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Forest Ecology and Management
Elsevier Science
Forest Ecology and Management

Elsevier Science

0378-1127

Forest Ecology and Management/Journal Forest Ecology and ManagementSCIISTPEIAHCI
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    Restoration plantations accelerate dead wood accumulation in tropical premontane forests

    Fernandez Barrancos E.P.Marquis R.J.Leighton Reid J.
    6页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022 Elsevier B.V.Dead wood stores 10–20% of global forest carbon stocks, but its recovery and restoration in secondary tropical forests are poorly documented. In this study, we evaluated (1) the recovery pattern of dead wood volumes across a chronosequence of secondary tropical forests that used to be former coffee plantations, and (2) the efficiency of two common restoration strategies to recover dead wood volumes similar to those found in old-growth forests, all in a tropical premontane landscape in southern Costa Rica. Restoration strategies consisted of plantations and natural regeneration. Plantations consist of plots where two endemic (Terminalia amazonia and Vochysia guatemalensis) and two naturalized (Inga edulis and Ertyhrina poeppegiana) species were planted in rows. Natural regeneration consists of plots where no trees were planted, but where agriculture or cattle are excluded though fencing and vegetation is allowed to regenerate naturally. We hypothesized that (1) dead wood volumes increase with forest age following a logistic shape, and that (2) restoration plantations recover dead wood volumes more quickly compared to naturally regenerated forests. We measured dead wood volumes in a total of 35 forest fragments that were former coffee plantations or are currently old-growth forests and 10 restoration plots containing either natural regeneration or restoration plantations that were former fallow or pasture using strip transects. Dead wood volumes significantly increased with forest age following a logistic shape, starting with very low values in early ages (3–5 years), increasing rapidly (6–50 years), and ending with high and relatively stable values after 50 years of age. In addition, plantations (16 to 17 years old) recovered 41% of dead wood volumes found in old-growth forests > 100 years old, whereas naturally regenerated forests of the same age only recovered 1.7% of dead wood volumes found in old-growth forests. Our study shows that restoration plantations not only accelerate the recovery of above ground biomass, but also accelerate the recovery of dead wood in premontane Neotropical ecosystems. This indicates that tree planting positively affects carbon storage, and potentially the preservation of dead wood-associated biodiversity.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Individual-level variation in reproductive effort in chestnut oak (Quercus montana Willd.) and black oak (Q. Velutina Lam.)

    Smith S.J.McCarthy B.C.Snell R.S.Hutchinson T.F....
    11页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022 Elsevier B.V.Masting is a population-level reproductive strategy, where individuals synchronize large but intermittent seed production. Despite the high degree of synchrony at the population level, there can be considerable variation in reproduction among individuals (intraspecific variation). Here, we use 18 years of acorn production data from individual chestnut oak and black oak from control and thinned stands, to understand what factors influence individual differences in reproductive effort and variability. We included a variety of tree-level measurements, environmental characteristics, and measurements from tree cores to determine if certain characteristics were associated variations in reproduction. We considered both mean annual acorn production per m2 crown and interannual variation in acorn production (CV) as response variables. We also classified individuals as super producers (i.e., those that consistently produce more acorns than others), good, fair and poor producers (i.e., those that consistently produce less or have a higher number of failure years). In chestnut oak, 14% of the individuals were classified as super producers and contributed 34% of the total acorns, while poor producers made up 35% of the trees and contributed only 16% to total acorn production. In black oak, super producers (14% of the individuals) contributed 31% of total acorns and poor producers (24% of the individuals) contributed only 9% of the acorns. Diameter at breast height (DBH) was the most consistent variable for explaining intraspecific variation in reproductive effort and variability (i.e., larger individuals had higher mean acorn production for both chestnut oak and black oak, and lower CV for black oak). Other variables that influenced reproduction and variation included elevation and clay content for chestnut oak, and slope for black oak. We found no significant effect from the thinning treatment on acorn production. Our results illustrate how tree-level and environmental characteristics can distinguish acorn production groups, which can be used to inform management and selective harvesting decisions.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Nitrogen fertiliser only increases leaf area in the lower crown of mid-rotation Eucalyptus nitens plantations

    Brinkhoff R.Hunt M.Hovenden M.Mendham D....
    12页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022 Elsevier B.V.Nutrient supplementation can stimulate growth of plantation trees through an increase in leaf area, but this link is dependent upon how the leaves are distributed throughout the crown. Due to its effect on the light environment through the crown, vertical leaf area distribution can have important impacts on leaf function with implications for tree growth. We used large-scale fertiliser experiments in three mid-rotation Eucalyptus nitens plantations across Tasmania to investigate the effects of mid-rotation nitrogen and phosphorus fertiliser application on leaf area index (LAI), light extinction and leaf traits. Nitrogen and phosphorus application rates were 0, 300, 450, 600, 1200 and 2200 kg/ha and 0 and 200 kg/ha, respectively. We found a non-linear response of LAI to N application at all sites in the year following fertiliser application, with the greatest increases in leaf area occurring in trees grown under the intermediate N treatments. Using vertical light extinction profiles through the crown to infer leaf area distribution, we found that leaf area increase in the upper crown was relatively consistent across the range of N application levels but that leaf area increase in the lower crown increased linearly with increasing N application up to 600 kg N/ha but did not increase further with higher N application rates. The addition of phosphorus increased LAI production at all sites in the first year but had no effect on light extinction and hence the vertical distribution of foliage through the crown. Leaf traits were largely unaffected by nutrient application. These results demonstrate that nitrogen fertilisers applied mid-rotation can boost LAI in E. nitens plantations, but the extra leaf area is predominantly located lower in the crown and therefore unlikely to contribute substantially to any increase in productivity.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    The cost of fruit and the penalty of youth: Predicting mean annual seed production in single-species forest stands

    Walsh S.F.Trouve R.Nitschke C.R.Vesk P.A....
    15页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2021 Elsevier B.V.Quantifying mean annual tree seed production is important for conservation and forestry applications, but its estimation remains a substantial challenge. Interspecies variation in seed production is often expressed as a trade-off between seed size and seed number, forming a key component of established models of mean annual seed production in forest stands. In this study we improved on these models by quantifying additional effects from accessory costs and reproductive maturity status, using data from temperate-zone Eucalyptus species to assess model performance. Firstly, by evaluating a range of reproductive traits, we found that seed rain density was more closely associated with ‘fruit cost per seed’ measures than seed size measures. For the most common measure of seed rain density (based on direct observations of free seed fall), woody capsule surface area per viable seed explained 70% of observed variation, while seed mass explained only 28% (n = 16 species). Secondly, an existing model based on seed mass, tree size and tree density was extended to include a stand maturity function, and to use alternative reproductive traits. For a smaller dataset with long-term observations and detailed stand measurements, the proportion of variance explained by the extended model ranged from 81 to 98% depending on trait selection (mean = 93%), with published models explaining less variance (75–83%, mean = 80%). By reframing interspecies variation in seed production as a trade-off between seed cost and seed number, we found evidence that investment in heavy fruit structures may represent a substantial constraint on seed output among forest stands from a common genus and region, although our results must be considered somewhat preliminary, given the small number of species examined. We have also developed an enhanced predictive model, which could be used with stand-level models for tree size and tree density to improve predictions of mean annual forest seed production in landscape simulations.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Natural forest regrowth under different land use intensities and landscape configurations in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

    Schweizer D.Gomes Cesar R.Ferraz S.de Souza Moreno V....
    11页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022 The AuthorsNatural forest regrowth is considered the most cost-effective strategy to promote large-scale forest restoration, but regrowth trajectories and their consequences for nature and people can be highly variable. This uncertainty may obstruct devoting land, time and resources in promoting this restoration approach. Process-based models allow to simulate forest regrowth under different scenarios and may thus support decision making to manage areas in ways that maximize forest restoration based on natural forest regrowth. In the present study, we used the process-based model LandClim to assess the following questions:1) How does land use intensity affect forest growth, aboveground biomass (AGB) and tree species diversity in agricultural landscapes in the long term? 2) How do different land use configurations affect the structure and expansion of second-growth forests? We based our study on six 4 × 4 km agricultural landscapes, dominated by pastures and sugarcane, in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest region. We parameterized and validated LandClim for the study region by comparing model outputs with published estimates and information from field data collected across the six landscapes. We then simulated natural forest regrowth under different land use intensities in the six landscapes and analyzed how land use intensity and landscape configuration affect AGB, tree species diversity and the spatial dynamics of second-growth forests. Our results showed negative effects of increased land use intensity on landscape biomass accumulation due to limited forest cover expansion. Landscapes dominated by sugarcane had lower forest regrowth potential than pasture-dominated landscapes due to lower likelihood of abandonment, and limited rates of seed availability and seedling growth. Land use intensity and landscape configuration were also important factors for tree diversity changes. However, temporal patterns differed, and while AGB reached a plateau after 100–150 years, tree diversity peaked between 30 and 70 years. Thus, the effects of land use intensity and landscape configuration on forest AGB and tree diversity take decades to be fully expressed, highlighting the importance of a long-term commitment in restoration projects.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Coniferous conservation supporting a plethora of plethodontids: Implications of conserving eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) on southern Appalachian montane salamanders

    Cox J.L.McKinney M.L.Fitzpatrick B.M.Leppanen C....
    11页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022Hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae; HWA), an invasive aphid-like insect, was first documented on the East Coast of the United States in the 1950 s. Hemlock woolly adelgid is an herbivore which primarily feeds at the needle base of hemlock tree species (Pinaceae: Tsuga). With no evolutionary defenses and few biotic controls, the eastern and Carolina hemlock (Tsuga canadensis and Tsuga carolinensis) serve as the primary diet of HWA in eastern North America. The invasive pest began to spread rapidly throughout the hemlock's range causing defoliation and death of the trees within 4 – 10 years. With the loss of the foundational species, Tsuga canadensis, several microenvironmental changes were documented. Microenvironmental changes in response to biological invasions and anthropogenic forestry practices can lead to shifts in populations of physiologically sensitive taxa such as salamanders and their prey, terrestrial arthropods. National Park Service (NPS) staff at Great Smoky Mountains National Park manage HWA by treating eastern hemlocks with the neonicotinoid pesticides, imidacloprid and dinotefuran. To measure indirect effects of eastern hemlock mortality, and HWA management, this study collected data on several parameters in hemlock-dominated stands that have been repeatedly managed by the NPS and stands which were un-managed and where HWA has reduced the hemlock canopy. Our major objectives were to assess microenvironmental, vegetative, and arthropod community differences between managed and un-managed eastern hemlock stands and analyze those differences with respect to woodland salamander abundance. Answering these questions should provide insight into indirect impacts of the invasive species, HWA, on indicator species, terrestrial salamanders, through changes in prey availability and microenvironmental parameters. A mixed effects linear model using elevation range as a random effect or block was used to model salamander abundance with prey availability, microenvironmental parameters, and HWA management as a factor. Our results indicate that HWA management was the strongest predictor of total salamander abundance and for Plethodon jordani and Desmognathus wrighti abundance individually. We found over five times the relative salamander abundance in sites which had been managed for HWA compared to sites which had been left un-managed. Funding: This work was supported by the University of Tennessee, Knoxville Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Knoxville, TN.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Increased survival rate of Quercus aliena var. Acuteserrata seedlings via nitrogen addition for the succession of pine and pine-oak mixed forests to oak forest

    Huo X.Wang D.Luo J.Lv X....
    8页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022Forest regeneration mechanisms of Pinus tabulaeformis, Pinus armandii, and Quercus aliena var. acuteserrata as the constructive species have been the focus of ecologists and silviculturists, and research to better understand the future of forest community composition, succession patterns, and other aspects of far-reaching influence. However, the influence of nitrogen deposition on the regeneration of different succession stages needs further investigation. In this study, seedlings of the three species of different ages were planted in the pine, pine-oak mixed, and oak forests, and the seedlings which planted by the pot culture with natural soil or fertilization soil, were monitored for two years. Survival and growth indicators, chlorophyll content, and foliar nutritional status of the seedlings were measured. The survival rate and chlorophyll content of P. tabulaeformis, P. armandii, and Q. aliena var. acuteserrata seedlings were the lowest in the oak forest, which might be related to the availability of light in the undergrowth at different stages of succession. Regardless of the forest type, after nitrogen addition, the survival rates of P. tabulaeformis and Q. aliena var. acuteserrata seedlings were the highest for 4-year-old seedlings, and the survival rate of P. armandii seedlings was the highest for 10-year-old ones. Nitrogen addition had no significant effect on the survival rate of P. tabulaeformis and P. armandii seedlings, but changed the nutrient content in their leaves. However, the addition of nitrogen improved the survival rate of Q. aliena var. acuteserrata seedlings, and their competitiveness. Therefore, it can be inferred that nitrogen deposition may promote the succession of P. tabulaeformis forest- to oak forest-in the Qinling Mountains, China.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Gap dynamics and disease-causing invasive species drive the development of an old-growth forest over 250 years

    Flinn K.M.Dolnicek M.N.Cox A.L.
    9页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022 Elsevier B.V.Investigating the disturbance regimes of unharvested forests helps us understand their past, present, and future trajectory and gives us a model for forest management. It can also clarify the relative importance of small-scale gap dynamics versus more severe disturbances. Here we used tree rings to examine the recruitment patterns, growth dynamics, and disturbance chronologies of American beech (Fagus grandifolia), sugar maple (Acer saccharum), and eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) in A.B. Williams Woods, an old-growth forest in Ohio, USA, over the past 250 years. We found that beech and sugar maple recruitment peaked around 1900 and continued through the 1900s, while hemlock recruitment peaked during 1825–1875, then declined and effectively ended in the early 1900s. Hemlock grew fastest during the 1800s according to ring width and basal area increment, while sugar maple ring width surpassed beech and hemlock in the 1900s. All three species showed a dramatic increase in growth from 1980 to 2010. Beech and sugar maple established regardless of canopy gaps, but 73% of hemlocks originated in gaps. In most decades, <10% of trees experienced gap recruitment or growth release, suggesting that ongoing, endogenous canopy mortality was the primary disturbance shaping this forest. However, a more severe forest-wide disturbance occurred during the 1980s–1990s when the scale insect causing beech bark disease was introduced, with greater than 30% of living trees showing growth releases in those decades. Another synchronous release occurred in the 1930s when blight-killed chestnuts were removed; 16% of trees showed releases. Both of these intermediate-severity disturbances involved human introduction of invasive species. Thus, we documented a natural disturbance regime of small-scale gap dynamics, punctuated by more severe anthropogenic disturbances in the twentieth century. These relatively frequent, intermediate-severity events probably mean that the forest's current composition is non-equilibrial. Hemlock may continue to decline while beech maintains its dominance by constant regeneration in both gaps and shade, and by responding to disturbance with root suckering and growth pulses. The codominance of sugar maple may be relatively recent, and perhaps temporary, as we found little sugar maple recruitment before 1875 or after 1950, and three times fewer sugar maple saplings now than in the early 1900s. Despite being protected as a park, the development of this old-growth forest has been shaped more by disease-causing invasive species than natural disturbances over the past century. This result emphasizes the pervasiveness of human impacts even in communities we look to as examples of natural pattern and process.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Mapping forest site quality at national level

    Aguirre A.Alberdi I.Hernandez L.Adame P....
    11页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022 Elsevier B.V.Determining site quality is essential in order to develop sustainable forest management, allowing more appropriate silvicultural decisions to be made. However, most studies carried out in Spain have focused on a few species and at local scale, which makes it difficult to apply the findings or conduct studies at larger scales. The aim of this study is to obtain a site quality map at national scale for the main forest species (Pinus sylvestris, Pinus uncinata, Pinus pinea, Pinus halepensis, Pinus nigra, Pinus pinaster, Pinus canariensis, Pinus radiata, Abies alba, Juniperus thurifera, Quercus robur, Querus petraea, Quercus pyrenaica, Quercus faginea, Quercus ilex, Quercus suber, Populus nigra, Eucalyptus globulus, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, Fagus sylvatica, Castanea sativa, Quercus pubescens, Populus × canadensis, Betula alba). National Forest Inventory (NFI) data has been used to develop site quality models using the site form (SF) concept (dominant height- dominant diameter relationship). Universal Kriging techniques have been used to identify both the geographical trend linked to site factors (climatic, soil and physiographic variables) and their spatial autocorrelation to estimate the SF for every species. Finally, the information was interpolated for each tile of the Spanish National Forest Map in which the species considered was present, thus obtaining a SF national map for each species. The results reveal biologically consistent SF models, indicating that both NFI data and SF are suitable for studying site quality at national level. The variables used differ among the species analyzed, altitude being the most important variable for estimating SF models, while aridity and soil variables are less important. The results obtained could provide an important tool for forest managers working at national level with the main forest species in Spain. This methodology could be used for larger areas, such as at European level, and would allow some species to be analyzed at larger scales.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier

    Pathways of productivity and influences on top consumers in forested streams

    Benjamin J.R.Dunham J.B.Johnson S.L.Penaluna B.E....
    11页
    查看更多>>摘要：? 2022Forested stream ecosystems involve complex physical and biotic pathways that can influence fish in numerous ways. Consequently, the responses of fish communities to disturbance can be difficult to understand. In this study, we employed a food web model that links biotic (e.g., physiology, predator–prey interactions) and abiotic (e.g., temperature, sunlight) attributes to address fish responses to changes in stream-riparian ecosystems. We modeled responses to food web dynamics in four streams, using scenarios that included responses to riparian disturbance, climate change, and shifts in top consumers. The two consumers we focused on were coastal cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii clarkii) and sculpin (Cottus spp., collectively treated as a functional group). We found the responses to environmental changes varied by fish species and among streams, and that responses were not independent due to exploitative interspecific competition. Simulations based on long-term data indicated that coastal cutthroat trout were responsive to changes in allochthonous resources including terrestrial detritus and invertebrates, whereas sculpin were more responsive to changes to autochthonous resources that included, periphyton and aquatic invertebrates. These results may be, in part, a consequence of species-specific foraging behavior. Trout have a higher propensity to drift feed and therefore receive a substantial subsidy from terrestrial invertebrates, whereas sculpin feed mostly on aquatic insects on the streambed. Simulations of changes in summer temperature and stream discharge suggest decreased biomass of both fish species because of physiological constraints on invertebrate prey which reduce fish foraging opportunities. Exploitative competition also may be important in fish responses: when one fish taxon was removed, the other showed increased biomass. Although the pattern of simulation results was consistent across the four streams, the magnitude of change varied among streams. Streams with food webs fueled by multiple energy sources may be more resilient to changes to riparian forests and climate. Through application of a systems model, we gained insights into pathways of productivity for fish in forested stream ecosystems that provide understanding of processes that influence fish and streams, as well as implications for management of both.
      原文链接:
    • NSTL
    • Elsevier