%0 Research article
%T Wind and snow damage in the Pyrenees pine forests: effect of stand attributes and location
%A Martín-Alcón, Santiago
%A González-Olabarría, José Ramón
%A Coll, Lluís
%D 2010
%J Silva Fennica
%V 44
%N 3
%R doi:10.14214/sf.138
%U https://silvafennica.fi/article/138
%X Wind and snow-induced damage have been analyzed at stand level for three  pine forests in the Central-Eastern Pyrenees (Pinus nigra Arn.  salzmanii, Pinus sylvestris L. and Pinus uncinata Ram.). Stand-level  models have been then developed for the most affected two species, Pinus  sylvestris L. and Pinus uncinata Ram., to describe damage severity. The  models were based on data from national forest inventory plots. They  included variables related to the spatial location and structure of the  stands, being validated using a sub-set of the database (25% of the  plots randomly selected). Mountain pine forests (Pinus uncinata Ram.)  were the most heavily affected by wind and snow disturbances. For both  mountain and Scots pine species, topographic exposure and the severity  of the local storm regime had an important effect on the degree of  damage. Stand’s resistance to wind and snow was found to be dependent on  the combined effect of basal area and mean slenderness of the dominant  trees. For a given slenderness ratio, damage increased strongly in  lower-density stands, particularly in stands with basal areas below 15 m<sup>2</sup>/ha.  Stand structure was particularly important to define the resistance of  Scots pine stands, which presented a higher vulnerability to wind and  snow under higher degree of even-agedness. The models presented in this  study provide empirically-based information that can be used to  implement silvicultural practices to minimize the risk of those forests  to suffer wind and snow-related damages.