Dendrochronological analysis of the ancient architecture of Kingdom of Lo. Upper Mustang,Nepal

Upper Mustang is a land of extraordinary, precious, tangible and intangible cultural heritage deeply rooted in the Tibetan culture and tradition of Buddhism as well as the Bön religion. The unique architecture provides a great source of timber suitable for dendrochronological research. Century-old fortresses, palaces, Buddhist monasteries and temples, houses and chörtens reflect the great importance of wood as a building material (used alongside clay and stone). We present pioneering research on historical wood from Upper Mustang. The objectives of the study were to determine the wood species used in the traditional architecture of the region, to make an attempt to date materials from Upper Mustang using existing tree-ring chronologies developed for neighbouring geographical regions and to determine the need and the chance of creating separate tree-ring chronologies for Upper Mustang. For the presented study we collected 191 samples from the oldest buildings preserved in Upper Mustang. Anatomical studies of samples resulted in the identification of four species of conifer wood: Himalayan pine – Pinus wallichiana A.B. Jacks, Himalayan fir – Abies spectabilis D.Don, Juniperus spp. and Larix spp. The main achievement of our research was the development of an Upper Mustang master chronology covering the period from 1317 to 1943. The chronology is based on data derived from Pinus wallichiana A.B. Jacks.     

A 781-year oak tree-ring chronology for the Middle Ages archaeological dating in Maramureș (Eastern Europe)

From 1997 to the present, a sustained project in the Maramureș region in Romania was completed with the construction of a 781-year oak tree-ring chronology. A total of 395 samples from living trees and 429 from archaeological wood were analysed with dendrochronological methods. The study aimed to provide the scientific community with a new oak chronology that could be applied in dendroarchaeology, dendroclimatology and dendroecology studies and also for interpreting past socio-economic events. Furthermore, we studied the number of sapwood rings and the growth pattern for different time periods. The chronology covered the continuous period of A.D. 1236‒2016. From the 824 samples collected, we separated 271 tree-ring series into a new chronology (A.D. 1406–2016), which fulfilled all the criteria necessary to reconstruct past climate and environmental changes. The resulting new tree-ring chronology indicated robust signal series intercorrelation (r = 0.55) and an average mean sensitivity of 0.21. Based on an analysis of the sapwood, we recommend estimating a number between 8 and 32 rings to the date of final ring for 95% confidence range of mean on the for felling in the Maramureș region. Additionally, we observed that the number of sapwood rings was not correlated with altitude or oak tree species.     

Molecular Phylogeny of Geographical Isolates of Bursaphelenchus xylophilus: Implications on the Origin and Spread of this Species in China and Worldwide

The genetic diversity and phylogeny of 26 isolates of Bursaphelenchus xylophilus from China, Japan, Portugal and North America were investigated based on the D2/3 domain of 28S rDNA, nuclear ribosomal Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) sequences, and random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis. The genetic diversity analysis showed that the D2/3 domain of 28S rDNA of isolates of B. xylophilus from China, Portugal, Japan and the US were identical and differed at one to three nucleotides compared to those from Canada. ITS sequences of isolates from China and Portugal were the same; they differed at one or two nucleotides compared to those of Japanese isolates and at four and 23 nucleotides compared to those from the US and Canada, respectively. The phylogenetic analysis indicated that Chinese isolates share a common ancestor with one of the two Japanese clades and that the Canadian isolates form a sister group of the clade comprised of isolates from China, Portugal, Japan, and the US. The relationship between Japanese isolates and those from China was closer than with the American isolates. The Canadian isolates were the basal group of B. xylophilus. This suggests that B. xylophilus originated in North America and that the B. xylophilus that occurs in China could have been first introduced from Japan. Further analysis based on RAPD analysis revealed that the relationship among isolates from Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shandong, Anhui provinces and Nanjing was the closest, which suggests that pine wilt disease in these Chinese locales was probably dispersed from Nanjing, where this disease first occurred in China.     

Dendrochronological evidence of cockchafer (Melolontha sp.) outbreaks in subfossil tree-trunks from Tovačov (CZ Moravia)

In dendrochronological dating, we encounter the trouble that some samples cannot be dated due to the occurrence of anomalies in the tree-ring series. When dating subfossil wood for the extension of existing master chronologies, this may be an especially unwanted circumstance as subfossil wood is scarce and each sample is valuable. In Moravia (Czech Republic) outbreaks of the cockchafer (Melolontha sp.) used to appear with a disastrous effect on agricultural crops, and, for a dendrochronologist, on samples of wood to be dated. Oak ring width reduction caused by cockchafer induced defoliation can superimpose climate induced growth variations and may complicate dating of historical or subfossil samples. For this study, 33 samples of sub-fossil trunks were assessed; 19 of which were attacked by cockchafer. For comparison, we analysed a total of nine living oak trees from the forest district Strá?nice-Vracov, recently attacked by the cockchafer. Occurrence of the cockchafer was reported there in 1999, 2003 and 2007.We found clear growth patterns with cyclic narrow rings every 4 years. This allowed us to create an artificial curve expressing the recurring cycles of cockchafer outbreaks which assisted us in the detection of the same pattern in subfossil tree growth. The tree-ring series of the attacked living oak stand as well as the 19 individual tree-ring series from subfossil oak trunks could not be dated using standard chronologies and showed a high resemblance to the cockchafer life cycle. Additionally, we found out that the living oak stand was attacked in 1983, 1987, 1991 and 1995 as well. The results support the hypothesis that the periodical reduction observed in tree-rings at regular increments is caused by cockchafer infestation. This evidence is further supported by characteristic anatomical features in early wood. A mean tree-ring series was created from the individual tree-ring series of subfossil oaks even though radiocarbon dating showed completely different ages of samples. This means that the affected tree-ring series cannot be used for dendrochronological dating and dendroclimatological analyses. These series cannot be used without preceding mathematical and statistical modification.     

Dendrochronology in the tropics using tree-rings of Pinus kesiya

The recent decade has witnessed considerable progress in the number of tree-ring studies using the tropical conifer taxa, Pinus kesiya. Several tree-ring networks have been established in less explored regions in Northeast India, Southwest China and Vietnam. The seasonal climate response of P. kesiya tree-rings has been examined and used to reconstruct temperature and soil moisture variability over the past century and augment the short instrumental records in South and Southeast Asia. In addition to standard approaches, the application of stable isotope, wood density, and blue intensity measurements indicates a significant development in P. kesiya studies. This review elaborates the future prospects of using multiple tree-ring parameters to establish discrete proxies besides tree-ring width. We recommend blue intensity as a cost-effective alternative to quantitative wood anatomy in tropical pines, and call for routine assessments of the temporal stability of climate-growth responses to identify and study potentially non-stationary climate signals. Efforts should be made towards developing extensive networks of long P. kesiya tree-ring chronologies to extend regional climate reconstructions.     

Improved tree-ring visualization using autofluorescence

The great diversity of wood anatomical features found in trees worldwide results in a broad variety of growth-ring boundary types that are not always easy to recognize, especially in tropical woods. However, the presence of clearly visible limits between tree rings is essential for any tree-ring studies. Here, we propose the use of autofluorescence of wood in order to enhance tree-ring visualization. The multispectral light emitted from the fluorescence stereomicroscope can be filtered in specific wavelengths to improve the visualization of wood anatomical features. To evaluate the effectiveness of this technique, we compared visualization under natural light, GFP (green fluorescent protein) filter, RFP (red fluorescent protein) filter and UV filter. We tested this technique with a set of 38 tree species with different types of growth-ring boundaries. Although results are species-specific, fluorescence has been shown to improve the visualization of growth-ring boundaries by enhancing the contrast among cell types. It may highlight fibrous zones (e.g. Cavanillesia arborea, Aspidosperma polyneuron), different porosity patterns (e.g. Myracrodruon urundeuva), secretory canals (e.g. Copaifera langsdorffii), and parenchyma bands (e.g. Tipuana tipu). Fluorescence allows the visualization of growth-ring boundaries in species that were previously described as having indistinct growth rings under natural light. For species with clear tree-ring boundaries such as Cedrela fissilis and Hymenaea courbaril, this approach aids the identification of false rings. In addition to the visualization of growth-ring boundaries, autofluorescence may be useful for other qualitative and quantitative analyses of wood anatomy, such as wood identification and automated measurements of anatomical features. Scientists struggling with tree-ring counting and cross-dating due to difficult tree-ring visualization may find fluorescence useful. It may also aid to identify new species suitable for tree-ring studies.     

Short-term resin tapping activities had a minor influence on physiological responses recorded in the tree-ring isotopes of Chinese pine (Pinus tabuliformis)

Resin tapping might affect tree-ring growth, but details on the physiological responses of trees to resin tapping are still lacking, particularly for long-term responses. This study aimed to explore the physiological processes underlying resin-tapping of Chinese pine (Pinus tabuliformis) by using tree-ring stable isotopes. We compared tree-ring earlywood and latewood stable carbon (δ¹³C) and oxygen (δ¹⁸O) isotopes in the pre-resin tapping and post-resin tapping period for tapped trees and compared their values between tapped and untapped trees and their responses to climate variables in a forest stand from 1984 to 2017. Furthermore, we used a dual isotope model to distinguish between the effects of the photosynthetic assimilation rate and stomatal conductance. Results indicated that tapped and untapped trees showed similar inter-annual variation for two isotopes, while the absolute values of tapped trees were slightly (P > 0.05) lower than tapped trees in the two years following resin tapping. Climate response analysis indicated that resin tapping had no significant effect on climatic sensitivity for either stable isotope. Earlywood stable isotopes were mainly influenced by temperature, relative humidity, and Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) from May to July, while latewood isotopes were mainly influence by relative humidity form July to August and PDSI from July to September. The conceptual model results indicated that resin tapping lead to a slight, but not significant, decrease in the intrinsic water-use efficiency caused by increased stomatal conductance for the first two to three years following resin tapping. We conclude that tree-ring physiological responses could be less affected by short-term resin tapping activities.     

Nutrient concentrations of 17- year-old Pinus taeda annual tree-rings analyzed by X-ray fluorescence microanalysis

Tree-rings are sensitive indicators of soil chemical changes. X-ray fluorescence microanalysis (μ-XRF) can reveal the elemental distribution pattern along these rings. However, reports on quantitative μ-XRF methods targeted to wood analysis are scarce. This study aimed to analyze iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), calcium (Ca), potassium (K), sulfur (S) and phosphorus (P) in annual tree-rings of wood cores cut from 24 trees of 17 year-old Pinus taeda planted in soil amended with six doses of composted pulp-mill sludge (CPMS). The nutrient concentrations were accessed using calibration curves built with spiked P. taeda wood pellets. Calcium and Mn content decreased from the pith to bark direction; K and S decreased from the pith up to 3rd tree-ring and, then, increased to the bark. Iron and P slight decreased from the pith up to the 13–14th tree-ring. Calcium, K and S presented strong and positive correlation with the rainier and hotter season (r > 0.4, p < 0.05). The CPMS increased the Ca, K, Fe and S and decreased Mn and P concentration in P. taeda wood in the 2nd–5th years. Furthermore, the P. taeda annual tree-ring molar ratios of Ca/Mn and K/Ca were good indicators of soil-pH and wood cambium activity. The μ-XRF methodology, as non-destructive method of nutrient concentration analysis in tree-rings, revealed potential uses in monitoring soil fertilizer treatments.     

The potential of intra-annual density information for crossdating of short tree-ring series

The crossdating of tree-ring series is typically based on tree-ring width sequences, which is a crude abstraction of the growth signal stored in tree rings. In contrast, intra-annual wood density data allows a much more detailed comparison of wood growth processes and new measurement techniques scale well to measure large amounts of samples. Thus, chronologies of intra-annual densitometric curves can be built. Here, we investigate to what extent intra-annual wood density information can improve crossdating. We evaluate different approaches on a data set of Norway spruce trees (Picea abies) and compare the results to standard methods that are based on ring width or maximum density. Our results show that intra-annual densitometric data indeed increases crossdating success rate notably for short tree ring series that cover less than 25 years.     

万仙山油松径向生长与气候因子的关系

以万仙山油松(Pinus tabulaeformis)为样本,建立了油松树木年轮宽度序列的标准年表(STD)。与附近气象因子的相关结果表明:与当年6月平均温度呈较为显著的负相关,与前一年的9月和当年的5月以及春季(3-5月)的降水量呈显著正相关,显然影响万仙山油松生长的主要气候因子是5月(或说春季)降水和6月温度。树轮指数与各月PDSI相关值都很高(其中与当年5月的PDSI相关值高达0.614),都超过95%的置信水平,说明水热组合是该区域油松生长的主要限制因子。研究表明,影响本区油松生长的气候因子与我国北方地区油松生长的影响因子有较高的一致性,尤其是生长季前期的温度影响都很大;而其降水的影响及其与PDSI的相关都明显超前于黄土高原及北方地区,这既说明影响油松生长的大气候因子相似,又表明夏季风从东南向西北的不断推进。     

The dendrochronological potential of Baikiaea plurijuga in Zambia

Climate has been demonstrated to change at different scales for as far back as we have been able to reconstruct it. However, anthropogenic factors have accelerated and are predicted to cause significant changes in temperature and precipitation around the globe. As a consequence, vegetation is being affected. To understand the historical behaviour of individual tree species and have insight on the potential effects of climate change, tree-ring studies have been applied. In this study, we examined a genus new to dendrochronology, namely Baikiaea plurijuga (Spreng.) Harm that dominates the Zambezi teak forests in Zambia with the objective of determining whether B. plurijuga forms annual rings and if so, whether these rings are cross-datable. We further determined the relationship between ring- width of B. plurijuga and climatic variables with the aim of understanding the potential climate change effects on the growth of these species in Zambia. We collected tree-ring samples from three Zambezi Teak forest reserves: Zambezi, Ila, and Masese located in Kabompo, Namwala, and Sesheke study sites respectively. Our examination of wood anatomical structures reviewed that the wood of B. plurijuga is diffuse porous and forms annual rings which were confirmed with samples of known age. The analysis resulted in three strong tree-ring chronologies of B. plurijuga. These chronologies were correlated with climate data from local weather stations which correlated negatively with evaporation and temperature and positively with rainfall. Our regression analysis indicated that evaporation has the highest influence on tree growth at all the study sites compared to temperature and rainfall alone. Evaporation in November and March, for example, explained almost a third of the radii’s variance at the Namwala and Sesheke sites. The likely future temperature increase and rainfall decrease that are projected by IPCC for Southern Africa are likely to adversely affect B. plurijuga in Zambia.     

Dating lightning: Dendrochronological and magnetic analyses of lightning scars

Lightning impacts on forests and trees are still understudied from a tree-ring perspective. Lighting causes direct and indirect damages on forests and trees. Trees struck by lightning can show a growth reduction and lightning storms also trigger wildfires in seasonally dry areas such as Mediterranean mountains. Here we combined dendroecological and magnetic analyses to reconstruct and assess the impact of lightning on radial growth and the magnetic properties of wood in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and Black pine (Pinus nigra) in two sites with a high density of lightning impacts located in eastern Spain. We dated several lightning scars, particularly in Scots pine, formed during 1982, when a wildfire was initiated by lightning during a dry summer storm. Growth was reduced during the year when the scar was formed in both pine species, albeit this effect could be masked or amplified by other disturbances (drought, outbreaks). However, despite that short-term growth reduction scarred trees showed higher growth rates than non-scarred trees in the case of Scots pine. The intensity of magnetization did not significantly differ in wood produced before and after the lightning scar was formed. This could be due to multiple lightning hits in the same or nearby stands affecting the magnetization of wood. Wood magnetic properties should be further explored as proxies of lightning impacts in sites where scars are not formed and tree-ring information is limited such as tropical forests. Further cross-disciplinary research is required to assess the impacts of lightning on tree growth and magnetism.     

Living on the edge: Legacy of water availability on Tetraclinis articulata secondary growth under semiarid conditions in Morocco

Tetraclinis articulata is a xerothermic Mediterranean conifer native from NW Africa that grows under semiarid conditions in the Atlas Mountains. This species is particularly well adapted to water scarcity and forms xeric woodlands subjected to recurring drought, aridification and overexploitation. Wood of T. articulata has been considered of limited dendrochronological value due to abundant anatomical anomalies in their growth rings. We studied tree-ring growth and tree-ring features to check its dendrochronological potential and evaluate their climatic signals and drought legacy effects at two semiarid sites with contrasting elevation in Morocco. Tree-ring boundaries were properly identified on wood cores from 60 to 68% of the sampled trees. Intra-annual wood density fluctuations (IADF), microrings, missing rings and rings with undefined limits were most abundant at the low-elevation coastal site than at the mountain site. Microring and missing ring abundance was inversely related to tree-ring growth, independent of cambial age, and mostly dependent on drought occurrence. IADF frequency was independent of tree-ring growth but inversely related to cambial age. A complex response of IADF formation to cool March to June conditions was found at the low-elevation coastal site, while IADF formation in the mountain site was related to May water availability. Undefined ring limits were observed only at the low-elevation site, showing positive relationships with elevated maximum temperatures in previous winter. Previous winter rainfall favored radial growth, but a significant legacy effect of water availability was evident up to three years prior to growth. Tree-ring growth was mostly related to water availability 33 and 26 months prior to growth at low-elevation and mountain sites, respectively. The obtained results reveal a very plastic cambial activity and a strong ability of T. articulata to withstand drought even for long periods.     

Individual and time-varying tree-ring growth to climate sensitivity of Pinus tabuliformis Carr. and Sabina przewalskii Kom. in the eastern Qilian Mountains, China

Individual tree-ring width chronologies and mean chronologies from Pinus tabuliformis Carr. (Chinese pine) and Sabina przewalskii Kom. (Qilian juniper) tree cores were collected and analyzed from two sites in the eastern Qilian Mountains of China. The chronologies were used to analyze individual and time-varying tree-ring growth to climate sensitivity with monthly mean air temperature and total precipitation data for the period 1958–2008. Climate–growth relationships were assessed with correlation functions and their stationarity and consistency over time were measured using moving correlation analysis. Individuals’ growth–climate correlations suggested increased percentages of individuals are correlated with certain variables (e.g., current June temperature at the P. tabuliformis site; previous June, December and current May temperature and May precipitation at the S. przewalskii site). These same climatic variables also correspond to the mean chronology correlations. A decreased percentage of individuals correlated with these climatic variables indicates a reduced sensitivity of the mean chronology. Moving correlation analysis indicated a significant change over time in the sensitivity of trees to climatic variability. Our results suggested: (1) that individual tree analysis might be a worthwhile tool to improve the quality and reliability of the climate signal from tree-ring series for dendroclimatology research; and (2) time-dependent fluctuations of climate growth relationships should be taken into account when assessing the quality and reliability of reconstructed climate signals.     

Evaluation of X-ray densitometry to identify tree-ring boundaries of two deciduous species from semi-arid forests in Brazil

The presence of visible annual rings in semi-arid tropical trees may allow the application of dendrochronological methods. However, variation in water availability may cause the formation of narrow, irregular ill- or non-defined annual rings hindering the correct dating of tree-ring series. We aimed to evaluate X-ray densitometry as a method to identify tree rings of two deciduous tree species from the Caatinga forest, a semi-arid region in the northeast of Brazil, and compare with two other methods commonly used in dendrochronology, the sliding-stage micrometer and image analysis. Xylem was observed macro- and microscopically and wood anatomical features were assessed in Aspidosperma pyrifolium and Poincianella pyramidalis trees. In both species, tree-ring boundaries were identified considering intra-annual density patterns and wood anatomical features. No significant differences in tree-ring widths were found among methods. X-ray densitometry measurements showed a positive correlation with the measurements obtained with image analysis and sliding-stage micrometer in A. pyrifolium and P. pyramidalis, revealing the high reliability of the methods used. However, inter-correlation of tree-ring width series showed differences in the accuracy of crossdating across measuring methods. The maximum, mean and minimum density values were species-dependent, with mean wood density of A. pyrifolium lower than P. pyramidalis. Our results highlight X-ray densitometry as an important and complementary tool to identify tree-rings boundaries in semi-arid tree species, especially in A. pyrifolium. Along with other measuring methods, it may provide higher accuracy in dendrochronological studies in semi-arid or subtropical environments.     

Tree ring anatomy indices of Pinus tabuliformis revealed the shifted dominant climate factor influencing potential hydraulic function in western Qinling Mountains

Trees can adjust xylem anatomical structure related with potential hydraulic functions to cope with climate variability. We therefore need a better understanding of how climate variability constrains wood anatomy and tree radial growth. Pinus tabuliformis dominates natural forests and plantations over the western Qinling Mountains, which is one of the ecologically vulnerable areas in China. Here, we investigated the response of P. tabuliformis tree-ring anatomical structure to climate variability by applying wood anatomy analysis, and evaluated the influences of anatomical traits on potential hydraulic functions and the climate significance of intra-annual density fluctuations (IADFs). We found that with the increasing temperature from spring to summer, the negative effect of temperature on the formation and enlargement of earlywood and transition-wood tracheids was gradually enhanced. However, spring precipitation not only had a direct and positive influence on the formation of earlywood, but also had a delaying impact on the transition-wood cell enlargement. Besides, the smaller earlywood tracheid size of P. tabuliformis could be a substantially characteristic reflecting spring drought. The contribution of lumen diameter on conduit wall reinforcement was dominated in earlywood, while the contribution of cell wall thickness was greater than that of lumen diameter in latewood. The different contributions of anatomical traits on conduit wall reinforcement would further affect the response of potential hydraulic function to climate. IADFs of P. tabuliformis could be a potential indicator to reflect the abnormal summer precipitation events in the western Qinling Mountains. IADFs with strong and weak intensity indicated years with high and low rates of change in mid-summer precipitation, respectively. Future warmer and drier climate in the western Qinling Mountains will likely result in the production of smaller tracheids to ensure hydraulic safety, which means the stronger drought resistant of P. tabuliformis in the future. In this study, we linked the xylem anatomy and potential hydraulics functions with intra-seasonal climate variability in the context of climate warming and drying, and proposed some xylem anatomical indices reflecting potential drought events.     

Spatiotemporal Features of the Three-Dimensional Architectural Landscape in Qingdao,China

The evolution and development of the three-dimensional (3D) architectural landscape is the basis of proper urban planning, eco-environment construction and the improvement of environmental quality. This paper presents the spatiotemporal characteristics of the 3D architectural landscape of the Shinan and Shibei districts in Qingdao, China, based on buildings’ 3D information extracted from Quickbird images from 2003 to 2012, supported by Barista, landscape metrics and GIS. The results demonstrated that: (1) Shinan and Shibei districts expanded vertically and urban land use intensity increased noticeably from year to year. (2) Significant differences in the 3D architectural landscape existed among the western, central and eastern regions, and among the 26 sub-districts over the study period. The differentiation was consistent with the diverse development history, function and planning of the two districts. Finally, we found that population correlates positively with the variation in the 3D architectural landscape. This research provides an important reference for related studies, urban planning and eco-city construction.     

Oxygen isotope ratios of subalpine conifers in Jirisan National Park,Korea and their dendroclimatic potential

The present study aimed to explore the dendroclimatic potential of three conifer species, viz. Taxus cuspidata, Abies koreana, and Pinus koraiensis, in the subalpine zone in the Republic of Korea. The tree-ring δ¹⁸O chronologies were analyzed for the last 50 years and were found to be well correlated with one another (r = 0.70 – 0.87). In the correlation analyses with temperature in the growing season, the tree-ring δ¹⁸O data of Abies / Taxus / Pinus showed positive correlation coefficients significantly with April, June, and July / April and July / April. On the other hand, in the correlation analyses with precipitation, only the tree-ring δ¹⁸O data of Abies and Taxus showed negative correlation coefficients significantly with April and May, respectively. For the correlation analyses with relative humidity, only the tree-ring δ¹⁸O data of Abies and Taxus showed significant negative correlation coefficients with April, June, and July for Abies, and with June and July for Taxus. Based on the results, we developed an extended Taxus δ¹⁸O chronology back till 1864 CE (152 years). Spatial correlation analyses revealed that the Taxus δ¹⁸O was mainly influenced by precipitation in the upstream regions of western Japan rather than that in the study region. This result pointed out the importance of the upstream hydrological processes that govern δ¹⁸O in precipitation. In addition, the TC δ¹⁸O showed meaningful correlations with temperature over Korea including our study region. These results indicated that the tree-ring δ¹⁸O of southern Korea was controlled not only by local temperature, but also by the upstream moisture conditions of western Japan.     

Comparison of whole wood and cellulose carbon and oxygen isotope series from Pinus nigra ssp. laricio (Corsica/France)

Stable isotopes in tree rings have widely been used for palaeoclimate reconstructions since tree rings record climatic information at annual resolution. However, various wood components or different parts of an annual tree-ring may differ in their isotopic compositions. Thus, sample preparation and subsequent laboratory analysis are crucial for the isotopic signal retained in the final tree-ring isotope series used for climate reconstruction and must therefore be considered for the interpretation of isotope–climate relationships. This study focuses on wood of Corsican Pine trees (Pinus nigra ssp. laricio) as this tree species allows to reconstruct the long-term climate evolution in the western Mediterranean. In a pilot study, we concentrated on methodological issues of sample preparation techniques in order to evaluate isotope records measured on pooled whole tree-ring cellulose and whole tree-ring bulk wood samples. We analysed 80-year long carbon and oxygen chronologies of Corsican Pine trees growing near the upper tree line on Corsica. Carbon and oxygen isotope records of whole tree-ring bulk wood and whole tree-ring cellulose from a pooled sample of 5 trees were correlated with the climate parameters monthly precipitation, temperature and the self-calibrating Palmer Drought Severity Index (sc-PDSI). Results show that the offsets in carbon and oxygen isotopes of bulk wood and cellulose are not constant over time. Both isotopes correlate with climate parameters from late winter and summer. The carbon and oxygen isotope ratios of cellulose are more sensitive to climatic variables than those of bulk wood. The results of this study imply that extraction of cellulose is a pre-requisite for the reconstruction of high-resolution climate records from stable isotope series of P. nigra ssp. laricio.