A blogpost by Caterina Moretti and Gianmaria Paludet
Our Forestry teachers Giorgio Alberti and Antonio Tomao had prepared quite a special field trip for their 17 Environmental and Natural Sciences students. We came all the way from the University of Udine in Italy to visit the Lom Reserve Forest, one of the three remaining old-growth forests in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and one of the last in Europe.
Visually striking, the forest impressed us with the imposing size of its trees, the endless layers of vegetation and mosses, and the massive amount of deadwood, both standing and lying on the ground. It was a landscape full of life, which also made it difficult for us to navigate and get proper orientation.
A very interesting discussion point was how this forest is adapting to climate change. As our guide explained, the ecological richness of the Lom Forest, along with its natural regeneration, makes it largely resilient to wildfires and invasive or alien plants and insects.
The forest’s capacity to adapt to a changing climate sparked both our curiosity and made us think: Shouldn’t modern forest management aim for a balance between economic revenue and ecological stability? Such a view was shared by many of us students, and we agreed that forest management in the Lom buffer zones comes close to our ideas.
We also learned that wildlife in the forest is well regulated. Natural barriers like rivers and dense vegetation, along with careful culling (selective and controlled removal of individual animals), prevent deer populations from overgrowing. The absence of red deer has led to an increase in roe deer and wild boar populations, resulting in less competition for space and food resources.
Our day was also enriched withy surprising facts, such as the widespread presence of “aerial roots.” Seedlings that grow on dead trunks tend to develop aerial roots, which become unstable once the supporting trunks rot away completely.
On a less positive note, we were also surprised to learn about the theft of “resonance wood.” Many trees had small carved-out cubes, causing both ecological and visual damage. The wood, taken from Picea abies bark, is used in the manufacture of musical instruments.
Inspired by this resilient and inventive old-growth forest, we felt the sense of pride the Bosnian people have for their well-preserved forest, and we would like to see that same pride in natural resources shared across the European continent and the world. Seeing such untouched ecosystems made us realize just how rare and precious they are today.