Need for a global map of forest naturalness for a sustainable future |
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Authors: | Alessandro Chiarucci Gianluca Piovesan |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BIGEA), Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy;2. Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences (DAFNE), University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy |
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Abstract: | There is a growing need to assess and monitor forest cover and its conservation status over global scales to determine human impact on ecosystems and to develop sustainability plans. Recent approaches to measure regional and global forest status and dynamics are based on remotely sensed estimates of tree cover. We argue that tree cover should not be used to assess the area of forest ecosystems because tree cover is an undefined subset of forest cover. For example, tree cover can indicate a positive trend even in the presence of deforestation, as in the case of plantations. We believe a global map of forest naturalness that accounts for the bio-ecological integrity of forest ecosystems, for example, intact forests, old-growth forest patches, rewilding forests (exploited forest landscapes undergoing long-term natural succession), and managed forests is needed for global forest assessment. |
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Keywords: | conservation deforestation forest biodiversity forest functioning mature forests old-growth forests rewilding biodiversidad de los bosques bosques primarios bosques maduros conservación deforestación funcionamiento de los bosques resilvestración |
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