Unraveling the drivers of intensifying forest disturbance regimes in Europe

摘要: Natural disturbances like wildfire, windthrow and insect outbreaks are critical drivers of composition, structure functioning forest ecosystems. They strongly climate-sensitive, thus likely to be distinctly affected by climatic changes. Observations across Europe show that in recent decades, disturbance regimes have intensified markedly, resulting a strong increase damage from wind, bark beetles wildfires. Climate change is frequently hypothesized as the main driving force behind this intensification, but changes composition associated with management activities such promoting conifers increasing standing timber volume (i.e. ‘forest change’) also influence susceptibility disturbances. Here, we 1958 2001, contributed same order magnitude climate Europe's forests. was driver area burnt, while extent, particularly variation wind beetle damage. For all three agents, most severe when conducive weather conditions increased coincided. We conclude continuing trend towards more disturbance-prone for large parts forests, can detrimental effects on carbon storage other ecosystem services. Understanding interacting natural prerequisite mitigation adaptation management.