Ústav pro hospodářskou úpravu lesů Brandýs nad Labem
Results of the third National Forest Inventory in the Czech Republic (2016-2020)
- Details
The Czech National Forest Inventory has been a source of reliable information about the condition and development of Czech forests since the launch of its first cycle in 2001. As part of the third National Forest Inventory in the Czech Republic (NFI3), the Forest Management Institute (ÚHÚL) conducted data collection between 2016 and 2020. In this period of time, the condition of Czech forests was significantly affected by a bark beetle calamity of unprecedented extent. During the field surveys, sample plots established during the preceding inventory cycle (NFI2, 2011-2015) were visited. The current situation and changes with respect to the previous inventory were registered on these plots.
The first set of NFI3 results captures the situation of Czech forests in terms of their extent and parameters related to their use as a source of wood. The introductory chapter contains information, which is indispensable for proper understanding and interpretation of Czech NFI3 results.
- 1. Forest area
- 2. Growing stock
- 3. Change of growing stock
- 4. Felling
- 5. Gross increment
- 6. Mortality
In the upcoming period of 2023 the spectrum of up-to-date information on Czech forests will be complemented by additional NFI3 results.
Methodology for hunting planning based on the impact of game on the forest
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Game is a natural and inherent part of our forests and landscapes. However, when the numbers of especially cloven-hoofed, herbivorous game are too high, excessive damage to the forest occurs through browsing, bark stripping, gnawing, and other types of damage.
Since 2020, the ÚHÚL has been working on a new methodology for determining the amount of hunting based on the development of the rate of damage to the forest by cloven-hoofed, herbivorous game. According to this new methodology, the minimum level of hunting necessary to gradually achieve game numbers that do not cause more than sustainable damage to the forest and its functions can be calculated.
The prerequisite for the application of the methodology is the existence of continuous monitoring of newly occurring game damage (based on the principle of sampling methods used by the National Forest Inventory in the Czech Republic) and at the same time the availability of reliable data on the hunting carried out and its structure (number of hunted females, males and young). The methodology is not very suitable for small areas where the development of forest damage by game cannot be monitored statistically reliably and simultaneously at reasonable costs. The size of the area should also be sufficient because of the practical impossibility of taking into account in the calculations the migration of game that occurs among areas with different hunting intensities.
