Mediterranean strictly protected forests are cooler

• Forest rewilding in Mediterranean strictly protected areas significantly mitigates heatwaves. • Strictly protected forests restored a major temperature buffer and ecosystem resilience. • Canopy of strictly protected forest is 2.1 °C cooler in summer than productive one. • On equal topography and forest attributes, productive forest areas are 1 °C warmer. • This study highlights distinctive long-term ecological benefits of forest rewilding. Forests are essential for climate mitigation and adaptation strategies. While the thermal buffering role of old-growth forests is well known, the long-term cooling benefits of restored forests in strictly protected areas remain poorly understood, particularly in the Mediterranean region – a biodiversity hotspot severely affected by climate change. In this paper, we examined summer maximum canopy temperatures using satellite observations across a Mediterranean forest landscape in Tuscany (Italy) during the period 2013–2023. Our analysis focused on topographic and forest attributes influencing temperature variations among evergreen oak stands under different IUCN management categories (Ia and V) compared to coppiced stands outside protected areas. The Ia site, legally established in 1961, is the first strictly protected reserve in the coastal Mediterranean. We observed measurable differences in canopy cooling at the mesoclimatic scale among strictly protected (IUCN Ia), protected landscape (IUCN V), and productive forests. Unmanaged stands with taller structure exhibited cooler conditions, with average summer maxima of 33.3 °C in strictly protected areas versus 35.4 °C in actively managed forests. Linear regression and GAM models suggest that terrain (elevation, aspect, topographic position index), forest structure (canopy height, tree cover), functional traits (canopy moisture content, EVI) and forest edge effects were the main factors affecting canopy maximum temperature. Even after accounting for topographical and stand attributes, productive forests were 1 °C warmer than strictly protected areas, underlying specific properties that emerge as these stands recover towards more natural stages. Our findings confirm canopy temperature as a robust proxy for assessing forests’ biophysical role in moderating localized heat and evaluating restoration and conservation outcomes. This study underscores the urgent need to restore Mediterranean forests through strict protection, ensuring canopy-level thermal regulation and forest resilience. We advocate for area-based conservation and rewilding as essential nature-based solutions that integrate climate change mitigation and biodiversity protection within sustainable landscape management strategies.