Grzegorz Mikusiński

My research deals with different dimensions of biodiversity conservation and other environmental issues, in Sweden and worldwide. In particular, I am interested in the following themes: 

• Conservation and management of forest biodiversity

• Forest birds

• Large and old trees

• Forest fires

• Bioacoustics

• Environmental sustainability

Supervision of PhD students

Main supervisor (doctoral proceedings completed):

1. Małgorzata Blicharska (October 2011). Role of planners and public participation in planning for biodiversity. SLU-Skinnskatteberg, Sweden. 

2. Daniel Gustafson (November 2011). Choosing the best of both worlds - the double life of the great crested newt. SLU-Skinnskatteberg, Sweden.

3. Ewa Orlikowska (June 2021). Strengthening conservation through green infrastructure: linking protected areas, habitats and species. SLU-Skinnskatteberg, Sweden.

Associate supervisor (doctoral proceedings completed):

1. Nicole Schneider (October 2012). Getting informed in a risky world - risk assessment, predator information & parental decisions. SLU-Uppsala, Sweden.

2. Kjell Andersson (December 2011). Geographic Information Systems as a tool to support monitoring and assessment of landscape and regional sustainability. SLU-Skinnskatteberg, Sweden.

3. Pablo Garrido (December 2017). Wood-pasture diagnostics - Ecosystem services, restoration and biodiversity conservation. SLU-Skinnskatteberg, Sweden.

4. Marco Basile (January 2020). The influence of retention forestry on the occurrence and abundance of forest specialist birds across the landscape. University of Freiburg, Germany.

5. Taylor Shaw, (June 2023). Acoustic monitoring of forest bird assemblages across forest structural gradients. University of Freiburg, Germany.

Associate supervisor (doctoral proceedings not yet completed):

1. Michał Walesiak, Mammal Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Białowieża (admission 2020).

2. Rosanne Michielsen, Mammal Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Białowieża (admission 2021).

3. João Manuel Cordeiro Vale Pereira, University of Freiburg, Germany (admission 2019).

4. Mariela Yapu Alcazar, University of Freiburg, Germany (admission 2022).

5. Juan Pablo Ramirez Loza, SLU-Grimsö, Sweden (admission 2022).

Selected peer-reviewed publications from 2017-2024

Walesiak, M., Michielsen, R., Mikusiński, G., Żmihorski, M. 2024. Salvage logging and subsequent post-windthrow management diminish forest bird communities for two decades. Journal of Applied Ecology. Link

Fröhlich, A., Przepióra, F., Drobniak, S., Mikusiński, G., Ciach, M. 2024. Public safety considerations constraint the conservation of large old trees and their crucial ecological heritage in urban green spaces. Science of the Total Environment 948, 174919. Link

Bubnicki, J.W., Angelstam, P., Mikusiński, G., Svensson, J.,  Jonsson, B.G. 2024. The conservation value of forests can be predicted at the scale of 1 hectare. Communications Earth & Environment 5, 196. Link

Pereira, J., Mikusiński, G., Storch, I. 2024. A systematic review of the effects of multi-purpose forest management practices on the breeding success of forest birds. Current Forestry Reports 10: 175-195. Link

Michielsen, R.J., Żmihorski, M., Pärt, T., Walesiak, M., Mikusiński, G. 2024. Seasonal patterns of habitat use of resident birds in Białowieża Forest and its links to post-disturbance management. Forest Ecology and Management 554, 121669. Link

Mikusiński, G., Elbakidze, M., Orlikowska, E.H., Skaltsa, I., Żmihorski, M., Iwińska, K. 2023. Elucidating human-nature connectedness in three EU countries: a pro-environmental behavior perspective. People and Nature 5: 1577-1591. Link

Iwińska, K., Bieliński, J., Calheiros, C.S.C., Koutsouris, A., Kraszewska, M., Mikusiński, G. 2023. The primary drivers of private-sphere pro-environmental behaviour in five European countries during the Covid-19 pandemic. Journal of Cleaner Production 393, 136330. Link

Basile, M., Krištín, A., Mikusiński, G., Thorn, S., Żmihorski, M., Pasinelli, G., Brockerhoff, E.G. 2023. Salvage logging strongly limits opportunity for rich woodpecker assemblages: a meta-analysis. Current Forestry Reports 9: 1-14. Link

Shaw, T., Schönamsgruber, S-R., Pereira, J., Mikusiński, G. 2022. Refining manual annotation effort of acoustic data to estimate bird species richness and composition: the role of duration, intensity and time. Ecology & Evolution 12, e9491 Link

Mikusiński, G., Orlikowska, E.H., Bubnicki, J.W., Jonsson, B.G. & Svensson, J. 2021. Strengthening the network of high conservation value forests in boreal landscapes. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 8, 595730. Link

Basile, M., Storch, I., Mikusiński, G. 2021. Abundance and diversity of forest bird assemblages – the relative importance of habitat structures and landscape context. Ecological Indicators 133, 108402.    Link  

Shaw, T., Hedes, R., Sandström, A., Ruete, A., Hiron, M., Hedblom, M., Eggers, S., Mikusiński, G. 2021. Hybrid bioacoustic and ecoacoustic analyses provide new links between bird assemblages and habitat quality in a winter boreal forest. Environmental and Sustainability Indicators 11, 100141. Link

Mikusiński, G. & Niedziałkowski, K. 2020. Perceived importance of ecosystem services in Białowieża Forest for local communities – does proximity matter? Land Use Policy 97, 104667. Link

Thorn, S., Chao, A., […], Mikusiński, G., […], Leverkus, A.B. 2020. Estimating retention benchmarks for salvage logging to protect biodiversity. Nature Communications 11, 4762.

Svensson, J., Bubnicki, J.W., Jonsson, B-G., Andersson, J. & Mikusiński, G. 2020. Conservation significance of intact forest landscapes in the Scandinavian mountains green belt. Landscape Ecology 35: 2113–2131. Link

Blicharska, M., Angelstam, P., Giessen L., Hilszczański, J., Hermanowicz, E., Holeksa, J., Jacobsen, J.B., Jaroszewicz, B., Konczal, A., Konieczny, A., Mikusiński, G. et al. 2020. Between biodiversity conservation and sustainable forest management – a multidisciplinary assessment of the emblematic Białowieża Forest case. Biological Conservation 248, 108614. Link

Blicharska, M., Smithers, R., Mikusiński, G., Rönnbäck,P., Harrison, P., Nilsson, M., Sutherland, W. 2019. Biodiversity’s contributions to sustainable development. Nature Sustainability 2: 1083-1093. Link

Svensson, J., Andersson, J., Sandström, P., Mikusiński, G., Jonsson, B-G. 2019. Landscape trajectory of natural forest loss - what's left to build a functional boreal green infrastructure? Conservation Biology 33: 152-163. Link

Żmihorski M, Hebda G, Eggers S, Månsson J, Abrahamsson T, Czeszczewik D, Walankiewicz W, Mikusiński G. 2019. Early post-fire bird community in European boreal forest: comparing salvage-logged with non-intervention areas. Global Ecology and Conservation 18, e00636. Link

Mikusiński, G., Bubnicki, J.W., Churski, M., Czeszczewik, D., Walankiewicz, W. & Kuijper, D. 2018. Is the impact of loggings in the last primeval lowland forest in Europe underestimated? The conservation issues of Białowieża Forest. Biological Conservation 227: 266-274. Link

Blicharska, M., Smithers, R.J., Kuchler, M., Agrawal, G.K., Gutiérrez, J.M., Hassanali, A., Huq, S., Koller, S.H., Marjit, S., Mshinda, H.M., Masjuki, H.H., Solomons, N.W., Van Staden, J. & Mikusiński, G. 2017. Steps to overcome the North-South divide in research relevant to climate-change policy and practice. Nature Climate Change 7: 21-27. Link

Book: G. Mikusinski, J-M. Roberge, R.J. Fuller (Eds.), Ecology and Conservation of Forest Birds. Cambridge University Press, 2018.

Full publication list