a - Which are the most important biotic stress factors affecting NWFP in relation to climate change?

Influence of rainfall variation on wild mushroom production under future climate change scenarios.

Irrigation device

The main objective of the project is the creation of a mycological reserve with a demonstrative and informative purposes as well as to guarantee the fructification of  a wide fungal cortex through the application of waterings. Parallel to this main objective and taking advantage of synergies, an experimental device has been established aiming to evaluate the evolution of fungal ecosystems under climate change scenarios. Specifically, the incidence of rainfall variations on wild mushroom production is evaluated for further analysis on future climate change scenarios.

Impact of Leptoglossus occidentalis on commercial pine nut kernel per cone output

Typology of damages caused by Leptoglossus occidentalis feeding

The aim of this work was to quantify the extent of the recent decline observed in pine nut and kernel production. For this purpose, we analysed data from the INIA long-term sample plot network for cone and pine nut production in the four main Spanish stone pine regions.  Data series for more than a hundred plots since the last century, previous to the arrival of the bug, were compared with the same series after its arrival. Hence, the collapse in kernel per cone yield since can be quantified, the implied main factors identified, and  the evidence of L. occidentalis causality...

Climatic impact on cork thickness from different trees located in the same stand

Cork samples and cork rings.

The thickness of cork oak trees varies highly, even when they are located in the same geographical location or stand. The objective was to research how climate variables affect different trees within the same site, for which precipitation and temperature variables were considered. The response variable was the cork growth index (cgi) – the cork thickness of the first eight complete growth years were measured after boiling. The differences between trees were characterised by nine different cork thickness quantiles, from lower (thinnest cork) to higher (thickest cork).

Cork oak mortality management

Cork oak sudden death phenomena

It is not possible to separate the cumulative effect of: climate change, soil conditions, cultural practices and the presence of biotic agents, the way the trees die, due to progressive decrepitude or sudden death, as well as the physiological processes involved that are necessarily different and must be treated differently when deciding on the urgency and the period of dead trees felling, the management of the wood material, forestry residues and subsequent options for afforestation, natural regeneration or conversion to another species.

This factsheet aims to highlight some of the...

How to prevent Platypus cilindrus attacks?

Platypus signs on cork oak tree

Cork oak vitality, namely the plagues and diseases, is one of the main concerns of forest producers, with the platypus being one of the pests mentioned in Portugal as a factor responsible for the mortality of cork oak trees.

The knowledge of the pest as well as the means/techniques of combat available, its form of use and the characteristics of the cork oak forests that make them more susceptible to the platypus are some of the proposals to be addressed in this document and in the PLATISOR project (Methods for the management of cork oak forest with «Platypus cylindrus» atacks in the...

Adding knowledge to the impact and ecology of the seed bug, Leptoglossus occidentalis, on stone pine

Adult L. occidentalis on a stone pine cone

There is still a substantial lack of knowledge about the effective impact and the ecology of the seed bug, Leptoglosus occidentalis, on the Mediterranean stone pine. Thus, the overall objective was to characterize the impact and study the ecology of this invasive insect in stone pine by (1) characterizing its damage on seeds with shell; (2) testing its preference between stone pine and other Mediterranean pines; (3) evaluating damage in Stone pine seed orchards under different management strategies and (4) inferring invasion routes of this insect in the Iberian Peninsula using...

Influence of cork oak seed origin on budburst and leaf pest damage

Cork aok budburst

- Evaluation of spring shoot phenology (timing of budburst) variation as a function of seed geographic origin.
- Understanding the adaptation potential of cork oak populations to biotic stress, assessing if earlier/later budburst timings have consequences on the amount of leaf pest damages.
- Identify the most frequent pests occurring on the damaged leaves. Relate budburst and plant–pest interactions with climatic conditions.