A5058257481- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics
- Forest ecology and management
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Forest Ecology and Biodiversity Studies
- Veterinary Oncology Research
- Tree-ring climate responses
- Vector-Borne Animal Diseases
- Herpesvirus Infections and Treatments
- Plant and animal studies
- Land Use and Ecosystem Services
- Fungal Infections and Studies
- Animal Disease Management and Epidemiology
- Urinary and Genital Oncology Studies
- Sarcoma Diagnosis and Treatment
- Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
- Rabies epidemiology and control
- Bladder and Urothelial Cancer Treatments
- Microbial infections and disease research
- Viral Infections and Vectors
- Forest Management and Policy
- Botany and Plant Ecology Studies
- Plant Ecology and Soil Science
- Poxvirus research and outbreaks
- Teratomas and Epidermoid Cysts
Research Institute for Nature and Forest
2023-2025
KU Leuven
2021-2025
Ghent University
2012-2024
Umeå University
2024
Abisko Scientific Research Station
2024
Institute of Virology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences
2010
Freie Universität Berlin
2010
Ghent University Hospital
2010
One of the major challenges in ecology is to predict how multiple global environmental changes will affect future ecosystem patterns (e.g. plant community composition) and processes nutrient cycling). Here, we highlight arguments for necessary inclusion land-use legacies this endeavour. Alterations resources conditions engendered by previous land use, together with influences on such as dispersal, selection, drift speciation, have steered communities functions onto trajectories change. These...
Forest understorey microclimates are often buffered against extreme heat or cold, with important implications for the organisms living in these environments. We quantified seasonal effects of microclimate predictors describing canopy structure, composition and topography (i.e., local factors) forest patch size distance to coast landscape factors).Temperate forests Europe.2017-2018.Woody plants.We combined data from a sensor network weather-station records calculate difference, offset,...
Abstract Arctic and alpine tundra ecosystems are large reservoirs of organic carbon 1,2 . Climate warming may stimulate ecosystem respiration release into the atmosphere 3,4 The magnitude persistency this stimulation environmental mechanisms that drive its variation remain uncertain 5–7 This hampers accuracy global land carbon–climate feedback projections 7,8 Here we synthesize 136 datasets from 56 open-top chamber in situ experiments located at 28 arctic sites which have been running for...
Abstract The contemporary state of functional traits and species richness in plant communities depends on legacy effects past disturbances. Whether temporal responses community properties to current environmental changes are altered by such legacies is, however, unknown. We expect global interact with land‐use given different trajectories initiated prior management, subsequent resources conditions. tested this expectation for using 1814 survey‐resurvey plot pairs understorey from 40 European...
More and more ecologists have started to resurvey communities sampled in earlier decades determine long-term shifts community composition infer the likely drivers of ecological changes observed. However, assess relative importance of, interactions among, multiple joint analyses data from many regions spanning large environmental gradients are needed. In this paper we illustrate how combining can increase likelihood driver-orthogonality within design show that repeatedly surveying across...
Abstract A central challenge of today's ecological research is predicting how ecosystems will develop under future global change. Accurate predictions are complicated by (a) simultaneous effects different drivers, such as climate change, nitrogen deposition and management changes; (b) legacy from previous land use. We tested whether herb layer biodiversity (i.e. richness, Shannon diversity evenness) functional cover, specific leaf area [SLA] plant height) responses to environmental change...
Abstract Forecasting the growth of tree species to future environmental changes requires a better understanding its determinants. Tree is known respond global‐change drivers such as climate change or atmospheric deposition, well local land‐use forest management. Yet, large geographical scale studies examining interactive responses multiple are relatively scarce and rarely consider management effects. Here, we assessed effects three (temperature, precipitation nitrogen deposition) on...
Abstract Functional traits respond to environmental drivers, hence evaluating trait‐environment relationships across spatial gradients can help understand how multiple drivers influence plant communities. Global‐change such as changes in atmospheric nitrogen deposition occur worldwide, but affect community trait distributions at the local scale, where resources (e.g. light availability) and conditions soil pH) also We investigate responses related resource acquisition (plant height, specific...
Abstract The global movement for ecosystem restoration has gained momentum in response to the Bonn Challenge (2010) and UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (UNDER, 2021–2030). While several science‐based guidelines exist aid achieving successful outcomes, significant variation remains outcomes of projects. Some this disparity can be attributed unexpected responses components planned interventions. Given complex nature ecosystems, we propose that concepts from Complex Systems Science (CSS) are...
Abstract Tropical dry forests are among the most endangered ecosystems globally, despite their critical socio-ecological importance. In recent decades, various tree-planting initiatives have been undertaken to restore these forests, yielding mixed results. To enhance restoration effectiveness, it is imperative adopt a predictive approach, focussing on drivers of seedling performance and interactions. This study explores how tree species traits environmental conditions interact influence...
Empirical assessments are valuable sources of knowledge to evaluate impacts global change on organisms and ecosystems. Experimental data especially as they offer controlled conditions for testing hypotheses establishing process understanding. However, these approaches also notoriously difficult upscale broad geographic extents require detailed often labor-intensive studies in multiple field sites. Meta-analyses based shared protocols ‘distributed experiments’, that is,...
Abstract The understorey in temperate forests can play an important functional role, depending on its biomass and characteristics. While it is known that local soil stand characteristics largely determine the of understorey, less about role global change. Global change directly affect biomass, but also indirectly by modifying overstorey, resource availability growing conditions at forest floor. In this observational study across Europe, we aim disentangling impact global‐change drivers...
In 2008 and 2009 a large number of cases haemorrhagic diathesis (HD) in neonatal calves were reported different European countries. Flanders, 84 HD 30 herds this period. The disease typically affects younger than 1 month old from breed gender. Prominent clinical signs are cutaneous bleeding, petechiae on all mucosae, melena often high fever. Early the disease, mental state animals is uncompromised. typical haematological finding pancytopenia, with severe to complete thrombocytopenia being...
Abstract Questions Light availability at the forest floor affects many ecosystem processes, and is often quantified indirectly through easy‐to‐measure stand characteristics. We investigated how three such characteristics, basal area, canopy cover closure, were related to each other in structurally complex mixed forests. also asked well they can predict light‐demand signature of understorey (estimated as mean Ellenberg indicator value for light [“ EIV LIGHT ”] proportion “forest specialists”...
Abstract Questions Past agricultural land use and forest management have shaped influenced the understorey composition in European forests for centuries. We investigated whether vegetation assemblages are affected by (a) legacies from a historical infield/outland system (i.e., with nutrient‐enriched vs nutrient‐depleted areas), (b) recent intensity thinning/felling activities), (c) interaction of potential legacies. Location Oak Skåne, south Sweden. Methods three surveys (1983, 1993/94 2014)...
Abstract Intraspecific trait variation (ITV; i.e. variability in mean and/or distribution of plant attribute values within species) can occur response to multiple drivers. Environmental change and land‐use legacies could directly alter species but also affect them indirectly through changes vegetation cover. Increasing environmental conditions lead more ITV, responses might differ among species. Disentangling these drivers on ITV is necessary accurately predict community global change. We...