Eddy covariance and sapflow data from three Mediterranean ecosystems were analysed via top‐down approaches in conjunction with a mechanistic ecosystem gas‐exchange model to test current assumptions about drought effects on ecosystem respiration and canopy CO 2 /H 2 O exchange. The three sites include two nearly monospecific Quercus ilex L. forests – one on karstic limestone (Puéchabon), the other on fluvial sand with access to...

The impacts of climate change on Mediterranean‐type ecosystems may result from complex interactions between direct effects on water stress and subsequent modifications in flammability and fire regime leading to changes in standing biomass and plant species composition. We analysed these interrelations through a simulation approach combining scenarios of climate change developed from GCM results and a multispecies functional mo...