severity mortality increased more strongly than areas affected by stand-replacing mortality events. Changes in climate and land-use are likely causes of large-scale forest mortality increase. Our findings reveal profound changes in recent forest dynamics with important implications for carbon storage and biodiversity conservation, highlighting the importance of improved monitoring of forest mortality. Increases in tree mortality can signal changes in forest health, but large-scale tree mortality is difficult to quantify. Here Senf et al. show large-scale increases in forest mortality in Central Europe over the past 30 years, which were related to increasing growing stocks and temperature.

/pdf/canopy-mortality-has-doubled-in-europe-s-temperate-forests-852y69iez7.pdf

Canopy mortality has doubled in Europe's temperate forests over the last three decades.

State of Europe\'s forests 2015

Protected forests in Europe approaches - harmonising the definitions for international comparison and forest policy making

COST Action E27. Protected Forest Areas in Europe - analysis and harmonisation (PROFOR): results, conclusions and recommendations.

Data resources: Quantitative Indicators: Indicator 4.6: Information delivered by Bioversity International Indicator 4.7: Information delivered by EC-JRC Indicators 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.8, 4.9: National reports on Joint FOREST EUROPE/UNECE/FAO Questionnaire on Pan-European Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management Quantitative Indicators Qualitative Indicators: Indicator B6: National reports on Reporting on the pan-European Qualitative Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management

Maintenance, conservation and appropriate enhancement of biological diversity in forest ecosystems

History of Protected Forest Areas in Europe.

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