Vegetation Database of Strict Forest Reserves in NW-Germany

Abstract

Strict forest reserves are forests without any direct anthropogenic influence such as management activities. They have been established all over Germany as well as in many other European countries to gain a substantial, representative network of protected areas. Strict forest reserves can be used as a reference for forestry and nature conservation in order to derive modern forestry practices including the main goals of sustainability and biodiversity. Besides this they offer valuable opportunities for fundamental research on forest biocoenoses. Our database comprises woodland relevés from 17 strict forest reserves (permanent plots) in Lower Saxony and Hesse (Germany). Beside single surveys, mainly repeated surveys have been conducted (time series).The database offers good opportunities to evaluate changes in time (forest dynamics, succession), impact of management activities or environmental changes on forest ecosystems. This report describes the available content in the Vegetation Database of Strict Forest Reserves in NW-Germany (GIVD ID EU-DE-016).