Response of woody vegetation to bush thinning on freehold farmlands in north-central Namibia.

Bush encroachment affects much of the Namibian woodland landscape, causing significant loss of open savannah habitat and farm profits. Thinning of the trees/shrubs is recommended; however, research is required to identify the overall efficacy and effects of this method on the woodland habitat. We aimed to examine the effect of the thinning strategy applied on the vegetation structure of encroaching tree/shrub species, as well as the sighting lines of the habitat. Vegetation surveys were done on three freehold farms in north-central Namibia. The study utilised a combination of a blocked and split-plot study design: each block consisted of a pair of thinned and non-thinned plots with multiple subplots. Thinned plots had been manually thinned, with a post-thinning age of three years or more. Results revealed that tree/shrub abundance differed between species; thinned areas had the least abundance and overall species-treatment interactions were significant. Thinning caused a significant reduction in overall tree/shrub densities, settling within the recommended range for the area. Thinning also significantly reduced the average tree/shrub height, canopy area, medium-sized trees/shrubs, and increased sighting lines. This confirms a bush encroachment mitigation strategy that favours grass cover, and wildlife that rely on longer sighting lines for safety or when hunting.

Mixed-effect Bayesian network reveals personal effects of nutrition.

Nutrition experts know by their experience that people can react very differently to the same nutrition. If we could systematically quantify these differences, it would enable more personal dietary understanding and guidance. This work proposes a mixed-effect Bayesian network as a method for modeling the multivariate system of nutrition effects. Estimation of this network reveals a system of both population-wide and personal correlations between nutrients and their biological responses. Fully Bayesian estimation in the method allows managing the uncertainty in parameters and incorporating the existing nutritional knowledge into the model. The method is evaluated by modeling data from a dietary intervention study, called Sysdimet, which contains personal observations from food records and the corresponding fasting concentrations of blood cholesterol, glucose, and insulin. The model's usefulness in nutritional guidance is evaluated by predicting personally if a given diet increases or decreases future levels of concentrations. The proposed method is shown to be comparable with the well-performing Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) decision tree method in classifying the directions of concentration increases and decreases. In addition to classification, we can also predict the precise concentration level and use the biologically interpretable model parameters to understand what personal effects contribute to the concentration. We found considerable personal differences in the contributing nutrients, and while these nutritional effects are previously known at a population level, recognizing their personal differences would result in more accurate estimates and more effective nutritional guidance.

Accumulation of phenolics and growth of dioecious Populus tremula (L.) seedlings over three growing seasons under elevated temperature and UVB radiation.

Accumulation of secondary metabolites may exhibit developmentally regulated variation in different plant organs. Moreover, prevailing environmental conditions may interact with development-related variations in plant traits. In this study, we examined developmentally regulated variation in phenolic accumulation in the twigs of dioecious Populus tremula (L.) and how the effects of elevated temperature and ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation on growth and phenolics accumulation varied as the plants get older. In an open-field experiment, six female and six male genotypes were exposed to single and combined elevated temperature and UVB radiation treatments for three consecutive growing seasons. The concentrations of low molecular weight phenolics and condensed tannins did not show age-dependent variation in the twigs. In temperature-treated plants, diameter growth rate decreased, and concentration of condensed tannins increased as plants aged; there were no cumulative effects of elevated UVB radiation on growth and phenolic accumulation. Females maintained a higher concentration of low molecular weight phenolics throughout the experimental period; however, growth and phenolic concentration did not vary over time in females and males. Our results suggest that phenolic accumulation in perennial plants may not necessarily always exhibit age-dependent variation and the effects of elevated temperature on growth and phenolic may diminish as plants get older.

Does parental angling selection affect the behavior or metabolism of brown trout parr?

The behavior of organisms can be subject to human-induced selection such as that arising from fishing. Angling is expected to induce mortality on fish with bold and explorative behavior, which are behaviors commonly linked to a high standard metabolic rate. We studied the transgenerational response of brown trout (Salmo trutta) to angling-induced selection by examining the behavior and metabolism of 1-year-old parr between parents that were or were not captured by experimental fly fishing. We performed the angling selection experiment on both a wild and a captive population, and compared the offspring for standard metabolic rate and behavior under predation risk in common garden conditions. Angling had population-specific effects on risk taking and exploration tendency, but no effects on standard metabolic rate. Our study adds to the evidence that angling can induce transgenerational responses on fish personality. However, understanding the mechanisms of divergent responses between the populations requires further study on the selectivity of angling in various conditions.

A nonlinear mixed model approach to predict energy expenditure from heart rate.

Objective.Heart rate (HR) monitoring provides a convenient and inexpensive way to predict energy expenditure (EE) during physical activity. However, there is a lot of variation among individuals in the EE-HR relationship, which should be taken into account in predictions. The objective is to develop a model that allows the prediction of EE based on HR as accurately as possible and allows an improvement of the prediction using calibration measurements from the target individual.Approach.We propose a nonlinear (logistic) mixed model for EE and HR measurements and an approach to calibrate the model for a new person who does not belong to the dataset used to estimate the model. The calibration utilizes the estimated model parameters and calibration measurements of HR and EE from the person in question. We compare the results of the logistic mixed model with a simpler linear mixed model for which the calibration is easier to perform.Main results.We show that the calibration is beneficial already with only one pair of measurements on HR and EE. This is an important benefit over an individual-level model fitting, which requires a larger number of measurements. Moreover, we present an algorithm for calculating the confidence and prediction intervals of the calibrated predictions. The analysis was based on up to 11 pairs of EE and HR measurements from each of 54 individuals of a heterogeneous group of people, who performed a maximal treadmill test.Significance.The proposed method allows accurate energy expenditure predictions based on only a few calibration measurements from a new individual without access to the original dataset, thus making the approach viable for example on wearable computers.

Genetic modification of the flavonoid pathway alters growth and reveals flexible responses to enhanced UVB - Role of foliar condensed tannins.

Accumulation of certain phenolics is a well-known response of plants to enhanced UVB radiation (280-315 nm), but few experiments have compared the relative importance of different phenolic groups for UVB resilience. To study how an altered phenolic profile affects the responses and resilience of silver birch (Betula pendula) to enhanced UVB, we used RNA interference (RNAi) targeting dihydroflavonol reductase (DFR), anthocyanidin synthase (ANS), or anthocyanidin reductase (ANR) to change the accumulation of phenolics. The unmodified control line and RNAi-modified plants were grown for 51 days under ambient or +32% enhanced UVB dose in a greenhouse. RNAi greatly affected phenolic profile and plant growth. There were no interactive effects of RNAi and UVB on growth or photosynthesis, which indicates that the RNAi and unmodified control plants were equally resilient. UVB enhancement led to an accumulation of foliar flavonoids and condensed tannins, and an increase in the density of stem glands and glandular trichomes on upper leaf surfaces in both the control and RNAi-modified plants. Our results do not indicate a photoprotective role for condensed tannins. However, decreased growth of high-flavonoid low-tannin DFRi and ANRi plants implies that the balance of flavonoids and condensed tannins might be important for normal plant growth.

Horvitz-Thompson-like estimation with distance-based detection probabilities for circular plot sampling of forests.

In circular plot sampling, trees within a given distance from the sample plot location constitute a sample, which is used to infer characteristics of interest for the forest area. If the sample is collected using a technical device located at the sampling point, eg, a terrestrial laser scanner, all trees of the sample plot cannot be observed because they hide behind each other. We propose a Horvitz-Thompson-like estimator with distance-based detection probabilities derived from stochastic geometry for estimation of population totals such as stem density and basal area in such situation. We show that our estimator is unbiased for Poisson forests and give estimates of variance and approximate confidence intervals for the estimator, unlike any previous methods. We compare the estimator to two previously published benchmark methods. The comparison is done through a simulation study where several plots are simulated either from field measured data or different marked point processes. The simulations show that the estimator produces lower or comparable error values than the other methods. In the sample plots based on the field measured data, the bias is relatively small-relative mean of errors for stem density, for example, varying from 0.3% to 2.2%, depending on the detection condition. The empirical coverage probabilities of the approximate confidence intervals are either similar to the nominal levels or conservative in these sample plots.

Decline of the boreal willow grouse (Lagopus lagopus) has been accelerated by more frequent snow-free springs.

Climate change has influenced a range of species across the globe. Yet, to state a noted decline in the abundance of a given species as a consequence of a specific environmental change, for instance, spatially explicit long-term data are a prerequisite. This study assessed the extent to which prolonged snow-free periods in autumn and spring have contributed to the decline of the willow grouse, the only forest grouse changing into a white winter plumage. Time-series data of willow grouse numbers from summer surveys across the study area were integrated with local data on weather (snow cover), mammalian predator abundance and hunting intensity. Modelling was conducted with a hierarchical Bayesian Poisson model, acknowledging year-, area- and location-specific variability. The results show that while willow grouse numbers had decreased continuously across the study landscapes, the decrease was accelerated at the sites where, and during the years when the preceding April was the most snow-free. This indicates a mismatch between the change into a white winter plumage and the presence of snow, turning the bird into an ill-camouflaged prey. The results thus also confirm past hypotheses where local declines of the species have been attributed to prolonged snow-free periods. Across our study area, autumns and springs have become more snow-free, and the trend has been predicted to continue. Thus, in addition to conservation actions, the future of a species such as the willow grouse is also dependent on its ability to adapt to the changed environmental conditions.

Responses in growth and phenolics accumulation to lateral bud removal in male and female saplings of Populus tremula (L.) under simulated climate change.

The responses in growth and defense after tissue damage are highly variable in plants depending on species, damaged-tissue type and the intensity of damage. The prevailing abiotic conditions can also influence these responses. In this study, our aim was to examine how the removal of lateral vegetative buds affects the growth and accumulation of phenolics in saplings of the dioecious Populus tremula grown under simulated climate change. For three growing seasons, the saplings were grown under ambient conditions (control), elevated temperature (+2°C) and elevated UV radiation (30%) (UVB and UVA as its control), or a combination of these. In the fourth growing season, all saplings were grown under ambient conditions. The bud removal was performed twice - in summer and autumn - in the third year. The responses of growth and the accumulation of phenolics to the bud removal were measured at the end of the fourth growing season. Removal of 5% of the lateral buds resulted in higher leaf, stem and total plant biomass in both sexes of P. tremula saplings, compared to intact plants. The effects were greater in the temperature-treated plants, especially in the temperature-treated females. The concentrations of flavonoids and condensed tannins were higher in the bud-removed individuals. The concentration of condensed tannins was also higher in the males than in the females, opposite to the concentration of phenolic acids. There was no significant interaction between bud removal and UVB treatment on either growth or phenolics. Our results suggest that plants can allocate resources to both growth and defense simultaneously in response to tissue loss, and that global warming can modify the responses to some extent.

Phytochemical Shift from Condensed Tannins to Flavonoids in Transgenic Betula pendula Decreases Consumption and Growth but Improves Growth Efficiency of Epirrita autumnata Larvae.

Despite active research, antiherbivore activity of specific plant phenolics remains largely unresolved. We constructed silver birch (Betula pendula) lines with modified phenolic metabolism to study the effects of foliar flavonoids and condensed tannins on consumption and growth of larvae of a generalist herbivore, the autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata). We conducted a feeding experiment using birch lines in which expression of dihydroflavonol reductase (DFR), anthocyanidin synthase (ANS) or anthocyanidin reductase (ANR) had been decreased by RNA interference. Modification-specific effects on plant phenolics, nutrients and phenotype, and on larval consumption and growth were analyzed using uni- and multivariate methods. Inhibiting DFR expression increased the concentration of flavonoids at the expense of condensed tannins, and silencing DFR and ANR decreased leaf and plant size. E. autumnata larvae consumed on average 82% less of DFRi plants than of unmodified controls, suggesting that flavonoids or glandular trichomes deter larval feeding. However, larval growth efficiency was highest on low-tannin DFRi plants, indicating that condensed tannins (or their monomers) are physiologically more harmful than non-tannin flavonoids for E. autumnata larvae. Our results show that genetic manipulation of the flavonoid pathway in plants can effectively be used to produce altered phenolic profiles required for elucidating the roles of low-molecular weight phenolics and condensed tannins in plant-herbivore relationships, and suggest that phenolic secondary metabolites participate in regulation of plant growth.

Warming impacts on boreal fen CO2 exchange under wet and dry conditions.

Northern peatlands form a major soil carbon (C) stock. With climate change, peatland C mineralization is expected to increase, which in turn would accelerate climate change. A particularity of peatlands is the importance of soil aeration, which regulates peatland functioning and likely modulates the responses to warming climate. Our aim is to assess the impacts of warming on a southern boreal and a sub-arctic sedge fen carbon dioxide (CO2 ) exchange under two plausible water table regimes: wet and moderately dry. We focused this study on minerotrophic treeless sedge fens, as they are common peatland types at boreal and (sub)arctic areas, which are expected to face the highest rates of climate warming. In addition, fens are expected to respond to environmental changes faster than the nutrient poor bogs. Our study confirmed that CO2 exchange is more strongly affected by drying than warming. Experimental water level draw-down (WLD) significantly increased gross photosynthesis and ecosystem respiration. Warming alone had insignificant impacts on the CO2 exchange components, but when combined with WLD it further increased ecosystem respiration. In the southern fen, CO2 uptake decreased due to WLD, which was amplified by warming, while at northern fen it remained stable. As a conclusion, our results suggest that a very small difference in the WLD may be decisive, whether the C sink of a fen decreases, or whether the system is able to adapt within its regime and maintain its functions. Moreover, the water table has a role in determining how much the increased temperature impacts the CO2 exchange.

The usefulness of small-area-based socioeconomic characteristics in assessing the treatment outcomes of type 2 diabetes patients: a register-based mixed-effect study.

BACKGROUND: Assessment of the differences in the outcomes of care by socioeconomic status (SES) is beneficial for both the efficient targeting of health care services and to decrease health inequalities. This study compares the effects of three patient-based SES predictors (earned income, educational attainment, employment status) with three small-area-based SES predictors (median income, educational attainment, proportion of the unemployed) on the treatment outcomes of type 2 diabetes patients. METHODS: Mixed-effect modeling was applied to analyse how SES factors affect the treatment outcomes of type 2 diabetes patients. The treatment outcomes were assessed by the patients' latest available glycated hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) value. We used electronic health records of type 2 diabetes patients from the regional electronic patient database, the patients' individual register-based SES information from Statistics Finland, and the SES information about the population of the postal code area of the patients from Statistics Finland. RESULTS: The effects of attained education on the treatment outcomes, both at the patient-level and the small-area-level are quite similar. Age and male gender were associated with higher HbA1c values and lower education indicated higher HbA1c values. Unemployment was not associated with HbA1c values at either the patient-level or the area-level. Income gave divergent results: high values of HbA1c were associated with low patient incomes but the median income of the postal code area did not predict the treatment outcomes of patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our comparative study of three SES factors shows that the effects of attained education on the treatment outcomes are rather similar, regardless of whether patient-based or small-area-based predictors are used. Small-area-based SES variables can be a good way to overcome the absence of individual SES information, but further research is needed to find the valid small-area factors by disease. This possibility of using more small-area-based data would be valuable in health service research and first-hand planning of health care services.

A Seven-Year Study of Phenolic Concentrations of the Dioecious Salix myrsinifolia.

In boreal woody plants, concentrations of defensive phenolic compounds are expected to be at a high level during the juvenile phase and decrease in maturity, although there is variation between plant species. Females of dioecious species, like most of the Salicaceae, are expected to invest their resources in defense and reproduction, while males are expected to be more growth-oriented. We studied age- and sex-dependent changes in leaf and stem phenolics, and in height and diameter growth in a dioecious Salix myrsinifolia plants over a seven-year time period. In addition, we registered flowering as well as rust damage in the leaves. From the first year and throughout ontogenetic development from juvenile to adult phases, there was no significant change in the concentrations of any of the studied compounds in the leaves of S. myrsinifolia. In the stems, the concentrations of six out of 43 identified compounds decreased slightly with age, which may be partly explained by dilution caused by the increment in stem diameter with age. The fairly steady chemistry level over seven years, accompanied by moderate genotypic phenolic variation, indicates important roles of chemical defenses against herbivory for this early-successional species.

Responses of phenology and biomass production of boreal fens to climate warming under different water-table level regimes.

Climate change affects peatlands directly through increased air temperatures and indirectly through changes in water-table level (WL). The interactions of these two still remain poorly known. We determined experimentally the separate and interactive effects of temperature and WL regime on factors of relevance for the inputs to the carbon cycle: plant community composition, phenology, biomass production, and shoot:root allocation in two wet boreal sedge-dominated fens, "southern" at 62°N and "northern" at 68°Ν. Warming (1.5°C higher average daily air temperature) was induced with open-top chambers and WL drawdown (WLD; 3-7 cm on average) by shallow ditches. Total biomass production varied from 250 to 520 g/m2 , with belowground production comprising 25%-63%. Warming was associated with minor effects on phenology and negligible effects on community composition, biomass production, and allocation. WLD clearly affected the contribution of different plant functional types (PFTs) in the community and the biomass they produced: shrubs benefited while forbs and mosses suffered. These responses did not depend on the warming treatment. Following WLD, aboveground biomass production decreased mainly due to reduced growth of mosses in the southern fen. Aboveground vascular plant biomass production remained unchanged but the contribution of different PFTs changed. The observed changes were also reflected in plant phenology, with different PFTs showing different responses. Belowground production increased following WLD in the northern fen only, but an increase in the contributions of shrubs and forbs was observed in both sites, while sedge contribution decreased. Moderate warming alone seems not able to drive significant changes in plant productivity or community composition in these wet ecosystems. However, if warming is accompanied by even modest WL drawdown, changes should be expected in the relative contribution of PFTs, which could lead to profound changes in the function of fens. Consequently, hydrological scenarios are of utmost importance when estimating their future function.

Effects of contaminated soil on the growth performance of young Salix (Salix schwerinii E. L. Wolf) and the potential for phytoremediation of heavy metals.

Salix schwerinii was tested in a pot experiment to assess plant growth performance i.e., relative height and dry biomass and the potential for heavy metal uptake in soils polluted with chromium, zinc, copper, nickel and total petroleum hydrocarbons. The soil used in the pot experiment was collected from a landfill area in Finland. Peat soil was added at different quantities to the polluted soil to stimulate plant growth. The plants were irrigated with tap water or processed water (municipal waste water) to further investigate the effects of nutrient loading on plant biomass growth. The soil was treated at two pH levels (4 and 6). The results showed that the addition of 40-70% peat soil at pH 6 to a polluted soil, and irrigation with processed water accelerated plant growth and phytoextraction efficiency. In the pot experiment, Salix grown in chromium, zinc, copper, nickel and total petroleum hydrocarbons -contaminated field soil for 141 days were unaffected by the contaminated soil and took up excess nutrients from the soil and water. Total mean chromium concentration in the plant organs ranged from 17.05 to 250.45 mg kg-1, mean zinc concentration ranged from 142.32 to 1616.59 mg kg-1, mean copper concentration ranged from 12.11 to 223.74 mg kg-1 and mean nickel concentration ranged from 10.11 to 75.90 mg kg-1. Mean chromium concentration in the plant organs ranged from 46 to 94%, mean zinc concentration ranged from 44 to 76%, mean copper concentration ranged from 19 to 54% and mean nickel concentration ranged from 8 to 21% across all treatments. Under the different treatments, chromium was taken up by Salix in the largest quantities, followed by zinc, copper and nickel respectively. Salix also produced a moderate reduction in total petroleum total petroleum hydrocarbons in the polluted soil. The results from the pot experiment suggest that Salix schwerinii has the potential to accumulate significant amounts of chromium, zinc, copper and nickel. However, long term research is needed to verify the phytoextraction abilities of Salix observed in the pot experiment.

Seasonal Succession of Fungi Associated with Ips typographus Beetles and Their Phoretic Mites in an Outbreak Region of Finland.

The ophiostomatoid fungi (Microascales and Ophiostomatales, Ascomycota) are common associates of Ips typographus, and include tree pathogens and species responsible for blue-stain of timber. Fungal assemblages associated with I. typographus have varied considerably between studies but few investigations have attempted to explain this variation. For this reason, we assessed the overall cultivable fungal diversity associated with I. typographus in a storm-felled spruce forest in south-eastern Finland. Fungi were isolated from the individually collected beetles as well as their phoretic mites in spring, summer and autumn, including different life stages of the beetle (hibernation, dispersal flight and first generation). The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) gene region was used to identify the fungi. A total of 32 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were found and these resided in four fungal phyla/subphyla (24 Ascomycota, 2 Basidiomycota, 5 Mucoromycotina, 1 Mortierellomycotina) in association with adult bark beetles. Ophiostomatoid species were the most commonly detected fungal associates. A generalized linear model analysis showed a clear association between fungal communities and season, indicating seasonal succession among I. typographus-associated fungi. The season of sampling appears to be an important factor that has resulted in inconsistencies between results in previous studies. Many of these fungi were also found on phoretic mites and their presence or absence could have influenced variation in patterns of association.

Vegetation structure and photosynthesis respond rapidly to restoration in young coastal fens.

Young coastal fens are rare ecosystems in the first stages of peatland succession. Their drainage compromises their successional development toward future carbon (C) reservoirs. We present the first study on the success of hydrological restoration of young fens. We carried out vegetation surveys at six young fens that represent undrained, drained, and restored management categories in the Finnish land uplift coast before and after restoration. We measured plant level carbon dioxide (CO2) assimilation and chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm) from 17 most common plant species present at the sites. Within 5 years of restoration, the vegetation composition of restored sites had started to move toward the undrained baseline. The cover of sedges increased the most in response to restoration, while the cover of deciduous shrubs decreased the most. The rapid response indicates high resilience and low resistance of young fen ecosystems toward changes in hydrology. Forbs had higher photosynthetic and respiration rates than sedges, deciduous shrubs, and grasses, whereas rates were lowest for evergreen shrubs and mosses. The impact of management category on CO2 assimilation was an indirect consequence that occurred through changes in plant species composition: Increase in sedge cover following restoration also increased the potential photosynthetic capacity of the ecosystem. Synthesis and applications. Restoration of forestry drained young fens is a promising method for safeguarding them and bringing back their function as C reservoirs. However, their low resistance to water table draw down introduces a risk that regeneration may be partially hindered by the heavy drainage in the surrounding landscape. Therefore, restoration success is best safeguarded by managing the whole catchments instead of carrying out small-scale projects.

Photosynthetic traits of Sphagnum and feather moss species in undrained, drained and rewetted boreal spruce swamp forests.

In restored peatlands, recovery of carbon assimilation by peat-forming plants is a prerequisite for the recovery of ecosystem functioning. Restoration by rewetting may affect moss photosynthesis and respiration directly and/or through species successional turnover. To quantify the importance of the direct effects and the effects mediated by species change in boreal spruce swamp forests, we used a dual approach: (i) we measured successional changes in moss communities at 36 sites (nine undrained, nine drained, 18 rewetted) and (ii) photosynthetic properties of the dominant Sphagnum and feather mosses at nine of these sites (three undrained, three drained, three rewetted). Drainage and rewetting affected moss carbon assimilation mainly through species successional turnover. The species differed along a light-adaptation gradient, which separated shade-adapted feather mosses from Sphagnum mosses and Sphagnum girgensohnii from other Sphagna, and a productivity and moisture gradient, which separated Sphagnum riparium and Sphagnum girgensohnii from the less productive S. angustifolium, S. magellanicum and S. russowii. Undrained and drained sites harbored conservative, low-production species: hummock-Sphagna and feather mosses, respectively. Ditch creation and rewetting produced niches for species with opportunistic strategies and high carbon assimilation. The direct effects also caused higher photosynthetic productivity in ditches and in rewetted sites than in undrained and drained main sites.

Moose (Alces alces) reacts to high summer temperatures by utilizing thermal shelters in boreal forests - an analysis based on airborne laser scanning of the canopy structure at moose locations.

The adaptation of different species to warming temperatures has been increasingly studied. Moose (Alces alces) is the largest of the ungulate species occupying the northern latitudes across the globe, and in Finland it is the most important game species. It is very well adapted to severe cold temperatures, but has a relatively low tolerance to warm temperatures. Previous studies have documented changes in habitat use by moose due to high temperatures. In many of these studies, the used areas have been classified according to how much thermal cover they were assumed to offer based on satellite/aerial imagery data. Here, we identified the vegetation structure in the areas used by moose under different thermal conditions. For this purpose, we used airborne laser scanning (ALS) data extracted from the locations of GPS-collared moose. This provided us with detailed information about the relationships between moose and the structure of forests it uses in different thermal conditions and we were therefore able to determine and differentiate between the canopy structures at locations occupied by moose during different thermal conditions. We also discovered a threshold beyond which moose behaviour began to change significantly: as day temperatures began to reach 20 °C and higher, the search for areas with higher and denser canopies during daytime became evident. The difference was clear when compared to habitat use at lower temperatures, and was so strong that it provides supporting evidence to previous studies, suggesting that moose are able to modify their behaviour to cope with high temperatures, but also that the species is likely to be affected by warming climate.