New article: Land use changes and mountain pine expansion in the Pyrenees

In this new study and in collaboration with researchers from the FIDBOSC research group we have analysed the changes in mountain pine forests during the last 50 years.

Over the last 50 years, mountain pine (Pinus uncinata Ram.) has expanded its surface area in the Pyrenees by 15%, according to a study recently published in Global Ecology and Biogeography by researchers of the Forest Technology Centre of Catalonia (CTFC).

The study covered more than 6,000 km² of the Catalan Pyrenees (NE Spain) and showed a strong relationship between forest encroachment and land-use changes, especially with farmland abandonment and changes in grazing pressure. Thus socio-economic factors arose as major factors in mountain pine expansion, as encroachment rates were higher in municipalities with greater population losses or weaker primary sector development.

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Améztegui, A., Brotons, L, & Coll, L. 2010. Land use changes as major drivers or mountain pine expansion in the Pyrenees. Global Ecology & Biogeography, DOI: 10.1111/j.1466-8238.2010.00550.x.