Vegetation Ecology & Conservation Biology

Nature Study: Climate Change Affects European Plant Life Differently Across Ecosystems

The ways that climate change is transforming Europe’s plant life vary by ecosystem. While even warmth-demanding species are declining in mountain regions, in forests and grasslands, such species are increasing. A new study published in the journal Nature reveals these contrasting dynamics.

An international research team led by the Forest and Nature Lab at Ghent University investigated how plant communities in various habitats across Europe are changing as a result of global warming. The study focused on thermophilization – the shift in composition of plant communities toward warmth-demanding species driven by rising temperatures.

Behind the Paper: Trade-offs in biodiversity and ecosystem services between edges and interiors in European forests

Ecosystem service delivery of forest edges and interiors

Forest ecosystems provide many services to people (e.g. carbon storage), but evidence mostly comes from forest interiors. In this paper, we show that forest edges are complementary to interiors at providing these services, and should thus not be ignored in assessment reports and policy guidelines.

Our working group Vegetation Ecology and Conservation Biology is interested in the relationships between vegetation and the environment, conducting research notably in the interface of basic and applied ecology. We focus on the fields of classical vegetation ecology, population biology of plants, invasion ecology and conservation biology. Members of the lab teach these subjects also in the Biology Bachelor programme and in the Master of Ecology.