K Abdelmoula
email: abdelmoula.kais@iresa.agrinet.tn

A Khaldi

S Bel

Hadj Salah

Margarita Arianoutsou

Dimitris Kazanis

Francisco Moreira
email: fmoreira@isa.utl.pt

Filipe Catry

Tito Lopes

Miguel Bugalho

Francisco Rego

"Fire effects and post-fire restoration: lessons learned from large fires"

Keywords: Fire, Tetraclins articulata, Boukornine, stumps, vigor, regeneration

The vegetation fire is a major disruption of the Mediterranean ecosystems. In Tunisia, the climate is characterized by a summery drought and a dry and hot southern wind (Sirocco), added to the presence of easy burning species, it stimulates the fires in forest. To this natural tendency, are added the agricultural and pastoral human activities, causing the bursting and the propagation of the vegetation fires. Nevertheless, the first preoccupation of the managers is about the ecosystems abilities to reconstitute itself after fire. In this context the present survey has been achieved to understand the dynamics of the vegetation regeneration in Djebel (Dj.) Boukornine fired in June 1998. In this forest, dominated by thuya de berberie (Tetraclinis articulate), 60 circular sample plots of 200 m² area have been installed. Basic Information has been collected on the set of the plots in two periods separated of 8 years: firstly in 2000 and secondly in 2008. The measured parameters concern the height, the circumference and the average number of stump sprouts by class of circumference. The gotten results show that the number and the sprout circumference of Tetraclinis articulata increase with the circumference of the stumps. Models of regression have been established. An evolution of the number and the vigour of regenerations in the time and in the space have been estimated ten years also after the fire. These results are likely to help the forest decision-makers who asked the question of the evolution of the Tetraclinis articulata forest after fire.

ISOMED (International Society for Mediterranean Ecology) and fire research

Margarita Arianoutsou, Athens, June 2008

The origins of ISOMED (International Society for Mediterranean Ecology) go back to March 1971, when the first international meeting of Mediterranean-climate ecologists took place in Valdivia, Chile. At this meeting it was decided to begin a cycle of international conferences on Mediterranean-climate ecosystems that would rotate through time among the five Mediterranean-climate regions of the world: South and Western Australia; California (USA-Mexico); the Cape region of South Africa; Central Chile; and the Mediterranean Basin itself. The second meeting was held at Stanford, California in 1977; the third at Stellenbosch, South Africa in 1980, and the fourth at Perth, Australia in 1984 and was called MEDECOS. At the 4 th Mediterranean conference at Perth it was proposed that a society be formed to insure the continuity of the international conferences that had proved so important in fostering inter-continental comparisons and in advancing knowledge of the nature of the unique Mediterranean-climatic regions. The Society of Mediterranean Ecologists (ISOMED) was thus formed. The objectives of the Society were to promote communication among ecologist working in the five Mediterranean-climate regions of the world through the continuation of the international conferences, as well as through special symposia and exchanges of personnel. However, ISOMED lacked an organized and legal body, and a permanent address. Following the work of the past year, coordinated by three members of ISOMED (namely, Dr Francisco Rego, Dr. Margarita Arianoutsou and Dr. Phil Rundel), ISOMED was legally registered on February 2007, under the name of International Society for Mediterranean Ecology with permanent address in Lisbon, Portugal. Up to now, MEDECOS conferences have been the main activity of ISOMED. Although none of those conferences had the fire in its theme (the only very relevant one was the 4 th MEDECOS held in Perth, Western Australia in August 1984, where the chosen theme was resilience in mediterranean-climate ecosystems), fire as an issue was crossing almost all topics. Given the new structure of ISOMED, it is our aim to pursue local activities (meetings, workshops, training schools) dedicated to fire. An appeal to everyone who is interested in joining this Society is open and will be further discussed at the Lisbon Phoenix Meeting.

Dead Fuels and Post-fire Vegetation Dynamics

Baeza, M. J., Santana, V. M. and Vallejo, V. R.

Fundación Centro de Estudios Ambientales del Mediterráneo (CEAM). C/ Charles Darwin, 14, 46980, Paterna, Spain.

Abstract: Throughout the 20 th century, many marginal farmlands were abandoned, stockbreeding pressures were reduced and society in general changed its main energy source from forest biomass fuels to fossil fuels. In Mediterranean ecosystems both the severe climatic conditions of the summer period (prolonged drought and low ambient moisture) and the large amounts of vegetal material are conducive to fires reaching catastrophic levels. Few of the studies carried out in Europe with respect to post-fire vegetation dynamics have included long-term assessments, and thus the successional dynamics of these ecosystems is still little-known. This is due in part to the fact that disturbance regime is a relatively recent concept in ecosystem successional theory, and especially in mediterranean ecosystems. In this study we analyse the mid-to-long-term capacity to accumulate dead fuels in species that dominate the different post-fire successional stages. The total dead-fuel percentage values show high variability with respect to two extremes, one defined by a group of species that includes U. parviflorus and Cistus sp and the other by a group of species formed by Q. ilex and J. oxycedrus. The transitions between the different vegetation communities indicate that the species dominating the early successional stages show a tendency to accumulate important percentages of dead fuel, while the species dominating the more advanced successional stages follow a totally opposite model.

Key words: dead fuels, successional dynamics, transition stages, shrublands, recurrence, fire risk.

Living with wildfires: what science can tell us. A contribution to the science-policy dialogue

An EFI Discussion paper coordinated by EFIMED

Yves Birot, EFIMED

The present contribution gives an overview on the preparation of an EFI discussion paper on wildfires, based on the collective expertise of a broad panel of scientists. This paper aims at providing policy and decision makers (and beyond, the whole society) with updated and scientific knowledge as background for the future development of rational strategies and policies, that would allow to live with an acceptable level of wildfire risk. The paper is structured in four sections as detailed hereafter : i) wildfires at a glance : facts figures, and trends ; ii) why and how do woodlands burn ? What is the resulting impact ?; iii) acting on wildfires risks : what practices, strategies and policies ?; iv) adressing a new challenge : expected increase and expansion of wildfires as related to climate change.

Post-fire restoration is covered under the section iii and is presented here with more details.

Wild Fires and Bird distribution in Mediterranean Landscapes: Spatial Issues and the role of habitat heterogeneity

Lluís Brotons 1,2,4 Sergi Herrando 1 , Elena Lopez-Zozaya 2 , Sara Valecillo 2 & Pere Pons 3 1 Institut Català d'Ornitologia, Museu de Zoologia, passeig Picasso s/n 08003 -Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. 2 Centre Tecnològic Forestal de Catalunya CTFC, Pujada del Seminari s/n, 25280 Solsona, Spain.

3 Departament de Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Girona, Campus de Montilivi, 17071 Girona, Catalonia, Spain. 4 lluis.brotons@ctfc.es Abstract: Mediterranean landscapes are highly dynamic systems. Fire is one the most powerful driving forces of these dynamics and in the Mediterranean basin its frequency and impact have markedly increased in recent years. The description and analysis of landscape patterns associated to fire dynamics have received some attention but knowledge about how the temporal and spatial arrangement of habitats arising from wild fires affects wild animals is astonishingly poor with the exception of within habitat succession related recovery of communities after the disturbance event. In this communication, we present a review of recent findings describing the role of habitat heterogeneity associated to fire disturbance at different spatial scales on bird communities in Catalonia (North-east Iberian peninsula). First, we assess the effects of micro-habitat heterogeneity in vegetation development after fire on the distribution of open habitat birds. Second, we asses the role of landscape heterogeneity in areas where open, shrubby vegetation originated by fire coexist near remaining forest patches. Finally, we focus on the role of large scale landscape heterogeneity on the post fire colonisation by open habitat birds of areas affected by fires. These studies allowed us to evaluate the hypothesis that habitat heterogeneity at different spatial scales is a key factor in determining the ecology and distribution of Mediterranean bird communities. These findings have strong implications from a management perspective. They allow the design of some guidelines for conserving and enhancing the value post fire faunal communities in complex and dynamic Mediterranean habitat mosaics. We argue that a deep insight on the temporal and spatial factors that interact in a complex way to determine current landscape patterns is essential if we aim at understanding and managing Mediterranean systems.

Effects of fire and nitrogen deposition on Calluna vulgaris heathlands biodiversity and functioning

Calvo, L., Tárrega, R., Valbuena, L., Marcos, E., Suárez, S., Taboada, A., Moran, A., Cuesta, D., Salgado, J.M., Luis-Calabuig, E. Departamento Biodiversidad y Gestión Ambiental. Facultad Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales. Universidad de León. 24071 León. Spain.

Heathlands communities of Calluna vulgaris are considered areas of interest to conservation according to European Union criteria. In the Iberian Peninsula these communities are at their southern distribution limit, which makes them more sensitive to perturbations. The predicted increase in summer drought produces an increased risk of fire with possible alterations in heathland behaviour, mainly in the Iberian peninsula. These changes are expected to have a marked influence on the flora composition and associated fauna as well as globally on the biodiversity, dynamic and behaviour of these ecosystems. Therefore the main objective of the project is to analyse the effects of climate change, land use, nitrogen deposition and forest fires on the biodiversity, dynamic and behaviour of the heathlands of Calluna vulgaris, in Cantabrian Mountain region.

Three study zones on the León slope of the Cantabrian mountain range were chosen in areas with homogeneous stands of Calluna vulgaris heathlands large enough to carry out all the experimental treatments. In each zone, 3 plots measuring 20 x 20 metres were established; one was experimentally burned in June 2005, the second was experimental burned in June 2005 plus fertilized with ammonium nitrate annually, the third plot was control.

In each plot, we have analysed the plant community dynamic, seed bank changes, the arthropod community variation in relation to these perturbations and nutrient dynamics in the ecosystem.

Fire effects on cork oak (Quercus suber): predicting crown regeneration vitality to help post-fire management decisions Filipe X. Catry*, Francisco Moreira, Tito Lopes Centro de Ecologia Aplicada "Prof. Baeta Neves", Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, Tapada da Ajuda, 1349-017 Lisboa, Portugal; Telephone: (351)213653333; Fax: (351)213623493; *Email: fcatry@isa.utl.pt

Abstract -Wildfires are one of the main threats contributing to cork oak (Quercus suber) decline in the Mediterranean Basin. One major question that managers face after wildfires in cork oak stands is whether the burned trees should be coppiced or not, in order to promote regeneration from basal sprouts, as there are some evidences that early coppicing can reduce mortality and increase speed recover on much damaged trees. The objective of this study was to develop a model to predict the likelihood that a burned cork oak will show null or much poor crown regeneration in the first years following fire. We carried out a post-fire assessment of the degree of crown recover in 1397 trees on 7 different burned areas in south Portugal, and used logistic regression to model crown recover probability as a function of tree and stand variables. The main variables influencing the likelihood of poor crown regeneration were bark thickness, tree diameter and charring height, the former negatively and the remaining positively. Analysis of receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves indicate that selected models have high accuracy, with 90 to 92 percent concordance between predicted probabilities and observed outcomes. The developed models can be used by managers to predict average post-fire stand damages, and to early identify trees that will likely die or show null/poor crown regeneration (thus potential candidates for trunk coppicing).

Economic valuation of forest fire damages: towards a common methodology at European level Corona P, Marchetti M, Pettenella D.

Forest fires are calamities that significantly affect the European forests with hundreds of thousands of hectares burned every year and remarkable environmental, social and economic damages. In spite of this, there is limited information concerning the economic values of damages caused by different types of forest fires. This shortcoming may hinder decisions concerning investments for the adoption of adequate fire-prevention, fire-fighting and rehabilitation measures and hence of the allocation of adequate resources. Only a complete assessment of actual environmental and economic impacts of fire damages can provide a rational basis for determining appropriate investments in defensive and restoration efforts. The aim of this paper is to present a summary of the state of the art on the operational methods for economic assessment of wildfire damages developed in Italy. Similar approaches could be extended to other EU Countries, especially those with similar forest characteristics, to allow comparison and integrated evaluation of fire damage costs, in the context of a EC-JRC project.

Impact of fire regime and drought on the mortality and regeneration of cork oak in the Maures massif (southern France)

CURT Thomas, BERTRAND Romain, BORGNIET Laurent, FERRIEUX Thibault, MARINI Elodie

Cemagref -Ecosystèmes méditerranéens et risques, 3275 route Cézanne -CS 40061, 13182 Aix-en-Provence cedex 5, France Abstract: Cork oak (Quercus suber) is known as one of the most fire-resistant and fireresilient tree species in French Mediterranean ecosystems. However, large areas suffer from direct or delayed mortality after the large and intense 2003 wildfire. We have installed a network of 25 plots (20x20 meters) burned in 2003 and having experienced one to three fires since 1959. Unburned control plots were also investigated. All trees were labeled and individually surveyed between 2004 and 2007. We assessed tree mortality, damage intensity, tree growth, and vegetative regeneration.

Results indicate that cork oak has high survival capacity and regeneration ability after fire: the complete mortality of the stump is almost null is about 3%. However, stem mortality can reach 20% in 2007 (i.e. four years after the 2003 fire). High mortality rates are observed in cork oak woodlands established on highly flammable matorral ecosystems (so-called maquis). These stands have experienced 3 or 4 wildfires since 1959, with a mean fire return interval is about 15-20 years. Stands affected by an 'over-mortality' exhibit a high delayed mortality, which is likely to be due to repetitive droughts after fire. A logistic regression model has been computed to predict the individual stem mortality as a function of tree dimension (height, crown and stem diameter, bark width), damage intensity, and fire repetition. The resprouting ability (= vegetative regeneration) remains very high: the length and position of resprouts (at stem base or in the crown) depends on fire damage intensity and the individual dimension of the parent tree. These data are used to simulate cork oak population fate in the context of repeated droughts after fires.

Optimizing the spatial patterning of fuel treatment to reduce fire hazard at road-forest interfaces

Thomas CURT 1 , Philippe DELCROS 2 1 Cemagref -Ecosystèmes méditerranéens et risques, 3275 route Cézanne -CS 40061, 13182 Aix-en-Provence cedex 5, France 2 Cemagref -Ecosystèmes montagnards, 2 rue de la Papeterie -BP 76, 39042 Saint Martin d'Hères cedex Abstract: Many points of fire ignition are aggregated at the vicinity of roads in French Mediterranean Provence area. High car traffic and public attendance entail high fire hazard on neighbouring forests and wildland areas. Fire mitigation strategies at these interfaces may include the management of herbaceous and shrubby vegetation, and the spatial organization of vegetation facies. As such techniques are costly and the cumulated interface length is very high, managers are interested in optimised strategies. In a previous study (Curt & Delcros 2007) we built a cellular automaton to simulate fire ignition and initial propagation in roadforest interfaces, using data from experimental burnings. This model was used to assess the relative importance of vegetation type, fuel treatment and spatial patterning of vegetation on the fire hazard. In this study, we used statistical optimisation techniques to minimize fire hazard for different (real and theoretical) interface sceneries.

Results indicate that the type, the management (grass mowing and shrub-clearing) and the spatial patterning of fuels affect the probability of fire ignition and propagation in the interfaces. Fire hazard can be minimized using dicots grasses at strategic places, and regularly mowing graminae that are very flammable. The high fire hazard level of mixed vegetation (graminae + pine litter + shrubs) can be lowered by a selective fuel treatment. The lowest probabilities of fire propagation correspond to interfaces with decreasing gradient of vegetation flammability at the vicinity of forest. Managing about 20% of the area can strongly reduce fire hazard in interfaces dominated by highly flammable vegetation. As the location of the initial point of ignition affects strongly fire ignition and propagation, it is recommended to manage intensively areas located at the immediate vicinity of roads, and areas submitted to high public attendance. Optimization techniques seem efficient to help building firewise management practices at road-forest interfaces.

Present wildfire regime and spatial pattern in the Maures massif (southern France)

CURT Thomas, BERTRAND Romain, BORGNIET Laurent, BREWER Simon, SCHAFFHAUSER Alice

Cemagref -Ecosystèmes méditerranéens et risques, 3275 route Cézanne -CS 40061, 13182 Aix-en-Provence cedex 5, France Abstract: A good knowledge of interactions existing between wildfires (spatiotemporal patterns), site variables and ignition hazard is essential to: (i) characterize and forecast the specific fire regime of an area, and the likelihood of the different ecosystems to burn; (ii) simulate wildfire scenarios, especially in a context of climate change; and (iii) mitigate wildfires by proper management techniques. The massif des Maures area (southern France) is a typical ecosystem on acidic soils, dominated by matorrals (so-called 'maquis') and oak woodlands (Quercus suber, Q. ilex, Q. pubescens). It is submitted to recurrent wildfires for decades (and likely for centuries), generating concerns among land managers.

A spatiotemporal analysis of wildfires has been made by using a georeferenced database of all fires since 1959, and the analysis of aerial photographs and satellite images. Results indicate:

-That ignition points are aggregated at the vicinity of human activities (i.e. roads and electrical networks, wildland-urban interfaces) irrespective to the vegetation types; -Site variables explain a low part of wildfires location (e.g. elevation and aspect) but a larger part of the area burnt; -The distribution of fire size is extremely unbalanced, with a huge amount of small fires linked to human activities, and a low number of large fires which affect the ecosystems strongly and for the long term. These large fires are likely to be related to the high connectivity between maquis and woodlands at landscape-scale; -Burnt areas show a high 'selectivity' according to the vegetation facies: maquis and maquis dominated by cork oak woodlands are predominantly burnt, while mature cork oak forests are lowly burnt, and agricultural lands are generally saved; -The mean fire return interval varies strongly according to the same ecosystem types, and it tends to decrease in maquis, thus suggesting that fire repetition increases in areas already burnt.

Management of post-fire regeneration in Mediterranean oak coppices under an increased drought scenario According to the IPCC ( 2007), the Mediterranean basin is expected to suffer important changes in temperature and precipitation in the next few decades, leading the climate warmer and dryer. This fact is expected to increase considerably the wildfire risk, as well as their intensity and their recurrence. Moreover, the expected increase in aridity in Mediterranean ecosystems may affect their resilience after fire, thus leading more difficult their regeneration in the forecasted scenarios of climate change. In this context it is necessary to identify the effects of increased drought on post-fire regeneration of different coexisting forest species to predict potential changes in the structure and composition of Mediterranean forests, as well to assess whether management practices can mitigate the effects of climate change on these ecosystems.

In this study, we explore the effects of increased drought on mortality, growth and resprouting patterns of two oaks with contrasting leaf habit (the evergreen Quercus ilex and the winterdeciduous Quercus cerrioides) coexisting as dominant species in mixed coppices regenerating after a large wildfire. We also study the potential effects of management (selective thinning) to reduce drought consequences in those forests.

The experiment started in 2005 in NE Spain in a previously burned forest in 1998. Following a factorial design, the sampling area was subdivided into 12 plots (20m x20m), where two levels of management (no thinning vs. thinning) and water stress (natural drought vs. increased drought) were combined in four treatments. Rain exclusion was set by drainage channels covering 15% of ground surface in the selected plots, which resulted in a mean annual decrease in soil water availability of about 10-20%, depending on the season. Thinning was done by hand and implied a reduction of 15-30% in stool basal area.

Our results show a differential effect of increased drought between species: no differences were observed in the growth of Q. ilex while Q. cerrioides reduced its growth under increased drought conditions. Selective thinning reduced the negative effects of increased drought on mortality and tree growth, although this beneficial effect tended to decrease during the experiment. Our results show that increasing aridity in Mediterranean areas can be a constraining factor for deciduous oaks, thus potentially causing their decline in mixed forests and favouring their substitution by the evergreen con-generic species. However, as seen in this study, management can strongly encourage growth both for deciduous and evergreen species, thus reversing the effects of increased drought on Mediterranean coppices.

Fire severity in contiguous pine and deciduous woodland in northern Portugal

Paulo Fernandes, Ana Luz, Carlos Loureiro, Hermínio Botelho CITAB / Departamento Florestal, UTAD, Apartado 1013, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal; ph: +351 259350885; fax: +351 259350480; pfern@utad.pt.

The conversion of forest cover type to decrease the extent and severity of wildland fire is supported by both theory and observational evidence, but quantification of the mitigating effect brought by less flammable vegetation types has seldom been attempted in Europe. In this study we describe and compare burn severity between adjoining maritime pine and broadleaved deciduous woodland after wildfires driven by severe fire weather in northern Portugal.

Sampling proceeded along transects crossing contiguous burned stands of the two vegetation types that met two conditions, respectively (1) apparently different fire severity levels, and (2) absence of fire suppression activity. Stand structure and burn severity were described, namely by measuring the heights of crown scorch and stem char, classifying fire impact in the tree canopy, understory vegetation and forest floor, and computing an overall burn severity index.

The sampled broadleaved woodland consisted of pure or mixed stands of Quercus pyrenaica, Castanea sativa and Betula alba, located mostly in riparian areas. Stand structure was influent in determining burn severity, and higher basal area and lower tree density were associated with lower burn severity in both vegetation types. Mean values for the individual and overall components of fire severity were significantly different between pine and deciduous woodland at all sites. After the effects of other variables (site, position in the transect) were accounted for we found that in the deciduous portion of the transect, stem char height (a flame size surrogate) decreased on average by a factor of 2.5 in relation to the pine sector. Stabilization of burn severity within deciduous forest occurred within 15 to 51 m from the edge. The likelihood of low to moderate burn severity depended of vegetation type, stem density (number per ha -1 ), tree height and position in the transect. The individual influences of vegetation type and topography are confounded in the results.

Modelling the risk of fire in Catalonia for forest planning purposes

José Ramón González -EFIMED EU calls regarding forest fires: an opportunity for fire ecology researchers. Wildfire is a natural phenomenon of Mediterranean-type ecosystems but the present-day fire regime in countries like Portugal is strongly influenced by human activities. Wildfire-induced (partial) removal of vegetation is often implied in enhanced soil erosion in recently burnt areas but most studies have either focussed on erosion or vegetation recovery, and very few have explicitly addressed the interactions between these processes.

Jorge de las Heras

The overall aim of the work proposed is to further the knowledge of vegetation recovery following forest wildfire, with special emphasis on the spontaneous undergrowth vegetation (as opposed to planted trees). Besides of its intrinsic value in terms of biodiversity (alpha as well as beta), the undergrowth vegetation is of paramount importance in limiting the on-and off-site environmental consequences of wildfires, in particular during the early stages of the so-called "window-of-disturbance". Therefore, the present work programme foresees close collaboration with the recently started EROSFIRE-II project (PTDC/AGR-AAM/70968/2006), which deals with soil erosion hazard in recently burnt forests but can not address the role of vegetation beyond that of simple, overall cover estimates. This collaboration will involve a common study area, joint study sites and combined fieldwork, using the project's logistic resources.

The initial phase of the work is a pilot study on seed bank viability and composition assessment techniques, within the frame of indirect fire effects evaluation. Some techniques, chosen after an intensive literature review on published articles, will be evaluated on collected samples on burnt areas of Central Portugal eucalyptus stands. Abstract: Burned area emergency rehabilitation (BAER) treatments are commonly applied after high-severity wildfires to reduce surface runoff and erosion, but few studies have rigorously tested their effectiveness. This study evaluated whether scarification with seeding, dry straw mulch with seeding, aerially-applied hydromulch, ground-applied hydromulch, and polyacrylamide (PAM) treatments significantly reduced erosion after the 2002 Hayman and Schoonover wildfires southwest of Denver, Colorado. The basic design was to compare percent cover and sediment yields from 3-4 replicated pairs of treated and control swales for each treatment from summer 2002 (year 1) through summer 2007 (year 6). Scarification with seeding did not significantly increase percent cover or reduce sediment yields. The dry mulch and aerially-applied hydrolmulch treatments reduced sediment yields by more than 90 percent in the second year and by 77 and 49 percent in the third year, respectively. In contrast, the ground-applied hydromulch did not significantly reduce sediment yields. A wet application of PAM reduced sediment yields in 2002, but similar treatments in 2003 and 2004 did not reduce sediment yields. By the fourth year after burning none of the treatments was having any effect on the amount of vegetative cover or sediment yields.

The effectiveness of the different treatments was most strongly related to the amount of ground cover, as the most effective treatments immediately provided at least 50% ground cover. The scarification treatment was too shallow to break up the water repellent layer and the extensive surface disturbance increased sediment yields. The ineffectiveness of the ground-applied hydromulch was attributed to poor slurry formation.

The varying effectiveness of the PAM treatments may be due to the chemical affinity between the PAM and the residual ash.

The consistency of these results with our understanding of post-fire runoff and erosion processes indicates that these conclusions are more broadly applicable.

Abstract: The post-fire restoration of burned forests in the Mediterranean basin usually involves planting or direct seeding, often neglecting the use of natural regeneration through basal resprouting. This study compared the survival and growth of planted and resprouted (after cutting the dead stems) Fraxinus angustifolia (narrowleaf ash) and Quercus faginea (Portuguese oak) in a burned area in central Portugal, 2 years after fire and planting. Survival was higher for resprouts than for planted trees (98% against 67 to 77% for oak; 100% against 87 to 97% for ash), although the difference was significant only for oak. Plant height was much higher in resprouts than in planted trees (4 to 5 times higher in oak; 2 to 3.8 times higher in ash), and a similar pattern was found for basal diameter (3.5 to 4.5 times higher in oak; 3 to 5 times higher in ash). The results suggest that using natural regeneration through resprouting may be a cheaper and more effective technique than planting to restore burned forests with a large proportion of resprouter species, as is the case of many Mediterranean broadleaved forests.

Fire effects and post-fire restoration: lessons learned from large fires 7-9 July 2008, Santiago de Compostela, Spain PHOENIX before and after the new COST Action "Post-fire forest management in southern Europe"

Francisco Moreira

Forest management in young Aleppo pine stands naturally regenerated after fire Moya, D.; López-Serrano, F.R.; De las Heras,J.

Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Agrónomos de Albacete, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Campus Universitario s/n, 02071, Albacete, Spain. Corresponding author: Daniel.Moya@uclm.es

During the last few decades, the number, severity and recurrence of forest fires, in addition to the burned surface and the duration of the fire risk season, has been increased in the Mediterranean Basin due to several factors, such as the global warming. Therefore, the area of regenerated forests is increasing, although in general they are poorly managed and the risk of new wildfires is growing up. The most important conifer in low altitude and dry Mediterranean area is the Aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis Mill.), an obligate seeder, well adapted to fire-prone habitats. Early flowering and a high amount of seeds stored in closed cones in the canopy (serotinous cones) are adaptive strategies of fire-resilience.

In Spain, more than 100 000 ha of Aleppo pine forests burned just in the 1994 in Eastern Spain. Six large fires, occurred in summer 1994, were selected along a climate gradient in Eastern Spain (including dry-subhumid, dry and semi-arid Mediterranean climates) in order to study the effects of the aridity and the tree density on growth and reproductive development. Several plots were defined and all pine trees were marked and monitored. Strobili, cones and several allometric parameters were measured and recorded in order to study growth and reproductive characteristics. Furthermore, several measurements in burned (both treated and control plots) and unburned plots were carried out to assess structural patterns and biodiversity. Several cones were randomly sampled and taken to the laboratory to estimate their volume. They were put in an oven at different temperatures (<45ºC and >80ºC) in order to take out the seeds contained in both cone types (serotinous or non-serotinous). The seeds were separated in different sets according to site, silvicultural treatment, cone age (3 or 4 years old) and cone type. Several seed samples from each set were submitted to the cutting test, Tetrazolium test and germination test in order to check for sound seeds, viability and germination percentages. The results showed that high seedling density in the regenerated areas produced high inter-specific competition and a delay in reaching the reproductive phase. Growth values (height and trunk diameter), cone size and seed number decreased according to the increasing aridity. This could induce short cone production and low seed storage (immaturity risk) due to higher intra-specific competition and low availability of water, nutrients and light. So, an adequate young pine stand management is therefore required.

Two locations in south-eastern Spain were selected to check the selvicultural treatments influence in the development of the regenerated Aleppo pine stands. In both sites several plots were defined and silvicultural treatments were carried out (thinning and pruning) five years after a fire. Six years after the treatments (medium-term). The results showed higher growth and higher cone production (mainly serotinous cones) in the thinned plots but pruning was affecting negatively the Aleppo pine development. The same last two locations were selected in order to obtain optimal post-fire management strategies. In both sites, the managed plots five years after the fire were thinned and pruned again (ten years after the fire) and pruning was carried out in some plots. The structural spatial patterns and several biodiversity indices were calculated comparing the values of burned and managed stands to the values of unburned and unmanaged stands. The unburned plots thinned ten years after the fire showed a regular, non-aggregated distribution pattern and a low diameter differentiation, similarly to the managed and burned plots. In addition, these thinned plots showed similar biodiversity values to the values found in the mature stands. The increase and final values for growth and reproductive characteristics were measured in the monitored plots. They showed different results for each site, but overall thinning improved growth and the amount of seeds stored in the canopy. The optimal management strategy for Aleppo pine forests regenerated after fire in good site quality were: reduce the pine tree density up to 800 trees ha -1 , alternatively, up to1600 trees ha -1 five years after a fire (plus pruning after five years)or up to 800 trees ha -1 plus pruning after ten years could be advised if there is pest risk. In the poor site quality, the best management is no intervention or thinning up to 1600 trees ha -1 five years after a fire plus pruning after another five years.

To conclude, we can demonstrate that growth and reproduction dynamics were related to a geographical gradient and that serotiny levels were higher in mor arid locations. Density proved to be a significant factor influencing overall pine stand development and thinning improved the mature structure and biodiversity. The advised management policy can improve growth and reproductive processes of Aleppo pine stands since it shortens the juvenile phase and promotes a higher amount of closed cones stored in the canopy, increasing the canopy seed bank, increasing resilience to fire and reducing the immaturity risk. • EFI shall develop procedures to continuously involve its associate members in research and networking in an efficient and transparent manner.

EFI research infrastructures: Regional Offices and Project Centres

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EFI shall develop a strategy for further co-operation and integration of Project Centres, Regional Offices, or any other regional bodies outside of the HQ into the overall framework of the Institute in full accordance with the Convention and within the funding strategy.

Networking strategy by the Conference 2007

To allow efficient mobilisation of research capacities to respond to emerging needs, and to facilitate co-operation with other relevant fields of research, EFI will provide a platform, an effective infrastructure and networking services to its Associate Members and the forest research community as whole.

EFI has a three-level infrastructure in which each interested partner can choose the appropriate level for participation. The objective is to provide associate members with increased efficiency in their tasks through better co-operation, mobilisation of research capacities and pooling of available resources.

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There is an active and integrated research network of Headquarters and Regional Offices which are geographically well distributed over Europe and which have sound recognition in their respective regions • EFI promotes co-operation in issues of significant importance through thematic or regional Project Centres.

• EFI provides support services for connecting forest researchers both within the forest sector, with other relevant fields of research, and with relevant stakeholders.

What are the differences between Regional Office and Project Centre? Project Centre is co-ordinated by a local host, formally independent of EFI governed by a legally non-binding MoU fixed term employees employed by local host address specific research needs of European relevance flexibly with the involvement of several associate EFI members Regional Office is legally an integral part of EFI governed by Terms of Reference and EFI management practises long-term perspective personnel employed by EFI or seconded to the EFI implement the EFI strategy at regional level (research, networking, advocacy, information and capacity building)

For the time being, EFI will have both, Project Centres and Regional Offices.

The EFI Mediterranean Regional Office-EFIMED EFIMED, established in 2007 through an agreement between the Spanish government and EFI, is the first EFI Regional Office. The aim of EFIMED is to coordinate and promote research on Mediterranean forests, forestry and forest products, and to make the results of the research known to all interested parties, in order to promote the conservation and sustainable management of Mediterranean forests. EFIMED will provide value-added information on forests at the Mediterranean level. Comparing hydrological and erosive response of two different mulch treatments, for soil and water conservation, immediately after forest fires.

Intervention on soil surface immediately after forest fires may protect the soil against the erosive action of the first rainfall events. An extended review about different options for soil and water control inmediately after forest fires was made and two mulch-based techniques were evaluated in terms of monetary costs, technical potential effectiveness and application complexity. The study area is located 25-30 km east of Aveiro, on Sever do Vouga municipality and was affected by a forest fire in August 2007. The emergency treatment (chopped bark eucalypt mulch; application ratio: 0.87 kg/m 2 ; 70% soil cover) was implemented in a very steep slope (30º) and severe burned eucalypt forest meanwhile the intervention treatment (post-fire clearcutting debris; application ratio: 1.75kg/m 2 , 70% soil cover) was placed in a less steep (25º) and severe burned pine forest. Before apply the treatments, and another time "B" after the interventions was monitored to compare effectiveness of techniques in time and space. A total of 12 bounded runoff plots (16m2) were installed and equipped with one Gerlach trap, one tipping bucket, and three tanks. Total and automated rain gauges were installed in both sites. Rain's erosive effect, soil's hydrological and erosive response was monitored during two periods: a period "A" two months before the interventions and a period "B" (four months) after the treatment application. Runoff water, soil water repellency, soil moisture, soil infiltration capability, and soil surface cover were measured, on the field, at weekly intervals. Sediment loss and organic matter content were determined on the laboratory. Preliminary results indicate that the treatments applied had some positive impact on erosive and hydrological response for both treated eucalyptus and pine sites. Runoff coefficients reductions on the mulched plots are more relevant that those ones measured from clear-cutted debris plots. Also the soil erosion control is higher in the eucalypt area than in the pine forest.

Factors affecting crown regeneration after fire in broadleaved species

Rego, F., Catry F, Moreira F, Lopes T.

Predicting Pinus sylvestris and Pinus nigra Arn. ssp. nigra survival after wildfire in Southern French Alps Eric Rigolot (1) (1) INRA, UR 629 Mediterranean Forest Ecology Research Unit, Domaine Saint Paul, Site Agroparc, F-84914 Avignon Cedex 9, Tel: +33 432722921; Fax: +33 432722902 ; E-mail address: rigolot@avignon.inra.fr Abstract: Pinus sylvestris and P. nigra are two wide spread species in the Mediterranean mountains of South Eastern France. P. Sylvestris stands represent the highest volume of standing wood in region Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur covering 280 000 ha of pure and mixed stands. P. nigra has been widely used in reforestation programs during the nineteenth century for soil protection covering more than 60 000 ha of pure stands in Southern French Alps. In this context, wildfires affecting steep hillslope areas may have severe consequences in terms of postfire erosion including debris flows and debris torrents. P. sylvestris is the most affected species by forest dieback since 2003 high temperature wave and drought.

Pinus nigra and P. sylvestris postfire mortality was monitored after a winter fire in a mid-high elevation (1500 m) mixed P. nigra -P. sylvestris stand in the French Southern Alps. Tree dimensions varied in a range of 13.0-42.0 cm for DBH and 7.7-19.6 m for height and in a range of 13.2-40.1 cm for DBH and 8.0-19-0 m for height for Pinus nigra and P. sylvestris respectively. Three years after fire, survival was total when the extent of scorch was less than 2/3 for both species and survival was 70% and 91% when crown scorch was >2/3 for Pinus nigra and P. sylvestris respectively. Detailed analysis showed a similar fire resistance of both species after this specific fire event.

Key words: Pinus nigra, Pinus sylvestris, Fire-caused mortality, Southern French Alps, Logistic regression, Wildland fire Successional trajectories subjected to different fire recurrences in Pinus sp. forest colonised over old-fields.

Victor M. Santana, M. Jaime Baeza, V. Ramón Vallejo.

Fundación Centro de Estudios Ambientales del Mediterráneo (CEAM). C/ Charles Darwin, 14, 46980, Paterna, Spain.

The extensive abandonment of agricultural land during the last century has generated a large number of sites at early successional stages dominated by Pinus species. Furthermore, these same developing systems have experienced a marked increase in fire occurrence in the last few decades. Successional trajectories in old-field dynamics with and without fire were assessed on sites abandoned approximately 50 and 100 years ago in the eastern Iberian Peninsula. Our hypothesis was that the fire regime would determine the successional stage of the vegetation with respect to species composition, functional types and regeneration strategies. Comparisons were made between the vegetation developing on (a) unburned stages (50 years and 100 years of old-field succession), and (b) different fire frequencies (50-year-old vegetation burned once, twice and thrice). Multivariate analysis was used to assess relationships between species composition and measured environmental variables as well as distances between the different communities. The unburned early-successional stage of the old-field was dominated by Pinus sp., whereas in the late-successional stage Pinus sp. was still present, but there was evidence of its replacement by Quercus, a resprouting species. After a single fire, vegetation was dominated by nano-phanerophyte-seeding species, especially Rosmarinus officinalis. With increasing fire frequency, the resulting communities moved further away from the early-successional Pinus sp. forest stage. These communities were composed of seeder and facultative species with short lifespans and rapid seed production (e.g., Cistus albidus, Dorycnium pentaphyllum, Atractylis humilis, Helinathemun cinereum). The results suggest that different successional pathways are present in this old-fields, and that different fire regimes can determine different trajectories towards late or early-succesional stages.

Keywords: CCA, facultative, fire regime, Mediterranean, resprouter, seeder, vegetation dynamics. Literature on relationships between wildfires and vegetation in Mediterranean area indicate high resilience ability for most ecosystems on calcareous soils, but data are scarce for acidic soils. The resilience ability of a "fire-driven" ecosystem depends both on the characteristics of the ecosystem, and to the fire regime.

Vegetation patterns and

We investigated the vegetation after different fire recurrences in a site with ecological and patrimonial stakes (the Maures massif, Provence, Southern France), in order to determine which ecosystems are more resilient than others and why. We sampled different modalities of fire recurrence (frequency of fires and interval of time between fires), and we investigated vegetation resilience to fire through different components such as composition, richness, and diversity. The sites (102 plots) corresponded to five modalities of an increasing fire regime since 1959 with a major and intense wildfire in 1990 (= reference), and other plots which had burned twice or thrice several before 1990 fire. We also selected controls which had not burned since 1959, and plots burned in 2003.

The results confirmed that this type of Mediterranean ecosystem is mainly auto-successional as vegetation composition remained rather constant after fire. Significant differences of composition and environmental characteristics existed between the control plots and the plots affected by the 2003 fire. Significant differences existed among the five modalities for Plant Functional Types (functional diversity), in particular an increase of ruderal species and a decrease of competitive taxa with increasing fire regime. We also obesrved a maximum of functional diversity for the intermediate disturbance (IDH). A variation partitioning procedure (partial CCA) indicated that the environmental data set explained better the plant distribution than the fire regime data set.

The final objective of the study is to improve the understanding of the interrelationships between fires and the dynamics of vegetation, for a durable management of these Mediterranean ecosystems. Half of the samples were set to germinate directly and the other half were subjected to a heat shock mimicking the effect of a fire before they were set to germinate. Results show that plant species richness in standing vegetation is spatially structured in patches of ca. 12 m. Similar structures appear in soil seedbanks, either heated (patches of 15m in size) or unheated (14 m). However, when looking at the spatial match of such structures, it is remarkable that the correspondence of richness patterns in vegetationunheated soil samples is much weaker than in vegetation-heated soil samples. These results suggest that fire does not erase preceeding vegetation spatial structure; on the contrary, it enhances the appearance of spatial patterning in postfire succession. The suggested mechanism for that pattern formation is that fuel loads may create a mosaic of fire intensities that interacts with the seedbank, promoting germination of fire-stimulated plants on one hand, and on the other hand killing the seeds of highly dispersive -heat intolerant herbaceous species. Therefore, such patterning should be taken into account when planning research or restoration strategies.

Empirical and scientific knowledge -contribution to mitigate land degradation after forest fires Valente, S. 1 ; Coelho, C. 1 ; Moreira, J. 2 ; Ferreira, A. 2 ; Carreiras, M. 2

1 CESAM -Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar; Departamento de Ambiente e Ordenamento, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro; Telef.: +351 234 370 831; Fax: +351 234 429 290; sandra.valente@ua.pt coelho@ua.pt;

2 CERNAS -Centro de Estudos de Recursos Naturais, Ambiente e Sociedade; Escola Superior Agrária de Coimbra, Bencanta, 3040-318 Coimbra ; Telef.: +351 239 802 940; Fax: +351 239 802 940 jmoreira@esac.pt; aferreira@esac.pt; mcarreiras@esac.pt

Forest fires are one of the major hazards in Portugal, affecting large areas every year, and having huge effects on land degradation and desertification, but also human, socio-economic and psychological impacts. It is widely recognized that Man should be the centre of the sustainable management of forest, either as the main cause of forest fire, or as the principal affected, and the one able to mitigate and prevent these events. In this context it is very important to bring experts scientific knowledge together with the local stakeholders experience, aiming to build and implement the best options to protect land degradation processes.

Under the DESIRE project, which aims to establish strategies of land conservation and management in areas affected by desertification undertaking a participatory approach, a public participation process is being implemented in two areas of the Region Centre of Portugal, Mação and Góis municipalities, affected by forest fires. This process aims to put together local stakeholders and specialists in order to discuss land degradation causes and effects, as well as conservation measures and strategies already applied or potential ones.

The main aim of this communication is to discuss the importance of public participation in the definition of strategies and measures to prevent land degradation, exposing the experience that is being carried in Mação and Góis. The preliminary results of joint workshops show that local stakeholders have the field experience, which gives the dimension of the problem, while specialists have the knowledge of other experiences and solutions applied in other parts of the world. The combination of this know-how and the joint work will surely have positive effects in sustainable land management after fire.

  EFIMED activities focus on conducting and coordinating research, capacity building, networking, advocacy and dissemination of information and have a special emphasis in improving the situation of forest research in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries. Main highlights for 2008: Preparing a proposal for designing an International Master on Mediterranean forest ecosystems management Coordination of the DG Agriculture project: Study on the development and marketing of non-marketed forest products and services A Summer School from 23 -28 June 2008, organised together with MAICh: Do Mediterranean forests compete for water resources? A scale approach from leaf to landscape. A discussion paper on: Living with wildfires: what science can tell us? A contribution to the Science-Policy dialogue An International Conference on 30 -31 October 2008 organised with IUFRO, MCPFE and others: Water and Forests: a convenient truth? Funding 10 Short scientific visits for Mediterranean young scientists EFIMED second annual meeting in Orvieto (Italy): 17 th of September 2008 Lessons from the 2003 wildfires in Portugal: spatial planning for the prevention of large fires João Pinho -DGRF

  Plant Functional Types patterns after different fire recurrences in ProvenceAlice SCHAFFHAUSER, Thomas CURT, Errol VELA, Thierry TATONI

	Address :
	Institut Méditerranéen d'Ecologie et de Paléoécologie : Faculté des Sciences de St-Jérôme, Avenue Escadrille
	Normandie-Niemen, 13397 Marseille cedex 20, FRANCE
	CEMAGREF : Cemagref, UR Ecosystèmes méditerranéens et risques, 3275 Route de Cézanne
	CS 40061, 13182 AIX-EN-PROVENCE Cedex 5, FRANCE
	E-mail : aliceschaffhauser@yahoo.fr

  Building capacity of forest companies on forest landscape restoration: learning by doing it Fire enhancement of spatial structure of diversity in shrublands through interaction with the seedbank Ivan Torres & Jose M. Moreno Soil seedbanks play a key role in postfire regeneration of vegetation, either trough stimulation of obligate seeders that rely on the heat shock to recruit new individuals, or trough survival of heat intolerant herbaceous species responsible of postfire diversity peaks. Since plant communities are spatially structured, it is reasonable to expect an equivalent structure of soil seedbanks due to differential seed rain and other factors. The question that arises is that, if soil seedbanks are spatially structured before fire, does this structure survive fire and promote spatial patterns in postfire vegetation, or is it erased by fire? To respond this question we performed a greenhouse experiment with soil samples from an unburnt shrubland-open forest in Mediterranean Central Spain.

	Department of Environmental Sciences Luis Silva University of Castilla-La Mancha
	WWF Mediterranean Portugal Forest Programme 2008 Toledo, Spain
	In 2000, WWF and IUCN, agree on a definition for forest landscape restoration (FLR): "A
	planned process that aims to regain ecological integrity and enhance human well-being in
	deforested or degraded landscapes."
	In Portugal, WWF applies FLR concept, working with: R&D institutions, on best available
	knowledge; forest companies, building capacity in the forest sector; and corporate partners, on
	responsible investment projects.
	Degraded landscapes due to desertification and forest fires, are cases were WWF has applied
	FLR projects in Portugal.

Prats S. A. 1* , Amaral L. 1 , Coelho C.O.A. 1 ,Ferreira A. 2 ,Boulet A.K. 1 , Pinheiro A. 1 .1 CESAM -Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar; Departamento de Ambiente e Ordenamento, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal, *sergio.alegre@ua.pt 2 CERNAS -Centro de Estudos de Recursos Naturais, Ambiente e Sociedade; Escola Superior Agrária deCoimbra, Bencanta, Portugal

Participants list


Denis Dubourdieu

Philippe Marullo

Cécile Thibon

Takatoshi Tominaga

Use of URE2 mutant yeasts for increasing the release of aromatic volatile thiols by yeast during frementation

ou non, émanant des établissements d'enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés.


Impact of Food Price Policies on Daily Food Choices of Low-Income Women. A Field Experiment

At baseline, low-income women had less healthy diets

Compared with the reference group, low income women declared a lower consumption of fruits, vegetables, and other healthy products (OHP). Moreover, they consumed more unhealthy products (UP) than the reference group (low-income women devoted 15% more budget to unhealthy products).

Impact of the 'Fruits & Vegetables' policy

Impact of the 'Nutrient Profiling' policy

Disparities in Diet Improvement

At baseline, the diet of the low income group was of lower nutritional quality than that of the reference group.

-The NP policy improved the dietary quality in the two populations, -The F&V policy also improved the nutritional quality in the reference group, but in the low-income group, some side-effects were noticeable (unexpected increase in LIM).

The magnitude of the favorable effects of both policies was lower among the low-income group, although the gap was less important with the NP policy.

Increase of Social Disparities

The purchasing power was improved for both groups by both policies, but inequalities increased between groups. The purchasing power of richer women was, relatively to the low incomes, improved because:

-their initial consumption pattern generated more subsidies and fewer taxes -they better adapted the new price structure by opting for wished substitutions.

Method

The hypothesis is tested in a field setting, by adapting the habitual concepts and tools of experimental economics. The impact on daily food choices of two policies were estimated among low-income and average-income women.

Experimental Design

Women were asked to choose a typical daily food intake before and after policy implementation.

Two policies at stake

The 'Fruits & Vegetables (FV) policy' consisted in a 30% decrease in the selling price of fruits and vegetables.

The 'Nutrient Profile (NP) policy' consisted in a 30% decrease in the healthy products selling prices and a 30% increase in the unhealthy products selling prices.

Products are categorized according to the following nutrient profiling:

SAIN;LIM nutrient profiling

Nutrient profiling is determined on the occurrence of 5 qualifying nutrients, expressed as the percentage of nutrient adequacy per 8 MJ (SAIN score), and 3 negative or disqualifying nutrients, expressed as the percentage of the maximal recommended values for saturated fatty acids, added sugar, and sodium per 1.4 kg (LIM score).

The nutritional quality of the global diet was assessed by: -an indicator of good nutritional quality: the MAR score (equivalent to the SAIN score, but calculated on a daily basis and 16 nutrients) -two indicators of bad nutritional quality: the LIM score calculated on a daily basis as well as the dietary energy density

Software

In this experiment, subjects were asked to buy food and beverage they would consume during 24 hours (daily food intake). They selected products from a 180-product list with prices, portion-sizes and photographs (SuViMax database).

.

Two populations

The low-decile income group : 95 females below the poverty line, 18.5% were obese

The reference group : 33 females near the French median income , 6.3% were obese.

Hypothesis and context

Food price policies may lead towards healthier diets

Low-income populations are particularly exposed to the current obesity epidemic as they consume less fruits and vegetables and, maybe, more fat and sugar products. If bad food behaviors are driven by monetary motiveshealthy products seem to be more expensive than nutrient-dense productsthen price may be the right tool for the decision makers willing to improve diets.

Here, we test the efficiency of price-policies (i.e. healthy products subsidies and unhealthy products taxes) on food choices with a particular focus on low-income population.

Conclusion

Price policies had positive, expected, impacts for both group (even though the fruits and vegetables policy had some side effects for the low-income group).

However, price policies may increase the already existing social disparities. Indeed, due to higher priceelasticities and better initial food patterns, average income women benefit nutritionally and economically more from the price policies than the low-income women.

In both population groups, F&V consumption significantly increased.

However, the magnitude was less important for the lowincome population.

Contrary to the reference group, low-income women did not take advantage of their budget increase by consuming more OHP products. In both population, healthy products consumption increased significantly whereas the consumption of unhealthy products decreased. As in the FV policy, the impact was less important for the low-income women, especially for the decrease in the unhealthy products consumption.

Quantities (grams per day) and variations (%)


Xavier Falourd

Bernard Quemener

Marie Francoise

M F Devaux

Jean Marc Audergon

Marc M Lahaye

Genetic variability in apricot cell wall texture componants

à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d'enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers,

Materials and methods

Compression tests were realized at 20 mm/min with a 1KN sensor on 0.9 cm diameter cylinders sampled at the equator of one cheek of the fruit. A cube of ~1-1.5x0.5 cm surface area was sampled from the other cheek at the equator for histology characterization. Sectioning, image acquisition and treatment followed Devaux et al (2008). The rest of the fruit was freeze-dried and cell wall were prepared as alcohol insoluble materials. Sugar composition and β-glucanase hydrolysis for fine structural analysis of hemicelluloses was done as described (Quemener et al. 2007). Hemicellulose oligosaccharides were characterized on a M@ALDI-LR Waters using DHB-6ATT matrix (Lewandrowski et al. 2005). Data treatment and statistics were done on MATLAB (histology) and R. Number of fruits (n) is indicated in figures.

Genetic variability in apricot cell wall texture componants X. Falourd 1 , B. Quemener 1 , M.F. Devaux 1 , J.M. Audergon 2 , M.

Lahaye 1 INRA BIA 1 , Nantes, GAFL 2 , Avignon, France Genetic improvement of fleshy fruit organoleptic characteristics by marker assisted selection requires that the variation of pertinent traits be quantitatively measured in hybrid progenies. Concerning texture, sensorial perceptions result from complex combinations of variables affecting fruit mechanical properties among which are tissue histology and cell wall chemistry. The variability of the latter factors have rarely been studied in apricots and are now reported from several genotypes: Harogem, Goldrich, Hargrand, Iranien, Moniqui, Orangered, Stark Early Orange, Ravicille and Rouge du Roussillon.

Conclusions

• large variability in compression behavior, histological and cell wall chemical characteristics among apricot genotypes • relations between these variations with texture and ripening status remain to be established • tools are available to quantify variations of cell wall components of texture in fruit collections