Diversity in forest management promotes biodiversity

Researchers study “management zoning” in European beech woods using real-world data and virtual landscapes

University of Göttingen

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Intensively managed spruce forest in the Swabian Jura, a mountain range in Germany.

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Credit: Peter Schall

Uniform and intensive forest management approaches threaten European forest biodiversity. There are many different ways to manage forests, but the effects of different combinations of approaches are not well understood. An international research team led by the universities of Göttingen, Germany, and Jyväskylä, Finland, investigated how the Triad forest management framework can support biodiversity conservation in European beech forests. This framework proposes to balance economic and ecological objectives by dividing forest landscapes into three distinct zones: intensively managed forest for timber production, unmanaged areas for biodiversity conservation, and extensively managed forest for supporting biodiversity while producing timber. The researchers collected data from these three management categories and developed “virtual forest landscapes” for analysis. The results were published in the journal PNAS.

 

The research team quantified the effects of using different proportions of the three management zones in a landscape on the diversity of a wide range of species groups – including birds, beetles, plants, lichens and fungi. The original data, which were collected from nine sites in France, Germany, Italy and Czechia, were classified following the Triad forest management categories: intensively managed forests (with clearcutting – meaning harvesting all or nearly all the trees from an area), unmanaged areas (no harvesting in recent years) and extensively managed forest (partial harvests without clearcutting and dominated by native tree species). “The originality of our method was to develop ‘‘virtual” landscapes using computer analysis, in which data could be resampled. It enabled us to create landscapes that vary in proportion of extensively, intensively, and unmanaged forests, and explore the whole range of possibilities”, says researcher Dr Peter Schall, University of Göttingen.

 

The researchers found that species diversity was highest in landscapes composed of 60 percent unmanaged and 40 percent intensively managed forests. Diversity was lowest in purely intensively managed landscapes, but extensively managed forests contributed little to support species richness. However, it would be unrealistic to have 60 percent unmanaged forests in Europe due to the rising demand for wood, which is why the authors suggest focusing on improving the ecological performance of extensive management. “To preserve forest biodiversity in Europe, we recommend increasing the proportion of unmanaged forests and promoting forest heterogeneity in extensive management – for instance by providing a mosaic of open and closed forest patches and keeping large old trees and deadwood in the forests,” explains Dr Rémi Duflot, University of Jyväskylä. “Our study showed that it is possible to maintain a certain proportion of forest area dedicated to timber production without compromising overall forest biodiversity,” adds Schall.

Unmanaged beech forest at Hainich National Park in Germany

Credit

Peter Schall

Extensively managed beech forest at Hainich-Dün region in Germany.

Credit

Steffi Heinrichs

The study was supported by the EU Framework Programme Horizon 2020 via COST, the German Research Foundation (DFG), and the Kone Foundation, Finland.

 

Original publication: Duflot et al “Sustainable forest planning: assessing biodiversity effects of Triad zoning based on empirical data and virtual landscapes,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) (2025). DoI: 10.1073/pnas.2512683122

 

Contact:

 

Queries welcome in English or German

Dr Peter Schall

University of Göttingen

Silviculture and Forest Ecology of the Temperate Zones

www.uni-goettingen.de/en/77271.html  

 

Queries welcome in English or French

Dr Rémi Duflot

University of Jyväskylä

Department of Biological and Environmental Science

www.remiduflot.com/

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Journal

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

DOI

10.1073/pnas.2512683122 

Method of Research

Observational study

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Sustainable forest planning: assessing biodiversity effects of Triad zoning based on empirical data and virtual landscapes

Article Publication Date

29-Sep-2025

 

U of A researchers reveal the importance of data choice in effective flood insurance

University of Arizona

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In a world covered with sensors and satellites, access to high-quality data that can help solve problems and improve systems is more widespread than ever. But, with such a wealth of information at our disposal, how do we know we're choosing the right data – and using it correctly? 

Researchers from the University of Arizona explored that question in the realm of flood insurance, and their findings could have implications for disaster response and recovery.  

In a study recently published in the journal Earth's Future, the researchers use a simulated flood insurance program in Bangladesh to compare real-world flood datasets gathered from five different sources. The team found that the type of data used affects not only the accuracy and speed of payouts but also the level of certainty in anticipating future insurance payouts, which directly influences program costs. 

Alex Saunders, the paper's lead author and a PhD candidate in the U of A School of Geography, Development & Environment, worked alongside Kevin Anchukaitis, director of the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research and professor of Earth systems geography; Andrew Bennett, assistant professor of hydrology and atmospheric sciences; Beth Tellman, former assistant professor; and Jonathan Giezendanner, a former research associate, both in the School of Geography, Development & Environment. The team also included researchers from Virginia Tech, the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology and the Bangladesh Water Development Board.

Saunders believes their findings could benefit residents in flood-prone areas around the world by highlighting to insurance providers how selecting the most appropriate data from a wide range of options can improve disaster response and financial protection. 

"More and more floods are happening every year, and that brings with it an increase in the total damage they cause," he said. "In the case of insurance, creating a more accurate tool that helps people receive more timely payouts could help them get through some of the worst times of their lives." 

Governments, nonprofits and industries like agriculture, insurance and energy increasingly rely on Earth observational data: information gathered from satellites, aircraft and ground-based sensors that monitor the planet. Experts use this data to guide sustainable resource management, predict environmental change and respond to natural disasters. 

In the case of flood insurance, companies increasingly rely on proxies – indirect indicators of damage, such as rainfall levels or river height – rather than directly assessing damage in insurance claims, which can be costly in both fees and the time it takes. These proxies are combined into indices, numerical thresholds that trigger payouts once crossed. Despite their growing use, Saunders noted that fundamental aspects of this system, such as which data sources are included in the insurance indices, often lack comprehensive testing. 

To address that issue, Saunders and his colleagues studied Bangladesh's monsoon seasons between 2004 and 2023. They analyzed rainfall data, river levels and flood maps from the national flood agency, along with two types of satellite data that measure water coverage. One satellite method used traditional surface water readings, while the other relied on an artificial intelligence model designed specifically to track monsoon flood patterns in Bangladesh. The AI-powered model successfully captured the progression of flood waters, while the traditional satellite method delivered unreliable estimates when there was a high level of cloud cover. 

The researchers then tested the five methods by evaluating when insurance was triggered over the 20-year period, how quickly those payouts occurred and how predictable they were.   

Their analysis revealed that no single dataset consistently outperformed the others, though data choice did impact outcomes. In some cases, different indices disagreed on whether, or when, payouts should occur. These discrepancies were even more pronounced at the regional level, where local variations made certain datasets less reliable. Combining or comparing multiple sources also improved confidence in payout decisions. 

"A stream gauge can tell us how high a river is, but that doesn't automatically mean there's flooding – or that people are nearby and at risk," Saunders said. "Satellites can show the surface of a whole region, but rainfall data can be just as useful, even though rain doesn't always lead to floods if the water flows somewhere else. That's why it can take multiple datasets to really understand floods." 

Saunders added that one of the study's most interesting results came from the AI-powered satellite model thanks to its ability to detect floods even during persistent cloud cover. Compared with the traditional satellite method the researchers tested, the AI approach triggered payouts an average of one week earlier. The newer approach also reduced the uncertainty in anticipated payouts by more than 20 percent, lowering potential insurance costs to customers. 

Saunders recommends that index-based flood insurance programs test a wide range of data sources before implementation, incorporate multiple indices to reduce the risk of missed or unnecessary payouts, and explore new technologies like AI to improve accuracy and timeliness. 

"Insurance providers may be guided in their decision making based on what data is most easily available, but there are a plethora of choices and more types of data through means like satellite sensors," Saunders said. "But just because a specific data set is easily available or based on the newest technology, doesn't mean it's the right one for a given scenario. People should consider and compare the full range of available information to look for the best solutions." 

The need for more accurate insurance systems is urgent. Between 2000 and 2023, only 16 percent of the $1.77 trillion in global economic flood losses were insured, leaving governments, businesses and households to absorb the overwhelming majority of costs. Insurance and reinsurance – the practice of insurers transferring risk to other insurers – depend on accurate and timely information to support effective relief and recovery in communities impacted by flooding 

By utilizing different sources of Earth observational data, Saunders said that governments, insurers and other organizations could have critical insight with which to make important, life-altering decisions – as long as they use that data wisely. 

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Journal

Earth's Future

DOI

10.1029/2025EF005966 

Method of Research

Data/statistical analysis

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Sensitivity to Data Choice for Index-Based Flood Insurance

 

By studying yellow warbler, researchers hope to better understand response to rapid climate change in wild species

Findings highlight the importance and difficulty of linking genes, traits and the environment together to better predict a species’ ability to keep pace with climate change

Colorado State University

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Yellow warbler 

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Credit: Dr. Brian Balmer

Climate change is drying landscapes and raising temperatures faster than many species can adapt. A new research paper from Colorado State University offers a rare empirical look at how these pressures are already reshaping wildlife through the lens of the yellow warbler –– a common migratory bird.

Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the paper identifies the genetic and environmental factors shaping the form of the warbler’s beak, which is key to its ability to shed heat and retain water. To do this, the team compared genomic data, bill measurements and environmental variables from birds sampled across their breeding range in North American and Canada. The findings show that precipitation levels across the range are the key environmental factor influencing genetic variation associated with bill form and structure.

Marina Rodriguez is the first author on the paper, which is part of her recently completed Ph.D. dissertation through the Department of Biology. She said the findings highlight both the importance and difficulty of linking genes, traits and the environment together with measures of stress on the body to better predict a species’ overall ability to keep pace with climate change.

“People may think of climate change as something that will happen in the future, but as this work shows, species are already feeling these effects and are struggling to adapt and survive,” Rodriguez said. “We hope our approach can now be used in other species to better understand the different factors that come together to increase climate vulnerability.”

To confirm the importance of bill shape in the warbler’s ability to adapt to shrinking precipitation totals, the researchers compared data on historic relationships between bill depth and precipitation for the warbler with fresh data collected by modern-day volunteers around the globe. They found that birds whose bills had not kept pace with climate change were now less suited to newly arid conditions, resulting in higher stress levels and subsequent population declines.

The researchers were specifically interested in how the warbler reacted to physiological stress –– strain on the body as the environment pushes it beyond its normal limits, such as overheating. To measure this, the researchers looked at telomeres — protective DNA caps that shorten over time as cells divide in the body and with increased stress. Shorter telomeres are linked to poor health and shorter lifespans in many species, from humans to birds.

“There is a lot of evidence to show that the length of these specific genomic regions are highly correlated to the overall lifespan and health across species,” Rodriguez said. “By including this, we are able to better illustrate the mismatch between what is quickly becoming required to survive in the environment with how genetic traits are responding.”

Because telomere length can be measured with just a small blood sample, it may be an easier way to assess wild species without years of fieldwork. Instead of tracking reproduction across generations for example, researchers can review telomeres for early warning signs of population decline.

CSU Associate Professor Kristen Ruegg was an author on the paper and Rodriguez’s academic mentor. Her team frequently works on similar research projects that aim to predict climate change’s impacts on bird populations. She said that Rodriguez’s approach using telomere length has not been widely used in assessing climate vulnerability in birds before.

“Marina’s paper begins to address gaps and assumptions on how wild species will respond to rapid climate change with a clear, data-driven example using telomere length as a biomarker of stress,” Ruegg said. “These findings highlight the importance of linking genes, traits, environments, and stress markers to understand species’ responses to climate and show an exciting method to empirically study these relationships in other species moving forward.”

Marina Rodriguez 

Credit

Marty Rodriguez

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Journal

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Article Title

Genetic, Phenotypic, and Environmental Drivers of Local Adaptation and Climate-Change Induced Maladaptation in a Migratory Songbird

Article Publication Date

29-Sep-2025