scholarly journals The seed bank in an old-growth, temperate deciduous forest

2000 ◽  
Vol 78 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Leckie ◽  
Mark Vellend ◽  
Graham Bell ◽  
Marcia J Waterway ◽  
Martin J Lechowicz

We assessed the size and composition of the seed bank in 31 plots representing a range of habitats within an old-growth, temperate deciduous forest at Mont St. Hilaire, Québec, Canada. We identified 49 taxa in the seed bank, with an average of 40 species·m-2 and a median density of 1218 seeds·m-2. The most frequent seeds were species of Carex and Rubus, Diervilla lonicera, and Eupatorium rugosum, while seeds of Carex were the most numerous overall. Of the 12 species in the seed bank not found in the forest, 11 were found growing on the developed landscape surrounding this 10-km2 forest fragment. These nonforest species were numerically only a minor component of the forest seed bank. Vernal herbs were not in the seed bank, and there were only a few tree species. Variation in seed bank richness among habitats was correlated positively with canopy cover, soil moisture, and soil nutrients, but not with the seed bank density or total number of species in the aboveground vegetation. Seed bank density increased with plot soil moisture. Woody species predominated in the seed bank of plots with richer soils, deeper litter, and more closed canopies. Herbaceous species predominated in the seed bank of plots with more open canopies, more mesic water regimes, and greater species richness in the aboveground vegetation. Contrary to earlier results suggesting forest seed banks primarily include shade-intolerant species associated with canopy disturbance or secondary succession, the seed bank in this old-growth, primary forest contains many shade-tolerant forest species.Key words: seed bank, old-growth forest, primary forest, temperate deciduous forest, habitat diversity, seed dispersal.

2000 ◽  
Vol 78 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Leckie ◽  
Mark Vellend ◽  
Graham Bell ◽  
Marcia J. Waterway ◽  
Martin J. Lechowicz

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e6027
Author(s):  
Julia J. Mlynarek ◽  
Amélie Grégoire Taillefer ◽  
Terry A. Wheeler

Saproxylic insects, those associated directly or indirectly with decaying wood for all or part of their life cycle, compose a large proportion of forest organisms. Flies (Diptera) are often the most abundant and species-rich group of insects in forest microhabitats, yet most work to date on saproxylic insect diversity and ecology has focused on beetles (Coleoptera). We compared saproxylic Diptera assemblages reared from two tree species (sugar maple and American beech) at two stages of decay (early/young and advanced/old) for a total of 20 logs in an eastern Canadian Nearctic old-growth forest. We found that communities are distinct within both species type and decay stage of wood. Early decay stage wood is more variable in community composition than later decay stage; however, as the age of the decaying wood increases, the abundance of Diptera increases significantly. Most indicator species are discernible in later decay stage and wood type. We venture to suggest that stochastic and deterministic processes may play a role in driving Diptera communities in temperate deciduous forests. To retain the highest saproxylic Diptera diversity in a forest, a variety of decaying wood types at different stages of decomposition is necessary.


2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 774-782 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-François Senécal ◽  
Frédérik Doyon ◽  
Benoît St-Onge

The use of LiDAR in the study of gap regimes has seen significant progress in recent years. Researchers have assumed that canopy gaps detected in this manner are ecologically equivalent to gaps sampled in situ by more traditional methods. However, those latter methods usually include canopy gaps only and ignore non-regenerating openings that are produced by causes limiting tree establishment. We developed a predictive model capable of discriminating between canopy gaps and non-regenerating openings using LiDAR-derived data. Selected predictive variables were related to conditions that limit tree establishment such as zones of moisture accumulation and steep slopes or to the resulting vegetation physiognomy. The model was applied to three old-growth maple forests to predict the fractions of canopy openings belonging to these two types. On average, non-regenerating openings represented 19.5% of the total area detected as canopy openings and occupied 1.37% of the sites. Canopy gaps formed 80.5% of the total area in canopy openings and covered 5.71% of sites that were studied. The non-regenerating opening seemed more frequent on thin surficial deposits. The canopy gap fraction was similar among study sites but had lower values than usually reported for temperate deciduous forest.


2004 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 2485-2509 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guillaume Decocq ◽  
Bertille Valentin ◽  
Benoit Toussaint ◽  
Frédéric Hendoux ◽  
Robert Saguez ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Mlynarek ◽  
Amélie Grégoire Taillefer ◽  
Terry A Wheeler

Saproxylic insects, those that feed on wood or bark, compose a large proportion of forest organisms. Flies (Diptera) are often the most abundant and species-rich groups in forest microhabitats, yet most work to date on saproxylic insect diversity and ecology has focused on beetles (Coleoptera). We compared saproxylic Diptera assemblages reared from two tree species (sugar maple and American beech) at two stages of decay (ca. two years, and ca. six years after death) for a total of 20 logs in an eastern Canadian Nearctic old-growth forest. We found that communities are distinct within both species type and decay stage of wood. Early decay stage wood is more variable in community composition than later decay stage; however, as the age of the decaying wood increases, the abundance of Diptera increases significantly. Most indicator species are discernible in later decay stage and wood type. Both stochastic and deterministic processes seem to play a role in community of temperate deciduous forests. To retain the highest saproxylic Diptera diversity in a forest, a variety of decaying wood types at different stages of decomposition is necessary.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Mlynarek ◽  
Amélie Grégoire Taillefer ◽  
Terry A Wheeler

Saproxylic insects, those that feed on wood or bark, compose a large proportion of forest organisms. Flies (Diptera) are often the most abundant and species-rich groups in forest microhabitats, yet most work to date on saproxylic insect diversity and ecology has focused on beetles (Coleoptera). We compared saproxylic Diptera assemblages reared from two tree species (sugar maple and American beech) at two stages of decay (ca. two years, and ca. six years after death) for a total of 20 logs in an eastern Canadian Nearctic old-growth forest. We found that communities are distinct within both species type and decay stage of wood. Early decay stage wood is more variable in community composition than later decay stage; however, as the age of the decaying wood increases, the abundance of Diptera increases significantly. Most indicator species are discernible in later decay stage and wood type. Both stochastic and deterministic processes seem to play a role in community of temperate deciduous forests. To retain the highest saproxylic Diptera diversity in a forest, a variety of decaying wood types at different stages of decomposition is necessary.


2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 571-584 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa B. Beauchamp ◽  
Nureen Ghuznavi ◽  
Stephanie M. Koontz ◽  
Roland P. Roberts

2015 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 680-688 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica G. Davis ◽  
Julia I. Chapman ◽  
Shuang-Ye Wu ◽  
Ryan W. McEwan

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