Bark is a vital and very visible part of woody plants, yet only recently has bark characteristics
started to be considered as key traits structuring communities and biomes. Bark thickness is …

Pinus is a diverse genus of trees widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere.
Understanding pine life history is critical to both conservation and fire management. Here I …

Exploring the role of fire in each of the five Mediterranean-type climate ecosystems, this
book offers a unique view of the evolution of fire-adapted traits and the role of fire in shaping …

Climate and topography are among the most fundamental drivers of plant diversity. Here, we
assessed the importance of climate and topography in explaining diversity patterns of …

Many plants resprout from basal buds after disturbance, and this is common in shrublands
subjected to high-intensity fires. However, resprouting after fire from epicormic (stem) buds is …

In spite of their small global area and restricted distributions, tropical montane forests (TMFs)
are biodiversity hotspots and important ecosystem services providers, but are also highly …

Over the past 15 years, 3 million hectares of forests have been converted into shrublands or
grasslands in the Mediterranean countries of the European Union. Fire and drought are the …

Pine resistance to low-to moderate-intensity fire arises from traits (namely related to tissue
insulation from heat) that enable tree survival. Predictive models of the likelihood of tree …

Oceanic islands are storehouses for unique creatures. Zoologists have long been fascinated
by island animals because they break all the rules. Speedy, nervous, little birds repeatedly …

Aim Plant life‐forms characterize key morphological strategies that enable large‐scale
comparisons of plant communities. This study applies Raunkiær's plant life‐form concept …