Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32165789›Full record

ArticleLandscape ecology2020

Substantial understory contribution to the C sink of a European temperate mountain forest landscape.

T Dirnböck, D Kraus, R Grote, S Klatt, J Kobler, A Schindlbacher, R Seidl, D Thom, R Kiese

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Landscape ecology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
2.4field-weighted citation impact, top 11% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 35 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Legume cover underFrontiers in microbiology · 2025
    Article
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.

T Dirnböck1Department for Ecosystem Research and Environmental Information Management, Environment Agency Austria, Spittelauer Lände 5, 1090 Vienna, Austria.ORCID 0000-0002-8294-0690
D Kraus2Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Atmospheric Environmental Research (IMK-IFU), Kreuzeckbahnstraße 19, 82467 Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
R Grote2Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Atmospheric Environmental Research (IMK-IFU), Kreuzeckbahnstraße 19, 82467 Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
S Klatt2Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Atmospheric Environmental Research (IMK-IFU), Kreuzeckbahnstraße 19, 82467 Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
J Kobler1Department for Ecosystem Research and Environmental Information Management, Environment Agency Austria, Spittelauer Lände 5, 1090 Vienna, Austria.
A Schindlbacher3Department of Forest Ecology, Federal Research and Training Centre for Forests, Natural Hazards and Landscape (BFW), Seckendorff-Gudent Weg 8, 1131 Vienna, Austria.
R Seidl4Department of Forest- and Soil Sciences, Institute of Silviculture, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU) Vienna, Peter-Jordan Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, Austria.
D Thom4Department of Forest- and Soil Sciences, Institute of Silviculture, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU) Vienna, Peter-Jordan Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, Austria.
R Kiese2Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Atmospheric Environmental Research (IMK-IFU), Kreuzeckbahnstraße 19, 82467 Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology · DEEnvironment Agency Austria · ATAustrian Research Centre for Forests · ATTechnical University of Munich · DEUniversity of Vermont · US

Funding

Austrian Science Fund FWF Y 895
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

contextThe contribution of forest understory to the temperate forest carbon sink is not well known, increasing the uncertainty in C cycling feedbacks on global climate as estimated by Earth System Models.

objectivesWe aimed at quantifying the effect of woody and non-woody understory vegetation on net ecosystem production (NEP) for a forested area of 158 km

methodsWe simulated C dynamics for the period 2000-2014, characterized by above-average temperatures, windstorms and a subsequent bark beetle outbreak for the area, using the regional ecosystem model LandscapeDNDC.

resultsIn the entire study area, woody and non-woody understory vegetation caused between 16 and 37% higher regional NEP as compared to a bare soil scenario over the 15-year period. The mean annual contribution of the understory to NEP was in the same order of magnitude as the average annual European (EU-25) forest C sink. After wind and bark beetle disturbances, the understory effect was more pronounced, leading to an increase in NEP between 35 and 67% compared to simulations not taking into account these components.

conclusionsOur findings strongly support the importance of processes related to the understory in the context of the climate change mitigation potential of temperate forest ecosystems. The expected increases in stand replacing disturbances due to climate change call for a better representation of understory vegetation dynamics and its effect on the ecosystem C balance in regional assessments and Earth System Models.

Indexed as

Carbon sequestrationEcosystem modellingForest disturbanceHerb layerMountain forestNet ecosystem productionTree regeneration

Identifiers

PMID32165789
PMCPMC7045765
OpenAlexW3004837028

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.