scholarly journals Storm and fire disturbances in Europe: distribution and trends

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cornelius Senf ◽  
Rupert Seidl
Keyword(s):  
Fire Disturbances

Continuity and change in the vegetation of a Central European oakwood

The Holocene ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Jamrichová ◽  
Péter Szabó ◽  
Radim Hédl ◽  
Petr Kuneš ◽  
Přemysl Bobek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
18Th Century ◽  
Driving Forces ◽  
Multiple Use ◽  
Scotch Pine ◽  
Remarkable Change ◽  
14Th Century ◽  
Wood Pasture ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Human Management ◽  
Fire Disturbances

The issue of continuity in deciduous oakwood vegetation has been in the forefront of woodland ecological studies for many decades. The two basic questions that emerge from existing research are whether or not oakwoods can be characterized by long-term stability and what may be the driving forces of the observed stability or change. To answer these questions in a well-defined case study, we examined the history of a large subcontinental oakwood (Dúbrava) in the southeastern Czech Republic with interdisciplinary methods using palaeoecological and archival sources. Palaeoecology allowed us to reconstruct the vegetation composition and fire disturbances in Dúbrava in the past 2000 years, while written sources provided information about tree composition and management from the 14th century onwards. The pollen profiles show that the present oakwood was established in the mid-14th century with an abrupt change from shrubby, hazel-dominated vegetation to oak forest. This change was most probably caused by a ban on oak felling in ad 1350. From the 14th to the late 18th centuries Dúbrava had multiple uses, of which wood-pasture and hay-cutting kept the forest considerably open. The second remarkable change was dated to the late 18th century, when multiple-use management was abandoned and Dúbrava was divided into pasture-only and coppice-only parts. The last major shift occurred in the mid-19th century, when modern forestry and Scotch pine plantation became dominant. We conclude that Dúbrava Wood did not show stability in the long run and that its species composition has dramatically changed during the last two millennia. The most important driving force in the shaping and maintenance of the unique vegetation of Dúbrava was human management.

A dendrochronological analysis of a disturbance–succession model for oak–pine forests of the Appalachian Mountains, USA

2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (7) ◽  
pp. 1373-1385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick H. Brose ◽  
Thomas A. Waldrop
Keyword(s):  
Forest Type ◽  
Fire Suppression ◽  
Appalachian Mountains ◽  
Fire Frequency ◽  
Pine Forests ◽  
Ice Storms ◽  
Pine Regeneration ◽  
Fire Disturbances ◽  
Pinus Spp ◽  
Succession Model

Disturbance–succession models describe the relationship between the disturbance regime and the dominant tree species of a forest type. Such models are useful tools in ecosystem management and restoration, provided they are accurate. We tested a disturbance–succession model for the oak–pine ( Quercus spp. – Pinus spp.) forests of the Appalachian Mountains region using dendrochronological techniques. In this model, fire promotes pines, while fire suppression, bark beetle outbreaks, and ice storms encourage oaks. We analyzed nine Appalachian oak–pine stands for species establishment dates and the occurrence of fires and canopy disturbances. We found no evidence that fire preferentially promoted the establishment of pine more than oak, nor did we find any evidence that canopy disturbances or periods of no disturbance facilitated the establishment of oak more than pine. Rather, we found that both species groups originated primarily after combined canopy and fire disturbances, and reduction of fire frequency and scope coincided with the cessation of successful oak and pine regeneration. Currently, heath shrubs are slowly dominating these stands, so we present a revised disturbance–succession model for land managers struggling to manage or restore oak–pine forests containing a dense ericaceous understory.

scholarly journals The impact of windthrow and fire disturbances on selected soil properties in the Tatra National Park

2008 ◽  
Vol 3 (Special Issue No. 1) ◽  
pp. S74-S80 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Gömöryová ◽  
K. Střelcová ◽  
J. Škvarenina ◽  
J. Bebej ◽  
D. Gömöry
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Biomass ◽  
Microbial Activity ◽  
National Park ◽  
Soil Microbial Activity ◽  
N Mineralisation ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Microbial Characteristics ◽  
Fire Disturbances ◽  
Tatra National Park ◽  
The Impact

: In November 2004, forest stands in the Tatra National Park (TANAP) were affected by windthrow and in July 2005, the wildfire broke out on a part of the affected area. The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of the windthrow and fire disturbances on soil microbial activity. Basal and potential soil respiration, N-mineralisation, catalase activity, soil microbial biomass, and cellulase activity were measured in soil samples taken from the A-horizon (depth of 0–10 cm) along 100 m transects established on 4 plots (reference site, burnt, non-extracted, and extracted sites) in October 2006. Some soil microbial characteristics exhibited a high spatial variability, especially microbial biomass and N-mineralisation. Significant differences in soil microbial characteristics (especially basal soil respiration and catalase activity) between plots were found. Generally, the highest microbial activity was revealed on the plot affected by fire. Soil microbial activity was similar on the extracted and non-extracted sites.

scholarly journals Using the Carbon Budget Model of the Canadian Forest Sector (CBM-CFS3) to examine the impact of harvest and fire on carbon dynamics in selected forest types of the Canadian Boreal shield

2012 ◽  
Vol 88 (04) ◽  
pp. 426-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Luckai ◽  
G.R. Larocque ◽  
L. Archambault ◽  
D. Paré ◽  
R. Boutin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Budget ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Forest Sector ◽  
Forest Types ◽  
Deep Soil ◽  
Budget Model ◽  
Carbon Budget Model ◽  
Fire Disturbances ◽  
Shallow Soils ◽  
The Impact

The objective of the study was to assess the responsiveness of the Carbon Budget Model of the Canadian Forest Sector (CBM-CFS3) to management scenarios that included three rotation lengths (50, 100 and 250 years) under harvest and fire disturbances in six forest types (poplar deep soil, black spruce deep soil, jack pine deep and shallow soils, hardwood mixedwood and other conifer lowland). Outputs from five carbon (C) pools were considered: merchantable stemwood (stump height of 30 cm, minimum DBH of 9 cm and a minimum top diameter of 7 cm), deadwood, soil C, total ecosystem C and cumulative total ecosystem C emissions. Yield curves strongly affected the predicted size of all five pools. Longer rotation lengths led to larger pools with the relative differences between rotation lengths varying with stand types. Pools associated with poplar were usually the largest while those of jack pine on shallow sites were generally the smallest. When compared to the starting point of the simulations, cumulative total ecosystem C and C emissions increased with the 100- and 250-year harvest rotations (HARV100 and HARV250, respectively) and declined with the 50-year harvest rotation (HARV50). Fire disturbances resulted in stable pools of cumulative ecosystem C and declines in C emissions. CBM-CFS3 provided realistic pool values but the authors suggest further development of the model depiction of ecosystem processes, especially with respect to the treatment of respiration. In general, the authors recommend that forest management planners consider using an integrated approach that links multiple proven and accepted models under appropriate model linking software.

Modelling the effect of spatial scale and correlated fire disturbances on forest age distribution

1997 ◽  
Vol 95 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 145-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis Boychuk ◽  
Ajith H. Perera ◽  
Michael T. Ter-Mikaelian ◽  
David L. Martell ◽  
Chao Li
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Scale ◽  
Age Distribution ◽  
Forest Age ◽  
Fire Disturbances

Characterization of the resilience and variability of vegetation during the Holocene using a large database of pollen data

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raphael Hébert ◽  
Chenzhi Li ◽  
Thomas Laepple ◽  
Ulrike Herzschuh
Keyword(s):  
Forest Ecosystems ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Vegetation Composition ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Modes Of Variability ◽  
Millennial Time Scale ◽  
Fire Disturbances ◽  
Palynological Records ◽  
Stability Of Forest Ecosystems

<p>Global climatic changes which are expected in the 21<sup>st</sup> century are likely to create unparalleled disturbances on vegetation. In addition, human activities also increase the risk of fire disturbances and insect epidemies. We investigate the resilience of different biomes by examining their behaviour during the Holocene using a taxonomically harmonized and temporally standardized global fossil pollen datasets,synthesized from 2821 palynological records from the Neotoma Paleoecology Database and additional literature. Specifically, we study the composition variability on millennial time-scale and timescale-dependant scaling of variability from centennial to multi-millennial timescales. A principal component analysis was performed in order to characterize the principal modes of variability of the pollen assemblages. We find coherent regional signals of vegetation variability and scaling of variability from the pollen assemblages, indicating significant millennial scale variability which can be related to vegetation taxa and climates. Particularly, we observe more stability in North America and Northern Europe in areas dominated by boreal forest and deciduous forests. This may be linked to the greater stability of forest ecosystems and also a more stable climate over these areas which may be the result of stabilizing feedbacks. We find that diversity plays a key role in vegetation composition and that more diverse regions allow for greater variability. </p><p> </p><div> <div> </div> </div>

Reduction of black spruce seed bank by spruce budworm infestation compromises postfire stand regeneration

2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (7) ◽  
pp. 1686-1696 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Simard ◽  
Serge Payette
Keyword(s):  
Seed Bank ◽  
Black Spruce ◽  
Reproductive Potential ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Viable Seed ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Postfire Regeneration ◽  
Fire Disturbances

In the southern boreal forest of eastern Canada, black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) is subjected to both defoliating insect and fire disturbances. As black spruce depends on its aerial seed bank for postfire regeneration, reduction of cone crop during a spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana (Clem.)) outbreak opens a vulnerability window during which stand regeneration could be hindered in the event of a fire. To assess the long-term effect of spruce budworm outbreak on black spruce reproductive potential, cone production and viable seed bank were estimated using cone crop surveys and germination trials in black spruce – lichen woodland stands that sustained different levels of defoliation during the 1980s. Black spruce cone crop was significantly related to the defoliation history of the stands (R2 = 0.89), but not to stand age, basal area, or tree density. Black spruce stands damaged by severe defoliation showed a smaller number of cones, a higher incidence of insect-damaged cones, and a viable seed bank 3 to 17 times smaller than a lightly defoliated stand. The vulnerability window for black spruce regeneration following a spruce budworm outbreak may be as long as 20 years in the study area because black spruce seed bank in heavily defoliated stands has not yet replenished. Our work supports conclusions from stand reconstruction studies that suggest closed-crown spruce–moss stands convert to open lichen woodlands as a result of weak postfire regeneration caused by successive insect and fire disturbances.

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