Abstract

Research Highlights: Data of advanced-age provenance tests were reanalyzed applying a new approach, to directly estimate the growth of populations at their original sites under individually generated future climates. The results revealed the high resilience potential of fir species. Background and Objectives: The growth and survival of silver fir under future climatic scenarios are insufficiently investigated at the xeric limits. The selective signature of past climate determining the current and projected growth was investigated to analyze the prospects of adaptive silviculture and assisted transfer of silver fir populations, and the introduction of non-autochthonous species. Materials and Methods: Hargreaves’ climatic moisture deficit was selected to model height responses of adult populations. Climatic transfer distance was used to assess the relative drought stress of populations at the test site, relating these to the past conditions to which the populations had adapted. ClimateEU and ClimateWNA pathway RCP8.5 data served to determine individually past, current, and future moisture deficit conditions. Besides silver fir, other fir species from South Europe and the American Northwest were also tested. Results: Drought tolerance profiles explained the responses of transferred provenances and predicted their future performance and survival. Silver fir displayed significant within-species differentiation regarding drought stress response. Applying the assumed drought tolerance limit of 100 mm relative moisture deficit, most of the tested silver fir populations seem to survive their projected climate at their origin until the end of the century. Survival is likely also for transferred Balkan fir species and for grand fir populations, but not for the Mediterranean species. Conclusions: The projections are less dramatic than provided by usual inventory assessments, considering also the resilience of populations. The method fills the existing gap between experimentally determined adaptive response and the predictions needed for management decisions. It also underscores the unique potential of provenance tests.

Highlights

  • The rapid change of climatic conditions, which is unprecedented on the scale of the Holocene, across all forest zones, is the greatest challenge to the long-term stability of forest ecosystems and contemporary forest management [1]

  • Compared to the reference period, the annual mean temperature will increase by 2.0 ◦ C (RCP4.5, —RCP: Representative Concentration Pathway is the greenhouse gas concentration trajectory assumed for various climate change scenarios), respectively, and by more than 4.0 ◦ C (RCP8.5) until the end of the century

  • The Písek trial shows a significant adaptive differentiation for silver fir indicated by the clear relation between climate transfer distance and mean height of provenances

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Summary

Introduction

The rapid change of climatic conditions, which is unprecedented on the scale of the Holocene, across all forest zones, is the greatest challenge to the long-term stability of forest ecosystems and contemporary forest management [1]. Compared to the reference period, the annual mean temperature will increase by 2.0 ◦ C (RCP4.5, —RCP: Representative Concentration Pathway is the greenhouse gas concentration trajectory assumed for various climate change scenarios), respectively, and by more than 4.0 ◦ C (RCP8.5) until the end of the century. In extensive lowlands, such as in Hungary, more than half of the years may be extremely dry in the last quarter of the present century [5,6]. The selective signature of past climate determining the current and projected growth was investigated to analyze the prospects of adaptive silviculture and assisted transfer of silver fir populations, and the introduction of non-autochthonous species

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Results
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Conclusion

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