Forest history from a single tree species perspective: natural occurrence, near extinction and reintroduction of European yew (Taxus baccata L.) on the Darss-Zingst peninsula, southern Baltic Sea coast

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

  • Knut Kaiser
  • Martin Theuerkauf
  • Ernst van der Maaten
  • Marieke van der Maaten-Theunissen
  • Annette Beil

The forests along the southern Baltic Sea coast harbour some stands of the rare and endangered European yew (Taxus baccata L.), which are hypothesised to be autochthonous. Using the example of an occurrence on the Darss-Zingst peninsula, the population dynamics of the yew since the late Holocene are interdisciplinarily investigated and linked to the forest history of this area. Pollen analysis shows that yew has been present in the study area for at least 2600 years and thus indeed represents an autochthonous tree species in the area. The yew was probably originally part of a second tree storey and of forest margins within a mixed forest mainly consisting of several deciduous tree species and Scots pine. Historical evidence reveals that yew was still occurring in the forest in the middle of the eighteenth century, but then had nearly disappeared by the end of the nineteenth century. This was caused by several factors including forest grazing by livestock, high game populations and clear-cutting. First replanting of yew took place in the 1930s/1940s and 1950s/1960s, followed by planting campaigns in the 1990s and 2000s. Planting material from local and regional autochthonous relict populations was used, at least in part. The current yew population mainly comprises young individuals with a total number of ca. 1300 trees. It has thus been possible here to re-establish an autochthonous yew occurrence that was nearly extinct in historical times. This local example of targeted re-enrichment of native tree diversity may also encourage further measures to give this species a new chance again elsewhere in the wider region.

Original languageEnglish
JournalEuropean Journal of Forest Research
Volume143
Issue number3
Pages (from-to)917-942
Number of pages26
ISSN1612-4669
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 06.2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2024.

    Research areas

  • Historical ecology, Late Holocene, North-east Germany, Population history, Reintroduction, Yew
  • Biology

Recently viewed

Publications

  1. In the Workshop of the Translator. Walter Benjamin in/on Translation
  2. Parameter Investigation for the In-Situ Hybridization Process by Deep Drawing of Dry Fiber-Metal-Laminates
  3. The joint effects of supervisor knowledge hiding, abusive supervision, and employee political skill on employee knowledge hiding behaviors
  4. Unplanned, Unanticipated and Unsupported?
  5. Efficient supplies to assembly areas from storage stages
  6. Does Training Improve the Business Performance of Small-Scale Entrepreneurs?
  7. Taking Stock
  8. Modellierung und Implementierung eines Order2Cash-Prozesses in verteilten Systemen
  9. Affective events and proactivity
  10. Effect of safflower oil on the protective properties of the in situ formed salivary pellicle
  11. Towards a Critique of Social Networking
  12. School leaders’ innovation-related self-efficacy: professional development and learning networks make a difference
  13. Mathematical Chemistry and Chemoinformatics
  14. Mitarbeiter als Erlebnisprovider
  15. Diffusion of tax policies in the European Union
  16. Differentiating customer engaging behavior by targeted benefits
  17. Appetizers for Business Integration into the heavy Meal of Transdisciplinary Practices
  18. E-Mail als sozio-technisches Hybrid
  19. Effect of Welding Speed on Friction Stir Welds of PM2000 Alloy
  20. Collisionless damping in the spectra of active plasma resonance spectroscopic probes
  21. Käsemann, Ernst
  22. Gamification and Governmentality
  23. Personalisation as currency
  24. Modernization
  25. Temporal variations of perfluoroalkyl substances and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in alpine snow
  26. The Too-Much-Mimicry Effect