Rewilding beech-dominated temperate forest ecosystems: effects on carbon stocks and biodiversity indicators

Maximising carbon stock and habitat availability is a critical objective of con-
temporary forest management, with primary forests serving a crucial function
due to their substantial carbon storage potential and biodiversity values. Given
the limited extent and fragmentation of primary (mature and old-growth with
minimal prior management) forests in Europe, there is a growing interest in
understanding how rewilding (long-term management cessation) affects carbon
stock and habitat provisioning. Further, little is known about the conditions re-
quired for secondary old-growth forests to achieve the carbon volumes and
late-successional habitat features associated with primary forests if designated
as rewilding areas. Rewilding of forest ecosystems in Europe is still a widely
debated strategy, highlighting the importance of evidence-based examples. We
compared some of the best-preserved primary old-growth forests with adja-
cent secondary old-growth forests which have been allowed to undergo self-
development for an extended period of seven decades in the ecologically and
socially important beech-dominated forests of the Carpathian Mountains. Sta-
tistical analysis showed no significant differences in carbon stock and struc-
tural biodiversity indicators between the two forest categories. Mean above-
ground carbon stock was 207 Mg ha-1 in primary and 213 Mg ha-1 in secondary old-growth plots, which contrasts with values of 107 Mg ha-1 found in managed beech forest stands from the same region. The aboveground biomass carbon increment was 4.3 Mg ha-1 year-1 in primary and 4.5 Mg ha-1 year-1 in secondary plots, respectively. Notably, deadwood volume exhibited the most substantial variation among forest types along with tree microhabitat diversity. Our findings underscore the vital role of protecting and restoring old-growth forest ecosystems for effective carbon stock and biodiversity conservation. We emphasise that forest heterogeneity, encompassing factors such as tree age and diameter, canopy layer, species composition, and growth patterns, are important for enabling managed forests to reach peak carbon storage capacity. Although 70 years is insufficient for secondary old-growth forests to fully recover primary forest characteristics, our study demonstrates that similar
structures and functions can develop within less than a century of protection
in productive temperate regions of Europe. This study supports rewilding as an
effective conservation strategy and Natural Climate Solution

Markuljaková K, Mikoláš M, Svitok M, Meigs GW, Keeton WS, Kozák D, Pavlin J, Gloor R, Kalaš M, Ferenčík M, Ralhan D, Frankovič M, Hofmeister J, Dúhová D, Mejstřík M, Dušátko M, Veber A, Kníř T, Svoboda M.

10.3832/ifor4600-017