Forests have long been recognized as important sources of ecosystem services (ES), particularly in the Mediterranean Basin, where oak forests are an important component of the landscape. However, the increasing incidence of catastrophic fires may lead to oak forest degradation and a decreased ES supply. In this context, postfire forest restoration can assist in the recovery of ecosystem functions and associated ES, but the performance of postfire restoration is seldom evaluated. In this study, we assessed how postfire restoration with oak afforestation affected the supply of multiple ES and used the observed ES to evaluate restoration effectiveness. We selected 15 postfire afforestation projects with Pyrenean oak (Quercus pyrenaica Willd.) in Portugal, each paired with a control area burned by the same fire but without oak afforestation or other management practices. We compared ES between project and control areas using data on site conditions, stand characteristics, forest biometry, understory vegetation, floristic species diversity, natural regeneration, litter and soil characteristics. Postfire oak afforestation with understory management improved wood provision, overstory carbon storage and fire protection services, but reduced understory and soil organic carbon, while having no apparent effect on floristic diversity, compared to non-afforested control areas. Our study reveals that postfire oak afforestation may have a positive, neutral or negative impact on ES, highlighting the existence of trade-offs due to management choices. Understanding the impact of postfire forest restoration on the supply of ES will contribute to advance restoration efforts and policies.

The construction industry is one of the largest contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions. In response, sustainable construction practices using environmentally friendly, low-impact materials are gaining prominence, in line with recent EU regulations. Among bio‑based materials, cork stands out for its sustainability and versatility. However, public awareness of its potential in construction remains poorly understood. This study presents the results of a public survey (n = 237) conducted across four Portuguese cities located in different regions of the country. We assessed public awareness of cork as a sustainable building material and perceptions of the socioecological importance of cork oak land use systems, while examining how respondents’ demographic factors influence awareness levels. While most respondents (70%) were familiar with common construction materials in Portugal, only 5% identified cork as a potential material for exterior façades. Most respondents (90%) perceived cork as a sustainable material, mainly for environmental reasons. Younger individuals (18−34 years old) consistently exhibited the lowest awareness, whereas older respondents (≥55 years) showed the highest. Regional contrasts were also observed, with Setúbal exhibiting the lowest awareness and Coimbra and Aveiro showing the highest. Our findings highlight a gap in public awareness of cork’s potential for exterior façades and the broader socioecological importance of cork oak land use systems, underscoring the need for targeted communication and education strategies. Although grounded in Portugal, the insights may inform broader initiatives to integrate locally sourced bio‑based materials into sustainable construction strategies and public awareness efforts.

The genus Quercus holds significant ecological and economic value in the Northern Hemisphere Mediterranean-type climate (MTC) regions. However, Quercus species and ecosystems are threatened by decline. Despite the importance of this genus, a comprehensive analysis of the causes of oak decline across these regions is still lacking. This study maps and analyzes research on oak decline in MTC regions, examining causal factors and Quercus species studied, while identifying knowledge gaps and future research priorities. We systematically reviewed 241 peer-reviewed articles on oak decline in MTC regions up to 2022, retrieved from the Web of Science and Scopus databases.Our findings show that scientific articles on oak decline began to be published in 1981 and peaked in 2021. Most studies focused on the Mediterranean Basin, with disparities between Northern Africa and Southern Europe. The most frequently studied species were Quercus suber L. and Quercus ilex L. in the Mediterranean Basin, and Quercus agrifolia Née and Quercus kelloggii Newb. in California, comprising 53% of all species mentioned. Pathogens (48%) and climate factors (17%) were identified as the most researched causes of oak decline. Additionally, multiple interactions between factors were identified, confirming that these combinations potentially exacerbate oak decline. Climate factors were the most frequently found in combination with others. Conversely, pathogens were mostly studied in isolation, reflecting their widely recognized role in oak decline.The study highlights the potential risk of pathogen and pest transference between MTC regions and the critical role of management practices in influencing oak decline in interaction with biotic and abiotic factors.

Forests play a substantial role in generating externalities and supporting services essential for maintaining key ecosystem functions and processes. Fire has long been a natural element of forest dynamics, contributing to model the structure, composition, and diversity of vegetation. However, changes in fire regimes in recent decades in Europe (e.g., more frequent and severe fires) have led to negative ecological, social, and economic impacts, particularly marked by a decline in the provision of ecosystem services. Mediterranean Europe, being a region highly prone to wildfires and currently experiencing a change in fire regimes, exemplifies this situation. In this study, we aim to understand the effects of postfire oak afforestation on the provision of ecosystem services (ES). We analysed 15 afforestation projects with the deciduous Pyrenean oak (Quercus pyrenaica) carried out in 1994-2006 in similar soil type (Cambisols) in the North and Center of Portugal, including seven pure and eight mixed oak stands. For each project area, we identified an adjacent control area affected by the same fire event but without oak afforestation or evident management. In 2021-2022, for each project and control areas, we collected field data on: site conditions, stand characteristics, forest biometry, understory vegetation (height and cover), floristic richness and diversity, oak natural regeneration and litter. At the moment of data collection, the majority of projects (10) were 12 to 17 years old, with the remaining projects (5) having been implemented 21 to 25 years ago. Collected data was used to quantify provisioning ecosystem services (wood volume) and regulation and maintenance services (forest and litter carbon, fire protection, maintenance of nursery populations, habitats, and seed dispersal). Afforested areas supplied more provisioning services (higher wood volume), as a consequence of a higher tree density when compared to non-afforested areas. Total carbon content and litter carbon were not significantly different between afforested and control areas. Nevertheless, afforested and control areas exhibited distinct patterns concerning carbon in the different forest layers: carbon in the tree layer was significantly higher in afforested areas, while carbon in the understory layer was significantly higher in control areas. Afforested areas also showed a significantly higher fire protection service, as a consequence of lower fuel load from regular understory shrub management. Lastly, we found no significant differences in services related to maintenance of nursery populations and habitats (estimated with floristic species and diversity), and seed dispersal (estimated with oak natural regeneration), although afforested areas presented a higher number of oak seedlings. Our study shows that postfire afforestation in oak forests may have a positive, null or negative impact on ES, depending on the service under analysis, highlighting the existence of trade-offs among multiple ES. We emphasize the importance of a comprehensive understanding of the impacts of postfire afforestation on ES to guide postfire management, aiming to enhance forest resilience in the face of predicted climate change.

The Mediterranean is a fire-prone region where fires have occurred for millennia. Since the late nineteenth century, restoration techniques like tree planting have been widely implemented following fire events. However, at soil level, postfire measures have been mostly focused on soil erosion processes. Depending on several factors, fire can cause more or less significant impacts on soils, such as changes in soil structure and in the availability of element concentrations, or loss of organic matter. Understanding fire impacts on soil is not only crucial for developing effective postfire rehabilitation strategies, but also to mitigate the long-term consequences on soil health and ecosystem functioning. In our study, we evaluated the effect of postfire afforestation projects on soil characteristics in the long term. We studied 15 afforestation projects implemented in North-Centre Portugal in the period 1994-2006, in deciduous oak stands dominated by Quercus pyrenaica (including seven projects with pure oak stands and eight projects with mixed oak stands). For each project, we established a sampling plot and selected a nearby control area, affected by the same fire event but without oak afforestation or evident management. Fieldwork was conducted in 2021, when most projects (10) were between 12 and 17 years old, while the remaining projects (5) had been implemented between 21 and 25 years ago. One composite sample of superficial soil (0-5 cm of depth) was collected per plot, performing 15 soil samples in project areas and 15 samples in control areas. Each soil sample was characterized physicochemically for: proportion of fine/coarse fraction; pH(H2O); organic Carbon (Corg); total N content; and available nutrients concentration. Posteriorly, we calculated two proxy variables: Soil Quality Index (SQI), which allows to evaluate the overall soil health condition; and the C/N ratio, as an indicator of organic matter mineralization process. For both afforested and control areas, soils (mostly classified as Cambisols) presented pH values of approximately 5 (slight acidity), fine particles (< 2 mm) averaged between 67% and 69%, and no trace elements of enrichment. Soils from afforestation plots displayed higher K concentrations, while soils from control plots exhibited higher fertility levels based on Corg, N, and available P. No significant differences were observed in C/N ratios between afforested and non-afforested areas (14.9 vs 16.6), which indicates a relatively fast decomposition and N mineralization. Similarly, no significant differences were observed in the SQI. The lower Corg contents of afforested soils can be attributed to soil management (soil mobilization and management of the understory), which can contribute to the degradation of organic matter when the ecosystem is sensible due to the fire perturbation. Soil mobilization with disc harrowing was the predominant technique (40%). Further research should focus on understanding the effects of different postfire management options on soil properties over time, including in areas without evident enrichment/contamination problems, to improve postfire soil rehabilitation and sustainable forest management. Acknowledgment: This research was supported by UID/AGR/04129/2020, UID/BIA/50027/2019, PD/BD/142963/2018 and PD/00157/2012.

Understanding plant species interactions, including facilitation and competition, is fundamental to improve the success of woody seedling establishment. This is particularly important for the restoration of sclerophyllous oak forests, one of the main forest types in Mediterranean Europe currently facing a severe lack of oak natural regeneration. However, the effects of shrub communities dominated by different species and diverse shrub communities on the establishment of Mediterranean oaks remains poorly understood. We conducted a 3-year experimental study in cork oak (Quercus suber L.) woodlands in Portugal to assess the effects of species dominance and diversity of the shrub community and associated abiotic resources on cork oak seedling emergence and survival. We hypothesized that the emergence and survival vary with the identity of the dominant shrub, due to distinct shrub functional traits affecting understory abiotic conditions. Additionally, we predict that the survival of seedlings increases with shrub diversity, driven by net facilitation processes. We sowed 960 cork oak acorns across five replicated microhabitats: four with distinct shrub species dominance and diversity and one without shrub cover. We used Bayesian statistics to model cork oak seedling emergence and survival as a function of microhabitat type and abiotic variables (soil water and temperature, soil characteristics and leaf area index). Seedling emergence and survival varied with species dominance and diversity of the shrub microhabitat. The highest survival was observed in microhabitats characterized by higher shrub diversity, and the lowest survival in microhabitats dominated by Cistus ladanifer. Maximum soil temperature was associated with higher emergence but lower survival in open conditions or areas with sparser shrub cover. Water logging constrained emergence and survival, but higher soil potassium was associated with higher survival, for all microhabitats. Our study shows that interactions between cork oak seedlings and their shrub neighbors are species and community dependent, and that a more diverse shrub composition improves cork oak seedling survival, likely due to distinct shrub traits that ameliorate the physical environment and promote facilitation. Management and restoration of Mediterranean sclerophyllous oak forests need to consider the specificity and diversity of the understory plant community, as well as the different stages of oak early life-cycle, to identify the most favorable conditions for oak establishment. This becomes particularly important under more frequent climatic extremes predicted for Mediterranean Europe.

Os terrenos comunitários portugueses - baldios, têm uma história centenária. Desde os seus primórdios, as populações rurais locais usaram estes terrenos para garantir a sua subsistência, o que implicou uma alteração progressiva da paisagem através da utilização de florestas, campos agrícolas, e pastagens. Assim, foram-se desenvolvendo as vertentes económicas e sociais locais que no presente caracterizam os baldios. Estes territórios passaram por diversos regimes de gestão e governança e a sua maior parte foi arborizada no século passado. Atualmente, são estruturas, em que os proprietários, i.e., compartes, estão organizados em assembleias onde todos os compartes têm assento, e podem optar por diferentes formas de gestão dos baldios. Num contexto de desafios e de necessidade de informação sobre a situação atual dos terrenos baldios, realizou-se um simpósio sobre a gestão das áreas florestais comunitárias/baldios, no âmbito do 9° Congresso Florestal Nacional que decorreu na Madeira em 2022. Este artigo reúne as principais visões acerca do tema apresentadas no evento, e lista possíveis passos para melhorar a governança e valorização dos baldios portugueses.

While the Mediterranean basin is foreseen to be highly affected by climate change (CC) and severe forest fires are expected to be more frequent, international efforts to fight against CC do not consider forest fires’ greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions risk and the possibility of its mitigation. This is partly due to a lack of a methodology for GHG risk spatial assessment and consideration of the high value of carbon stocks in forest ecosystems and their intrinsic risk. To revert this, an innovative GHG emission risk model has been developed and implemented in a pilot forest area. This model considers geospatial variables to build up emission vulnerability based on potential fire severity and resistance of a landscape, value at risk and the hazard of a fire occurrence. The results classify low, moderate and high emission risks in the analysed areas. This identification of hotspots allows the prioritisation of fire prevention measures in a region to maximise the reduction of GHG emissions in the case of a fire event. This constitutes the first step in a holistic and consistent CC mitigation that not only considers anthropic GHG sources but also possible GHG emissions by forest fires that can be actively prevented, managed and reduced.

The analysis is based on a dataset of post-fire restoration interventions conducted on deciduous oak forests in Portugal between 2017 and 2018. The dataset includes data on 1314 restored sites and on 1699 control sites. We used a Generalized Additive Mixed Model (GAMM) to analyse how vegetation indices such as NDVI and MSAVI changed over time as a function of post-fire restoration and topography and climate variables.

Fuel management for wildfire risk prevention generally lacks economic sustainability. In marginal areas of southern Europe, this limits fuel treatment programs from reaching the critical mass of required treated area to modify landscape flammability, the fire regime and its impacts. This study investigates key fuel management initiatives for wildfire risk prevention in southern EU countries. We compared local approaches through a bottom-up selection of 38 initiatives, which we analyzed systematically through a set of fire-smart criteria: sustainability, cost-benefit ratio, synergies and inter-sectoral cooperation, integration between strategic prevention planning and multiple land governance goals (e.g., rural development, biodiversity conservation, energy supply), innovation and knowledge transfer, and adaptive management. We summarized lessons learned from the most innovative initiatives, by identifying solutions and functional approaches for building sustainable fuel management at the landscape scale, under fire-smart management principles. These make synergistic use of private, public and European resources to activate value chains that valorize the products, by-products and services generated by fuel management activities and their positive externalities on ecosystem services. The multiple mechanisms include fire-marketing, Payment for Ecosystem Services schemes, specific taxes, or environmental compensatory measures. These mechanisms catalyze the interest of multiple stakeholders (economic actors, private owners, land and fire management agencies) improving the cost-efficiency of landscape fuel management. We contend that the EU Green Deal offers the political backing and framework (mainstreaming of EU strategies and funding opportunities) to enable the replication of documented fire-smart models and functional approaches to wildfire risk prevention.

In the last decades, fire regimes in Europe have changed toward an increased occurrence of extreme fire events with large burned areas and associated impacts. Portugal is one of the countries most affected by wildfires, with extraordinary negative impacts. Postfire emergency stabilization is an important restoration practice to mitigate fire impacts in the short term. The present study aims to improve understanding of how public funding processes affect the efficiency of postfire emergency stabilization in Portugal. We analyzed the process of public funding for postfire emergency stabilization in 2009–2018 using data from public reports assessing the needs for interventions (147), open calls resulting from those reports (12), and implementation projects subsidized by the calls (517). Our results show that available funding through calls for postfire emergency stabilization responded to the needs assessed by previous reports, but there was no available funding (reports and calls) for many (37%) of the large burned areas (>1,000 ha) in 2009–2018. Furthermore, the effectiveness of public funding for postfire emergency stabilization in Portugal is limited by the financial model, lack of eligibility of relevant treatments, the constant change of calls criteria, and slow decision‐making and execution that exceeds the optimal timeframe. As a consequence, implementation of postfire emergency stabilization within an optimal timeframe is halted by insufficient financial capacity of private beneficiaries. We discuss effective funding mechanisms from other countries and suggest improvements for the funding process in Portugal.

Forest fires are increasing their recurrence, intensity and scale in Portugal, increasing also the vulnerability of this region of Southwestern Europe to the impacts of the climate change. In Portugal, several studies have been focusing the dynamic of cork oak forest after fires from tree level to landscape level. However few information is available about the impact of wildfires in the soil quality, namely C stock, and its evolution. This component of the ecosystem and the evolution of its characteristics can be related with the dynamics of the landscape in the post-fire period and its knowledge can help in the management and rehabilitation of plant-soil system. Serra do Caldeirão is located in Algarve region (S of Portugal). The soils are classified as Leptosols with low fertility. The landscape is characterized by cork oak forests with shrub cover which is dominated by Cistus species. To assess the distribution of total organic C in the study area, several soil sampling were intersected, on two sampling dates (2012 and 2013), with the vector information of the burned area in 2004. This information was intended to assess the temporal evolution of C concentration, depending on its location in a burnt or non-burnt area. In general, the burnt areas showed greater variability of C concentrations in soils collected in both the years, with maximum values ​​of 33.0 g/kg for 2012 and 36.5 g/kg for 2013. These maximum values ​​exceed those obtained for soils in non-burnt areas. Despite of this scenario, and independently of the year, no statistically significant differences were found in the C concentrations of the burnt plots and the control plots. For other chemical characteristics (e.g. nutrients), the variations depended on the area. Implementation of post-fire recovery measures and forest management of the areas can justify this variation. Acknowledgment: This work is co-financed by project REMAS (SOE3/P4/E0954) from Interreg SUDOE 2014-2020 program and is also financed by the FEDER Funds through the Operational Competitiveness Factors Program - COMPETE and by National Funds through FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology within the scope of the project UID/AGR/04129/2020 (LEAF) and the project UID/BIA/50027/2019 (CEABN/InBIO).

Agricultural intensification and abandonment of traditional uses have led to the degradation of Mediterranean oak landscapes, most apparent in a severe lack of tree regeneration. In the Alentejo region of Southwestern Portugal the landscape mosaic is composed of three prevalent land cover types: cork oak forests, open cork oak woodlands (montados) and shrublands dominated by Cistus ladanifer. The objective of this study is to understand how natural tree regeneration differs among these three land cover types and how stand characteristics and site conditions affect regeneration at each land cover type. We collected data on stand characteristics (adult tree layer), site conditions (topography, soil conditions, understory vegetation and light conditions) and tree regeneration (species composition, density, size structure), and analysed differences among the three land cover types. An information-theoretic approach and model averaging were applied to a set of generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) to identify stand characteristics and site conditions that best explain regeneration occurrence of cork oak (Quercus suber) and strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) at each land cover type. Our results show that regeneration failure was widespread at all land cover types, being strongest in shrublands. Regeneration density was higher in forests than in montados, and marginal in shrublands. Differences in regeneration patterns among land cover types seem to be related to differential processes of seed availability, seed dispersal and the availability of safe sites for recruit establishment, which are affected by vegetation cover and (past) land use practices. Cork oak regeneration was more likely to occur at steeper slopes in both forests and montados, with lower soil fertility and higher available water storage capacity in forests, and with higher proportion of ground cover in montados. In shrublands, cork oak regeneration was more likely to occur with higher soil fertility and rock content, and with less solar radiation. Regeneration of strawberry tree in forests was more likely to occur with lower available water storage capacity, and with the presence of adult strawberry trees, while in shrublands it was more likely to occur at flatter slopes. Overall, our results indicate that differences in cork oak and strawberry tree regeneration within land cover types seem to be a result of indirect effects of stand and site factors on competition and facilitation between tree recruits and coexisting plants. This study provides recommendations that can support sustainable management and restoration efforts in Mediterranean oak landscapes.

Although forest areas have been growing in Europe, some forest types have been declining regionally. Since the 1980 s, there have been reports of defoliation and mortality in evergreen oak woodlands of the Iberian Peninsula. However, long-term and large-scale trends of Iberian oak decline are still poorly understood. We quantified trends in canopy cover for cork oak (Quercus suber) and holm oak (Q. rotundifolia) woodlands in mainland Portugal for a 50 year period (1965 to 2015). We considered loss of canopy cover a proxy of forest degradation and asked how it changed over time, in association with human activity and climate. Between 1965 and 2015, both cork oak and holm oak canopy cover showed declining trends (57.9% and 71.1% of sampling points, respectively). Canopy cover dynamics, however, differed across time. Between 1965 and 1990, canopy cover gains (over 35% of sampling points) prevailed over losses (under 20%), with larger differences for cork oak than holm oak. Between 1990 and 2015, canopy cover losses (over 70% of sampling points) were much higher than gains (under 9%). Oak canopy cover decrease was associated with flatter areas (usually having more intensive land use) for both oak species, higher cattle numbers (holm oak only) and higher mean temperature (cork oak only). Contrastingly, loss of holm oak canopy cover seems to have occurred in less hot and dry regions that enable more intensive land uses. Active restoration is urgently needed to reverse the current decline in canopy cover in Mediterranean evergreen oak woodlands.

Iberian oak forests and woodlands are vital providing a variety of ecosystem services. They provide raw materials like cork, wood and fuel, and fodder (acorns) for wild and domestic animals. Oak trees provide a climate regulating service by their capacity to sequester carbon and therefore to mitigate the effects of climatic change. There is an increasing demand for cultural services provided by oak woodlands, mainly for recreation and ecotourism. However, some global-change drivers are negatively affecting oak forests, therefore diminishing their ecosystem services and in consequence undermining human well-being. The main drivers affecting Iberian oaks are: land use changes, introduction of exotic pathogens, air and soil pollution deteriorating oak health, and climatic change, in particular the combined reduction of rainfall and the rise in temperature. In this chapter we focus on the ecology of Iberian oaks and how they are affected by global change. Firstly, we introduce a literature overview of the research conducted on Quercus, analysed by species, countries and topics. Secondly, we review the main biological processes related with the oak responses to global change: i) genetic diversity, climatic refuges and adaptation to climatic change; ii) ecophysiological responses to stress and disturbance, functional diversity, growth patterns, and scaling up from leaf to ecosystem; iii) demographic responses, causes of regeneration failures, spatial patterns of recruitment, drivers of decline and dieback. Thirdly, we review the management strategies in three case studies: the agro-silvo-pastoral systems (dehesas and montados), the cork oak woodlands, and the afforestation of a polluted-land for phytostabilization of contaminants.

The Mediterranean region is projected to be extremely vulnerable to global change, which will affect the distribution of typical forest types such as native oak forests. However, our understanding of Mediterranean oak forest responses to future conditions is still very limited by the lack of knowledge on oak forest dynamics and species-specific responses to multiple drivers. We compared the long-term (1966-2006) forest persistence and land cover change among evergreen (cork oak and holm oak) and deciduous oak forests and evaluated the importance of anthropogenic and environmental drivers on observed changes for Portugal. We used National Forest Inventories to quantify the changes in oak forests and explored the drivers of change using multinomial logistic regression analysis and an information theoretical approach. We found distinct trends among oak forest types, reflecting the differences in oak economic value, protection status and management schemes: cork oak forests were the most persistent (62%), changing mostly to pines and eucalypt; holm oak forests were less persistent (53.2%), changing mostly to agriculture; and deciduous oak forests were the least persistent (45.7%), changing mostly to shrublands. Drivers of change had distinct importance across oak forest types, but drivers from anthropogenic origin (wildfires, population density, and land accessibility) were always among the most important. Climatic extremes were also important predictors of oak forest changes, namely extreme temperatures for evergreen oak forests and deficit of precipitation for deciduous oak forests. Our results indicate that under increasing human pressure and forecasted climate change, evergreen oak forests will continue declining and deciduous oak forests will be replaced by forests dominated by more xeric species. In the long run, multiple disturbances may change competitive dominance from oak forests to pyrophytic shrublands. A better understanding of forest dynamics and the inclusion of anthropogenic drivers on models of vegetation change will improve predicting the future of Mediterranean oak forests.

Drought is a natural hazard that can cause a wide range of impacts affecting the environment, society, and the economy. Providing an impact assessment and reducing vulnerability to these impacts for regions beyond the local scale, spanning political and sectoral boundaries, requires systematic and detailed data regarding impacts. This study presents an assessment of the diversity of drought impacts across Europe based on the European Drought Impact report Inventory (EDII), a unique research database that has collected close to 5000 impact reports from 33 European countries. The reported drought impacts were classified into major impact categories, each of which had a number of subtypes. The distribution of these categories and types was then analyzed over time, by country, across Europe and for particular drought events. The results show that impacts on agriculture and public water supply dominate the collection of drought impact reports for most countries and for all major drought events since the 1970s, while the number and relative fractions of reported impacts in other sectors can vary regionally and from event to event. The analysis also shows that reported impacts have increased over time as more media and website information has become available and environmental awareness has increased. Even though the distribution of impact categories is relatively consistent across Europe, the details of the reports show some differences. They confirm severe impacts in southern regions (particularly on agriculture and public water supply) and sector-specific impacts in central and northern regions (e.g., on forestry or energy production). The protocol developed thus enabled a new and more comprehensive view on drought impacts across Europe. Related studies have already developed statistical techniques to evaluate the link between drought indices and the categorized impacts using EDII data. The EDII is a living database and is a promising source for further research on drought impacts, vulnerabilities, and risks across Europe. A key result is the extensive variety of impacts found across Europe and its documentation. This insight can therefore inform drought policy planning at national to international levels.

Context Loss of woodlands and degradation of vegetation and soil have been described for all Mediterranean-type ecosystems worldwide. In the Western Iberian Peninsula, overexploitation of evergreen cork oak land use systems has led to soil erosion, failures in oak recruitment, and loss of forests. Degraded and dry sites are quickly colonised by pioneer heathland rockrose ( Cistus spp.) shrubs forming highly persistent patches. Aims Although traditionally shrublands have been considered as a transient successional state, we present evidence that they can represent persistent alternative states to former cork oak forests. Review trends and conclusions We first describe how Mediterranean vegetation evolved in the Iberian Peninsula and the role of fire and long-term human management as main disturbances. We then discuss alternative pathways through state-and-transition models indicating the ecological and land use variables that halt cork oak regeneration and recruitment and drive vegetation transitions towards persistent shrublands. Unless concerted management actions and restoration programmes are undertaken, the cork oak land use systems will not be sustainable.