A Bioclimatic Characterisation of Europe’s Alpine Areas

Abstract

The natural high altitude treeline, the sole bio-reference for defining the alpine zone, integrates local thermal conditions in such a way that it occurs at equal temperatures, at both European and global scales (Körner 1998). This is seen by its occurrence at progressively lower elevations along a northward latitudinal gradient. Does this mean in practice that, for example, a Norwegian fellfield offers comparable life conditions to that of a Macedonian alpine heath? For our study, it was of interest if what in various localities in Europe has been referred to as alpine did indeed represent a quantitatively comparable environment.