Piceaabies (l.) H. Karst. Leaf temperature as an indicator of species resilience: a case study of the Cemernik mountains in southeast Europe

Abstract

Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) is one of the ecologically and economically most important species in European forestry. According to the latest genocenological tests, environmental factors have a significant influence on the species' survival, and there is no decrease in variability in the periphery of its areal, thus the research of its resilience requires work on "plus" trees. The paper analyzed differences in thermal data of leaves in the sun and shade, trunk bark in the shade, and control surfaces in the sun: dry grass, dry soil, asphalt, and concrete, to obtain data on temperature differences as indicators of species resilience and to understand the impacts of local climate change in mountainous regions. In the summer of 2022, surface temperatures were recorded with a thermal camera on Mount Cemernik in Southeastern Europe. Monitoring and analysis of air temperatures included interpolations using a digital elevation model (DEM) and was based on the percentile method. The research results confirm significant differences between the temperatures of leaves and control surfaces. The importance of this paper is in the wide application of selected, resilient, Norway spruce "plus" trees in forestry, landscape architecture, and horticulture in Southern European habitats where scenarios predict that the climate will change, and the Norway spruce will move north.