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Abstract
This study investigates the resilience of a conifer (Cedrus atlantica), and two deciduous broadleaf forest tree species (Quercus canariensis and Q. afares) to recurrent drought in the Tellian and Saharan Atlas of northern Algeria. The dendrochronological approach was adopted: two cores from opposite sides were collected from each sampled tree at breast height using an increment borer. A master tree-ring chronology was developed for each stand, and the analyses relied on the detrended tree-ring series with an expressed population signal (EPS) threshold ≥ 0.85. The tree resilience analysis was performed using the R package pointRes. The normalization in a moving window and the interval trend methods were applied to identify the pointer years (PYs) registered in each of the developed chronologies. Then, the negative PYs, corresponding to a substantial growth decrease, and assumed to be mainly due to drought, were used to calculate the four following resilience components: resistance, recovery, resilience and recovery period. The resilience components showed substantial variation among and within stands over time, driven by climatic conditions before, during, and after drought events, as well as interspecific differences and local site characteristics such as topography and soil properties. The three cored tree species showed low resistance and resilience, but high recovery potential. Moreover, the most climate-sensitive stands and species exhibited increased resilience over time, potentially reflecting adaptive responses to progressively adverse environmental conditions. These findings offer useful insights to support sustainable forest management under ongoing climate change.
Key words: dendrochronology, resilience indices, Atlas cedar, deciduous oaks, Algeria.
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