Aitor Ameztegui, awarded by the Spanish Society of Forest Sciences for his doctoral thesis

Aitor Ameztegui, former student of the FiDBosc group, has recently been awarded by the Spanish Society of Forest Sciences (SECF) as the second best Ph.D. Thesis in Forest Sciences in 2013. The thesis, entitled Forest dynamics at the montane-subalpine ecotone in the Pyrenees, was supervised by Dr. Lluís Coll and was defended in CTFC last July. It aimed at a better understanding of the main drivers of forest dynamics in mixed mountain forests. One of the main findings of Aitor's work was the substantial role that land-use changes play in the observed patterns of recent forest expansion in the Pyrenees, as well as the effect that shade tolerance can play interacting with the expected consequences of climate change in tree demography.

Currently, Aitor is developing a post-doctoral stage in the Centre for Forest Research of the Université du Québec à Montréal (Canada), where he works in the integration of forest management alternatives under global change scenarios.

The award ceremony will take place on friday 21st at the Palace of Santa Cruz in Valladolid, coinciding with the celebration of the International Day of Forests.

Congratulations, Aitor!

New Article: Mushroom production as an alternative for rural development in a mountainous area.

A regional case study In this new article, previously published mushroom yield models were combined with the national forest inventory and forest maps to predict the potential mushroom production of Catalonia. This article highlights the importance of NWFP on a Mediterranean region and calls for the development of strategic forest policies that take into account such a relevant asset. BONET J.A., GONZÁLEZ-OLABARRIA J.R., MARTÍNEZ DE ARAGÓN J. (2014) Mushroom production as an alternative for rural development in a mountainous area. A regional case study. Journal of Mountain science 11 (2): 535-543

New Article: Viewing forests through the lens of complex systems science

In a new article, recenlty published in Ecosphere, the application of complex systems thinking for improving forest ecosystem resilience and adaptability is analyzed. In particular, the article review the properties of complex systems (heterogeneity, hierarchy, self-organization, openness, adaptation, memory, non-linearity and uncertainty) using four well-studied forest biomes (temperate, boreal, tropical and Mediterranean) as examples. The lens of complex systems science yields insights into facets of forest structure and dynamics that facilitate comparisons among ecosystems. These biomes share the main properties of complex systems but differ in specific ecological properties, disturbance regimes, and human uses. We show how this approach can help forest scientists and managers to conceptualize forests as integrated social-ecological systems and provide concrete examples of how to manage forests as complex adaptive systems.

Filotas E., Parrott L., Burton P.J., Chazdon R.L., Coates D.K.,  Coll L., Haeussler S., Martin K., Nocentini S., Puettmann K.J., Putz F.E., Simard S.W., Messier C. (2014) Viewing forests through the lens of complex systems science. Ecosphere 5:art1  dx.doi.org/10.1890/ES13-00182.

Photo: Pere Casals