Wood anatomy seminar for forensic scientists with a focus on wood species identification

In the period from August 19-24, 2024, a seminar was held at the Thünen Institute of Wood Research as part of the "2nd International Seminar on Anatomical Plant Identification (ISAPI, Hamburg 2024)." A total of about 25 participants from eleven countries took part, including countries from North America, Europe and Africa. The seminar focused on "Wood Species Identification" and was organized by the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes (ENFSI). The course provided hands-on training in macroscopic and microscopic wood species identification practices. Over the course of the five-day seminar, the following contents were taught, among others:

• Fundamentals of wood anatomy and wood speciation as well as explanation of technical terms in the context of wood analytical examinations.
• Practical wood species analysis on solid wood and microscopic sectional specimens.
• Training in the use of databases and programs for computer-aided wood species identification (CITESwoodID_2020; macroHolzdata; WOODDATA_2022).

In addition, specialist courses on special fields of application in wood species identification, such as paper and pulp analysis and 3D microscopy, were held.

Contact:

Dr. Volker Haag

M. Sc. Tim Lewandrowski