Tree mortality has long-term ecological effects on the structure and functioning of ecosystems. One concern arising from increased forest mortality is the potential for aggravating desertification processes. The rapid and extensive reduction in vegetation cover can modify eco-hydrological processes, causing greater net losses of water and soil that feed back into the loss of productivity and vegetation cover vigor, generating a spiral of desertification. Once these processes (mortality-desertification) begin, changes in vegetation loss and erosion patterns can persist for decades. Preventing forest mortality through forest management may not be feasible due to the large extent of the potentially affected areas. Density regulation (e.g., thinning) can be a management strategy to reduce the vulnerability of forest stands to mortality processes, and thus desertification. Although in general terms, the limited management options to prevent forest mortality highlight the need for new research to improve the ability to predict the ecohydrological consequences of mortality and its impact on desertification.