Mediterranean Dendrology Field Course
Dendrological Methods Applied to the Rare Terrestrial Ecosystems of Ikaria Island, Greece
Organised by: Archipelagos, Institute of Marine & Environmental Research of the Aegean Sea
A one-week summer field course will take place in the island of Ikaria, eastern Aegean Sea, Greece.
Ikarian ecosystems support typical Mediterranean coastal flora, as well as forest and river valley habitats, rare to islands. Its flora is enhanced by its phytogeographical proximity to the botanically very rich lands of Turkey and the Near East.
This field course aims to provide specialisation in dendrological methods, focusing in particular on Mediterranean terrestrial ecosystems and their characteristic tree-species.
Dendrology, comes from the Ancient Greek word “δενδρο-λογία”, where “δένδρον “ means "tree" and “λόγος” means " discourse, speech, study". It is the science of trees and more generally the study of woody plants. There is no clear boundary between plant taxonomy and dendrology.
However, both are important and useful in identifying tree species and understanding their habitat. These tools should be well-handled by all scientists before proceeding to any terrestrial ecosystem management.
Each tree species is a live bio-chemical photograph of the environment where it grows.
It comprises vast arrays of information on its habitat.
During the one-week course, fieldwork and lectures will be offered to participants achieving an integrated approach, through dendrology, to the understanding of natural ecosystems and their conservation. It is considered to be the best combination for a fast-affective program. For a successful implementation , both course topics and sites visited are of high scientific interest.
Tel. No. Office: +30 22750 41673, Fax: +30 22750 41070, Mob.: +30 6937232137
Dates
For 2008, Archipelagos offers two session of the “Mediterranean Dendrology Field Course”:
• 04.08.2008 - 10.08.2008
• 11.08.2008 - 17.08.2008
Participation will be subject to place availability. Early application is advised. Application Deadline: 04. 07.2008
Costs
The fee for the one-week course is €700 and includes the programme’s daily activities:
accommodation, equipment, excursions, all transportation for the field course and as well as breakfast and lunch.
The number of participants is limited to 15 (minimum 6).
Language
The course language is in English.
Course Information
Objective
Within the framework of this field course, as an introduction to Mediterranean Dendrology, the subjects of taxonomy, nomenclature, physiology, morphology and mycorrhizal relations will be covered. Specialised techniques including dendrochronology (cross-dating and skeleton techniques) and dendroclimatology, will be demonstrated and applied by the participants. These techniques are useful research tools, not only for the science of Dendrology, but also for Ecology, Silviculture and other related sciences. All the above subjects and techniques will be fully applied in real case studies, in habitats of large conservational value, taking also into account their ecological characteristics, as well as the anthropogenic factors that affect them.
After the implementation of the “Mediterranean Dendrology Field Course”, participants will be competent at determining and collecting the dendrological data and information, which can also provide better comprehension of terrestrial ecosystems for the design of management plans.
Field course topics
During the field course, a combination of lectures and applied fieldwork will be offered in the following fields:
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Location of the field course
Lectures will be delivered in the main base of Archipelagos in Rahes, Ikaria. Archipelagos’ facilities will be available for use by participants of the field course including a classroom, computer room and laboratories.
The main two sites in which fieldwork will take place are:
a. Forest ecosystem: The Rhanti Ancient Forest
b. Freshwater ecosystem: Halaris River Valley (NATURA 2000)
Participants
Required Skills
This field course is aimed at students and graduates of Forestry, Agronomy, Environmental and Biological Sciences, Chemistry-Biochemistry, Medicinal botany, Entomology, Field guiding, Geology and Climatology, as well as all of other related sciences.
What participants will gain
Participants of the course will acquire research experience in a variety of habitats, whilst getting to know the multi-biotic interactions and assessing possible threats (on an individual species scale, as well as on an ecosystem scale). The field course provides participants with:
• applied knowledge in different aspects of the field of dendrology, physiology and morphology of trees,
• an understanding of natural and anthropogenic threats to different tree species, as a main component of terrestrial ecosystems.
• an overview and discussion on issues related to dendrology, dendrochronology and dendroclimatology, morphology and taxonomy and its importance in the protection of terrestrial ecosystems,
• first-hand experience in the ongoing field of conservation work of Archipelagos IMERAS, in relation to forest and freshwater ecosystems of the eastern Aegean islands.
Also, while visiting Ikaria, participants will have the chance to get to know the beautiful and largely unspoilt natural environment of the Island .
Accommodation ( under construction)
Instructors
Assistant Professor - Dr. Halil Cakan, Cukurova University, Adana, Turkey
Research interest :
• plant ecology-morphology,
• biodiversity,
• environmental protection,
• forest ecology,
• mycorhizal relations
Coordinator & Teaching Assistant - Mihalis Havaranis
Environmental Scientist
Archipelagos’ Coordinator of Environmental Management, specialised in flora, specifically in floristic biodiversity of Ikaria
Things to have with you 
- Footwear appropriate for walking on uneven ground and through dense brush.
- Field clothes adequate for protection against high temperatures and sunlight. Do not forget to carry a hat with you.
- If you already have an ecology textbook or plant identification handbook, you may wish to bring them with you. They are not required.
- Any medications including kits for insect stings, bee stings etc.
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Flora of Ikaria
The vascular flora of Ikaria Island consists of 829 Taxa from 92 Families and 401 Genus. Approximately one third of the taxa found in Ikaria belong to three families: Leguminosae, Compositae and Gramineae. The families of Caryophyllaceae, Cruciferae, Labiatae and Umbelliferae are also well represented (the last one by 32 taxa). The contribution of anthropophytes in the island’s flora is considered significant. This is due to a long history of intense human intervention through agriculture, grazing and wood felling, resulting in the creation of areas suitable for new colonization. However, estimating the proportion of the anthropogenic element is far from simple, as many of the introduced plants are not partially or wholly naturalized. It is believed that 27% (228 taxa) of the entire flora of Ikaria has reached the island as a result of human activity.
The proportion of plants whose presence on the island is due to natural, long-distance dispersal is estimated at 10% (80 taxa). The endemic flora comprises 42 taxa (5%): 15 taxa are exclusively endemic to Ikaria, 14 taxa are strictly endemic to the Aegean islands, and 13 taxa are endemic to Greece.
Trees
Trees are fundamental components of terrestrial ecosystems.Trees indicate the type of the ecosystem, they display the various vegetation zones.
The species of plants, moss, lichens or fungi that will appear in an area can be defined by the dominant tree species, which in turn determines the related fauna.Trees are a main factor in providing balance to an ecosystem. Birds and invertebrates consume fruits and leaves from the trees and also use thick
foliages for shelter.
Additionally, trees provide protection to animals and plants from extreme temperature, rainfall, wind and intense sunlight. Trees also enrich the ground with nutrients, stabilise the soil with their roots and preserve humidity through hot seasons.
In conclusion, wherever trees are present there are also countless other co-existing organisms. If a tree is healthy, then a healthy environment is provided for all the other organisms to develop.
Identification
Identifying, or even better having knowledge about the tree species is like having clues about the territory where they are spreading (as a guide). Trees, as all organisms, are a living identity of the nature’s features. The problem is that it is coded. Compared to the rest of the organisms, trees are easier to be decoded, as their morphology and physiology has been worked out for thousands of years. It is a way of communication between trees and humans. Trees can reveal the soil content, the hydrological characteristics, the biodiversity, even the climatic changes or the appearance of natural hazards through the years.
In order for someone to obtain all the important information from the trees, they have to be familiar with the features and its attitude as a species. Achieving this, people will be better able to understand nature and how it works.
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Field course Topics
1. What is dendrology, dendrochronology and dendroclimatology. Introduction to tree morphology and taxonomy.
These lectures will introduce the participants to the definitions of dendrology, dendro-chronology and dendro-climatology, as well as morphology and systematic taxonomies.
Participants will have a general view on the range of the subjects that dendrology covers and its importance in the protection of terrestrial ecosystems.
2. Identification of the trees by their bark, leaves and morphology of their tree crown.
These classes will be consisted of lectures and fieldwork. The first part of the classes will prepare the participants for the identification of the trees by their bark, leaves and morphology of the tree crown. The lecture will be based on a presentation that will acquaint the trainees with the types of the bark, leaves and their role in the physiology of the tree. Participants will also be introduced to main tree species, characteristics of the Aegean Sea flora and how they can be identified. The participants will then have the chance to practice with the “gained-from- the-classes” knowledge. The main task of the fieldwork will be the successful identification of tree species and the physiological conditions of the tree by the morphology of the crown.
3. Collection of wood core samples and their preparation for the counting of annual rings.
Participants will become familiar with the technique for collecting the wood core samples by increment borrer and the preparation for counting the annual rings. In this way, well preserved samples will be used for the estimation of the age of the tree and climatic changes, as well as for the determination of natural hazards that have occurred in the past.
4. Determination of tree age using annual tree rings.
Participants will be trained in estimating the tree’s age using its annual rings. They will also be introduced to other techniques of determining the tree’s age and the “pros and cons” of these methods. For this, the participants will be required to use the knowledge they have already gained during the first day from the topic of dendro-chronology.
5. Application for cross-dating and skeleton techniques in laboratory.
The application for cross-dating and skeleton techniques, are widely used in dendrochronology and will be presented to the participants.
Cross-dating is a technique that ensures each individual tree ring is assigned its exact year of formation.
This is accomplished by matching patterns of wide and narrow rings between cores from the same tree, and between trees from different locations.
The participants will be introduced to other techniques for estimating the age. This technique will be compared with the cross-dating technique and its wide range of use, apart from dendrology.
6. Determination of climatic changes and natural hazards occurring in the past by examination of the annual tree rings.
Participants will learn how to estimate climatic changes and the appearance of natural hazards in the past, from annual tree rings.
They will also be acquainted with examples of international databases.
These databases gather information about climate change and natural threats and its importance in the prediction of future change .
7. Mycorrhizal relations
Participants will be acquainted with the term "mycorrhiza" and its significance in plant’s life. Most land plants (>80% of angiosperms and almost all gymnosperms) form mycorrhiza that is symbiotic associations between plant roots and fungi that increase plant nutrient uptake.
A mycorrhiza ("mushroomed root") is a root which is populated by a mycorrhizal fungus. The fungus covers the outermost fine roots with a thick network of strings (so-called mycelium) and forms a coat of fungus.
This fungal coat covers the root completely and covers also the entire growing point. It grows as one with the root’s tip and behaves in every respect like an organically linked, peripheral tissue belonging to the root.
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Sites
The main two sites in which fieldwork will take place are:
a. Forest ecosystem: The Rhanti Ancient Forest
b. Freshwater ecosystem: Halaris River (NATURA 2000)
The Rhanti Ancient Forest
The Rhanti forest (or Gaia as it is also called) is situated in the central part of Ikaria Island in the mountain chain Atheras (NATURA 2000). Rhanti forest covers an area of 2500 hectares, about 3% of Ikaria island, having elevation of 500 – 700 meters. It is an Ancient Oak Forest with Quercus ilex (Holm Oak) being the dominant tree species. The core of the forest, where the oldest Oak trees exist, is 800 hectares. At the north and west edges of the forest there are small villages, while there is also arable land within the forest area. The human communities have influenced in time, the evolutionary processes of the forest. The age of the oaks varies in the different forest sections. This age-variance reveals the different human impacts through the years (e.g. animal- grazing, wood-cutting or charchoal production). The area with the oldest oak trees is in the core of the forest, where trees are considered to be over 500 years old.
The most significant issue with Rhanti’s forest is that it is representative as the climatic climax of the Mediterranean’s coastal vegetation. It is the last level of forest succession in this type of life zone. This is one of the main reasons for which Archipelagos, IMERAS is carrying out research and conservation work for the protection of the forest, by designing sustainable management plans, which will characterise the forest of Rhanti as a Monument of Nature.
Quercus ilex (Holm Oak)
Evergreen forests dominated by Quercus ilex, used to be one of the most extensive type of forest in the Mediterranean region. This tree grows in all kinds of soils and may occasionally form dense forests. More commonly, they occur in scattered clumps. Holm Oak forests are rarely seen in their climatic climax state, where they form very dense and dark woods up to 12-15m. high. Within these forests there is a shrub layer of Arbutus unedo L., Phillyrea sp., Rhamnus sp. and Viburnum sp.. There are also many climbing plants such as Clematis sp., Lonicera sp., Smilax sp. and Tamus communis (Dioscorea communis). They may form impenetrable thickets with little light falling on the ground, with practically no herbaceous species. However, it is more usual to find scattered trees and a well developed maquis below with Juniperus sp., Cistus sp., Genista sp., Pistacia lentiscus, Spartium junceum, Rosmarinus officinalis, Lavandula sp. and in more open places garigue (phrygana) species.
Quercus ilex is replaced in the eastern Mediterranean by Quercus coccifera L. (Kermes Oak) but rarely forms forests in Mediterranean ecosystems. Much more commonly, it occurs as brushwood in all kinds of maquis and forms very dense growths, sheltering many herbaceous species.
Halaris River Valley
The River Valley of Halaris in Ikaria Island is a NATURA 2000 site and exceeds 10km in length. It crosses the island from the south to the north, with oriental plane woods (Platanus orientalis) flanking its banks. The constantly flowing river with its valleys has been of significant environmental importance since 700 B.C. Nowadays constitutes a rare habitat in the Aegean, as it supports a rare biodiversity of flora and fauna, as well as populations of many protected species. It is also of great importance as a migratory station for many protected bird species, especially during the spring and autumn migrations.
An archaeological site, the temple of Tavropolos Artemis, is situated by the river estuary. After thousands of years of retaining its importance as an area of exceptional natural beauty, the River Valley of Halaris is being downgraded, due to human impacts. The water of the river is being illegally used in irrigation, which frequently leads to the drying out of sections of the river during the summer. Uncontrolled - illegal camping, which takes place during the summer months by the river banks, inevitably pollutes and downgrades the ecosystem of the valley.
