The effect of natural dieback of mountain spruce forest on microclimate, chemistry, and bio-diversity of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Project No.: P504/12/1218

Applicant: Jiří Kopáček

Financial support: Czech Science Foundation

Duration: 2012 - 2016

Windthrows and climatic factors have promoted bark beetle (Ips typographus) development and a large-scale dieback of Norway spruce in the unmanaged parts of the Bohemian Forest (central Europe). In 2004-2007, the defoliation killed >90% of forest in the Plesne Lake catchment. Windthrows occurred also in catchments of Certovo and Laka lakes. All these areas have been subjects of our intensive long-term ecological research (water, climate, soil, and forest) since 1984-2002. Available pre-disturbance data, current research, and new proposed studies provide a worldwide unique opportunity for a complex ecological research on the effects of natural forest dieback on the individual ecosystem parts. We propose (1) mass budget study on changes in element fluxes and pools on a whole-catchment scale (forest, soil, waters); (2) evaluation of effects on microclimate, hydrology, and soil and aquatic chemistry and biodiversity; and (3) projection of the net effects to other mountain areas, for different forestry practices, and along the anticipated trends in climate and atmospheric pollution.