https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3375-9630
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Jeannine Cavender-Bares, Barry Logan, Novel insights on the linkage between enhanced photoprotection and oak decline, Tree Physiology, Volume 42, Issue 2, February 2022, Pages 203–207, https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpab153
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This scientific commentary refers to ‘Photoprotective compounds as early markers to predict holm oak crown defoliation in declining Mediterranean savannahs’ by Encinas-Valero et al. (doi: 10.1093/treephys/tpab006).
Forest decline is occurring across the globe due to interacting global change factors including increasing drought and aridity (Williams et al. 2013, Anderegg et al. 2016), increasing fire frequency (Syphard et al. 2009), and increased mobility and spread of pests and pathogens (Holmes et al. 2009, Fei et al. 2019) or other invasive plant species that compete with native vegetation (e.g., Asner et al. 2008, Wardle and Peltzer 2017). Trees provide critical ecosystem services that regulate climate, hydrology and air quality; provide habitat for wildlife; and offer esthetic, recreational and spiritual value to humans (IPBES 2019). In the northern hemisphere, oaks (Quercus L.) are a dominant lineage forming both monodominant stands and diverse mixtures, and hence are a major contributor to total biodiversity and the benefits we derive from trees (Nixon 2006, Cavender-Bares 2019). Loss of tree species regionally has devastating ecological and economic impacts that can take many years to recover from (Boyd et al. 2013). On our increasingly human-dominated planet, understanding the causes of decline and detecting them early can greatly increase the efficiency and lower the cost of management efforts.
