PuRpOsE: PRotecting Oak Ecosystems: understanding and forecasting causes and consequences, management for future climates

橡树是英国和欧洲大部分地区的标志性树木。我们的两种本地橡树是公众认可的物种，具有相当大的文化、经济和生物多样性价值。事实上，我们还没有知识来了解橡树的健康威胁，或者为更广泛的利益攸关方和公众可能的反应做好准备。有梗和无梗的橡树在英国很普遍。最近，在英国发现的非本地入侵病原体和害虫有所增加，并对许多树种造成损害和/或死亡。橡树面临着几种新的害虫和疾病的威胁，包括橡树过程蛾(OPM)和橡树急性衰退(AOD)。对于其中的一些，我们还不知道它们是如何导致橡树健康下降的，而且通常除了卫生砍伐外，目前没有其他治疗方法。因此，我们迫切需要确定为什么树木变得更容易受到病虫害的影响，并制定有助于降低橡树易感性的管理方法。树木健康的下降和橡树的潜在损失或衰退将对使用橡树和/或橡木的植物、动物和人类产生影响。因此，我们需要评估橡树病虫害对更广泛环境的影响，以及我们如何减轻这些影响。PuRpOsE是一个研究项目，旨在通过了解和预测原因和后果，以及对未来气候预测的适应管理来保护橡树生态系统。我们了解害虫、疾病、环境和人类之间相互作用的工作是由一群世界领先的科学家领导的，他们将解决这些问题。我们工作的重点之一是AOD，但这项研究的结果将为其他疾病和害虫的方法提供有价值的验证，如OPM。我们的工作将增加我们对橡树衰退原因(特别是AOD)的理解，并确定AOD感染带来的生理和其他表型变化及其对根际相关群落的影响。我们将制作风险地图和压力地图，以确定橡树分别面临AOD和其他病虫害风险最大的气候/土壤区域。我们将在预测的未来气候范围内进行地平线扫描，以确定对橡树健康的潜在新威胁、风险标准和管理选择。结合风险图、压力图和水平扫描的知识，我们将评估森林管理如何减少橡树的衰退。缓解气候变化可能需要替代种植。在目的范围内，我们评估了在生物多样性和生态系统功能以及与橡树林地相关的服务方面可以取代橡树在景观中的功能的树种。根据这项研究的结果，我们将确定适应战略，以减少对生物多样性和生态系统服务(如碳储存和水质)的影响，让利益相关者参与开发动态适应路径，以管理和娱乐因橡树丧失而造成的影响。支撑所有这些工作的是一个强有力的团队承诺，致力于在自然科学和社会科学之间进行合作，以了解涉及害虫和病原体、宿主、环境和人类的树木健康问题。该项目旨在开发一种共同语言，为参与树木健康政策监管、贸易和森林政策和实践的决策者提供更好的知识和对本土橡树健康威胁的了解，并将其纳入到预测的未来气候中。

Oaks are iconic trees in the UK and throughout much of Europe. Our two native oaks are species that members of the public recognise and which have considerable cultural, economic and biodiversity value. Indeed, we do not yet have the knowledge to understand health threats to oak or prepare for the likely reactions of wider stakeholders and the public. Pedunculate and sessile oak are widespread in the UK. Recently there has been an increase in non-native invasive pathogens and pests establishing in the UK and causing damage and/or death to many tree species. Oaks are under threat from several new pests and diseases, including Oak Processionary Moth (OPM) and Acute Oak Decline (AOD). For some of these, we do not yet understand how they cause decline in oak health and often there is no current treatment other than sanitation felling. We therefore urgently need to identify why trees are becoming more susceptible to pests and diseases and to develop management methods that would help reduce oak susceptibility. A decline in tree health and the potential loss or decline of oaks will have impacts on the plants, animals and humans that use oak trees and/or oak woods. Thus we need to assess the impacts of oak pests and diseases on the wider environment and how we can mitigate the impacts.PuRpOsE is a research project to PRotect Oak Ecosystems through understanding and forecasting causes and consequences, and adaptation management for future climate projections. Our work to understand interactions between pests, diseases, environments and humans is led by a group of world-leading scientists who will address these issues. One focus of our work is AOD, but the outcomes of this study will provide valuable validation of approaches to other diseases and pests, such as OPM. Our work will increase our understanding of the causes of oak decline (particularly AOD) and determine the physiological and other phenotypic changes brought on by AOD infections and their impact on associated communities in the rhizosphere. We will produce risk maps and stress maps to identify climatic/soil regions where oaks are most at risk from AOD and from other pests and diseases, respectively. We will conduct a horizon scanning exercise, framed within the context of projected future climates, to identify potential new threats to oak health, the risk criteria and management options. Combining knowledge from risk mapping, stress mapping and horizon scanning, we will assess how forest management can reduce oak decline. Mitigation might necessitate replacement planting. Within PuRpOsE we assess tree species that could replace the function oaks have in the landscape in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem functions and the services associated with oak woodlands. Armed with the outputs of this research, we will identify adaptation strategies to reduce the impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services such as carbon storage and water quality, engaging stakeholders in developing dynamic adaptive pathways for management and recreation from the loss of oak. Underpinning all of this work is a strong team commitment to working collaboratively across the natural and social sciences to understand tree health issues as involving pests and pathogens, hosts, environments and humans. The project aims to develop a common language to provide improved knowledge and understanding of health threats to native oaks, now and into the projected climate futures to decision-makers involved in tree health policy regulation, trade and forest policy and practice.