Old-growthness level assessed by structural heterogeneity indices in Mediterranean Quercus pubescens forests
December 2025
Old-growth forests are of major importance for biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation, as well as being a benchmark for the implementation of sustainable forest management. Although...
Slope mediates drought sensitivity but does not affect drought recovery for young trees along elevation gradients in temperate planted larch forests
December 2025
Climate warming causes mountainous species to shift their distributions towards higher elevations. How elevation influences growth–climate relationship in mountain regions has been intensively investigated....
Predicting gross primary productivity of poplar plantations based on solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence using an improved machine learning model
December 2025
Gross primary production (GPP) is closely associated with processes such as photosynthesis and transpiration within ecosystems, which is a vital component of the global carbon–water–energy cycle. Accurate...
A novel method for ULS-TLS forest point cloud registration based on height context descriptor
December 2025
Unmanned aerial vehicle laser scanning (ULS) and terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) systems are effective ways to capture forest structures from top and side views, respectively. The registration of TLS...
Drought intensity affects radial growth and recovery of P. schrenkiana at varying elevations in the Western Tianshan Mountains, China
December 2025
As climate change intensifies, forests increasingly face the challenges posed by more frequent and severe droughts. However, the impacts of drought intensity on post-drought growth recovery and compensatory...
Up-to-date high-resolution understory terrain extraction based on satellite stereo photogrammetry and spaceborne LiDAR
December 2025
Accurate digital terrain models (DTMs) are essential for a wide range of geospatial and environmental applications, yet their derivation in forested regions remains a significant challenge. Existing...
Effects of forest management and habitat continuity on the genetic structure and ecological corridors of target epiphytic moss species: A landscape genetic study of Dicranum viride
December 2025
Habitat fragmentation in forest ecosystems poses a major threat to biodiversity, disrupting ecological corridors, limiting gene flow, and threatening persistence, especially for forest-dependent species....
Scale-dependent variations in photosynthetic processes mediate net primary productivity in temperate forests
December 2025
The net primary productivity (NPP) of forest ecosystems plays a crucial role in regulating the terrestrial carbon cycle under global climate change. While the temporal effect driven by ecosystem processes...
Developing and evaluating satellite-derived phenology and physiology indicators for modeling annual gross primary productivity variability
December 2025
Vegetation annual gross primary production (AGPP), the total yearly carbon assimilation via photosynthesis, serves as a key indicator of ecosystem carbon uptake. While AGPP variations are jointly influenced...
The spatial shifts and vulnerability assessment of ecological niches under climate change scenarios at the genus level: A case study of Betula, China
December 2025
As global warming persistently alters and rapidly reshapes landscapes and habitats, conventional species distribution models relying solely on maintaining static conditions within the current climate...
Biodiversity in primary vs. managed forests: Biological legacies of old living and large dead trees drive lichen diversity
December 2025
Anthropogenic activities have significantly contributed to the loss and fragmentation of primary forests across the globe, which has accelerated biodiversity decline, particularly among highly specialised...
Tree competition in West African tropical forests mediated by the functional attributes of species and variation in soil moisture
December 2025
Understanding the ecological processes shaping competitive interactions among forest trees is crucial for predicting ecosystem productivity and climate change resilience. However, few studies have investigated...
Impact of broadleaf tree introduction on rhizosphere fungal communities and root phosphorus-cycling genes in conifers of near-natural transformed plantations
December 2025
Phosphorus (P) is crucial for plant growth. However, its low availability in subtropical soils necessitates that trees rely on microorganisms for effective P acquisition. The introduction of broadleaf...
Potential for improved groundwater recharge and dry-season flows through forest landscape restoration on degraded lands in the tropics
December 2025
As interest in tropical forest restoration accelerates, understanding its hydrological implications is increasingly urgent. While concerns persist that reforestation will reduce annual water yields—particularly...
Black locust under long-term rainfall exclusion treatment changed its drought-resistance strategy to an adventurous pattern that potentially raised the risk of hydraulic damage
December 2025
The mechanism of plant response to water availability is a crucial research area in ecosystem adaptation to dry environments. Global change in precipitation patterns exacerbates drought risks in many...
Variation in pine growth response to site preparation methods in the Lower Coastal Plain of the southeastern US
December 2025
This study evaluated the long-term growth responses of pine plantations in the Lower Coastal Plain of Florida to different site preparation (SP) treatments, including variations in bedding timing (early...
Dynamics of fine root biomass and morphology of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forest stands along a soil moisture gradient
December 2025
Increasing evidence suggests that fine roots are particularly sensitive to environmental changes, making them essential in responding and adapting forest ecosystems to climate change. However, we still...
Size heterogeneity, growth dominance development, and relationships with stand growth in unthinned and thinned loblolly pine plantations
Available online 7 September 2025
This study examined size inequality and size-growth relationships as essential aspects of stand structure in loblolly pine plantations (Pinus taeda L.), particularly focusing on a critical stage with...
Species-specific influences of competition and tree size on drought sensitivity and resistance for three planted conifers in northern China
August 2025
Droughts have caused tree growth decline and high tree mortality across temperate forests, however, how to manage planted forests to alleviate drought stress is still challenging. We used tree-ring...
The influence of the Eurasian beaver's gnawing activity on the structure of riparian forests in three Italian rivers
August 2025
The Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber Linnaeus, 1758) can be considered a hydrological ecosystem engineer as it shapes environmental characteristics through its building activities and feeding behaviour....
Understanding visitor preferences: Perceived importance of anthropogenic and natural forest features in supplying cultural ecosystem services
August 2025
Cultural ecosystem services (CES) provided by urban green infrastructure are essential for enhancing social well-being and resilience. Identifying and mapping CES at a local scale is crucial for informed...
Design strategy of advanced generation breeding population of Pinus tabuliformis based on genetic variation and inbreeding level
August 2025
The level of genetic variation within a breeding population affects the effectiveness of selection strategies for genetic improvement. The relationship between genetic variation level within Pinus tabuliformis...
Trends in alpha diversity, community composition, and network complexity of rare, intermediate, and abundant bacterial taxa along a latitudinal gradient and their impact on ecosystem multifunctionality
August 2025
Soil microbial communities are key factors in maintaining ecosystem multifunctionality (EMF). However, the distribution patterns of bacterial diversity and how the different bacterial taxa and their...
How to determine the leaf area index (LAI) of forests: A comparison of forest inventory versus satellite-driven estimates
August 2025
Leaf area index (LAI) is a key measure of forest stand physiology and biomass production, and is essential within ecosystem modeling. There are two common approaches to obtaining LAI: (i) terrestrial...
Microbial genomic traits and mineral protection jointly regulate the temperature sensitivity of soil carbon decomposition in boreal forests
August 2025
Soil organic carbon (SOC) decomposition in high-latitude boreal forests exhibits heightened sensitivity to climate change. However, a comprehensive understanding of the underlying drivers governing...