Forest management practices determine changes in stand characteristics and consequently influence public perception of forest scenic beauty visually appreciated by visitors. To understand the relationship between forest management practices and public perception, the present study evaluated the effects of thinning on the forest scenic beauty analyzing visitors’ preferences towards images of forest managed in different ways. The investigation was implemented in a black pine (Pinus nigra spp.) forest located in Central Italy, where a designed thinning experiment was conducted during the winter of 2016. Silvicultural interventions were based on three options: traditional thinning (medium-intensity thinning from below), selective thinning, and absence of intervention (control). Then, through the face-to-face administration of a questionnaire to a sample of 200 visitors, visitors’ aesthetic preferences for stands’ characteristics affected by management interventions were assessed. The survey also investigated the perception of the effect of silvicultural treatments on the scenic beauty using pairwise comparison method. Results evidence a strong relation between scenic beauty and forest attributes. In particular, the results show that visitors prefer mixed forest with varying tree heights and layers, and consequently a high and variable quantity of light reaching the soil. Results also show that visitors prefer managed forests, and both kinds of thinning have a positive effect on the scenic beauty.

中文翻译：

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间伐对意大利中部黑松林森林风景名胜的影响

森林管理实践决定了林分特征的变化，因此影响了公众对游客视觉欣赏的森林美景的感知。为了了解森林管理实践与公众认知之间的关系，本研究评估了间伐对森林风景之美的影响，分析了游客对以不同方式管理的森林图像的偏好。该调查是在黑松（黑松spp。）森林，位于意大利中部，在2016年冬季进行了设计的间伐试验。造林干预措施基于三种选择：传统间伐（从下方进行中等强度间伐），选择性间伐和不进行干预（控制） ）。然后，通过对200名访客进行问卷调查的面对面管理，评估了访客对受管理干预影响的展位特征的审美偏好。该调查还使用成对比较法调查了对造林方法对风景秀丽的影响的看法。结果证明了风景秀丽和森林属性之间的密切关系。尤其是，结果表明，游客更喜欢树木高度和层数不同的混交林，因此，大量且可变的光到达土壤。结果还表明，游客更喜欢管理森林，两种间伐方式都对风景秀丽产生积极影响。