Val di Mello Climate Change – biodiversity, resilience and management of Alpine habitats
2023–2025 · Val di Mello Nature Reserve · The forest component is based on 65 study plots distributed across the main Natura 2000 forest habitats. Measurements included stand structure, biomass, tree-related microhabitats and habitat conservation status. A further 45 trees – Norway spruce, European larch and European beech – were sampled for dendrochronological analysis to reconstruct growth dynamics and climatic responses.
The project assessed biodiversity and ecosystem conservation status in the Val di Mello Nature Reserve, with particular focus on climate-change impacts. The approach integrates forest, botanical and faunal field surveys, remote sensing and modelling to provide a scientific basis for conservation, management and revision of the Reserve’s planning tools. The study also assessed erosion vulnerability, carbon storage using the Carbon Budget Model, drought impacts, windthrow vulnerability and bark-beetle outbreak risk.
Norway spruce forests show the highest standing volumes and biomass and, in model simulations, the largest carbon stocks, but are also particularly exposed to drought, Ips typographus and wind disturbance. Larch, beech, alder and maple-ash forests show different combinations of resilience, conservation value and management opportunities. The botanical component assessed priority habitats and plant species of Community interest, while faunal monitoring addressed reptiles, birds and habitat suitability for Rosalia alpina.
Related research lines: Biodiversity, conservation and old-growth forests · Forest resilience, extreme events and disturbances
Reports and outputs: Conservation status of habitats in the Val di Mello Nature Reserve – multidisciplinary forest, botanical and faunal assessment (2025)