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Functional Plant Ecology

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Our research group aims to better understand the physiological and ecological responses of terrestrial ecosystems to global change, with a focus on anticipating and counteracting its effects.

Our key research themes are the impact of biodiversity loss on ecosystem functions and services, as well as the physiological processes of plant responses to climatic constraints such as drought and increasing temperatures and VPD.

We use novel techniques and approaches at scales going from the cell to the whole ecosystem in diverse environmental conditions in temperate, Mediterranean and tropical systems. We conduct research in controlled conditions (e.g., greenhouses and growth chambers), in manipulative experiments in natural ecosystems (e.g., drought and temperature manipulation) and use long-term national and international inventory platforms.

This integrative approach has both theoretical and applied aims to address the parameterization of climate-vegetation models and guide new climate-smart management practices.

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Projects

Leaf temperature reconstruction

We critically lack leaf temperature assessments because of the difficulties associated with these measurements. The project aims at developing a novel approach that reconstructs leaf temperature over multiple time scales using plant water isotopes.

new multidisciplinary project on permafrost thaw

In this ambitious project, we study ecological effects of permafrost thaw

Abisko Long-Term Ecological Research ALTER

Setting up the ALTER experiment in Abisko, Sweden for non-destructive in situ monitoring of belowground vegetation and microbial dynamics.

Invasiveness of T. fortunei in the forests of southern Switzerland

The invasion of ecosystems by non-native species is one of the largest threats for biodiversity and ecosystem functioning worldwide. To control the spread of non-native plants, it is crucial to understand by which mechanisms they outperform native vegetation. Yet, despite the considerable applied re

Polytunnel Greenhouse Experiment

Das Projekt untersucht, wie gut zukunftsfähige Baumarten während der Verjüngungsphase in einem Klima mit wärmeren Wintern und heiss-trockenen Sommermonaten wachsen, wie sie sich gegenseitig beeinflussen und welche Auswirkungen ihre Präsenz auf den Boden und die darin lebenden Organismen hat.

Acclimation and environmental memory

Which are the main mechanisms conveying adaptation on the organ and whole tree level, how fast does acclimation occur and how long is an acclimation potential sustained?

PFF2020

Our main objective is the installation of a long-term Plant Physiological Facility for online determination of gas exchange and isotope fractionations at WSL in the 2020s.

Reconnaître les dendro-microhabitats: visite virtuelle immersive d'une forêt

Les dendro-microhabitats sont importants pour la biodiversité en forêt. Ce projet élabore un nouvel outil destiné aux gestionnaires forestiers, afin de les aider à identifier les dendro-microhabitats et connaître leurs rôles écologiques.

Root endophytic fungi and their contribution to arctic and alpine climate change feedback

Arctic and Alpine vegetation dynamics under climate change can exert a lasting impact on belowground processes and ultimately on world's largest carbon stocks. This long-term field manipulation investigates the functional significance of plant interactions with species-specific endophytic fungi.

Understanding how species interactions modulate long-term heat and drought impacts

The project aims to assess the physiological processes by which trees adapt and interact with each other under a changing climate, determine how these processes affect tree physiological responses to climatic stresses, and better understand long-term shifts in tree internal carbon and water cycles.

The role of mycorrhizae in soil carbon storage of mountain ecosystems

This research project focuses on the role of mycorrhizae in the turnover of soil organic carbon in mountain ecosystems. It estimates the potential release of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere resulting from changes in above and belowground communities.

Forests under stress

In this project we will assess the physiological processes by which trees adjust and interact among each other under a changing climate, determine the consequences of these processes on forest responses to climatic stresses and improve our understanding of these effects on forests functioning at a large comprehensive scale.

MOUNTROOT

The project MOUNTROOT aims at comparing structure-function relationship in roots of two dominant herb species of pasture-woodlands in response to simulated climate change, and to integrate these below-ground insights with above-ground responses to a whole-plant framework.

Dynamics of dead wood and saproxylic insects

Dead wood is a vital prerequisite for a quarter of all organisms living in a forest. The future intensification of forest management will pose a threat to many wood inhabiting (saproxylic) insect species. In forest reserves the formation and decay process of dead wood is quantified and the importance of micro-habitats for saproxylic beetles is investigated.

Mountland

The goal of ‹Mountland› is to investigate the sensitivity of the provision of mountain ecosystem services to both climatic and land-use changes and to suggest policies and governance structures for mitigating the impact of such changes and enhancing sustainable management practices.

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Publications

Larrieu, L.; Courbaud, B.; Drénou, C.; Goulard, M.; Bütler, R.; Kozák, D.; Kraus, D.; Krumm, F.; Lachat, T.; Müller, J.; Paillet, Y.; Schuck, A.; Stillhard, J.; Svoboda, M.; Vandekerkhove, K., 2022: Key factors determining the presence of tree-related microhabitats: a synthesis of potential factors at site, stand and tree scales, with perspectives for further research. Forest Ecology and Management, 515: 120235 (12 pp.). doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120235

Guida da campo ai dendromicrohabitat. Descrizione e soglie dimensionali per il loro inventario

Questa guida da campo supplementare descrive i 47 tipi di microhabitat degli alberi, divisi in 15 gruppi e 7 forme. La guida da campo è un supplemento alla pubblicazione "Conoscere, proteggere e promuovere gli alberi habitat".

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Grossiord, C.; Bachofen, C.; Gisler, J.; Mas, E.; Vitasse, Y.; Didion‐Gency, M., 2022: Warming may extend tree growing seasons and compensate for reduced carbon uptake during dry periods. Journal of Ecology, doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.13892

Conoscere, proteggere e promuovere gli alberi habitat

Gli alberi habitat sono una componente chiave della biodiversità forestale. Un gruppo di professionisti europei ha elaborato un catalogo degli habitat che possono essere identificati sugli alberi e risultano imprescindibili per migliaia di organismi specializzati.

Notizie per la pratica 64

2022

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Schönbeck, L.; Grossiord, C.; Gessler, A.; Gisler, J.; Meusburger, K.; D'Odorico, P.; Rigling, A.; Salmon, Y.; Stocker, B.D.; Zweifel, R.; Schaub, M., 2022: Photosynthetic acclimation and sensitivity to short- and long-term environmental changes in a drought prone forest. Journal of Experimental Botany, 73, 8: 2576-2588. doi: 10.1093/jxb/erac033

McDowell, N.G.; Sapes, G.; Pivovaroff, A.; Adams, H.D.; Allen, C.D.; Anderegg, W.R.L.; Arend, M.; Breshears, D.D.; Brodribb, T.; Choat, B.; Cochard, H.; De Cáceres, M.; De Kauwe, M.G.; Grossiord, C.; Hammond, W.M.; Hartmann, H.; Hoch, G.; Kahmen, A.; Klein, T.; ... Xu, C., 2022: Mechanisms of woody-plant mortality under rising drought, CO₂ and vapour pressure deficit. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, doi: 10.1038/s43017-022-00272-1

Bütler, R., 2022: Die Buche - ein herausragender Habitatbaum. Bündnerwald, 75, 2: 34-37.

Conedera, M.; Risch, A.; Grossiord, C.; Bebi, P., 2021: Research Unit Community Ecology. In: Ferretti, M.; Fischer, C.; Gessler, A. (eds), 2021: Towards an advanced inventorying and monitoring system for the Swiss forest. Towards an advanced inventorying and monitoring system for the Swiss forest, Birmensdorf. 43-44.

Debaive, N.; Drapier, N.; Gautier, G.; Larrieu, L.; Bütler, R., 2021: Espaces protégés forestiers et libre évolution. Revue Forestiere Francaise, 73, 2-3: 339-365. doi: 10.20870/revforfr.2021.5474

Bütler, R.; Rosset, C.; Larrieu, L., 2021: Découverte ludique et utile des dendromicrohabitats. Forêt-entreprise, 16-17.

Diefendorf, A.F.; Bickford, C.P.; Schlanser, K.M.; Freimuth, E.J.; Hannon, J.S.; Grossiord, C.; McDowell, N.G., 2021: Plant wax and carbon isotope response to heat and drought in the conifer Juniperus monosperma. Organic Geochemistry, 153: 104197 (12 pp.). doi: 10.1016/j.orggeochem.2021.104197

Trotsiuk, V.; Babst, F.; Grossiord, C.; Gessler, A.; Forrester, D.I.; Buchmann, N.; Schaub, M.; Eugster, W., 2021: Tree growth in Switzerland is increasingly constrained by rising evaporative demand. Journal of Ecology, 109, 8: 2981-2990. doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.13712

Didion‐Gency, M.; Bachofen, C.; Buchmann, N.; Gessler, A.; Morin, X.; Vicente, E.; Vollenweider, P.; Grossiord, C., 2021: Interactive effects of tree species mixture and climate on foliar and woody trait variation in a widely distributed deciduous tree. Functional Ecology, 35, 11: 2397-2408. doi: 10.1111/1365-2435.13898

Bütler, R., 2021: Habitatbäume - wahre Perlen im Wald. Berlin-Brandenburger Natur-Magazin, 35, 4: 14-15.

Walde, M.; Allan, E.; Cappelli, S.L.; Didion-Gency, M.; Gessler, A.; Lehmann, M.M.; Pichon, N.A.; Grossiord, C., 2021: Both diversity and functional composition affect productivity and water use efficiency in experimental temperate grasslands. Journal of Ecology, 109, 11: 3877-3891. doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.13765

Pivovaroff, A.L.; McDowell, N.G.; Rodrigues, T.B.; Brodribb, T.; Cernusak, L.A.; Choat, B.; Grossiord, C.; Ishida, Y.; Jardine, K.J.; Laurance, S.; Leff, R.; Li, W.; Liddell, M.; Mackay, D.S.; Pacheco, H.; Peters, J.; Sampaio Filho, I.d.J.; Souza, D.C.; Wang, W.; ... Chambers, J., 2021: Stability of tropical forest tree carbon-water relations in a rainfall exclusion treatment through shifts in effective water uptake depth. Global Change Biology, 27, 14: 6454-6466. doi: 10.1111/gcb.15869

Collins, A.D.; Ryan, M.G.; Adams, H.D.; Dickman, L.T.; Garcia-Forner, N.; Grossiord, C.; Powers, H.H.; Sevanto, S.; McDowell, N.G., 2021: Foliar respiration is related to photosynthetic, growth and carbohydrate response to experimental drought and elevated temperature. Plant, Cell and Environment, 44, 12: 3623-3635. doi: 10.1111/pce.14183

Trowbridge, A.M.; Adams, H.D.; Collins, A.; Dickman, L.T.; Grossiord, C.; Hofland, M.; Malone, S.; Weaver, D.K.; Sevanto, S.; Stoy, P.C.; McDowell, N.G., 2021: Hotter droughts alter resource allocation to chemical defenses in piñon pine. Oecologia, 197, 4: 921-938. doi: 10.1007/s00442-021-05058-8

Pivovaroff, A.L.; Wolfe, B.T.; McDowell, N.; Christoffersen, B.; Davies, S.; Dickman, L.T.; Grossiord, C.; Leff, R.T.; Rogers, A.; Serbin, S.P.; Wright, S.J.; Wu, J.; Xu, C.; Chambers, J.Q., 2021: Hydraulic architecture explains species moisture dependency but not mortality rates across a tropical rainfall gradient. Biotropica, 53, 4: 1213-1225. doi: 10.1111/btp.12964

Bütler, R.; Rosset, C.; Larrieu, L., 2021: Reconnaître les arbres-habitats grâce à l'application habitat.sylvotheque.ch. Schweizerische Zeitschrift für Forstwesen, 172, 4: 242-245. doi: 10.3188/szf.2021.0242

20 from 92 publications

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