Effects of Ungulate Browsing on Forest Regeneration and Silviculture

Birmensdorf (Zürich), Switzerland / 14 - 16 October 2015

Dear Division 1 Scientists and Colleagues,

Ungulate browsing is one of the many factors that affect tree establishment, growth and mortality and thus both structure and species composition of forests. Tree saplings are part of the usual food of ungulate species and palatable tree species, like Abies alba (European silver fir), are often browsed by ungulates. At the same time, natural regeneration of a mixture of species is valued in mountain protection forests to mitigate damages of snow avalanches, rockfall, mass flow and wind storms. Thereby, species with deep rooting systems (like Abies alba and Acer pseudoplatanus) are particularly important.

Measuring and monitoring the effects of ungulates on forest regeneration pose however major challenges because leader shoot browsing rate linearly correlates neither with tree density nor with species composition. The conference intends to present the current state of knowledge on ungulate impacts on tree regeneration and their implications for forest stand dynamics. We specifically focus on sustainable natural tree regeneration under current and predicted future climate.

If you are working in this area and have not yet registered for the symposium, here is your chance to do so: visit http://www.wsl.ch/iufro-ungfor2015/registration/ and book your place!

We are looking forward to welcoming you to WSL Birmensdorf!

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posted by Brigitte Burger on behalf of

Andreas Zingg, research forester, dipl Forsting. ETH

Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL

ZÃ¼rcherstrasse 111

CH-8903 Birmensdorf

Switzerland

phone +41-44-739 23 35

fax +41-44-739 22 15

http://www.wsl.ch