Long-term variability of air temperature and precipitation conditions in the Polish Carpathians

Mountain regions are sensitive to climate changes, which make them good indicators of climate change. The aim of this study is to investigate the spatial and temporal variability of air temperature and precipitation in the Polish Carpathians. This study consists of climatological analyses for the historical period 1851-2010 and future projections for 2021-2100. The results confirm that there has been significant warming of the area and that this warming has been particularly pronounced over the last few decades and will continue in the oncoming years.Climate change is most evident in the foothills;however, these are the highest summits which have experienced the most intensive increases in temperature during the recent period. Precipitation does not demonstrate any substantial trend and has high year-to-year variability. The distribution of the annual temperature contour lines modelled for selected periods provides evidence of the upward shift of vertical climate zones in the Polish Carpathians,which reach approximately 350 meters, on average,what indicates further ecological consequences as ecosystems expand or become extinct and when there are changes in the hydrological cycle.

Long-term monitoring of the recruitment and dynamics of large wood in Kamienica Stream, Polish Carpathians

Studies presenting long-term observations of the recruitment and mobility of large wood in mountain watercourses are scarce,but they can considerably contribute to the knowledge of river/riparian forest interactions and the assessment of flood hazard resulting from wood mobility during floods.Widespread dieback of riparian forest along the headwater course of Kamienica Stream in the Polish Carpathians,caused by bark beetle infestation of spruce trees,has raised concerns about potential increases of large wood recruitment to the stream and of the flood hazard to downstream valley reaches.In October 2009,429 trees growing along three sections of the stream were tagged with numbered metal plates and monitored over 10 years to determine the timing and causes of their delivery to the channel and the lengths of their displacement during individual flood events.Moreover,in 2012 the mode of location of wood deposits and a degree of wood decay were determined in the second-to fourth-order stream reaches.The monitoring of tagged trees indicated that trees were recruited to the channel during highintensity meteorological and hydrological events,mostly as a result of bank erosion during floods or windthrow.With 22%of tagged trees recruited to the channel during 10 years,the rate of turnover of the riparian trees was estimated at 45 years.As the riparian area is overgrown with trees with ages up to^160 years,the rate evidences substantial intensification of large wood recruitment to the channel in the recent period.Results of large wood inventory and the 10-year-long monitoring of tagged trees indicated variable mobility of large wood along the upper course of the stream.Wood mobility was negligible in the second-order stream reach,very small in the third-order reach,and greater,but still limited in the fourth-order reach.Wood is transported longer distances only during major floods.However,the advanced state of decay of most pieces leads to their disintegration during floods,precluding distant transport.Thus,large wood retained in the upper stream course does not constitute an important flood hazard to downstream,inhabited valley reaches.

Humus horizon development during natural forest succession process in the Polish Carpathians

As a result of socio-economic changes and land abandonment,the main ecological driver of the Carpathian landscape is the progression of the natural forest succession process.Thus,aspects of this process have become worthy of attention,especially in the context of carbon sequestration and the management of protected areas.Soil processes,especially within the topsoil,are some of the most susceptible to change,due to the accumulation of organic matter during such land-use transformations.The purposes of this study were to investigate the differences in topsoil development using the A Horizon Development Index(ADI)and to study the composition of humic substances and advanced organic matter humification in different land-use areas in selected Carpathian national parks,i.e.Bieszczady,Magura and Pieniny National Parks in southern Poland.Additionally,a goal of this study was to compare the ADI and the spectroscopic coefficients of humic substances as indicators of the degree of humus horizon shaping as well as advanced organic matter humification.In total,ten transects were selected,each consisting of three different land-use areas:semi-natural meadow,successional forest and old-growth forest.Soil colour was determined in fresh and air-dried samples using the Munsell colour chart.In air-dried soil samples p H,soil texture,total organic carbon and total nitrogen were measured.Humic substances were extracted and further characterized by UV-VIS spectroscopy.The ADI confirmed the influence of natural forest succession on soil colour darkening and the development of the uppermost soil layer.Spectroscopic analyses of humic substances showed two different patterns depending on soil depth.In the 0–10 cm layer,natural forest succession reduced the rate of the humification process and decreased the degree of maturity of fulvic acids;in the 10–20 cm layer,it led to an increase in the rate of the humification process and a decrease in the content of humic and fulvic acids at the beginning of the transformation.The comparison of two different indicators of soil development–the ADI and the spectroscopic coefficients of humic substances(Q_(4/6),Q_(2/4),Q_(2/3),Δlog K)–indicated that these indexes are based on different features of soil and cannot be used interchangeably.