Abstract
There are many data values describing deadwood in primary forests, however, there is much less information concerning managed forests, particularly in the Mediterranean area. Whole non-living woody biomass (deadwood) is the main component of forest types that plays a vital role in improving and maintaining biodiversity. The dynamics of deadwood and CO2 sequestration by deadwood were examined in three Mediterranean lowland forests: pine forest Pinus pinea L.), evergreen oak forest (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber L.), and deciduous oak forest (Quercus cerris L.). The aim of this study was to carry out a quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the deadwood to gather useful information for the Mediterranean forest management, and to provide some useful data that can be integrated into the methods of estimation for carbon stored in dead components of Mediterranean forest types. The investigations focused on the characterization of the deadwood, to determine which traits are dominant and their potentially functionality within the forest type. Results indicated the deciduous oak type had the highest amount of stand volume (379 m3/ha), deadwood volume (161.8 m3/ha), and C storage (31.43 t/ha). The major component of dead wood was the standing dead trees or snags. There was a higher volume of deadwood in the deciduous oak forest than in the pine and evergreen oak forests. In addition, the deciduous oak forest had a higher snag creation index, a higher fallen log creation index, and a higher past management index compared to pine and evergreen oak forest types. Deadwood volume increased as the decay class in the deciduous oak forest increased, while this trend decreased in the evergreen oak and pine forests. The amount of deadwood was affected by the forest type and forest management regime. Dynamic and past management of deadwood indices indicated that their structure was still in the initial phase of creation and decay in the pine and evergreen oak forests. A comparison with other studies on similar forest types brought out that the variation range of the main parameters for the management of deadwood fell within the variation of the parameters studied. However, the values of these parameters cover a broad range. The population of each forest type is extremely sensitive to the different evolutionary periods of the forest dynamics.
Highlights
Deadwood is defined as all the non-living woody biomass that is standing or lying on the forest floor
The latter is further subdivided into coarse woody debris (CWD) with a minimum section diameter equal to or greater than 10 cm, and fine woody debris (FWD) with a diameter less than 10 cm [2]
In the Deciduous oak high forest (Table 3), Turkey oak and peduncolate oak contribute to total stand volume more than 86% and in the evergreen oak forest (Table 4), cork oak and holm oak contribution to growing stock is more than 50%
Summary
Deadwood is defined as all the non-living woody biomass that is standing or lying on the forest floor. Deadwood is divided into two categories: standing dead trees (SDT or snag) and lying deadwood (log). The latter is further subdivided into coarse woody debris (CWD) with a minimum section diameter equal to or greater than 10 cm, and fine woody debris (FWD) with a diameter less than 10 cm [2]. Woody biomass under 2.5 cm is considered part of leaf litter [2]
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