Dear Colleagues,

Global climate change is already altering forest disturbance regimes and further changes are expected to have major implications on forest ecosystem structure and dynamics. Climate change is altering the frequency, intensity, and extent of drought, wildfire, wind, insect outbreaks, and introducing novel disturbances to some forest ecosystems. Changed disturbances affect ecological processes occurring across multiple scales of space and time, including tree growth and regeneration, species interactions, forest successional trajectories, and biogeochemical cycles. This could drive shifts in forest landscape mosaic composition and possibly forest ecosystem state transitions that could have major socio-ecological consequences, particularly for forest resource-dependent communities. The continued provision of key ecosystem services (e.g., timber, wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration) and the maintenance of sustainable forest management goals will depend on how we adapt forest management to a changing climate. New ecological knowledge and decision support tools will help mitigate the socio-ecological impacts of climate- induced changes to forests.

This Special Issue aims to increase our understanding of how forest disturbances impact forest ecosystem structure and dynamics, providing knowledge to inform adaptation strategies for sustainably managing forests in a changing climate using innovative methodologies in natural disturbances under climate change and highlighting implications for the sustainable management of forest resources. We encourage contributions from around the world in all fields of study related to forest ecology and sustainable forest management (e.g., landscape ecology, disturbance ecology, paleoecology, dendroecology, silviculture). Contributions to this Special Issue may include original research, new and novel methodologies, reviews and meta-analyses, short communications, and opinions, as well as multi-scaled and multi-disciplinary approaches to understanding forest change.

Prof. Dr. Miguel Montoro Girona
Dr. Elizabeth Campbell
Prof. Dr. Yves Bergeron
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Natural disturbance
• Fire
• Biodiversity
• Ecosystem services
• Bark beetle outbreaks
• Spruce budworm
• Regeneration
• Forest management
• Restoration
• Reconstruction of natural disturbance regimes, e.g. wildfire, insect outbreaks, hurricanes, etc.
• Disturbance interactions in forest ecosystems
• Description of drivers of natural disturbances in forest ecosystems

1. Title: Bark Thickness and Sapwood Moisture Content in Relation to Other Tree Properties in Norway spruce
Abatract: This research study aims to examine the effect of tree characteristics (tree height, tree height and crown social class) on bark thickness and sapwood moisture content in Picea abies on two different bedrocks. The two easily measurable variables were shown as potentially usable in predicting bark beetle attacks by past studies. Both variables were shown to be positively affected by diameter and tree height, with the relationships dependent on crown social class. Crown social class by itself also had an effect on both bark thickness and moisture content, the effect was more pronounced in moisture content.

2. Title: Holocene fire history of the southern Lake Baïkal region
Abstract: The catastrophic fires years that have taken place during the last decade in Siberia and in the boreal forests in general and which are directly linked to global warming have had dramatic repercussions on the human populations of these regions. Paleoecological studies are currently the only way to study the past dynamics of these fires and to understand their link with climate and vegetation. However, few studies of the dynamics of these fires are available in Siberia, and none have been carried out on the scale of the Holocene. This study aims to present the first reconstruction of the fire history during the Holocene in the Southern shore of Lake Baikal, in Siberia, by the analysis of sedimentary charcoals from lake cores. Two lakes have been sampled, Lake Ébène and Lake Jarod. The results showed a similar trend between the two lakes,with severe and intense crown fires during the early Holocene and less severe surface fires after 6 500 cal. yr BP. According to pollen reconstructions carried out near the studied lakes, a vegetation transition occurred at the same time. Picea obovata was dominant during the early humid Holocene. After 6 500 cal. yr BP, conditions were more arid and Pinus sylvestris and Pinus sibirica became the dominant species. Over the past 1 500 years, the greater presence of human populations has firstly resulted in an increase of the fire frequency, then in its maintenance and to finish, in its suppression after 600 cal. yr BP.