Temperate and submediterranean thermophilous deciduous woodland

These thermophilous broadleaved deciduous woodlands form a wide, but interrupted, belt across the submediterranean zone of Europe, with milder winters and warmer drought-prone summers than sustain the broadleaved temperate woodlands, but colder, intermittently frosty and snowy winters than are typical for the evergreen broadleaved woodlands and scrub of the Mediterranean. To the north, they tend to occupy lower altitude, drier and warmer sites, to the south, rainier sites at higher altitudes, but the relief and parent materials differ widely across the range and the weakly base-rich to moderately acidic soils are of varied types. The canopy, rarely very tall, is dominated by thermophilous and drought-resistant deciduous (and some evergreen) trees, among which oaks are the commonest contributors to an upper tier. Quercus petraea and Q. robur remain important in the sub-Continental thermophilous woodlands of the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine and the northern Balkans but, across much of the range through France, northern Spain, Switzerland, northern Italy, the Pannonian Basin, around the Adriatic and in Greece, Q. pubescens is the leading oak, with Q. cerris and Q. frainetto becoming important from Italy eastwards. Q. dalechampii, Q. polycarpa and Q. virgiliana are common associates, with Q. trojana in the Balkans. In the Iberian Peninsula, Q. pyrenaica, Q. faginea ssp. faginea, Q. faginea ssp. broteroi and Q. canariensis replace these oaks as dominants. In less modified stands there is a second tier of trees with, across much of the range, Sorbus torminalis, S. domestica, S. aria, Ulmus minor, Acer campestre, A. monspessulanum and Pyrus pyraster, with Fraxinus ornus, Ostrya carpinifolia and Carpinus orientalis commoner in the south-eastern regions, Acer tataricum and Tilia tomentosa mainly in the more Continental east. The light shade cast by the oaks and thinning of the canopy characteristically permit a dense shrub layer among which Cornus mas, Viburnum lantana, Ligustrum vulgare, Ruscus aculeatus, Crataegus monogyna, Prunus spinosa and Cotinus coggygria are frequent along with more mesic shrubs like Corylus avellana, Cornus sanguinea and Euonymus europaeus. To the west, Buxus sempervirens and Rubus ulmifolius occur, to the southeast Paliurus spina-christi, Hippocrepis emerus, Pistacia mutica and Juniperus excelsa and, in the warmer south, evergreen Mediterranean species such as Phillyrea latifolia, Arbutus unedo, Pistacia lentiscus, P. terebinthus, Viburnum tinus and Erica arborea. Lianas are common with Clematis vitalba, Lonicera caprifolium, L. etrusca, Tamus communis, Rubia peregrina and Hedera helix the most consistent species throughout. The herb layer is rich with sub-Mediterranean species making a prominent contribution: Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum, Lathyrus venetus, Melittis melissophyllum, Tanacetum corymbosum, Silene coronaria, Potentilla micrantha, Vincetoxicum hirundinaria, Physospermum cornubiense, Hellebrous odorus, H. foetidus, Mercurialis ovata and Viola hirta are characteristic through much of the range, with many other species occurring in particular regional types.

Indicators of quality:

• Natural composition of canopy
• Structural diversity/complexity with (semi)natural age structure or completeness of layers
• Typical flora and fauna composition of the region
• Presence of old trees and a variety of dead wood (lying or standing) and the associated flora, fauna and fungi
• Presence of natural disturbance such as treefall openings with natural regeneration
• Long historical continuity (ancient woodland) with high species diversity
• Survival of larger stands of forest without anthropogenic fragmentation and isolation (to support fauna which needs large undisturbed forests)
• Absence of non-native species in all layers (flora & fauna)
• No signs of eutrophication or pollution
• No man-induced very high population levels of ungulates

Synthesis of Red List assessment

Confidence in the assessment

Pressures and threats