Mountain Forest Area Research Articles

An evaluation of ECOSTRESS products of a temperate montane humid forest in a complex terrain environment

Plant water use is difficult to monitor and predict in complex terrain. NASA's ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS) provides new data for understanding hydrologic cycling in these forested mountain areas. Evaluation of ECOSTRESS evapotranspiration (ET) has relied primarily on eddy flux towers, but most flux towers are located in flat terrain, sampling relatively homogeneous vegetation. To address this knowledge gap, the accuracy of the ECOSTRESS land surface temperature (L2_LST) and ET (L3_ET_PT-JPL) data were evaluated against data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service's Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory: a humid temperate forest ecosystem in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the southeastern U.S. with extensive data from one eddy covariance tower and five climate stations varying in elevation. ECOSTRESS LST showed a strong linear relationship with the weather station near-surface air temperature (R2 = 0.85; offset = −2.5 °C), showing no difference across slope, aspect and elevation, but a higher correlation during the night than the day. ECOSTRESS tended to overestimate ET compared with our site eddy covariance measurements (R2 = 0.43; RMSE = 146 W m−2). To evaluate potential sources of error associated with remotely-sensed inputs to the ECOSTRESS Priestly-Taylor Jet Propulsion Laboratory (PT-JPL) ET model, we ran PT-JPL using ground-based data from our site. ET estimated with locally-collected data showed much better performance in capturing variability (R2 ~ 0.70), illustrating the uncertainty contributed to ECOSTRESS by the coarse scale meteorological inputs in areas of complex topography. Notably, both the ECOSTRESS LST and ET captured important topographic gradients and spatially-explicit diurnal variability. The valley floor of the Coweeta Basin was warmer than the higher elevations by 8 °C in the day, but cooler at night. On the south-facing aspects, LST and ET were higher, consistent with observations. This also highlights the ability of ECOSTRESS and PT-JPL to decouple ET from LST when and where appropriate, as they are normally inverse to one another. Our study provides the first detailed analysis of ECOSTRESS for forested ecosystems in complex terrain and offers insight for future evaluation.

Spatial variations in radiocesium deposition and litter–soil distribution in a mountainous forest catchment affected by the Fukushima nuclear accident

The Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident caused serious 137Cs contamination in mountainous forest areas. To understand the spatial variation in soil 137Cs inventory in complex mountainous topography and the influencing factors, a whole-area investigation of 137Cs deposition in a broad-leaved forest catchment of a mountain stream was conducted using grid sampling. Across the catchment, organic and surface mineral soil layers were collected at 42 locations in 2013 and 6 locations in 2015. Cesium-137 deposition on the forest floor exhibited high spatial heterogeneity and altitude-dependent distribution over the catchment. The 137Cs retention ratio in the organic layer, determined as the inventory in the organic layer divided by the soil (organic and mineral soil layers) inventory, ranged from 6% to 82% in 2013, and the coefficient of variation was 0.6. The 137Cs retention ratios had positive correlations with the material inventory in the organic layer and the elevation. The 137Cs retention ratios in the organic layer were less than 20% in 2015, even at the locations where the retention ratio was higher than 55% in 2013. Although there was spatial variation in the migration speed, 137Cs migration from the organic layer to mineral soil was almost completed within 4 y of the deposition, suggesting a decrease in 137Cs circulation within the forest ecosystem. This study also examined a relationship between the 137Cs inventory and the air dose rate to assess the potential of using the air dose rate to estimate soil 137Cs inventory. Soil 137Cs inventories and air dose rates were highly positively correlated, indicating that measurement of air dose rate can provide an easier and quicker alternative to measurement of soil 137Cs inventory in forest ecosystems.

InVEST Model-Based Spatiotemporal Analysis of Water Supply Services in the Zhangcheng District

The Zhangcheng District is critically responsible for protecting water resources, preserving sand sources, and improving the ecological environment in Beijing. Quantitative evaluation and research on the ecosystem water supply services in this area are beneficial for developing conservation planning and establishing ecological compensation mechanisms in water conservation areas. In this paper, based on the land use, meteorological, soil, and field observation data of the research area, the InVEST water yield model is used to estimate the water supply of the ecosystem in the Zhangcheng District. The model quantitatively analyzes the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of water supply services in the basin and the influence of different topographic factors. The results show that the average supply of ecosystem water in the Zhangcheng District is approximately 45 mm, and there is a degree of spatial heterogeneity. The total water supply in the Zhangcheng District is relatively small. The water resource supply in the southwest is relatively small, the rainfall in mountainous forest areas in the southeast is high, its water supply is higher, and the supply of forest land water is relatively high. The high-value areas are mainly distributed at 1500 to 3500 m and 15°~40°; the water supply on the sunny slope is greater than that on the shady slope. With the increase in altitude and slope, the water supply in the basin tends to increase first and then decrease.

The Role of Youth in the Utilization of Halal Tourism-Based Ecotourism Destinations in Mount Prabu

Tourism development should provide space for young people to actively participate in managing nature as a sharia-based tourist destination to support sustainability. The purpose of this research is to identify and analyze the role of youth in the utilization of prabu mountain forest area to become an ecotourism destination based on halal tourism. This research was conducted in Prabu Mountain Village Prabu District Pujut Central Lombok Regency. The research method used is a method of qualitaitf research using content analysis. Data collection is conducted by observation, documentation and in-depth interviews with youth ecotourism destination managers who are members of Pokdarwis Prabu Indah, the Community of Prabu Youth Front and Bangkang Bersatu Youth. The results of this study show that there is an important role of youth in managing and utilizing the forest area of Mount Prabu into halal ecotourism destinations such as: 1) Moral Strength. 2) Social Control. 3) Change Agent

Analysis of Landslide Occurrence using DTM-Based Weighted Overlay: A Case Study in Tropical Mountainous Forest of Cameron Highlands, Malaysia

Landslides are massive natural disasters all around the world. In general, our society is only concerned with the landslides that can cause economic distress and impact human life. Landslides in remote areas such as mountainous forests have often been neglected. Referring to the historical disaster event, forest landslides have vast potential to cause unexpected ecological and social damage. This study reveals the terrain characteristics of the complex mountainous forest area of Cameron Highlands (CH), Malaysia, and demonstrates an approach to evaluate the terrain sensitivity of CH. Terrain assessment can be a powerful tool to prevent or reduce the risk of landslides. In this study, terrain features; elevation, slope gradient, aspect, topography wetness index (TWI), and length-slope factor (LS Factor) were extracted using a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) at 10 m resolution. The selected terrain features were incorporated using weighted overlay analysis to derive a terrain sensitivity map (TSM) using SAGA GIS software. The map identified five types of terrain sensitivity classified as very high sensitivity, high sensitivity, moderate sensitivity, low sensitivity, and very low sensitivity; these areas have a coverage of 0.78 km2, 114.31 km2, 107.50 km2, 102.99 km2, and 0.65 km2, respectively. The findings suggest that the sensitive areas are scattered throughout all of the mountainous forests of CH; thus, this enhanced the risk of landslide. Results showed 79.25% accuracy, which is satisfactory to be a guideline for forest management planning and assist decision making in the respective region.

The diversity of moss in the Cemoro Kandang hiking trail, Mount Lawu and the Baturraden botanical gardens, Central Java

Moss plants in tropical mountain forest areas play an essential role in water balance and the forest’s nutrient cycle, serving as a substrate, food source, and a place for forest organisms to live. This study aims to analyze the diversity of moss plants in Mount Lawu and Baturraden Botanical Gardens based on the height of the place and substrate type. Moss plants were observed along the Cemoro Kandang hiking trail and around the Baturraden Botanical Garden. A total of 30 species of mosses consisting of 19 species of true mosses, 10 species of liverworts, 1 species of hornworts. The moss plants on the hiking trail are included in 13 orders and 20 families. There are 13 species of mosses found in the Baturraden Botanical Garden, including 7 orders and 10 families, including 8 species of true mosses, 4 species of liverworts, and 1 species hornworts. The highest moss species diversity at the two locations is true mosses (Bryophyta). Most of the mosses are terrestrial mosses. True mosses are evenly distributed in the highlands rather than the lowlands.

Natural resource use conflicts and priorities in small islands of Vietnam

Small islands of Vietnam witness increasing natural resource use conflicts among stakeholders resulting from their isolation from the mainland, combined with more recent pressures of urbanization, tourism, and socio-economic development. A challenge facing both residents and governments is identifying more appropriate inter-sector cooperation to minimize conflicts taking into account short-term economic feasibility and long-term sustainability. This study deals with conflicts and priorities in natural resource use as perceived by residents and local officials in the Ly Son Island of the Vietnamese Southern-Central Coast Region. A decision tree on conflict and priority analysis is structured at four hierarchical levels: sector, sub-sector, socio-economic activity, and objective. While a Likert 5 scale’s weighted mean (wMean) was applied to the survey data and to rank conflicts, the Analytic Hierarchy Process was used to estimate the weight values by priority. The results show that, although conflicts are limited, conflict hotspots exist in mountainous forested areas, farms, residential locations, and along coasts. Both residents and local officials shared the opinion that priorities help dealing with conflicts on the island. Over-all, perception analysis contributes to integrated spatial planning, marine spatial planning, and integrated coastal zone management for Ly Son Island with a consideration of improving inter-sector cooperation between agriculture, fishery, forestry and conservation, industry and service, tourism, and army.

Land Cover-Specific Local Incidence Angle Correction: A Method for Time-Series Analysis of Forest Ecosystems

This study deals with a local incidence angle correction method, i.e., the land cover-specific local incidence angle correction (LC-SLIAC), based on the linear relationship between the backscatter values and the local incidence angle (LIA) for a given land cover type in the monitored area. Using the combination of CORINE Land Cover and Hansen et al.’s Global Forest Change databases, a wide range of different LIAs for a specific forest type can be generated for each scene. The algorithm was developed and tested in the cloud-based platform Google Earth Engine (GEE) using Sentinel-1 open access data, Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) digital elevation model, and CORINE Land Cover and Hansen et al.’s Global Forest Change databases. The developed method was created primarily for time-series analyses of forests in mountainous areas. LC-SLIAC was tested in 16 study areas over several protected areas in Central Europe. The results after correction by LC-SLIAC showed a reduction of variance and range of backscatter values. Statistically significant reduction in variance (of more than 40%) was achieved in areas with LIA range >50° and LIA interquartile range (IQR) >12°, while in areas with low LIA range and LIA IQR, the decrease in variance was very low and statistically not significant. Six case studies with different LIA ranges were further analyzed in pre- and post-correction time series. Time-series after the correction showed a reduced fluctuation of backscatter values caused by different LIAs in each acquisition path. This reduction was statistically significant (with up to 95% reduction of variance) in areas with a difference in LIA greater than or equal to 27°. LC-SLIAC is freely available on GitHub and GEE, making the method accessible to the wide remote sensing community.

Avifaunal Diversity and Community Structure in Universitas Brawijaya Forest, East Java, Indonesia

Avifauna inhabiting the mountainous forest ecosystem is severely threatened by anthropogenic disturbances, especially in the Java island of ­­Indonesia. Yet, efforts to monitor the avifauna diversity are lacking, including in one of the mountainous forest areas, Universitas Brawijaya Forest (UBF). In this study, information about diversity, community structure, feeding specialization, and conservation status of avifauna is presented. Observations were conducted from December 2019 to February 2020 on two designated tracks with different degree of disturbances. Data were analyzed based on their conservation status, local distribution, feeding specialization (Jaccard similarity index), species richness, total abundance, species diversity (Shannon-Wiener diversity index), and importance value index (IVI). A total of 51 species from 27 families were identified. Two species at risk (one Near Threatened and one Endangered) and 9 protected avifauna were noted. This study can be used as the baseline data for future conservation management in the UBF.

Kesesuaian dan daya dukung lingkungan untuk pengembangan ekowisata di kawasan hutan Gunung Mareje Utara Kabupaten Lombok Tengah

North Mareje Mountain Forest Area (NMMFA) is one of important areas for ecotourism development in Lombok Island. Currently integrated ecotourism management plan (IEMP) is not available for this area, it has caused land degradation and natural disasters. To support sustainable IEMP establishment, this study was conducted with objectives to analyze land suitability and assessing the environmental carrying capacity of ecotourism development. The study conducted in NMMFA, Serage Village, Central Lombok, NTB during January - March 2020. The data used in this study include attractiveness, landscape naturalness, bio-geophysical limiting factors, accessibility, optimal space requirements and length time of tourist activities. Secondary data compiled from various sources and primary data collected by field observations and interviews. Land suitability analysis used weighted linear combination (WLC), environment carrying capacity analyzed by Douglas Method (Zacarias et al., 2011) and the evaluation conducted by t-test. Based on the analysis, explained that land suitable area for ecotourism in NMMFA is 1.235,2 Ha (75,8% of total area). Effective carrying capacity (ECC) is 32.729 visitors/day. The important indicators contributed to land suitability include soil conservation, tree diversity, visibility and natural attractiveness. T-test analysis shows that the actual landuse for ecotourism smaller than potential area, the average number of tourist visits in the area also smaller than the ECC. It can be concluded if the current land utilization have been meet with land suitability and environmental carrying capacity.

Holocene fluvial terraces reveal landscape changes in the headwater streams of the Moravskoslezské Beskydy Mountains, Czechia

Fluvial terraces of headwater streams in mountainous forested areas provide important insight into the development of sensitive fluvial system in response to natural and anthropogenic changes. Usually they are poorly investigated because of incomplete preservation and difficulties with mapping caused by dense canopy cover. We utilized new high-resolution LiDAR data, field mapping, sedimentological analysis, pollen analysis and radiocarbon dating to reconstruct the evolution of fluvial terraces in seven headwater catchments located in the highest parts of Moravskoslezské Beskydy mountains (Western Carpathians, Czechia). In these catchments, we identified three Holocene river terraces set within older alluvial deposits or flysch bedrock. The oldest (TH) terrace has a minimum age of the onset of accumulation of ~9 ka, the minimum age of the middle (TM) terrace is ~4.4 ka, and that of the lowest (TL) terrace is ~0.7 ka. The formation of the TH and TM terraces was controlled by climatic deterioration during the Subboreal (~4.3 ka) and Subboreal/Subatlantic transitions (~2.9–2.6 ka), respectively. The lowest TL terrace is dominated by <500-year-old fine-grained overbank deposits, which we interpret as legacy sediments due to deforestation and shepherd activity during the so-called Wallachian colonization of the study area. Our study reveals peculiarities in the development of the river terraces of small mountainous forested sub-catchments: (i) the limited preservation of pre-Holocene river terraces, (ii) sensitivity to extreme climatic events, and (iii) the decisive role of combined effects of climate change and grazing and forest management in sediment delivery during the last several centuries.

Environmental tourism in Crimea: experience in implementing the sustainable development principles

The conceptual basis of modern changes in tourism is a sustainable development, the basic principles of which are most translated into the idea of ecological tourism. The paper presents the results of a study of the organization of ecological tourist routes and programs in protected areas of the Crimean peninsula. Spatial differences in the density of ecological route network, the functional structure of routes and trails, the degree of their infrastructure and information support were revealed. Attractiveness of the routes is dueto the high concentration of socially significant objects of natural and cultural heritage within boundaries of protected areas. For ecological tourism, the most developed are mountain-forest and coastal areas located in the south-west, south and south-east of Crimea. The implementation heterogeneity on the principles of environmental, economic and social sustainability in regional ecotourism development was established. Violations of the regulation principles of recreational load on natural complexes, preservation and reproduction of the resource quality, insufficient use of potential of local communities in the management system of ecological tourism were revealed. Constructive suggestions for optimizing ecotourism in Crimea on the sustainability principles were formulated.

Gathering as a Mode of Livelihood for Bashkirs in the Mountainous Forest Area of the Republic of Bashkortostan in the Years of Great Patriotic War

Data in this article are based on the analysis of ethnographic field studies and materials conducted by the author. The study considers gathering as a mode of livelihood of the Bashkirs who inhabited the mountain forests of the Republic of Bashkortostan in the years of the Great Patriotic War. The materials were collected during the period 2010-2019 in Arkhangelsk, Abzelilovskiy, Beloretsk, Burzyanskiy, Belokatayskiy, Baltachevskiy, Mechetlinskiy, Salavatskiy, Duvanskiy districts of the Republic of Bashkortostan. For survival the Bashkirs used the traditional ways of livelihood - fishing, hunting, forestry and gathering. The last one was the most important mode, which provided them with food and served as a cure from different diseases. Typically, the Bashkirs began to collect plants and roots in early spring after cold and grueling winter, as soon as the first greens appeared on the mountains and hills. In summer, villagers collected berries and fruits, in autumn - berries of shrubs, plants and roots. Those roots and plants were consumed both raw and cooked. The collected plants were used for cooking soups, roots - for making flatbreads and porridge, berries - for making pastila and fillings for the pie. Knowledge of the plants helped many Bashkirs to survive their life during the Great Patriotic War. The Bashkirs, having allotments and gardens still like gathering wild berries and fruits.

Evaluation of Remote Sensing and Reanalysis Snow Depth Datasets over the Northern Hemisphere during 1980–2016

Snow cover is a key parameter of the climate system and its significant seasonal and annual variability have significant impacts on the surface energy balance and global water circulation. However, current snow depth datasets show large inconsistencies and uncertainties, which limit their applications in climate change projections and hydrological processes simulations. In this study, a comprehensive assessment of five hemispheric snow depth datasets was carried out against ground observations from 43,391 stations. The five snow depth datasets included three remote sensing datasets, i.e., Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for the Earth Observing System (AMSR-E), Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer-2 (AMSR2), Global Snow Monitoring for Climate Research (GlobSnow), and two reanalysis datasets, i.e., ERA-Interim and the Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, version 2 (MERRA-2). Assessment results imply that the spatial distribution of GlobSnow and ERA-Interim exhibit overall better agreements with ground observations than other datasets. GlobSnow and ERA-Interim exhibit less uncertainty during the snow accumulation and ablation periods, respectively. In plain and forested regions, GlobSnow, ERA-Interim and MERRA-2 show better performances, while in mountain and forested mountain areas, GlobSnow exhibits the best performance. AMSR-E and AMSR2 agree better with ground observations in shallow snow condition (0–10 cm), while MERRA-2 shows more satisfying performance when snow depth exceeds 50 cm. These systematic and integrated understanding of the five representative snow depth datasets provides information on data selection and data refinement, as well as data fusion, which is our next work of interest.

Analysis of Land Surface Temperature Driving Factors and Spatial Heterogeneity Research Based on Geographically Weighted Regression Model

Acceleration of urbanization has brought about a series of problems, which include irreversible changes to urban surfaces and continuous increases in land surface temperatures (LSTs). In this context, analysis of the driving factors and spatial heterogeneity of urban LST is of considerable importance for mitigating urban heat island effects and promoting healthy and comfortable urban living environments. This study explored the relationship between the spatial characteristics and driving factors of the LST by using a geographically weighted regression (GWR) model to analyze multisource data from the Xigang District of Dalian City. The results showed that the urban heat island effect in Xigang District is significant, with LSTs generally above 28°C at the end of August, mostly concentrated in the range of 38–40°C. The highest LST values were detected in northern port and harbor areas; the lowest LST values occurred in mountainous forest areas. The global Moran’s I value was 0.994, which was indicative of a very high positive correlation, and local Moran’s I values formed H-H and L-L type clusters concentrated in the northern harbor area and southern mountainous area, respectively. Finally, the GWR model could reflect the spatial heterogeneity of the relationships between LST and its driving factors well. Among these, in terms of natural physical factors, digital elevation model, normalized difference vegetation index, and modified normalized difference water index data were found to be negatively correlated with LSTs in most cases; in the social dimension, the point-of-interest number and building-coverage ratio were generally positively correlated with LSTs.

Pollen Record of Humidity Changes in the Arid Western Qilian Mountains Over the Past 300 Years and Comparison With Tree-Ring Reconstructions

In arid central Asia, the geo-ecological environment of the well-vegetated high mountains differs from that of the extensive arid Gobi desert areas, with the forested areas having experienced a different pattern of humidity variations compared to the dryland regions. Therefore, the moisture history of the forest areas reconstructed by tree rings may differ from that of the dryland areas. In the extremely arid area of the western Qilian Mountains and the surrounding dryland areas, where forest is absent, it is unclear how humidity conditions have changed over the past several centuries. Here we use a pollen record from Tian’E Lake, with a chronology based on 210Pb and 137Cs, and with an average temporal resolution of ~2 years, to reconstruct the humidity changes over the past 300 years. The results show that the pollen assemblage is dominated by Artemisia and Amaranthaceae (=Chenopodiaceae), and therefore the A/C ratio (Artemisia/Chenopodiaceae) can be used to reconstruct changes in humidity conditions. Based on the pollen A/C ratio, two relatively wet periods are identified for ~1740-1750 and 1840-1980; and two dry intervals: ~1750-1840 and 1980-2018. This pattern of variation is similar to that reconstructed from nearby humidity records based on tree-ring width adjacent to Tian’E Lake area and with instrumental records from meteorological stations over the past several decades. However, there are significantly different records between pollen-based and tree-ring based humidity during ~1760-1830, 1880-1910 and 1920-2018 in the Qilian Mountains on a long timescales. We conclude that pollen-based humidity records from dryland areas may differ from those reconstructed from tree-ring widths in forested mountain areas, especially when the temperature was increasing. It was further suggested that there was anti-phased relationship in humidity conditions between westerlies-dominated central Asia and monsoon areas over the past century.

Carbon Sink Calculation and Time Variation in Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park—A Case Study of Diaoluo Mountain Forest Area

A suitable system for estimating changes in carbon storage and carbon emissions from tropical forests was constructed to study the carbon sink function of the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park. This article takes Diaoluo Mountain Forest Area as an example. Inventory calculation of forest resources with the help of the calculation method of the provincial greenhouse gas inventory compilation guide. Carbon sink measurement model is constructed in Diaoluo Mountain Forest Area. Changes in forest carbon storage and carbon emissions in five different periods from 1998 to 2018 were calculated. The results show that the forest carbon storage in Diaoluo Mountain Forest Area was 6.4 T, 1.1T, 1.2 T, 1.5 T and 2.1 Tons in the past five periods. Arbor forest has the largest proportion of carbon storage and is dominant; Carbon emissions in the five periods were 497T, 545 T, 263 T, 21T and 19 Tons. The moral is that,the total amount of forest net carbon has increased continuously, arbor forest is an important dominant position of carbon storage,the main gas absorbed and emitted by forest carbon sinks is carbon dioxide,the trend of increasing carbon storage and reducing carbon emissions is significant.It is suggested to continuously improve the community structure and promote the development of the forest carbon sink industry through the establishment of national parks and scientific management. Social capital participates in protecting national parks. This can increase the number of carbon sinks in public rainforest parks.

Natural resistance of marals of Altai-Sayan breed during the process of adaptation under the environments of the Republic of Tyva

The Republic of Tyva is a region in the geographical center of Asia, which located at the junction of the Siberian taiga and Central Asian desert-steppe landscapes, in a wide band of mountains and intermountain plains. The mountain-forest area of Tyva has long been considered a natural habitat for antler deer, one of which is the maral (Cervus elaphus sibiricus). In order to restore maral breeding and increase the number of marals in the former limits, marals of the Altai-Sayan breed have been imported to the Republic of Tyva from the Republic of Altai. The preservation of productive traits, reproductive function and the realization of the genetic potential of animals introduced to new climatic conditions largely depends on the ability of these animals to adapt to existing environments. We have assessed in this paper the natural resistance of the marals of Altai-Sayan breed during introduction in the Tyva Republic in comparison with the indicators of the marals have been bred in the Altai Republic. The researches have been carried out in 2019. The research material was blood samples of marals of Altai-Sayan breed imported to the Republic of Tuva (n=27) and marals of the same breed bred in the Republic of Altai (n=17). Studies have shown some deviations in the blood leukogram of imported marals, such as a decrease in the number of eosinophils and rod nuclear neutrophils (P &lt; 0,001), the increase in the number of segmented nuclear neutrophils and lymphocytes (P &lt; 0,05). The number of monocytes have been increased in 18,6 times compared to the Altai marals. The change in the number of monocytes exceeded the physiological norm by 24,7 %. The indicator of adaptation evaluation in imported marals had higher values (6,8), which were in 1,7 times higher than in marals bred in the Altai Republic (4,1), which indicates the intensity of adaptive mechanisms in imported animals during adaptation. Analysis of phagocytic activity and phagocytic index revealed intensive phagocytosis in imported marals: phagocytic activity – by 12,4 % (P &lt; 0,05), phagocytic index – by 5,1 %, and the increase in the content of lysosomal and cationic proteins by 12,8 % (P &lt; 0,05). Analysis of the bactericidal activity of blood serum has shown its lower level in imported animals (45,97±1,36 %), compared with marals of the same breed bred in the Altai Republic (52,19±2,15 at P &lt; 0,05). Thus, according to most indicators of natural resistance marals of Altai-Sayan breed imported to Tyva have a fairly high level of natural protection, which indicates that they can be adapted to the natural climatic and feeding conditions of the Republic of Tyva.

Detection of Standing Deadwood from Aerial Imagery Products: Two Methods for Addressing the Bare Ground Misclassification Issue

Deadwood mapping is of high relevance for studies on forest biodiversity, forest disturbance, and dynamics. As deadwood predominantly occurs in forests characterized by a high structural complexity and rugged terrain, the use of remote sensing offers numerous advantages over terrestrial inventory. However, deadwood misclassifications can occur in the presence of bare ground, displaying a similar spectral signature. In this study, we tested the potential to detect standing deadwood (h &gt; 5 m) using orthophotos (0.5 m resolution) and digital surface models (DSM) (1 m resolution), both derived from stereo aerial image matching (0.2 m resolution and 60%/30% overlap (end/side lap)). Models were calibrated in a 600 ha mountain forest area that was rich in deadwood in various stages of decay. We employed random forest (RF) classification, followed by two approaches for addressing the deadwood-bare ground misclassification issue: (1) post-processing, with a mean neighborhood filter for “deadwood”-pixels and filtering out isolated pixels and (2) a “deadwood-uncertainty” filter, quantifying the probability of a “deadwood”-pixel to be correctly classified as a function of the environmental and spectral conditions in its neighborhood. RF model validation based on data partitioning delivered high user’s (UA) and producer’s (PA) accuracies (both &gt; 0.9). Independent validation, however, revealed a high commission error for deadwood, mainly in areas with bare ground (UA = 0.60, PA = 0.87). Post-processing (1) and the application of the uncertainty filter (2) improved the distinction between deadwood and bare ground and led to a more balanced relation between UA and PA (UA of 0.69 and 0.74, PA of 0.79 and 0.80, under (1) and (2), respectively). Deadwood-pixels showed 90% location agreement with manually delineated reference to deadwood objects. With both alternative solutions, deadwood mapping achieved reliable results and the highest accuracies were obtained with deadwood-uncertainty filter. Since the information on surface heights was crucial for correct classification, enhancing DSM quality could substantially improve the results.

Impacts of Climate Change on Wildfires in Central Asia

This study analyzed fire weather and fire regimes in Central Asia from 2001–2015 and projected the impacts of climate change on fire weather in the 2030s (2021–2050) and 2080s (2071–2099), which would be helpful for improving wildfire management and adapting to future climate change in the region. The study area included five countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. The study area could be divided into four subregions based on vegetation type: shrub (R1), grassland (R2), mountain forest (R3), and rare vegetation area (R4). We used the modified Nesterov index (MNI) to indicate the fire weather of the region. The fire season for each vegetation zone was determined with the daily MNI and burned areas. We used the HadGEM2-ES global climate model with four scenarios (RCP2.6, RCP4.5, RCP6.0, and RCP8.5) to project the future weather and fire weather of Central Asia. The results showed that the fire season for shrub areas (R1) was from 1 April to 30 November, for grassland (R2) was from 1 March to 30 November, and for mountain forest (R3) was from 1 April to 30 October. The daily burned areas of R1 and R2 mainly occurred in the period from June–August, while that of R3 mainly occurred in the April–June and August–October periods. Compared with the baseline (1971–2000), the mean daily maximum temperature and precipitation, in the fire seasons of study area, will increase by 14%–23% and 7%–15% in the 2030s, and 21%–37% and 11%–21% in the 2080s, respectively. The mean MNI will increase by 33%–68% in the 2030s and 63%–146% in the 2080s. The potential burned areas of will increase by 2%–8% in the 2030s and 3%–13% in the 2080s. Wildfire management needs to improve to adapt to increasing fire danger in the future.