What does it take to understand how climate change and biodiversity loss interact across European forests?
As part of Trees4Adapt’s whole-ecosystem surveys in the TreeDivNet and FunDivEUROPE research platforms, researchers are collecting ecological and microclimate data across some of Europe’s most important long-term forest experiments. The work spans boreal, temperate and Mediterranean forests and will help the project understand how tree diversity influences biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and resilience under changing environmental conditions.
During summer 2026, David De Knop (Ghent University) travelled across Europe to carry out field surveys at multiple research sites. We asked David to share a few notes from the field.
Field notes from summer 2026, by David De Knop:
20,000 km. 99 days. 7 countries. One unforgettable fieldwork campaign.
From France to Italy, via Germany, Belgium, Romania, Poland, eastern Finland and finally western Finland, we spent the summer travelling across Europe to collect biodiversity, soil and microclimate data from long-term forest diversity experiments belonging to the TreeDivNet and FunDivEUROPE networks.
The journey started in south-west France at the Orphée experiment, part of TreeDivNet, where Hervé Jactel and his team welcomed us to the first site of the campaign.
It proved to be a good warm-up before heading to Italy, where the Colline Metallifere study area, part of FunDivEUROPE, offered a glimpse into Mediterranean forest ecosystems where the plots were not always easy to reach. With Federico Bussotti and his team, we managed to conquer “the iron hills”.
From there, the campaign continued to Germany and the BioTree experiment, part of TreeDivNet and established by Michael Scherer-Lorenzen and his team.
Belgium was the next stop, where we surveyed Kris Verheyen’s Forbio experiment, another key TreeDivNet site.
Further east, fieldwork continued in Romania, which was by far the most challenging stop. The plots were high up in the hills, the weather was not on our side, and some of the paths had turned into rivers. But with the help of Olivier Bouriaud and his team, we managed to complete the work and even spotted countless beautiful fire salamanders along the way.
The campaign then continued through Poland, where we surveyed the plots in Białowieża Forest, part of FunDivEUROPE. Thanks to Bogdan Jaroszewicz‘s impressive plant knowledge, the work progressed more smoothly than expected. One of the plots even came with a surprise visit from European bison.
From there, the journey continued north to Finland. At the North Karelia site, part of FunDivEUROPE, Timo Domisch’s help and good spirits made the days in the field much easier. We completed all the plots, despite being never truly alone accompanied by countless mosquitoes.
The final stop of the campaign took us to the Satakunta experiment, part of TreeDivNet, where Julia Koricheva and her team helped us complete the last sprint of fieldwork.
After 99 days, it was finally time to head home. Tired, muddy, bitten by mosquitoes and ticks, but incredibly satisfied.
By the end of the campaign:
🌲 More than 10,000 plant observations
🌲1,000 soil samples collected
🌲 600 sensors installed
🌲 600 pitfall traps deployed
🌲 200 eDNA samples
🌲 20 000 km travelled
A huge thanks to Hervé, Federico, Michael, Kris, Olivier, Bogdan, Timo and Julia, and to all their teams for their help and hospitality along the way.
Now it is time to process the data and see what these 99 days in European forests have brought us…
The information gathered this summer will contribute directly to Trees4Adapt’s research on the links between climate change, biodiversity and forest resilience, helping build the evidence needed to support future climate adaptation strategies across Europe.