Proforestation, defined as the long-term protection of existing forests to allow the self-development of old-growth attributes, is increasingly promoted as a nature-based solution for biodiversity conservation. However, its effects on tree-related microhabitats (TreMs), key indicators of forest structural complexity, remain unevenly documented across forest types. Most existing studies have largely examined TreM richness and abundance, while effects on TreM composition across contrasting forest contexts have rarely been addressed.We investigated how time since abandonment (TSA), as a proxy for proforestation duration, influences TreM richness, abundance, and composition across three different forest categories spanning Mediterranean to Alpine environments. Within each category, we compared actively managed forests with stands under proforestation for more than 20 and more than 60 years. TSA generally promoted TreM richness and abundance, albeit to a lesser extent in the Mediterranean forest site. In contrast, responses of individual TreM groups were strongly context-dependent, with some groups increasing and others decreasing along the proforestation gradient.TreM composition differed significantly among abandonment stages in all forest categories, although the magnitude was generally modest, with long-term proforested stands supporting distinct assemblages primarily driven by turnover and associated with increasing deadwood availability. The pattern of these compositional shifts varied among forest categories, reflecting differences in environmental conditions and management history.Our findings demonstrate that proforestation could not only enhance TreM availability but also influence TreM assemblages through long-term structural dynamics. Integrating long-term proforested stands into forest planning can represent an effective conservation strategy to promote biodiversity-related forest structures.
This paper presents the cecidological collection held in the Zoological collection of the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb. The collection was assembled by Vlasta Mužny as part of her graduate thesis research in 1952 and 1953. Most of the galls were sampled in the vicinity of the town of Nova Gradiška, in continental Croatia. In total, 56 galls were recorded, induced by insect species belonging to the orders Hymenoptera, Hemiptera and Diptera, and by Acari. Most of them are well preserved, and Contarinia cybelae Gagné, 1972, is new to Croatia. This collection is one of the few publicly available zoocecidia collections in Croatia stressing the importance of preserving natural history collections within university departments. By making this collection accessible, it can support further research in taxonomy, systematics, and conservation.
In the era of climate change, increasing ecological disturbances, and declining biodiversity, forest ecosystems face growing challenges that require effective restoration approaches grounded in ecological principles, sustainability, and adaptive management. Forest restoration plays an important role in developing resilient, stable, healthy, and diverse forests capable of sustaining ecosystem services. As these challenges intensify, restoration efforts become more important for ensuring the long-term sustainability of forests. Understanding the history of restoration is therefore crucial for making informed choices and guiding both current and future decisions. This overview examines the development of forest restoration in Croatia through three significant historical periods: before 1940, from 1940 to 1990, and from 1990 to the present. Each period reflects the increasing significance and growing understanding of restoration, shaped by environmental needs, policy, knowledge, social awareness, and technological capabilities. Early efforts were based on demanding afforestation and reforestation practices, driven by economic and political events, environmental disasters, and conservation needs. In the mid-20th century, efforts were influenced by post-war forest degradation and industrial forestry. Since 1990, restoration has increasingly incorporated ecological principles, international frameworks, and adaptive strategies, supported by advances in science, rising public awareness, and improved technology and mechanisation. The growing role of forest restoration over time reflects a broader recognition of its complexity and importance in addressing both past degradation and future environmental uncertainties.
This study examines the impact of various pretreatments on the composting of white grape skin (Vitis vinifera cv. Graševina) over a 30-day aerobic composting period. The pretreatments included the extraction of bioactive compounds from the grape skin and grinding. The research used an integrated approach combining physicochemical and microbiological analyses with advanced multivariate statistics and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) modeling. The combination of grinding and bioactive compound extraction was associated with improved composting performance under the investigated experimental conditions. All treatments exhibited reduced phytotoxicity, with germination indices exceeding commonly reported thresholds for phytotoxicity assessment. Spearman’s correlation and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) identified composting time and organic matter transformation as the primary drivers of variability, with the first three components explaining over 72% of the total variance. Furthermore, time-series Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) models successfully predicted the evolution of key maturity indicators, such as conductivity, organic matter content, and germination index, with high accuracy using composting time as the sole input. This integrated framework suggests that optimized conditions and predictive modeling can effectively transform winery by-products into stabilized compost, supporting sustainable waste management and circular economy practices in the wine industry.
This study investigated the hydrochemical linkage between rainwater and stream water in an Aleppo pine-dominated Mediterranean karst catchment in Croatia during 2020–2022, focusing on ion sources, seasonal patterns, and processes governing the transformation of atmospheric inputs into stream-water chemistry. Rainwater reflected mixed atmospheric inputs, with sea-salt fractions accounting for 94.8% of Cl− and 97.9% of Mg2+, whereas 97.5% of Ca2+ and 79.2% of K+ originated from non-sea-salt sources. Stream water was substantially more alkaline and mineralised, with a higher pH (8.23 vs. 6.53), electrical conductivity (327 vs. 19.63 µS cm−1) and Ca2+ concentrations (65.08 vs. 6.22 mg L−1). These differences reflect carbonate weathering during subsurface flow, whereby the dissolution of calcite and dolomite releases Ca2+ and Mg2+, increases alkalinity and buffering capacity, and results in approximately tenfold-higher stream-water Ca2+ and Mg2+ concentrations. Seasonal variability was evident, with ion enrichment during low-flow conditions and dilution during wetter periods. Limited synchronous hydrochemical correspondence between rainwater and stream water indicates that atmospheric inputs are modified during catchment transport. Overall, atmospheric deposition provides the initial hydrochemical signal, whereas carbonate weathering, hydrological flow paths, and seasonal biogeochemical processes are the predominant controls on stream-water chemistry.
