Research
From the physiology of single leaves to the productivity of whole landscapes. Field measurements, photosynthesis models and satellite data are combined to understand how Mediterranean vegetation works and how it responds to its environment.
Current projects
- GPP of Greece Daily maps of gross primary production for the whole country at 250 m, from 2002 to the present, produced with the sCASE light use efficiency model.
- Blooming lakes Chlorophyll and cyanobacteria indices for seven Greek lakes, derived from Sentinel-3 images since 2017, as a tool for monitoring blooming events.
Plant ecophysiology
How Mediterranean plants cope with summer drought, high light and temperature extremes: their seasonal leaf strategies, photosynthesis, water relations and responses to UV-B radiation, studied in the field.
Phlomis fruticosa
A drought semi-deciduous Mediterranean shrub that grows different leaves in winter and in summer. Long-term field work followed its leaf demography, photosynthesis, water relations and phenology.
- 2022Climatic drivers of the complex phenology of the Mediterranean semi-deciduous shrub Phlomis fruticosa based on satellite-derived EVI
- 1997Leaf demography and photosynthesis as affected by the environment in the drought semi-deciduous Mediterranean shrub Phlomis fruticosa L.
- 1995Seasonal and diurnal gas exchange characteristics and water relations of the drought semi-deciduous shrub Phlomis fruticosa L. under Mediterranean field conditions
- 1995Summer survival of leaves in a soft-leaved shrub (Phlomis fruticosa L., Labiatae) under Mediterranean field conditions: Avoidance of photoinhibitory damage through decreased chlorophyll contents
- 1993Seasonal leaf dimorphism in a semi-deciduous Mediterranean shrub: Ecophysiological comparisons between winter and summer leaves
- 1993Autumn revival of summer leaves in the seasonal dimorphic, drought semi-deciduous Mediterranean shrub Phlomis fruticosa L.
Capparis spinosa
The caper plant, which keeps photosynthesising under the harsh conditions of the Mediterranean summer and shows an unusual pattern of leaf movement.
UV-B radiation
Field experiments with enhanced or reduced ultraviolet-B radiation on Mediterranean shrubs, trees and pines, and on European heathland.
- 2001The direct effects of UV-B radiation on Betula pubescens litter decomposing at four European field sites
- 2001Reduction of ambient UV-B radiation does not affect growth but may change the flowering pattern of Rosmarinus officinalis L.
- 2001Effects of UV-B radiation and additional irrigation on the Mediterranean evergreen sclerophyll Ceratonia siliqua L. under field conditions
- 1998Effects of UV-B radiation on cuticle thickness and nutritional value of leaves in two Mediterranean evergreen sclerophylls
- 1997The effects of UV-B radiation on European heathland
- 1995Effects of enhanced UV-B radiation on the drought semi-deciduous Mediterranean shrub Phlomis fruticosa under field conditions are season-specific
- 1995Enhanced UV-B radiation alleviates the adverse effects of summer drought in two Mediterranean pines under field conditions
- 1995Perturbations of the normal UV-B radiation environment alter leaf growth rates in Phlomis fruticosa L. seedlings
- 1994Leaf hairs of olive (Olea europaea) prevent stomatal closure by ultraviolet-B radiation
- 1993Leaf hairs of Olea europaea protect underlying tissues against ultraviolet-B radiation damage
Other studies
Photoprotection, hydraulics, leaf optics, photosynthesis modelling and leaf movements across Mediterranean species.
- 2023Near-zero temperatures arrest movement of the diaheliotropic Malva sylvestris
- 2011Ecophysiological modelling of leaf level photosynthetic performance for three Mediterranean species with different growth forms
- 2009An ecophysiological approach of hydraulic performance for nine Mediterranean species
- 2007Leaf morphological and physiological adjustments to the spectrally selective shade imposed by anthocyanins in Prunus cerasifera
- 2000Seasonal fluctuations in photoprotective (xanthophyll cycle) and photoselective (chlorophylls) capacity in eight Mediterranean plant species belonging to two different growth forms
- 1998The use of the portable, non-destructive, SPAD-502 (Minolta) chlorophyll meter with leaves of varying trichome density and anthocyanin content
Remote sensing
Satellite and airborne data used to follow vegetation dynamics, light use efficiency, productivity, crop yield and water quality, linked to field measurements of the same ecosystems.
Forest ecosystems
Satellite monitoring of forest dynamics, phenology, light use efficiency and productivity, from hyperspectral imagery of a single ecosystem to time series across Europe.
- 2026Evaluation of a LUE model and various water scalars based on eddy covariance data from 13 forest sites across Europe
- 2025Climate effects on phenology of two deciduous forest species across Southern Europe
- 2022Climatic drivers of the complex phenology of the Mediterranean semi-deciduous shrub Phlomis fruticosa based on satellite-derived EVI
- 2022Multi-year monitoring of deciduous forests ecophysiology and the role of temperature and precipitation as controlling factors
- 2021MODIS PRI performance to track light use efficiency of a Mediterranean coniferous forest: Determinants, restrictions and the role of LUE range
- 2018Effects of satellite spatial resolution on gross primary productivity estimation through light use efficiency modeling
- 2016Monitoring drought effects on Mediterranean conifer forests using SPOT-VEGETATION NDVI and NDWI time series
- 2015sCASE: A primary productivity monitoring system for the forests of North Pindus National Park (Epirus, Greece)
- 2014Monitoring of vegetation ecosystems in Greece using vegetation indices time series
- 2014Tracking seasonal changes of leaf and canopy light use efficiency in a Phlomis fruticosa Mediterranean ecosystem using field measurements and multi-angular satellite hyperspectral imagery
- 2013Estimating light use efficiency of a pine and a beech forest from leaf to ecosystem scale using the photochemical reflectance index
- 2011Band depth analysis of CHRIS/PROBA data for the study of a Mediterranean natural ecosystem. Correlations with leaf optical properties and ecophysiological parameters
- 2010Spectroscopic analysis of a Mediterranean ecosystem using CHRIS/PROBA, in situ leaf spectra and plant measurements
- 2010Monitoring canopy biophysical and biochemical parameters in ecosystem scale using satellite hyperspectral imagery: An application on a Phlomis fruticosa Mediterranean ecosystem using multiangular CHRIS/PROBA observations
- 2007Forest ecosystem dynamics using SPOT and MODIS satellite images
- 2007Ecosystem productivity and dynamics issued from multispectral and hyperspectral satellite imagery
Agricultural ecosystems
Durum wheat yield estimation from Sentinel-2 imagery and meteorological data with statistical and machine learning models, and the evaluation of precision agriculture practices.
- 2026Durum wheat yield prediction: a machine learning framework integrating Sentinel-2 imagery and meteorological data
- 2026Environmental and economic evaluation of combined conservation and precision agriculture for winter cereals in Greece
- 2024A comparative analysis of machine learning and vegetation index-based modeling approaches for durum wheat yield assessment using Sentinel-2 imagery
- 2022Assessing durum wheat yield through Sentinel-2 imagery: a machine learning approach
- 2021Modeling of durum wheat yield based on Sentinel-2 imagery
Lakes and wetlands
Satellite observation of water quality and phytoplankton blooms in Greek lakes and wetlands, linked to the Blooming lakes project.