As a result of human activity, European forest plants migrate more often not towards the north, as it was commonly thought, but towards the west – proved by an international team of scientists, which also included Poles.
An international team of scientists analyzed the distribution of 266 European forest plant species using data spanning 84 years. The study covered 3,000 forest sites, located, among others, in the Białowieża Forest in Poland and in the forests of Brandenburg, Germany.
Big surprise
Analyzes show that European forest plants are shifting their geographical ranges at an average speed of 3.56 km per year. The study also shows that 39 percent of species have moved westward, and only 15 percent north. This means westward migration was 2.6 times more likely.
“This contradicts the common assumption that rising temperatures due to climate change are prompting many species to move to colder regions in the north,” the researchers wrote. At the same time, scientists believe that this phenomenon can be explained by human-induced environmental changes. – Many European forest plants tend to migrate west, following areas with high nitrogen concentrations in the soil. This happens as a result of industrial activities, road traffic and human use of land, scientists said.
Understanding these mechanisms is crucial
As they added, nowadays the climate is changing at such an unprecedented pace that understanding the mechanisms responsible for the speed and direction of changes in the range of species is extremely important. It allows us to understand the evolution of biological diversity and can contribute to ensuring its effective protection – says Prof. Bogdan Jaroszewicz from the Faculty of Biology of the University of Warsaw and an employee of the Białowieża Geobotanical Station, quoted on the University of Warsaw website.
Main photo source: A.Laskowska-Ginszt, State Forests