MONTADO
WHAT IS IT?
Montado (or dehesa in Spanish) is a unique agro-sylvo-pastoral ecosystem found exclusively in the Mediterranean basin.
In Portugal, this savannah-like landscape exists in the Alentejo region, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula.
Montado is a distinctive ecosystem because it maintains a delicate balance between biodiversity conservation and agricultural and forestry productivity. This reveals the intimate relationship between people and the natural landscape, shaped by centuries of landscape management.
CHARACTERIZATION OF THE LANDSCAPE
Montado is dominated by Cork oak (Quercus suber) and holm oak (Quercus rotundifolia).
The understory ranges from shrublands to pasture for livestock and cereal crops.
PLATFORM STRUCTURE
The LTsER Montado platform represents the Alentejo region, where the montado is present, in the sense of cultural, land-use, historical, natural, administrational and economic units, comprising all relevant agents.
Three monitoring sites were chosen because they allow for a socio-economic platform representing different types of soils, climate, land-use regimes and desertification scenarios, each involving different pressures and challenges.
WHY THE MONTADO?
NATURAL VALUE AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION
Cork oak and holm oak montados grow in areas with low rainfall - limited to short periods of the year - and large temperatures swings. Because of its requirements and fragility, the ecosystem needs legal protection (Decreto-Lei n.º 11/97). In Portugal, cutting down the montado is prohibited, and sustainable use is encouraged instead.
Montado has a great ecological complexity. Its associated fauna and flora include endemic and rare species.
SOCIO-ECONOMIC VALUE
These multifunctional forests combine, in a single space, forest resources, livestock, pasture and/or crops, alongside other activities and land uses (e.g. hunting activity).
Awareness of montado's benefits as a provider of ecosystem services, including biodiversity, has grown in recent years. However, its ecological and cultural functions are still often undervalued, as they are perceived to compete with productive functions.
When properly managed, montado is highly valued for maintaining balance in rural areas, making its protection essential. Beyond its environmental importance, one of its most valuable products is cork, which has significant economic value.
THREATS TO THE SYSTEM
The future of the montado is threatened by:
-
Desertification driven by climate change and related effects (rising temperatures, drought, intense short-time rainfall) and more frequent fires;
-
Oak tree pests and diseases;
-
Overgrazing;
-
Agricultural intensification;
-
Environmental degradation;
-
Incorrect and excessive exploitation.
The variability of this ecosystem leads to different soil-climate interactions, dominant tree species, and land-use patterns and depends on human activity.
RESEARCH
WHAT KIND OF RESEARCH HAPPENS IN THE MONTADO, AND HOW
Southern Mediterranean systems are underrepresented in the LTER network and, before the LTsER Montado platform, none represented the montado ecosystem specifically.
Across the LTsER Montado sites, eLTER Standard Observations (SO) are measured to characterise the state and future trends of the system. Below are some of the abiotic and abiotic SO:
-
Meteorological data;
-
Radiation;
-
CO2 and H2O fluxes;
-
Physical and chemical water characteristics;
-
Soil temperature and water content;
-
Vegetation aboveground biomass;
-
Vegetation composition;
-
Land cover, land-use (statistics) and land use actors;
-
Birds, bats, frogs, insects using acoustic recording;
-
eDNA;
-
Land-based income;
-
Livestock;
-
Ecosystem services profile;
-
Others.
LTER research at these sites aims to build a better understanding of the long-term effects of land-use practices and management choices, and how these interact with environmental and socio-economic factors.
These interactions are studied at both local scales (e.g., agricultural intensification, livestock pressure) and global scales (e.g., climate change, desertification).
(+351) 217 500 439 (chamada para a rede fixa nacional)
Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa
Edifício C4, 1º Piso, Sala 4.1.32
1749-016 Lisboa
Siga-nos nas redes sociais
PORBIOTA - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-022127, Co-financiado pelo POCI (COMPETE 2020) através do Portugal 2020 e do Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional (FEDER)