Natural dynamics-based silviculture for maintaining plant biodiversity in Populus tremuloides-dominated boreal forests of eastern CanadaThis article is one of a selection of papers published in the Special Issue on Poplar Research in Canada.

2007 ◽  
Vol 85 (12) ◽  
pp. 1158-1170 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sybille Haeussler ◽  
Yves Bergeron ◽  
Suzanne Brais ◽  
Brian D. Harvey
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Experimental Stand ◽  
Tree Retention ◽  
Tall Shrub ◽  
Natural Dynamics

Southern boreal forests dominated by trembling aspen ( Populus tremuloides Michx.) are notable for the biological richness of their plant communities. We used 12 plant community and plant functional group indicators to test the hypothesis that natural dynamics-based silvicultural systems better maintain biodiversity in aspen plant communities than conventional clear-cutting. Using CA ordination, box-and-whisker diagrams, and ANOVA, we compared the range of variability of our 12 bioindicators among five experimental stand types of the sylviculture et aménagement forestier écosystémiques (SAFE) project: mature (78 years) uncut; mature 1/3 partial-cut; mature 2/3 partial-cut; young (3 years) unburned clear-cut; young burned clear-cut; and three closely matched aspen stand types of northwest Quebec and northeast Ontario: old (105 years) uncut; young unburned clear-cut; young wildfire. Burned clearcuts partially emulated wildfires by reducing tall shrub abundance and regenerating post-fire specialists, but snags were lacking. The dual disturbance also retarded aspen regrowth and caused a 7-fold increase in non-native plants. Partial-cuts retained most attributes of mature uncut stands, but after 3 years showed little evidence of accelerating development of old stand characteristics. We concluded that SAFE natural dynamics-based silviculture better recreated the range of variability of naturally disturbed aspen plant communities than conventional clear-cutting. Improvements, including alternative burn prescriptions and snag or green tree retention in clearcuts, are nontheless warranted.

Response of boreal plant communities to variations in previous fire-free interval

2006 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill F. Johnstone
Keyword(s):  
Plant Community ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Yukon Territory ◽  
Deciduous Species ◽  
Community Patterns ◽  
Free Interval ◽  
Species Cover

The present study used overlapping burn scars from natural wildfires to examine the effects of changes in the fire-free interval on early successional plant communities in boreal forests of central Yukon Territory, Canada. Data on plant community composition and residual organic material were collected in the first decade of post-fire regeneration in two study areas with recent fire overlap. Sites with a shorter fire-free interval had reduced loads of deadwood and shallower organic layers after the most recent fire. Multivariate analysis of species cover indicated that sites in and out of the burn overlap zones also supported distinct plant communities. Differences in the plant communities were associated with a greater abundance of woody deciduous species, such as Populus tremuloides, Salix spp., and Shepherdia canadensis, at sites that had recently re-burned. Sites that burned after a longer interval had higher moss cover and greater abundance of Picea mariana, Calamagrostis canadensis, and Ribes glandulosum in one study area, and Epilobium angustifolium in the second area. Ordinations of species cover indicated that plant community patterns were most strongly associated with gradients related to fire history and topography. In general, shorter fire-free intervals reduced pools of residual plant material and favored dominance of resprouting, woody deciduous species.

Responses of boreal epiphytic bryophytes to different levels of partial canopy harvestThis paper is one of a selection of papers published as part of the special Schofield Gedenkschrift.

Botany ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 88 (4) ◽  
pp. 315-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard T. Caners ◽  
S. Ellen Macdonald ◽  
René J. Belland
Keyword(s):  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Forest Growth ◽  
Hylocomium Splendens ◽  
Interspecific Associations ◽  
Tree Retention ◽  
Growing Conditions ◽  
Different Levels

Epiphytic mosses and liverworts contribute substantially to the bryophyte diversity of circumpolar boreal forests but are susceptible to altered growing conditions after forest harvesting. Management practices that retain some trees after harvest may enhance epiphyte survival; however, the effectiveness of this emerging method needs to be assessed. We examined the survival, composition, and nearest neighbour relationships of epiphytic bryophytes on trembling aspen ( Populus tremuloides Michx.) across a range (10%–100%) of dispersed green-tree retention 5 years after harvest in boreal mixed-wood forest. Growth of the forest floor moss Hylocomium splendens (Hedw.) Schimp. in B.S.G. was used as an indicator of changes in moisture availability for epiphytes following harvesting. Epiphyte richness and abundance increased with canopy retention and were positively correlated with local abundance of coniferous trees. Positive associations among neighbouring species in intact forest demonstrated that interspecies relationships form naturally. However, there was a shift in species composition after harvesting and fewer interspecific associations with declining retention. These trends were accompanied by reduced Hylocomium splendens growth, which implies that moisture may be an important driver of epiphyte response. Although different levels of canopy retention were similarly capable of maintaining some epiphytes, the loss of species associated with intact forest will require consideration of alternative management practices for their conservation.

scholarly journals Continuous-cover management and attractiveness of managed Scots pine forests

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (8) ◽  
pp. 819-828
Author(s):  
Matti Koivula ◽  
Harri Silvennoinen ◽  
Hanna Koivula ◽  
Jukka Tikkanen ◽  
Liisa Tyrväinen
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Scots Pine ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Forest Ownership ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Gap Cutting ◽  
Intensively Managed

Forest management, characterized in many northern countries by the predominance of clear cutting and growing even-aged and -sized trees, has simplified the structure of boreal forests. Consequences include alterations in cultural ecosystem services such as forest attractiveness, i.e., combined aesthetic and recreational values. Continuous-cover forestry might mitigate these effects through the use of selection and gap cutting, but these methods have been little studied, particularly from the attractiveness viewpoint. We used photo surveys to assess Finnish citizens’ perceptions of attractiveness of in-stand scenery of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) forests logged using different methods. (i) The attractiveness scores, given by respondents, declined steadily from unharvested forest through continuous-cover methods to seed-tree and clear-cut methods. (ii) Respondents with a negative attitude to forest management gave lower scores than respondents with a positive attitude, but the declining slopes of attractiveness against logging intensity were similar. (iii) In unharvested and less intensively managed stands, summer photos received higher scores than corresponding winter photos. (iv) Background variables (gender, education, living environment, memberships in recreational or nature NGOs, forestry profession, and forest ownership) had negligible effects on the scores. We recommend the use of continuous-cover logging methods in settlement and recreational areas.

Range of variability in boreal aspen plant communities after wildfire and clear-cutting

2004 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sybille Haeussler ◽  
Yves Bergeron
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Plant Biomass ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Structural Diversity ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Dead Plant ◽  
Live Tree ◽  
Canadian Boreal Forest

Composition, structure, and diversity of vascular and nonvascular plant communities was compared 3 years after wildfire and clear-cutting in mesic trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) forests of the southern Canadian boreal forest. We examined mean response to disturbance and variability around the mean across four to five spatial scales. Four 1997 wildfires were located near Timmins, Ontario, and ten 1996–1997 clearcuts were located adjacent to the wildfires. We randomly located plots within mesic, aspen-dominated stands selected to minimize predisturbance environmental differences. Correspondence analysis separated wildfire and clearcut samples based on community composition: wildfires had more aspen suckers, Diervilla lonicera Mill., and pioneering mosses; clearcuts had more under story tall shrubs, forbs, bryophytes, and lichens. Live tree basal area averaged 1.7 m2/ha in wildfires and 1.8 m2/ha in clearcuts (p = 0.59), and understory community structure (the horizontal and vertical distribution of live and dead plant biomass) was not markedly different. Clearcuts had higher species richness with greater variance than wildfires across all spatial scales tested, but differences in beta and structural diversity varied with spatial scale. Generally, clearcut–wildfire differences were more evident and wildfire variability greater at larger analytical scales, suggesting that plant biodiversity monitoring should emphasize cumulative effects across landscapes and regions.

scholarly journals Continuity forest or second-generation forest? Historic aerial photos provide evidence of early clear-cutting in northern Sweden

Silva Fennica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Lundmark ◽  
Lars Östlund ◽  
Torbjörn Josefsson
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Second Generation ◽  
Common Knowledge ◽  
Time Frame ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Northern Sweden ◽  
Forest Land ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
The 1950S

Modern forestry, which mainly consists of clear-cutting, is one of the most important factors influencing today’s boreal forests. In Sweden, the breaking point for modern forestry is generally considered to be around 1950. Recently, our common knowledge of the implementation of clear-cutting in Sweden has increased, and new research indicates that clear-cutting systems were already applied before the 1950s. In this case study, we used aerial photographs from the 1940s to analyze the extent of contemporaneous clear-cuts and even-aged young forests in an area in northern Sweden. Our results show that almost 40% of the study area had already been clear-cut by the end of the 1940s, but also that clear-cutting had been applied to 10% of the forest land in the early 1900s. This implies that the historical development of forestry in northern Sweden is more complex than previously thought, and that certain proportions of the forest land were already second-generation forests in the 1950s. Our results have implications for the use of concepts such as “continuity forest”, suggesting that this concept should employ a time frame of at least 100 years.

Effect of clear-cutting, prescribed burning and scarification on litter decomposition in an Eastern Ontario jack pine (Pinus banksiana) ecosystem

1999 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luc C. Duchesne ◽  
Suzanne Wetzel
Keyword(s):  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Decomposition Rates ◽  
Litter Bags ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Mass Losses ◽  
Field Incubation

Mass losses of litter bags containing leaf litter of Pinus banksiana Lamb., Quercus rubra L., Pteridium aquilium (L.) Kuhn, and Populus tremuloides Mchx. were compared in a jack pine ecosystem after clear-cutting, clear-cutting plus prescribed burning, and clear-cutting plus disk trenching scarification. Controls consisted of litterbags left in undisturbed plots. Mass losses were significantly affected by treatment types and litter types. The greatest differences among treatments were observed after 1 year of field incubation whereas there were considerably fewer differences among treatments after 3 years of incubation in the field. Initial decomposition of P. tremuloides and Q. rubra litter was greatest in the control plots. Scarified plots showed the slowest decomposition rates. Mass losses were not significant among treatments and litter types after 3 years incubation except for P. aquilinum litter on clear-cut and scarified plots.

scholarly journals Natural and anthropogenic extensive destruction of the spruce forest community of the European part of Russia: main trends of biodiversity dynamics

2021 ◽  
Vol 265 ◽  
pp. 01021
Author(s):  
Nina Ulanova ◽  
Andrei Kaplevsky
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Community ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Structural Diversity ◽  
Forest Community ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Spruce Stands ◽  
European Part Of Russia ◽  
The Difference

We analyzed the main trends of the change in the species richness of plant communities after catastrophic natural (beetle outbreaks, windfalls) and anthropogenic (clear cutting) disturbances. We examined the dynamics of the structural diversity of species richness of herb-dwarf scrubs layer with different reforestation technologies after the death of spruce stands. The study of similarity and ordination of vegetation showed the proximity of the undamaged forest to the unharvested stand, and the difference of these plant communities from clear-cut. The main determining factor of species richness was the intensity of plant community disturbance after catastrophes. We analyzed the reforestation dynamics of plant communities after catastrophic disturbances. Clear cutting led to the formation of grassy communities with a sharp increase in the species and structural diversity of plant community.

Changes in small mammal communities after logging in north-central Ontario

1983 ◽  
Vol 61 (5) ◽  
pp. 970-980 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur M. Martell
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Vegetative Cover ◽  
North Central ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Small Mammal Community ◽  
Small Mammal Communities ◽  
Mammal Community ◽  
Mammal Communities

Changes in small mammal communities following logging were monitored in clear-cut and strip-cut upland black spruce (Picea mariana) stands and in selectively cut mixed wood stands in north-central Ontario. Clear-cutting and subsequent scarification essentially eliminated the vegetative cover. Much of the ground cover recovered within 5 years and shrubs within 12 years, but mosses and lichens took much longer. The small mammal community in both clear-cut and strip-cut stands changed over the first three years after logging from one dominated by southern red-backed voles (Clethrionomys gapperi) to one dominated by deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) and then remained relatively stable for up to 13 years after harvest. That shift was not apparent in selectively cut mixed wood stands where the composition of the small mammal community was similar between uncut stands and stands 4–23 years after harvest. There was relatively little change in total numbers of small mammals after logging. In general, the diversity and evenness of small mammals increased or remained stable in the first 1–3 years following harvest, decreased on older (3–16 years) cuts, and then increased to values similar to those in uncut stands on the oldest (19–23 years) cuts.

Long-term effects of clear-cutting on epigaeic beetle assemblages in boreal forests

2016 ◽  
Vol 359 ◽  
pp. 65-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Therese Johansson ◽  
Joakim Hjältén ◽  
Jörgen Olsson ◽  
Mats Dynesius ◽  
Jean-Michel Roberge
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Beetle Assemblages
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