Framing recent advances in assisted migration of Trees: A Special Issue

Abstract

Climate is changing faster than long-lived species, such as forest trees, can migrate or adapt, risking adverse impacts on tree growth and forest composition (Aitken et al., 2008; Alberto et al., 2013; Sittaro et al., 2017). Nevertheless, current forest management and restoration tools, from tree breeding and seed zones to growth and yield models, assume a stable climate and that local sources are the best adapted (McKay et al., 2005; Bucharova et al., 2017; Alía et al., 2022; Park and Rodgers, 2023). Increasing frequency and severity of extreme events, including heat waves, drought, pest and disease outbreaks, windstorms, and altered wildfire regimes have caused lowered productivity and increased mortality in many biomes (Sullivan et al., 2020; de Dios et al., 2021; Hartmann et al., 2022; Martinez del Castillo et al., 2022; Robbins et al., 2022). One response to the threats to forests posed by rapidly altered climate is the intentional movement of tree species and populations to more hospitable habitat and to replace species unable to thrive. This assisted migration (AM) is an adaptation strategy for overcoming the gap between a changing climate and an evolutionary response by forest trees that facilitates natural range expansion in response to climate change (Aitken and Whitlock, 2013; Aitken and Bemmels, 2016; Sang et al., 2021).

Citation

Stanturf, John A.; Ivetic, Vladan; Dumroese, R. Kasten. 2024. Framing recent advances in assisted migration of Trees: A Special Issue. Forest Ecology and Management. 551: 121552.