Radial growth of the main tree species in the Cortegada island (Parque Nacional de las Islas Atlánticas) as a consequence of history and climate

Abstract

Radial growth patterns of Quercus robur L., Quercus pyrenaicaWilld., Pinus pinaster Ait., Pinus pinea L. y Laurus nobilis L., the dominant tree species in the Cortegada island, Parque Nacional de la Islas Atlánticas de Galicia, were studied. The main objective was to determine the repercussion that land-use changes that occurred during the last century in the island, had on tree growth. The influence of the climatic variables mean monthly temperature and monthly precipitation on high frequency radial growth variation was also studied. The results show that the chronologies derived from all studied species reflect the succession of events that happened in the island in the XX century, with a gradual tree establishment along the first half of the century, a progressive canopy closure and the recent apparition of canopy gaps due to disturbances. The correlations between the climatic parameters and the year-to-year growth variations also reveal a higher tolerance of Q. pyrenaica and P. pinea to water shortage in spring and summer.