02843nas a2200217   4500008004100000022001300041245010100054210006900155260001600224300001400240490000800254520196400262100001902226700002402245700002602269700002802295700002302323700002002346700002602366856023302392       2018                        eng d  a0048969700aShifts in wind energy potential following land-use driven vegetation dynamics in complex terrain0 aShifts in wind energy potential following landuse driven vegetat  cJan-10-2018  a374 - 3840 v6393 a<p>Many mountainous regions with high wind energy potential are characterized by multi-scale variabilities of vegetation in both spatial and time dimensions, which strongly affect the spatial distribution of wind resource and its time evolution. To this end, we developed a coupled interdisciplinary modeling framework capable of assessing the shifts in wind energy potential following land-use driven vegetation dynamics in complex mountain terrain. It was applied to a case study area in the Romanian Carpathians. The results show that the overall shifts in wind energy potential following the changes of vegetation pattern due to different land-use policies can be dramatic. This suggests that the planning of wind energy project should be integrated with the land-use planning at a specific site to ensure that the expected energy production of the planned wind farm can be reached over its entire lifetime. Moreover, the changes in the spatial distribution of wind and turbulence under different scenarios of land-use are complex, and they must be taken into account in the micro-siting of wind turbines to maximize wind energy production and minimize fatigue loads (and associated maintenance costs). The proposed new modeling framework offers, for the first time, a powerful tool for assessing long-term variability in local wind energy potential that emerges from land-use change driven vegetation dynamics over complex terrain. Following a previously unexplored pathway of cause-effect relationships, it demonstrates a new linkage of agro- and forest policies in landscape development with an ultimate trade-off between renewable energy production and biodiversity targets. Moreover, it can be extended to study the potential effects of micro-climatic changes associated with wind farms on vegetation development (growth and patterning), which could in turn have a long-term feedback effect on wind resource distribution in mountainous regions.</p>
1 aFang, Jiannong1 aPeringer, Alexander1 aStupariu, Mihai-Sorin1 aPătru-Stupariu, Ileana1 aButtler, Alexandre1 aGolay, Francois1 aPorté-Agel, Fernando  uhttps://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0048969718317182https://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S0048969718317182?httpAccept=text/xmlhttps://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S0048969718317182?httpAccept=text/plain02835nas a2200217   4500008004100000022001300041245010400054210006900158260001600227300001400243490000800257520195300265100002402218700002302242700002202265700002802287700002302315700002602338700002002364856023302384       2017                        eng d  a0304380000aDisturbance-grazer-vegetation interactions maintain habitat diversity in mountain pasture-woodlands0 aDisturbancegrazervegetation interactions maintain habitat divers  cJan-09-2017  a301 - 3100 v3593 a<p>Low-intensity livestock grazing is a widespread management tool in order to maintain habitat diversity in mountain pasture-woodlands for nature conservation purposes. Historical photographs indicate that forest disturbance significantly contributed to forest-grassland mosaic pattern formation. Disturbance-grazer interactions are however poorly understood and the effects of logging or windthrow are rarely considered in management plans. Moreover, disturbance-grazer interactions are crucial for the maintenance of open habitats in the upcoming &ldquo;rewilding&rdquo; approach of nature conservation. We aimed to understand the effects of forest gap creation by the breakdown of senile trees or by single-tree cutting and of large forest openings by windthrow or logging on mosaic pattern formation in pasture-woodlands that were grazed by cattle and dominated by tree species with distinct regeneration ecology (Picea abies vs. Fagus sylvatica). We used the process-based model of pasture-woodland vegetation dynamics WoodPaM and newly implemented a forest disturbance routine. We simulated disturbance and grazing scenarios in an artificial mountain landscape and analyzed mosaic patterns with landscape metrics. We found that grazing in absence of disturbance promoted simply structured mosaics that were preconditioned by topography. Only large-scale forest disturbance disrupted this pattern and maintained the historical heterogeneous distribution of grassland communities across all habitat conditions (especially species-rich mountain grasslands on poor soil). This prerequisite is stronger in pasture-woodlands where the ecology of the dominant tree species promotes forest-grassland segregation (F. sylvatica in our case) and less in naturally thin-canopy mountain forest close to the tree line (P. abies). In wilderness areas, the very low density of grazers may limit the maintenance of open habitats regardless disturbance.</p>
1 aPeringer, Alexander1 aButtler, Alexandre1 aGillet, François1 aPătru-Stupariu, Ileana1 aSchulze, Kiowa, A.1 aStupariu, Mihai-Sorin1 aRosenthal, Gert  uhttps://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S030438001730100Xhttps://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S030438001730100X?httpAccept=text/xmlhttps://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S030438001730100X?httpAccept=text/plain02521nas a2200217   4500008004100000022001300041245013700054210006900191260001600260300001200276490000800288520177600296100002402072700002202096700002002118700002102138700002802159700002602187700002302213856006702236       2016                        eng d  a0304380000aLandscape-scale simulation experiments test Romanian and Swiss management guidelines for mountain pasture-woodland habitat diversity0 aLandscapescale simulation experiments test Romanian and Swiss ma  cJan-06-2016  a41 - 490 v3303 a<p>Distinct guidelines have been proposed in Romania and Switzerland for the management of pasture-woodlands that either focused on the regulation of grazing pressure (Romanian production perspective) or overall tree cover (Swiss conservation perspective). However, the landscape structural diversity and the cover of forest-grassland ecotones, which are both crucial for nature conservation value, were not explicitly considered.<br />
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We aimed to compare the country-specific management guidelines regarding their efficiency for the conservation of the structurally diverse forest-grassland mosaics in the light of recent land-use and climate change.<br />
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In strategic simulation experiments using the process-based model of pasture-woodland ecosystems WoodPaM, we analyzed the relationships among drivers for the formation of mosaic patterns (grazing intensity, climate change) and the resulting landscape properties (tree cover, forest-grassland ecotones, mosaic structure) during the past until today (2000 AD).<br />
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The results showed that tree canopy densification following recent climate warming is likely to trigger landscape structural shifts. Medium grazing pressure promoted the development of the full range of pasture-woodland habitats and is therefore confirmed as a management strategy that balances agronomic demands and nature conservation value. Tree cover is rejected as a criteria to monitor pasture-woodland conservation status, because its relationship to landscape structural diversity and to the cover of forest-grassland ecotones did not hold for changing climate.<br />
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Our results suggest &ldquo;experimental-retrospective&rdquo; analysis as a useful tool to test conclusions from expert knowledge.</p>
1 aPeringer, Alexander1 aGillet, François1 aRosenthal, Gert1 aStoicescu, Ioana1 aPătru-Stupariu, Ileana1 aStupariu, Mihai-Sorin1 aButtler, Alexandre  uhttps://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S030438001630079501250nas a2200217   4500008004100000022001400041245013200055210006900187260001600256300001400272490000700286520052500293100002400818700002300842700002100865700002600886700002000912700002300932700002200955856005500977       2016                        eng d  a0921-297300aMulti-scale feedbacks between tree regeneration traits and herbivore behavior explain the structure of pasture-woodland mosaics0 aMultiscale feedbacks between tree regeneration traits and herbiv  cJan-05-2016  a913 - 9270 v313 a<p>The pasture-woodlands of Central Europe are low-intensity grazing systems in which the structural richness of dynamic forest-grassland mosaics is causal for their high biodiversity. Distinct mosaic patterns in Picea abies- and Fagus sylvatica-dominated pasture-woodlands in the Swiss Jura Mountains suggest a strong influence of tree species regeneration ecology on landscape structural properties. At the landscape scale, however, cause-effect relationships are complicated by habitat selectivity of livestock.</p>
1 aPeringer, Alexander1 aSchulze, Kiowa, A.1 aStupariu, Ileana1 aStupariu, Mihai-Sorin1 aRosenthal, Gert1 aButtler, Alexandre1 aGillet, François  uhttp://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10980-015-0308-z