Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2024
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Annika M. Felton Robert Spitzer David Raubenheimer Per-Ola Hedwall Adam Felton Ruth V. Nichols Brendan L. O'Connell Jonas Malmsten Erik Löfmarck Hilde Karine WamAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Eivind Handegard Ivar Gjerde Rune Halvorsen Robert John Lewis Ken Olaf Storaunet Magne Sætersdal Olav SkarpaasAbstract
Multiple ecological drivers, along with forest age, determine the species composition of boreal forest ecosystems. However, the role of age in successional changes in forests cannot be understood without taking site conditions, the disturbance regime and forest structure into account. In this study, we ask two research questions: 1. What is the relationship between forest age and overall species composition in older near-natural spruce forests, i.e. forests of age beyond harvest maturity? 2. Do species associated with different forest habitats respond similarly to variation in forest age? Data were collected in 257 Norway spruce dominated 0.25 ha plots from three study areas in Southeastern and Central Norway. Species inventories were conducted for lichens and bryophytes on trees and rocks, vascular plants on the forest floor, and for deadwood-associated bryophytes and polypore fungi. Although NMDS ordination analyses of the total species composition identified a main axis related to the age of the oldest trees in two of the study areas, variation partitioning analyses showed that age explained a small fraction of variation of the species composition compared to site conditions, logging history, forest structure, and differences between the sites in all habitats. The unique variation explained by forest age species was, however, significant for all habitats. The fraction of variation in species composition explained by forest age was the largest for lichens and bryophytes on trees, and for deadwood-associated bryophytes and polypore fungi. Our results suggest that practical mapping of near-natural forests for management purposes inventories should include site conditions, forest structure and between site differences in addition to forest age.
Authors
Robert Spitzer Monica Ericson Annika M. Felton Morten Heim David Raubenheimer Erling Johan Solberg Hilde Karine Wam Christer Moe RolandsenAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Adam Kristensson Paul Miller Holger Lange Thomas Holst Jaana Bäck Pontus Roldin Natascha Kljun Anne Klosterhalfen Anders Ahlström Thomas A. Pugh Liesbet Vranken Mark Rounsevell Svein Solberg James AtkinsonAbstract
Forests are a key plank of European policies to mitigate and adapt to climate change and to promote biodiversity. These policies are starting to become more nuanced with respect to the account of their impacts on carbon storage, considering the effect of long-lived wood products and value of conserving old-growth forests, along with indirect land-use change impacts. However, a CO2-focused perspective means that many processes are still omitted for the quantification of the true extent of climate effects. Emissions of the greenhouse gases nitrous oxide and methane, short-lived climate forcers and effects from albedo changes and heat fluxes are also relevant. These processes are interconnected and influence the climate mitigation of forests in a complex way and need to be considered. The CLImate Mitigation and Bioeconomy pathways for sustainable FORESTry (CLIMB-FOREST) Horizon Europe project that runs until 2027 uses a holistic approach to estimate the climate impacts of various management alternatives. The foundation of CLIMB-FOREST is the use of European-wide empirical data, as well as an advanced coupled vegetation and earth-system modelling framework that includes biodiversity indicators and the interaction of forestry stakeholders in a global trade system. This framework is used to model management, forest tree species and climate on short- to long-term in Europe. We present first results of the climate effects and ecosystem functioning for a range of management alternatives in boreal, temperate, and Mediterranean forests. For example, introducing broadleaved trees in a coniferous forest promotes resilience and increased cooling from higher solar light scattering and latent heat flux of broadleaved trees. On the other hand, higher evapotranspiration might lead to an accelerated soil moisture depletion and reduced monoterpene emissions. The latter would have a warming effect because terpenes produce atmospheric particles, which are effective cooling agents through their involvement in cloud formation. Consequently, understanding these complex climate effects is key for appropriate climate-smart-forestry policies and approaches. The main outcomes and impacts of CLIMB-FOREST are to suggest alternative pathways for the forest sector to mitigate climate change in entire Europe, create attitude change in the policymaking process and influence foresters to adopt to new forest management strategies.
Abstract
Hurdal (NO-Hur) is a recently labelled ICOS class 2 station in Southeast Norway. It represents a typical southern boreal forest of medium productivity, dominated by old Norway spruce (average tree height: 25 m, ages: up to 100 years) with some pine and broadleaved trees. The eddy covariance technique is used to measure CO2 fluxes on a 42 m tower since 2021 . The measurements have an average footprint area of approximately 63 ha. In 2023, the region experienced an unusual dry spring and then an extraordinary flood in August. Both events showed significant impact on the Net Ecosystem Exchange (NEE) and heat fluxes. The station is also equipped with automatic dendrometers and sap flow devices on the dominant spruce trees, allowing us to investigate the impact of these events at the individual tree scale. We will present tree growth and transpiration flux at different temporal scales (from sub-daily to seasonal), and relate these single tree observations with environmental variables, ecosystem-level NEE and evapotranspiration using phase synchronization analysis. These observational data will yield insights into carbon and water processes of a boreal forest at different scales in response to multiple disturbances.
Authors
Jaime Candelas Bielza Lennart Noordermeer Erik Næsset Terje Gobakken Johannes Breidenbach Hans Ole ØrkaAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
C. Morgan-Davies G. Tesnière J.M. Gautier Grete H. M. Jørgensen E. González-García S.I. Patsios E.N. Sossidou T.W.J. Keady B. McClearn F. Kenyon G. Caja Lise Grøva M. Decandia L. Cziszter I. Halachmi C.M. DwyerAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Jason Lee Anders Marie Louise Davey Bram Van Moorter Frode Fossøy Sanne Boessenkool Erling Johan Solberg Erling Meisingset Atle Mysterud Christer Moe RolandsenAbstract
Parasitic nematodes are ubiquitous and can negatively impact their host by reducing fecundity or increasing mortality, yet the driver of variation in the parasite community across a wildlife host’s geographic distribution remains elusive for most species. Based on an extensive collection of fecal samples (n = 264) from GPS marked moose (Alces alces), we used DNA metabarcoding to characterize the individual (sex, age class) and seasonal parasitic nematode community in relation to habitat use and migration behavior in five populations distributed across a wide latitudinal gradient (59.6◦N to 70.5◦N) in Norway. We detected 21 distinct nematode taxa with the six most common being Ostertagia spp., Nematodirella spp., Trichostongylus spp., T. axei, Elaphostrongylus alces, and an unclassified Strongylida. There was higher prevalence of livestock parasites in areas with larger sheep populations indicating a higher risk of spillover events. The individual level nematode richness was mostly consistent across study areas, while the number and type of nematode taxa detected at each study area varied considerably but did not follow a latitudinal gradient. While migration distance affected nematode beta-diversity across all sites, it had a positive effect on richness at only two of the five study areas suggesting population specific effects. Unexpectedly, nematode richness was higher in winter than summer when very few nematodes were detected. Here we provide the first extensive description of the parasitic nematode community of moose across a wide latitudinal range. Overall, the population-specific impact of migration on parasitism across the distribution range and variation in sympatry with other ruminants suggest local characteristics affect hostparasite relationships. Alces alces Migration Habitat use Moose Nematode diversity
Authors
Tilde Hjermann Nikolai Antonsen Bilet Inger Maren Rivrud Erling Meisingset Pål Thorvaldsen Atle MysterudAbstract
Grazing by wildlife on agricultural land is widespread across geographical regions, and can cause human–wildlife conflicts due to reduced crop yield when the grazing pressure is high. Growing red deer (Cervus elaphus) populations in Europe call for an increased understanding of their grazing patterns to mitigate damages. We quantified how red deer grazing pressure (grazing presence and grazing level) on agricultural grass meadows (n = 60) in Norway varied across multiple spatial scales. We used a nested, hierarchical study design transcending from a broad scale (meadows across the landscape) to intermediate (between nearby meadows) and local (within-meadow) scales, allowing us to identify at which scale the variation in grazing pressure was strongest. We estimated how grazing was determined by broad-scale factors influencing forage availability and quality through population density, distance to coastline, and differences between the first versus second harvest, by intermediate-scale factors in terms of meadow management causing differences in botanical composition and quality, and by local-scale factors in terms of perceived predation risk and disturbance. At a broad scale, higher population densities were associated with higher grazing pressure, and more grazing occurred before the first compared to the second harvest. Intermediate-scale factors explained the most variation of grazing pressure from red deer, with higher grazing pressure on newly renewed meadows compared to other nearby meadows. On a local scale, more grazing occurred closer to the forest edge, providing cover, and further away from infrastructure, with increased risk and disturbance. Overall, our study highlights how drivers of grazing pressure on agricultural land vary across spatial scales. Population reductions on a broader scale may have some effect in reducing the grazing pressure, but renewed meadows will nevertheless attract red deer, causing higher grazing pressure compared to neighbouring meadows. This insight is crucial for determining effective mitigation strategies facing rising red deer populations across Europe.