Turkey Oak Forests Research Articles

A Vértesalja homoki cseres-tölgyesei (Fraxino orno-Quercetum cerridis Kevey 2008)

Here we evaluate the phytosociological characteristics of the turkey oak forests on sand (Fraxino orno-Quercetum cerridis) found at the northern foothills of the Vértes Hills, Hungary. Using the traditional Braun-Blanquet method, 20 vegetation samples were collected and compared with turkey oak forests growing in similar ecological situations in other parts of the country. The traditional and multivariate analyses showed that our samples were quite different from the compared forests, and only the forests in the Bakonyalja and the Pilis Mts showed some similarity with the compared forests. Our samples had the lowest proportion of Quercetea pubescentis-petraeae species among the compared forests, and the highest proportion of specialists (Corydalis pumila, Daphne laureola, Doronicum hungaricum, Lychnis coronaria, Physocaulis nodosus, Primula veris, Scutellaria columnae, Sorbus domestica and Veratrum nigrum). The samples were well separated from the compared forests and formed a distinct group.

Recover of Soil Microbial Community Functions in Beech and Turkey Oak Forests After Coppicing Interventions

Forest management influences the occurrence of tree species, the organic matter input to the soil decomposer system, and hence, it can alter soil microbial community and key ecosystem functions it performs. In this study, we compared the potential effect of different forest management, coppice and high forest, on soil microbial functional diversity, enzyme activities and chemical-physical soil properties in two forests, turkey oak and beech, during summer and autumn. We hypothesized that coppicing influences soil microbial functional diversity with an overall decrease. Contrary to our hypothesis, in summer, the functional diversity of soil microbial community was higher in both coppice forests, suggesting a resilience response of the microbial communities in the soil after tree cutting, which occurred 15–20 years ago. In beech forest under coppice management, a higher content of soil organic matter (but also of soil recalcitrant and stable organic carbon) compared to high forest can explain the higher soil microbial functional diversity and metabolic activity. In turkey oak forest, although differences in functional diversity of soil microbial community between management were observed, for the other investigated parameters, the differences were mainly linked to seasonality. The findings highlight that the soil organic matter preservation depends on the type of forest, but the soil microbial community was able to recover after about 15 years from coppice intervention in both forest ecosystems. Thus, the type of management implemented in these forest ecosystems, not negatively affecting soil organic matter pool, preserving microbial community and potentially soil ecological functions, is sustainable in a scenario of climate change.

Low understory condition in an oak forest in Hungary, 1972 and 2022 – Síkfőkút Project is 50 years old

erious oak decline was first detected in 1979-80 in a mixed sessile oak–Turkey oak forest (Quercetum petraeae-cerridis Soó 1963). This decline resulted important structural changes in the understory shrub layer. Despite of this, relatively few studies deal with shrub communities and shrub layer dynamics after oak death. The goals of this research were to determine the conditions of low shrubs and analyse the possible changes in this layer after 5 decades from the beginning of Síkfőkút research. Specimens which were lower than 1.0 m in height were categorized as low shrubs in the shrub community. In 1972 and in 2022, 16- 17 native low shrub species were observed in the understory; 15 species were present continuously in the forest. The density of low shrubs was 87401 and 17317 specimen ha-1. The most common low shrub species was Ligustrum vulgare and 5 decades later Quercus petraea with 24.1% and 37.8% ratio. The mean height and mean diameter of low shrub species changed among 10.3-67.0 cm and 1.5-7.5 mm. The mean cover of these shrubs fluctuated between 35 cm2 and 2026 cm2 based on the two measured year. Our results suggest that the low shrub layer responded negatively to the biotic and abiotic factors under 5 decades; this is especially true to the density, cover and diversity indices of species.

Effect of coppice conversion into high forest on soil organic C and nutrients stock in a Turkey oak (Quercus cerris L.) forest in Italy

In forest ecosystems, a variety of abiotic and biotic soil forming factors drives soil organic matter (SOM) and nutrients cycling with a profitable outcome on climate change mitigation. As a consequence, type and intensity of forest management, through its impact on carbon (C) and nutrient soil stocks, can be considered as an additional soil forming force. In this study, we investigated the influence of the coppice conversion into high forest on pedogenesis and on soil C and nutrient (N, P, Ca, Mg, and K) stocks, fifty years later the beginning of the conversion-cycle. The trial was established in a Turkey oak forest historically managed under the coppice system in central Italy. Specifically, we considered tree population density (natural evolution – control, moderate thinning, heavy thinning) where soil samples were collected according to genetic horizon to estimate C, N, and P stocks both in the forest floor and at fixed depth intervals (0–30, 30–50 and 50–75 cm). Further, the stocks of exchangeable Ca, Mg, and K were also assessed for the mineral layers. The results showed that litter and the upper layer of mineral soil (0–30 cm) contained a similar quantity of C (about 74–83 Mg ha-1), independently of the trials and no differences were observed also in the whole soil stocks (about 192–213 Mg ha−1). The comparison of the mean stocks calculated per 1-cm of thickness of organic (O), organo-mineral (OM), and mineral (M) layers, although it did not display any difference among trials (excepted for P and Mg), showed a similar capability of the organo-mineral horizons to store C and nutrients compared with the organic ones (e.g., about 6–12 Mg ha−1, 0.3–0.5 Mg ha−1 and 0.5–1.5 kg ha−1 for C, N and P, respectively). Our findings showed that thinning operated on Turkey oak coppice did not affect soil capacity to store C and nutrients. These results suggested that the forest ecosystem itself is the main soil forming force and this is consistent with the target of adopting forest management able to control the global C cycle through the storage of SOM in the mineral soil rather than in forest floor, where SOM turnover is faster.

Functional fingerprinting estimates renewal opportunities for tree species in a mixed Turkey oak forest

Functional fingerprinting estimates renewal opportunities for tree species in a mixed Turkey oak forest

General regularities of height-diameter curves in Hungarian oak, sessile oak and Turkey oak high forests

The height-diameter curves of natural even-aged Hungarian oak, sessile oak and Turkey oak forests in the regions of Staro Oryahovo, Sherba, Tsonevo and Aytos Forestry Districts have been studied. In order to explore the shape of the curves and, in particular, their steepness, the steepness index SI of Douhovnikov (“the method of natural indicators”) was applied. The curves were divided into three groups according to it: flat curves, medium steep curves and steep curves. Both the traditional height-diameter curves and the corresponding relative curves of Tyurin were studied. Consideration of the traditional height-diameter curves gives a certain ground for investigating to-gether the height-diameter curves of Hungarian oak and sessile oak, disregarding the tree species. This inference was confirmed by comparing the relative height-diameter curves for Hungarian oak, sessile oak and Turkey oak with Tyurin’s uniform curve of relative heights. For these comparisons we used the Willcoxon test. A statistically significant great proximity in their shapes was found. As a uniform average curve of relative heights has been established for all tree species, this proximity indicates a possibility of creating a single fan of height-diameter curves for high Hungarian, sessile and Turkey oak.

Comparative study of ground beetle and ground-dwelling spider assemblages of artificial gap openings

Artificial gap openings cause significant changes in vegetation structure (in every forest level), thereby greatly influencing arthropod communities. Our study compared the data of two common forest floor arthropod groups, ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) and ground-dwelling spiders (Araneae) from two artificial gaps situated in a turkey oak forest. Our surveys were carried out in the Gyöngyös-plain, in Hungary. Sampling of the arthropod communities was done with pitfall traps arranged in two 70 m long transects, along the longitudinal axis of the gaps, with 15 traps in each transect, 5 m from each other. We measured the quantity and quality of the deadwood lying around within a radius of 2.5 m of each trap. We observed that the species and numbers of spider specimens were higher in the inner parts of the transects (in the gaps), while the numbers of ground beetle specimens declined in the same traps. Furthermore, the Shannon and Simpson diversity values of the ground beetles were generally lower than those of the spiders. The ordinations showed a distinct influence of the gaps on the communities. The numbers of specimens of exclusively edge-associated species were also higher in the gaps. The correlation analysis indicated significant positive correlations between the number of ground beetles and spiders and the quantity of deadwood. In addition, there were significant negative correlations between the numbers of species of both groups and the rate of decay of deadwood.

UAV Remote Sensing for Biodiversity Monitoring: Are Forest Canopy Gaps Good Covariates?

Forest canopy gaps are important to ecosystem dynamics. Depending on tree species, small canopy openings may be associated with intra-crown porosity and with space among crowns. Yet, literature on the relationships between very fine-scaled patterns of canopy openings and biodiversity features is limited. This research explores the possibility of: (1) mapping forest canopy gaps from a very high spatial resolution orthomosaic (10 cm), processed from a versatile unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imaging platform, and (2) deriving patch metrics that can be tested as covariates of variables of interest for forest biodiversity monitoring. The orthomosaic was imaged from a test area of 240 ha of temperate deciduous forest types in Central Italy, containing 50 forest inventory plots each of 529 m2 in size. Correlation and linear regression techniques were used to explore relationships between patch metrics and understory (density, development, and species diversity) or forest habitat biodiversity variables (density of micro-habitat bearing trees, vertical species profile, and tree species diversity). The results revealed that small openings in the canopy cover (75% smaller than 7 m2) can be faithfully extracted from UAV red, green, and blue bands (RGB) imagery, using the red band and contrast split segmentation. The strongest correlations were observed in the mixed forests (beech and turkey oak) followed by intermediate correlations in turkey oak forests, followed by the weakest correlations in beech forests. Moderate to strong linear relationships were found between gap metrics and understory variables in mixed forest types, with adjusted R2 from linear regression ranging from 0.52 to 0.87. Equally strong correlations in the same forest types were observed for forest habitat biodiversity variables (with adjusted R2 ranging from 0.52 to 0.79), with highest values found for density of trees with microhabitats and vertical species profile. In conclusion, this research highlights that UAV remote sensing can potentially provide covariate surfaces of variables of interest for forest biodiversity monitoring, conventionally collected in forest inventory plots. By integrating the two sources of data, these variables can be mapped over small forest areas with satisfactory levels of accuracy, at a much higher spatial resolution than would be possible by field-based forest inventory solely.

Structure and activity of soil microbial communities in three Mediterranean forests

The effect of plant cover on soil microbial community structure and activity was investigated in forest ecosystems dominated by holm oak (Quercus ilex), Turkey oak (Quercus cerris) and beech (Fagus sylvatica), in two seasons (autumn and early summer). Microbial community structure was investigated by phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) profile and ergosterol determination. Microbial community activity was assessed by fluorescein diacetate hydrolisys, β-glucosidase and cellulase activities. The Turkey oak forest showed the lowest soil microbial biomass, both as total and specific PLFA markers. PLFA profile showed a different microbial community structure among forest soils, mainly between the two oak systems. Enzyme activities were affected by soil organic carbon content, with the lowest values measured in Turkey oak. A seasonal effect both on microbial biomass and on enzyme activity was generally observed. Among the investigated forest systems, the beech forest appeared to store more carbon both in aboveground biomass and in soil.

Body volume in ground beetles (Carabidae) reflects biotope disturbance

Abstract Changes in body size of living organisms can indicate changes in environmental quality. The family Carabidae is frequently used as an indicator of environmental status. We collected ground beetles in 9 Slovakian localities (in the Veporské vrchy Mts and the Juhoslovenská kotlina Basin) of various levels of disturbance, and evaluated the volume of individuals. The lowest average body volumes of individual were found for an intensively grazed pasture (locality 5) and a nitrophilous waterside vegetation (locality 6) (1,298 mm3–4,648 mm3) with predominantly macropterous species. We have confirmed the significantly higher average biovolume value of individual Carabidae in less disturbed habitats: a Picea abies plantation (locality 1), a Carpathian oak-hornbeam forest (locality 4) and a Carpathian turkey oak forest (locality 7) (from 9,837 mm3 to 13,038 mm3), where apterous and brachypterous species dominated.

Light Conditions, Soil Moisture, and Vegetation Cover in Artificial Forest Gaps in Western Hungary

AbstractOne of the greatest challenges of continuous cover forest management is to find a suitable gap size in a given forest stand that will help the regeneration of economically significant tree species, and possibly control competitor species. This paper summarizes the results of a two-year intensive mapping of various bearing artificial gaps at two sites in western Hungary: a sessile-oak-hornbeam and a Turkey oak forest. Light conditions and soil moisture were measured in the gaps as abiotic variables. Hemispherical photography and a Field Scout TDR 300 Soil Moisture Meter were used. Vegetation cover as well as quantity and height of the regeneration were measured as biotic variables. There are significant differences between the middle of a gap and the closed canopy forest stands. The maximum light intensity below the canopy shows a slight northward dislocation. Correlation analysis results showed that a gap’s slight, northward irradiation surplus effected soil moisture, regeneration heights, and total vegetation cover less than a gap’s real shape and size, ergo, its openness did.

Distribution and abundance of hole-nesting birds in Mediterranean forests: impact of past management patterns on habitat preference

This study explores the relative abundance of hole-nesting birds in fourMediterranean forest types, each of which has undergone different patterns of forest management. Nine species were sampled in 24 study plots, to compare cork oak forest, turkey oak forest, holm oak forest and pine plantation. The abundance of hole-nesters was greater in cork oak forest and turkey oak forest. Three species were most frequently detected: Great Tit (Parusmajor), Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) and Nuthatch (Sitta europaea). Bird abundancewas significantly lower in holmoak forest, particularly in the cases of Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major), Green Woodpecker (Picus viridis), Nuthatch and Short-toed Treecreeper (Certhia brachydactyla). TheGreat SpottedWoodpecker showed a positive correlation with the abundance of three secondary cavity nesters: Nuthatch, Short-toed Treecreeper and Starling; in contrast, Green Woodpecker showed a negative correlation with Starling. Habitat structure varied significantly among forest types, especially themean andmaximumtree height, these being lower in holmoak forest. The Great SpottedWoodpecker proved to be a good indicator of less disturbed woodlands. In fact, maximum tree height turned out to be a significant and positive explanatory variable for woodpecker abundance.We consider that intensive coppicing and timbermanagement in holm oak forest during the 20th century widely affected trees’ age-profile, with consequences for their suitability forwoodpeckers and other hole-nesting birds. Tomonitor the response of hole-nesting birds to forest management in terms of abundance, we propose the use of the great spotted woodpecker as an indicator species.

Short-term changes in height–diameter relation of two maple species and European cornel of understory in an oak forest in Hungary on the basis of two-parameters model

Forest understory species such as shrub and herbaceous layer, have received little attention in long-term studies. Knowledge of the diameter and the height of trees are fundamental for developing growth and yield models in forest stands. Overstory composition of the Sikfőkut Project site was dominated by sessile oak–Turkey-oak forest (Quercetum petraeae-cerris Soo 1963). Similarly to other European countries an oak decline occurred in Hungary oak woodlands at the end of 1970’s and about 63% of the oak trees perished in our site. The potential for oak species regeneration was a very low over the period of 1982-2012. Four nonlinear height-diameter functions were fitted and evaluated for Sikfőkut site based on a data set consisting of 2025 individuals for three dominant woody species (Acer campestre L., Acer tataricum L. and Cornus mas L.) and detected any short-term changes in these equations following dieback of oak canopies. These height– diameter equations increase our knowledge of the growth of these species; therefore will enable us to improve management planning in oak forests.

Distribution and eco-coenotic patterns of the forest orchid Epipactis pontica in Slovakia

The present study is aimed at characterising the ecological niche of a typical forest orchid ( Epipactis pontica ) in Slovakia. Vegetation-environmental data were collected across mountain ranges and their foothills in the Western Carpathians in 2011. Numerical classification was performed to delimit the main forest vegetation types and a linear mixed effect model was applied to reveal differences between plots with versus without E. pontica . This endangered species of Slovak flora grows in thermophilous turkey oak forests ( Quercion confertae-cerris ), mesophilous broad-leaved mixed oak-hornbeam forests ( Carpinion betuli ), but most stands correspond to the acidic ( Luzulo-Fagion sylvaticae ) and mesotrophic beech forests ( Fagion sylvaticae ). Principal component analysis supported the floristic separation of plant communities and showed some significant vegetation environmental relationships. E. pontica prefers forests with closed canopy (mean canopy openness: 8.5–15.1%) occurring especially on slightly acidic (soil reaction: 4.48–5.65) and nutrient-poor soils (soil conductivity: 43.1–72.6 μS/cm). The proposed Ellenberg indicator values for light (4), temperature (5), continentality (4), moisture (5), soil reaction (6) and nutrients (5) follow species composition pattern of vascular plants in Slovak phytosociological relevés with E. pontica occurrence. They are also in accordance with its habitat conditions and ecological requirements in other parts of its range. The linear mixed effect model did not confirm any environmental peculiarity of plots with the presence of E. pontica at a microscale level and this result was consistent across the studied sites.

Multi-functional approach in forest landscape management planning: an application in Southern Italy

Forest Landscape Management Plan (FLMP) is intended to have an intermediate role between forest management plans on a regional level and forest management on a unit level. FLMP addresses long-term management issues, with special attention to social and environmental functions, normally not meticulously considered when working on a single forest property level. This paper presents a method to evaluate forest multifunctionality, in order to define management guidelines and support forest planning. A FLMP was conducted in a district of the Basilicata region (Italy). A total of 92 inventory plots comprising the main forest types: i) turkey oak, Hungarian oak, and sessile oak forests (Quercus cerris L. dominant), ii) downy oak forests (Quercus pubescens Willd. dominant), iii) Mediterranean evergreen oak forests (Quercus ilex L. dominant), were considered. Technicians evaluated the multifunctionality of each area by estimating — in the context of an Index of Importance of Function (I) — the capacity of each forest to fulfil different functions. The index was successively aggregated according to forest type and forest system (high forest and coppice). The results showed that the higher level of multifunctionality was found in the high forests. According to the synthetic indicators of multifunctionality, the turkey oak forests obtained the highest values among all forest types. The last part of the paper illustrates an approach to multi-functional forest management, analysing how different silvicultural systems are able to fulfil the main forest functions. This method, as shown in the results, seems to provide a useful support for technicians to evaluate multifunctionality related to forest types and different silvicultural treatments.

Densità di biomassa e necromassa legnosa in cedui di cerro in evoluzione naturale in Toscana

Abstract: Recent data from the National Forest Inventory point out the further reinforcement of coppice area under the position of “mature” standing crop or post-cultivation phase, both of them being spread throughout the original cultivation area. Such condition, mainly due to the less profitable fuel wood harvesting, involves also a share of the more productive types, i.e., Turkey oak forests. Here, a diffuse but forced approach among managers is to “wait and see”. The pro-active way of coppice conversion into high forest is otherwise being practiced in the public domain but on much smaller areas. Against management dilemmas, ageing stands growing under medium to good site conditions show a dynamic growth pattern resulting in a high age-related wood matter storage. At the same time, the heavy and prolonged regular mortality occurring in the fully-stocked shoot population builds up high amounts of deadwood, this becoming an attribute of these newly-formed types. Carbon storage is therefore coming to be one of the major tasks attributable to these systems within the post-cultivation phase. Aims of the work are to estimate both densities of living woody mass and standing+lying deadwood without any lower survey limit, given the small-sized stems building up these types; to check deadwood types/living biomass ratios; to survey deadwood decay; to analyse the dynamics of mass storage within the stands. Three case-studies, aged about three times the traditional rotation and different as for location and site-index, were selected at the purpose. Living woody mass density plus standing and lying deadwood per decay class were determined. Living woody mass density, made basically by stem+thick branches (95%), varies within 160 and 310 Mg ha-1. Total deadwood amount ranges from 22 to 30 Mg ha-1, i.e., 9 to 14% of living woody biomass. The lying/standing deadwood ratio is being reversed with ageing from 1/2 to 2/1-3/1. The intermediate decay class is prevailing (60-85%) across the sites. The observed dynamics and the age-related figures as well, suggest the role these types may play in soil conservation, forest recovery and carbon storage. The need of a consistent monitoring of the further post-cultivation progress is stressed to recognize the driving forces acting, the onset of possible limiting factors and feedbacks.

The Forest Vegetation of the Tolfa-Ceriti Mountains (Northern Latium - Central Italy)

The Forest Vegetation of the Tolfa-Ceriti Mountains (Northern Latium - Central Italy)The forests of the Tolfa-Ceriti mountains (Latium, central Italy) were investigated through a phytosociological approach. 249 relevés were performed and treated with multivariate analysis. 13 woodland communities were identified, of which 7 belong toQuercetalia pubescenti-petraeae, 1 toFagetalia sylvaticae, 1 toPopuletaliaand 4 toQuercetalia ilicis. The thermophilous Turkey oak-forests occurring on the trachytic hills of the Ceriti Mountains and on the flysch substrates of the Tolfa Mountains were included inRubio peregrinae-Quercetum cerridisass. nova.Quercus cerrisandFraxinus angustifoliasubsp.oxycarpawoodland communities of the footslopes have been ascribed toFraxino oxycarpae-Quercetum cerridis, while the widespread mesophilus Turkey oak forests have been ascribed toMelico-Quercetum cerridis. Cephalantero longifoliae-Quercetum cerridishas been restricted to acid and oligotrophic soils.Quercus petraeawoodlands, occurring on trachytic substrates have been described as a new association namedCarici olbiensis-Quercetum petraeaeass. nova. All these mixed oak woods have been included in the allianceCrataego laevigatae-Quercion cerridisArrigoni 1997. The nomenclatural problems concerning the prior nameTeucrio siculi-Quercion cerridisUbaldi 1988 are also discussed. The beech forests of the higher altitudes have been included inFraxino orni-Fagetum sylvaticae, while theAlnus glutinosaravine woodlands have been described as belonging to the new associationPolysticho setiferi-Alnetum glutinosae. Secondary communities ofAcer monspessulanumandAcer campestredeveloped on flysch substrates, and ofErica arboreaandArbutus unedo(Erico-Arbutetum unedonis) developed on trachytic substrates, have also been identified. Finally two types ofQuercus ilexwood have been identified:Cyclamino repandi-Quercetum ilicis, on sandstones, and the new associationArbuto unedonis-Quercetum ilicisass. nova on volcanic soils. This latter community can be considered as a coenological and geographical vicariant in central Italy of the sicilianErico-Quercetum ilicis.

Töredékes cseres-tölgyesek a Zákányi-dombokon (Asphodelo-Quercetum roboris Borhidi in Borhidi et Kevey 1996)

In this paper, the turkey oak forest fragments occurring in the Zákány Hills of SW Hungary are described and characterized based on 10 phytosociological samples. The stands grow on pebbly hilltops covered with loess. Their species composition features subcontinental-submediterranean and Illyrian influences: Anemone trifolia, Castanea sativa, Peucedanum verticillare, Polystichum setiferum, Primula vulgaris, Tamus communis. These forests are identified with the association Asphodelo-Quercetum roboris occurring in the sand hills and pebble hills in Transdanubia. Although to some degree these fragments represent transitional stands to the surrounding oak-hornbeam forests (Anemoni trifoliae-Carpinetum), they clearly differ in species composition. The association is classified into the suballiance Quercenion farnetto Kevey in Kevey et Borhidi 2005 within the alliance Quercion farnetto I. Horvat 1954.

Ground Nesting in Recultivated Forest Habitats — A Study with Artificial Nests

The study was carried out in the outskirts of the town of Pecs (southern Hungary) in a recultivated former coal mine. Bordered by Turkey Oak forests, this open area forms a wedge-shaped clearing in that woodland. Since trees and taller shrubs are rare in the area, it is mainly ground nesting bird species that occur in the clearing. In order to discover whether it is more advantageous to nest in the recultivated area (clearing) than in the nearby forest or at its edges, 150 artificial ground nests were constructed. On 7 May 2002, one quail egg and a plasticine egg of similar size were placed in each of the artificial nests. After a week it was found that 24% of nests in the clearing, 30% of those in the forest edge, and 44% of the ones inside the forest had suffered depredation. The proportions of damaged plasticine and quail eggs inside the forest and at the forest edge were similar, whereas the quail eggs in the clearings were significantly less damaged than plasticine eggs. Of all the experimental eggs, significantly more plasticine eggs (29%) were damaged than quail eggs (17%), which suggests that small-bodied predators are unable to break the quail eggs. 18% of the plasticine eggs attacked, and 72% of the quail eggs attacked were removed from the nest by the predator. Among the predators, small mammals were dominant in the clearing and inside the forest, and birds at the forest edge. Based on the prédation of quail eggs, the survival chances of ground nests in the clearing are greater than at the forest edge or inside the forest.

Predation on artificial nests in post-mining recultivated area and forest edge: contrasting the use of plasticine and quail eggs

Intensive opencast coal mining has been in effect in the northeastern outskirts of Pécs (south Hungary) since 1968. The covering layer of the northern, recultivated area extending over 15 ha is overgrown by herbaceous vegetation. Oleaster ( Elaeagnus angustifolia) was planted in rows on the hillsides. The recultivated open areas are bordered by turkey oak forests ( Potentillo micranthae– Quercetum daleschampii Horvát A.O. 1981) from the east, north, and west; thus it forms a wedge of a clearing in the wood. Our studies have aimed at determining whether nest predation is greater in the forest edge or in the rows of oleaster in the recultivated area. First a plasticine egg, then a quail egg was put in each of the 50–50 artificial nests mounted on trees in the two habitat types. After a week it was found that predation to nests with only one plasticine or one quail egg in each was significantly higher in forest edge trees than in the rows of oleaster. There was no significant difference between predation to plasticine and quail eggs in either of the habitats. Irrespective of where the nests were, predators (mostly jays, tits, and once a small mammal) attempted to “consume” the plasticine eggs in the nest, whereas quail eggs were usually taken away. The rate of disappearance of eggs from the nests (plasticine 24%, quail 60%) differed significantly from the rate of pecking or gnawing at them and from in situ consumption (plasticine 76%, quail 40%). Nests located in tree rows in the recultivated areas are safer than those in the forest edge.