RT Journal Article
T1 Historical Fires Induced Deforestation in Relict Scots Pine Forests during the Late 19th Century
A1 Camarero, J. Julio
A1 Sangüesa Barreda, Gabriel
A1 Montiel Molina, Cristina Del Rocío
A1 Luelmo Lautenschlaeger, Reyes
A1 Ortega, Paula
A1 Génova, Mar
A1 López Sáez, José Antonio
AB Mountain forests are subjected to several pressures including historical land-use changes and climate warming which may lead to shifts in wildfire severity negatively impacting tree species with low post-fire growth resilience. This is the case of relict Mediterranean Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) forests in the Sierra de Gredos mountains (central Spain). We reconstructed the historical fire regime of these forests since 1700 by using paleoecology, historical ecology and dendroecology. We detected an increase in charcoal accumulation rate and coprophilous fungi in peat bogs during the late 19th century when the pine pollen percentage sharply decreased, historical records of fire peaked and many trees showed growth suppressions. We inferred an increased wildfire incidence during the late 19th century, which could have shaped the current distribution of Scots pine forests. This shift in fire-forest interactions can be explained by the uncontrolled use of mountain forests and grasslands due to the dissolution of “Mesta”, one of the major and lasting transhumance livestock associations in Europe. Integrating historical human and climate influences on fire regimes allows decomposing the resilience and conservation components of relict forests.
PB MPDI
SN 2571-6255
YR 2021
FD 2021-05-18
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/88281
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/88281
LA eng
NO Camarero, J. Julio, Gabriel Sangüesa-Barreda, Cristina Montiel-Molina, Reyes Luelmo-Lautenschlaeger, Paula Ortega, Mar Génova, y José Antonio López-Sáez. «Historical Fires Induced Deforestation in Relict Scots Pine Forests during the Late 19th Century». Fire 4, n.o 2 (18 de mayo de 2021): 29. https://doi.org/10.3390/fire4020029.
DS Docta Complutense
RD 12 abr 2025