Search

Aim To project the potential European distribution of seven broad habitat categories (needle-leaved, broad-leaved, mixed and mediterranean forest, urban, grassland and cropland) in order to assess effects of land use, climate change and increase in CO2 on predicted habitat changes up to the year 2050. Location Europe. Method We modelled the response of European vegetation to changes in land use, climate and CO2 by combining the land-use model Dyna- CLUE (based on the CORINE land-cover data) and the dynamic vegetation model LPJ-GUESS. Two reforestation options were explored: maintaining the current range of tree species ( EFI) or promoting naturally occurring tree species ( NAT). Climate data from two general circulation models and two SRES scenarios ( A2 and B1) were used. The broad habitat types were classified according to a combination of land use and the dominant plant species. Results Our models predicted that croplands and grasslands are expected to decrease due to land-use change. Although climate change has a negative effect on needle-leaved forest, it is expected to maintain its area or even increase in the EFI reforestation option while mediterranean, broad-leaved and mixed forests are expected to increase markedly. All investigated drivers have shown some effect, but land use is the dominant contributor to broad habitat change except for needle-leaved and mixed which are mainly influenced by climate change. Main conclusions Land use is predicted to have the greatest effect on broad habitat distribution according to our simulations. Hence in most parts of Europe mitigating actions should focus on land-use change rather than climate change. According to our simulation, the effects of the different drivers are not in general additive. In some cases they act synergistically and in some cases antagonistically. The projected habitat changes are a valuable tool for species distribution modelling and are available online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Carbon dioxide and methane (CH4) fluxes were measured in a cutover bog of the Jura Mountains (France) together with biotic and abiotic variables for two entire vegetation periods in order to compare the carbon balance of the bog at three stages of regeneration. • Among all factors, air temperature and vegetation index (including leaf area of vascular plants, bryophyte density and bryophyte desiccation) were the two main determinants of ecosystem respiration and gross photosynthesis at light saturation. • During 2004 and 2005, the vegetated plots acted as carbon sinks. Net carbon exchange ranged between 67 and 166 g C m−2 yr−1 for the Eriophorum-dominated plots and between 93 and 183 g C m−2 yr−1 for the Sphagnum-dominated plots. The bare peat plots represented a net carbon source (between −19 and −32 g C m−2 yr−1). Methane fluxes accounted for a very small part of the total carbon efflux (< 2%). • The recovery of vegetation in our naturally regenerating bog was beneficial for the carbon sequestration after the relatively short period of 20 yr. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the effects of elevated carbon dioxide concentration on stomal conductance of forest trees in Europe. Application of meta-analysis; Decrease in stomal conductance in response to growth in elevated carbon dioxide; Comparison of carbon dioxide reponse between younger and older trees.