Assessing impact of forest cover change dynamics on high nature value farmland in Mediterranean mountain landscape

Assessing impact of forest cover change dynamics on high nature value farmland in Mediterranean mountain landscape

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A general trend of scrub encroachment and natural forest expansion (old-field succession) has been occurring in the past fifty years in Mediterranean mountain Toy Playsets areas.While this phenomenon enhances a series of ecological processes and environmental services, it may represent a threat for biodiversity conservation when occurring on high nature value (HNV) extensive farmland.These open areas, created by traditional farming systems, have been recognized as a critically important European biodiversity resource.Understanding the drivers of Land Use and Land Cover Change (LUCC) and their implications on the dynamics of forest and HNV farmland habitats plays a crucial role in biodiversity conservation in protected areas.In this perspective, the case study here presented aims to model recent (1989-2008) LUCC in a National Park of the Central Apennines (Italy) and to produce a mid-term forecast (2008-2020).

In the past twenty years, 57% of the land uptake by shrubland and 46% by forest has been occurring on former HNV farmland.Mid-term projections (2008-2020) confirm further HNV farmland decline.Localization of HNV farmland habitats vulnerable to change is a valuable decision-making tool to tradeoff in protected areas the conservation of traditional landscapes with the increase of forest and shrubland areas.In this perspective, concrete socio-economical and silvicultural measures are outlined to preserve these MELATONIN 5MG GUMMIES socially and economically-fragile open habitats.