Biology subjects

Testolin, R.

Publications and source records attributed to Testolin, R..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Leveraging roadless areas to close strict protection gaps in the EU

Strictly protected areas are critical to biodiversity conservation, yet only 4% of the EUs land currently meets this designation, falling short of the 10% target outlined in the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. Roadless areas, i.e., portions of land 1 km farther from linear infrastructure, are increasingly recognized for their ecological value and potential role in closing this gap. Using OpenStreetMap data and environmental gradients derived from climate, soil, and topographic layers, we identified the extent of EU roadless areas and assessed their conservation value based on their capacity to complement the existing strict protection network in terms of environmental representativeness. We found that 11.5% of EU land is roadless, with only 18.9% of this already under strict protection. Integrating all roadless areas would raise strict protection coverage to 12.7% and improve representation of abiotic environmental space from 78.8% to 94.4%. However, most roadless areas are extremely fragmented and redundant with respect to their abiotic features. While roadless areas offer a critical opportunity to expand the strict protection network, they cannot solely meet conservation goals. A balanced strategy that includes restoration, coordination across governance levels, and prioritization based on other biodiversity features is essential to effectively meet EU conservation commitments.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2025

From smartphones to satellites: Uniting crowdsourced biodiversity monitoring and Earth observation to fill the gaps in global plant trait mapping

Plant functional traits are fundamental to ecosystem dynamics and Earth system processes, but their global characterization is limited by the availability of field surveys and trait measurements. Recent expansions in biodiversity data aggregation, including large collections of vegetation surveys, citizen science observations, and trait measurements, offer new opportunities to overcome these constraints. Here we demonstrate that combining these diverse data sources with high-resolution Earth observation data enables accurate modeling of key plant traits at up to 1 km resolution. Our approach achieves high predictive power, reaching correlations up to 0.63 (15 of 31 traits exceeding 0.50) and improved spatial transferability, effectively bridging gaps in under-sampled regions. By capturing a broad range of traits with high spatial coverage, these maps can enhance our understanding of plant community properties and ecosystem functioning globally, and can serve as useful tools in modeling global biogeochemical processes and informing worldwide conservation efforts. Ultimately, our framework highlights the power and necessity of crowdsourced biodiversity data in high-resolution plant trait modeling. We anticipate that advancements in biodiversity data collection and remote sensing capabilities will further refine global trait mapping, fostering a dynamic trait-based understanding of the biosphere.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2024

TimberTracer: A Comprehensive Framework for the Evaluation of Carbon Sequestration by Forest Management and Substitution of Harvested Wood Products.

BackgroundHarvested wood products (HWPs) have a pivotal role in climate change mitigation, a recognition solidified in many Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. Integrating HWPs greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and removals into accounting requirements relies on typical decision-oriented tools known as wood product models (WPMs). The study introduces the TimberTracer (TT) framework, designed to simulate HWP carbon stock, substitution effects, and emissions from wood decay and bioenergy. ResultsCoupled with the 3D-CMCC-FEM forest growth model, TimberTracer was applied to Laricio Pine (Pinus nigra subsp. laricio) in Italys Bonis watershed, evaluating three forest management practices (clearcut, selective thinning, and shelterwood) and four wood-use scenarios (business as usual, increased recycling rate, extended average lifespan, and a simultaneous increase in both the recycling rate and the average lifespan) over a 140-year planning horizon, to assess the overall carbon balance of HWPs. Furthermore, this study evaluates the consequences of disregarding landfill methane emissions and relying on static substitution factors, assessing their impact on the mitigation potential of various options. This investigation, covering HWPs stock, carbon (C) emissions, and the substitution effect, revealed that selective thinning emerged as the optimal forest management scenario. In addition, a simultaneous 10% increase in both the recycling rate and half-life, under the so-called "sustainability" scenario, proved to be the optimal wood-use strategy. Finally, the analysis shows that failing to account for landfill methane emissions and the use of dynamic substitution can significantly overestimate the mitigation potential of various forest management and wood-use options, which underscores the critical importance of a comprehensive accounting in climate mitigation strategies involving HWPs. ConclusionsOur study highlights the critical role of harvested wood products (HWPs) in climate change mitigation, as endorsed by multiple Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. Utilizing the TimberTracer framework coupled with the 3D-CMCC-FEM forest growth model, we identified selective thinning as the optimal forest management practice. Additionally, enhancing recycling rates and extending product lifespan effectively bolstered the carbon balance. Moreover, this study emphasizes the necessity of accounting for landfill methane emissions and dynamic product substitution, as failing to do so may significantly overestimate the mitigation potential of implemented projects. These findings offer actionable insights to optimize forest management strategies and advance climate change mitigation efforts.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2022

Simulating alternative forest management in a changing climate on a Pinus nigra subsp. laricio plantation in Southern Italy

Mediterranean pine plantations provide several ecosystem services but are particularly sensitive to climate change. Forest management practices might play a strategic role in the long-term adaptation of Mediterranean forests, but the joint effect of climate change and alternative management options in the near and far future have seldom been investigated together. Here, we developed a portfolio of management options and simulated the development of a Laricio pine (Pinus nigra subsp. laricio) stand in the Bonis watershed (southern Italy) from its establishment in 1958 up to 2095 using a state-of-the-science process-based forest model. The model was run under three climate change scenarios corresponding to increasing levels of atmospheric CO2 concentration, and seven management options with different goals, including post-disturbance management, wood production and renaturalization purposes. We analyzed the effect of climate change on annual carbon fluxes (i.e., gross and net primary production) and stocks (i.e., basal area and potential carbon woody stocks), as well as the impact of different management options compared to no management. Results show that, while climate change (i.e., warming and enriched atmospheric CO2 concentration) seems to increase carbon fluxes and stocks in the first half of the century, both show a substantial decrease in the second half, along with higher temperatures (+3 to +5 {degrees}C) and lower precipitation (-20% to -22%). When compared to no management, alternative options had a moderate effect on carbon fluxes over the whole simulation (between -6% and +7%) but overall carbon stocks were maximized by thinning interventions and the shelterwood system (+54% to +55%). We demonstrate that the choice of management exerts greater effects on the features of Laricio pine plantations than climate change alone. Therefore, silvicultural strategies might enhance potential stocks and improve forest conditions, with cascading positive effects on the provision of ecosystem services in Mediterranean pine plantations. HighlightsO_LIWe simulated the development of a Laricio pine stand over 137 years under three different climatic scenarios and seven management options. C_LIO_LICarbon fluxes and stocks benefit from climate change (i.e., warming and enriched atmospheric CO2 concentration) in the first half of the century but show a marked decrease in the longer-term. C_LIO_LIForest management exerts a much stronger effect on these features than climate change alone. C_LIO_LISilvicultural options aimed at reducing stand density preserve and enhance carbon fluxes and stocks over the simulated time period. C_LI

ecology↗