Rosa López Garrido, from the Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Sevilla (IRNAS-CSIC), Spain, completed a Short-Term Scientific Mission (STSM) at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, from 16 to 25 March 2026, hosted by Prof. Stefan Mayr and his Ecophysiology research group.
The STSM focused on the use of the Picus TreeTronic 3 system and Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) to assess tree structure and water status. Rosa received theoretical and hands-on training in ERT principles, measurement procedures and species-specific calibration, including the role of water content, wood density and ion concentration in interpreting electrical signals.
A major part of the mission involved field measurements on different tree species around Innsbruck, allowing her to explore how environmental conditions, tree physiology and wood anatomy influence tomographic signals. She also worked with the host team on data processing, tomogram interpretation and quality control, combining ERT outputs with ecophysiological measurements.
The STSM provided Rosa with the skills to independently use the Picus TreeTronic 3 system and apply the methodology to new tree species. It also generated new insights into the links between moisture dynamics, wood anatomy and electrical conductivity, with potential applications in Mediterranean fruit tree systems.
The mission also strengthened collaboration between IRNAS-CSIC and the University of Innsbruck, with plans for joint data analysis, comparative studies using new datasets from Spain, future research exchanges and potential joint publications.