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Retention forestry, which retains a portion of the original stand at the time of harvesting to maintain continuity of structural and compositional diversity, has been originally developed to mitigate the impacts of clear‐cutting. Retention of habitat trees and deadwood has since become common practice also in continuous‐cover forests of Central Europe. While the use of retention in these forests is plausible, the evidence base for its application is lacking, trade‐offs have not been quantified, it is not clear what support it receives from forest owners and other stakeholders and how it is best integrated into forest management practices. The Research Training Group ConFoBi (Conservation of Forest Biodiversity in Multiple‐use Landscapes of Central Europe) focusses on the effectiveness of retention forestry, combining ecological studies on forest biodiversity with social and economic studies of biodiversity conservation across multiple spatial scales. The aim of ConFoBi is to assess whether and how structural retention measures are appropriate for the conservation of forest biodiversity in uneven‐aged and selectively harvested continuous‐cover forests of temperate Europe. The study design is based on a pool of 135 plots (1 ha) distributed along gradients of forest connectivity and structure. The main objectives are (a) to investigate the effects of structural elements and landscape context on multiple taxa, including different trophic and functional groups, to evaluate the effectiveness of retention practices for biodiversity conservation; (b) to analyze how forest biodiversity conservation is perceived and practiced, and what costs and benefits it creates; and (c) to identify how biodiversity conservation can be effectively integrated in multi‐functional forest management. ConFoBi will quantify retention levels required across the landscape, as well as the socio‐economic prerequisites for their implementation by forest owners and managers. ConFoBi's research results will provide an evidence base for integrating biodiversity conservation into forest management in temperate forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tertiary-relict Hyrcanian (Caspian) forest along the shores of the southern Caspian Sea is a center of biodiversity. Still, there is little information on plant diversity patterns in this area. This study evaluated plant diversity, variation in life forms, and geographical distribution of the zonal vegetation types and their relationships with environmental variables, in the educational and experimental forest of Kheyrudkenar, an important protected area in the central Hyrcanian forest of northern Iran. For this purpose, 226 vegetation plots of 400 m2 were laid out along two altitudinal transects from the lowlands (100 m a.s.l.) to the timberline (2000 m a.s.l.). Four vegetation types were identified using modified TWINSPAN, indirect and direct gradient analyses. Species-related (species diversity indices, life form and phytogeographical elements) and environmental variables (climate, topographic and soil variables) were calculated and subjected to one-way ANOVA among the vegetation types. Both constrained (CCA) and unconstrained (DCA) ordination analyses showed an almost identical variation of the floristic composition along their axes and demonstrated that there are two main gradients in the Hyrcanian forest. Elevation together with annual precipitation and mean annual temperature were the most important factors controlling the floristic composition in the area. Topographic features such as slope inclination and heat index were found to be important within an elevation zone/vegetation type. Soil physical and chemical properties were of secondary importance for the separation of the vegetation types. This knowledge will be useful for forest management and conservation practices in the Hyrcanian area with its distinct and unique flora and vegetation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Question: What components of drought influence the drought limit of Fagus sylvatica forests? This study contributes to the ongoing discussion regarding the future of Fagus as a major component of central European forests. Location: The drought limit of F. sylvatica at its ecotone with forest dominated by Quercus pubescens, Q. petraea and their hybrids in two limestone regions (Klettgau, SchwäbischeAlb) in southwestern Germany was compared. Methods: Vegetation relevés were classified and a gradient analysis was performed. The vegetation pattern was analysed with several drought relevant variables. Classification trees were used to determine the drought limits of the Fagus forest. Results: The Fagus, Quercus and the ecotone forests were floristically characterized. The lower humidity in the submontane Klettgau, compared to the montane Schwäbische AIb, was compensated for by greater soil moisture (ASWSC). Therefore, Fagus forest in the SchwäbischeAlb grew on sites with ASWSC values similar to those of ecotone forest in Klettgau. Conclusions: The interaction between climatic and edaphic drought related factors demonstrates that drought is a complex edaphic-climatic factor. Both components contribute to limiting the distribution of Fagus. For the two regions in southwestern Germany, and under the existing climatic conditions, it could be shown that Fagus is able to dominate forests on soils with very low ASWSC (≥68 l.m-2). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]