Dynamism and Conservation of Semi-natural Forest Habitats: The Cork Oak Forests of Central Italy

Abstract

Abstract The forest habitats listed in the Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC include various semi-natural formations favoured or maintained in balance by human action, especially for productive purposes. Some of these coenoses are undergoing transformation due to the decrease in human interest and the consequent triggering of dynamic processes. In order to study this phenomenon, we analysed the case of the cork oak forests on the Tyrrhenian slope of central Italy, which are part of the habitat "9330 Quercus suber forests" of the Habitats Directive. The choice is appropriate because of the current characteristics of these stands: they cover a limited area and have a fragmented distribution, were created by man to exploit cork and are mostly wild. The ecological characteristics and dynamic processes at work were analysed through a multidisciplinary approach in order to elaborate possible conservation strategies. Through the elaboration of climatic, stationary, structural, regeneration and soil data, we have shown how the habitat is linked to silvicultural management that favours the regeneration and establishment of cork trees, in the absence of which signs of transformation towards mixed uneven-aged forests are evident. Through the analysis of the ecological niche, we identified the potential distribution of the species and the most suitable areas for possible intervention.