Effects of an intense ice storm on the structure of a northern hardwood forest

2002 ◽  
Vol 32 (10) ◽  
pp. 1763-1775 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne G Rhoads ◽  
Steven P Hamburg ◽  
Timothy J Fahey ◽  
Thomas G Siccama ◽  
Elizabeth N Hane ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Forest Damage ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Betula Alleghaniensis ◽  
Regression Equations ◽  
Ice Storm ◽  
Beech Bark Disease ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Northern Hardwood ◽  
Advance Regeneration

A major ice storm in January 1998 provided an opportunity to study the effects of a rare, intense disturbance on the structure of the northern hardwood forest canopy. Canopy damage was assessed using visual damage classes within watersheds of different ages at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF) and changes in leaf area index in two of these watersheds. Ice thickness was measured, and ice loads of trees were estimated using regression equations. In the 60- to 120-year-old forests (mean basal area 26 m2·ha–1), damage was greatest in trees >30 cm diameter at breast height and at elevations above 600 m. Of the dominant tree species, beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) was the most damaged, sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) was the most resistant, and yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis Britt.) was intermediate. Trees with advanced beech bark disease experienced heavier ice damage. Little damage occurred in the 14-year-old forest, while the 24- to 28-year-old forest experienced intense damage. In the young stands of this forest, damage was greatest between 600 and 750 m, in trees on steep slopes and near streams, and among pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica L.). Recovery of the canopy was tracked over three growing seasons, and root growth was monitored 1 year after the storm. Because of the high density of advance regeneration from beech bark disease and root sprouting potential in ice-damaged beech, HBEF will likely see an increase in beech abundance in older forests as a result of the storm. There will also be a more rapid change from pioneer species to mature northern hardwoods in the younger forests. These predictions illustrate the ability of rare disturbances to increase heterogeneity of forest structure and composition in this ecosystem, especially through interactions with other disturbances.

scholarly journals Ice storm effects on the canopy structure of a northern hardwood forest after 8 years

2009 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
pp. 1475-1483 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian C. Weeks ◽  
Steven P. Hamburg ◽  
Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Area ◽  
Vertical Structure ◽  
Canopy Structure ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Differential Mortality ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Ice Storm ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Northern Hardwood ◽  
Advance Regeneration

Ice storms can cause severe damage to forest canopies, resulting in differential mortality among tree species and size classes and leading to long-lasting changes in the vertical structure and composition of the forest. An intense ice storm in 1998 damaged large areas of the northern hardwood forest, including much of the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire (USA). Following up on detailed poststorm assessments, we measured changes in the vertical structure of the forest canopy 8 years poststorm. We focused on how the presence of disease-induced advance regeneration of American beech ( Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) has affected canopy structure in the recovering forest. We measured foliage-height profiles using a point-quadrat approach and a pole-mounted leaf area index (LAI) sensor. Although the total LAIs of damaged and undamaged areas were similar, areas damaged in 1998 showed an increased proportion of total leaf area between 6 and 10 m above the ground. The foliage at this height is largely (54%) beech. To the extent that this heavily beech-dominated understory layer suppresses regeneration of other species, these findings suggest that rare disturbances of mature northern hardwood forests affected by beech bark disease will increase the importance of damage-prone and economically marginal beech.

Comparing direct and indirect methods of assessing canopy structure in a northern hardwood forest

2004 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 584-591 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne G Rhoads ◽  
Steven P Hamburg ◽  
Timothy J Fahey ◽  
Thomas G Siccama ◽  
Richard Kobe
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Canopy Structure ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Ice Storm ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Northern Hardwood ◽  
Visual Damage ◽  
Hemispherical Photographs

Several methods exist for measuring forest canopies following disturbance, and the biases and differences among them are unclear. We compared techniques for measuring the northern hardwood forest's canopy structure at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire, following the severe ice storm of January 5–10, 1998. Methods included leaf area index (LAI) using LI-COR's LAI-2000, visual damage assessments based on tree branch loss, radiation estimates from hemispherical photographs, and LAI determined from litterfall. LAI-2000 measurements were not significantly related to visual damage class estimates, but were strongly correlated with radiation estimates from hemispherical photographs and average LAI values from litterfall. LAI from the LAI-2000 and litterfall differed on a point-by-point basis, but were similar at the stand scale. The LAI-2000 has the highest precision for large-scale measurements. Visual damage estimates appear adequate for assessing large-scale patterns of disturbance intensity in the northern hardwood forest, but the LAI-2000 is more accurate at quantifying canopy structure at large plot or stand scales. Hemispherical photographs may also accomplish this, but are better suited to characterizing the distribution of canopy gaps and light availability patterns over time. Litterfall provides accurate and precise measurements of small-scale LAI patterns in deciduous forests and reveals species-specific patterns.

A novel ice storm manipulation experiment in a northern hardwood forest

2012 ◽  
Vol 42 (10) ◽  
pp. 1810-1818 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsey E. Rustad ◽  
John L. Campbell
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Forest Ecosystems ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Canopy Openness ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Ice Storm ◽  
Northeastern United States ◽  
Northern Hardwood ◽  
Ice Storms

Ice storms are an important natural disturbance within forest ecosystems of the northeastern United States. Current models suggest that the frequency and severity of ice storms may increase in the coming decades in response to changes in climate. Because of the stochastic nature of ice storms and difficulties in predicting their occurrence, most past investigations of the ecological effects of ice storms across this region have been based on case studies following major storms. Here we report on a novel alternative approach where a glaze ice event was created experimentally under controlled conditions at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire, USA. Water was sprayed over a northern hardwood forest canopy during February 2011, resulting in 7–12 mm radial ice thickness. Although this is below the minimum cutoff for ice storm warnings (13 mm of ice) issued by the US National Weather Service for the northeastern United States, this glaze ice treatment resulted in significant canopy damage, with 142 and 218 g C·m–2 of fine and coarse woody debris (respectively) deposited on the forest floor, a significant increase in leaf-on canopy openness, and increases in qualitative damage assessments following the treatment. This study demonstrates the feasibility of a relatively simple approach to simulating an ice storm and underscores the potency of this type of extreme event in shaping the future structure and function of northern hardwood forest ecosystems.

scholarly journals Short-Term Temperature Response in Forest Floor and Soil to Ice Storm Disturbance in a Northern Hardwood Forest

2004 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 209-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gene E. Likens ◽  
Brian K. Dresser ◽  
Donald C. Buso
Keyword(s):  
Forest Floor ◽  
Reference Site ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Maximum Temperature ◽  
Daily Maximum Temperature ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Ice Storm ◽  
Reference Sites ◽  
Northern Hardwood ◽  
Open Site

Abstract Significant changes in the temperature of forest floor and soil of the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest occurred as a result of canopy damage caused by a major ice storm in Jan. 1998. The summertime patterns among open, brush-pile, and reference sites were clear and repeatable: (1) air temperatures at all sites peaked at about the same time each day although the average open-site values were 1 to 4°C higher; (2) the pattern at 2- and 15-cm [0.8- and 5.9-in.] depths was similar to air; (3) the open value was 5 to 9 and 6 to 10°C higher than that in the reference site and brush-pile sites, respectively; (4) there was a lag of ∼0.3 hours for daily peak temperatures between the air and 2-cm depth, and ∼3.3 hours between the daily maximum temperature at 2- and 15-cm depth for the open sites; (5) the open site temperature at both 2- and 15-cm depth was ∼2°C higher than reference and brush-pile temperatures (average daily temperature for the brush-pile site rose to be roughly equal to that in the open site in Aug. 1999 and Aug. 2000, while the reference site remained about 2°C lower); (6) small, but not statistically significant, changes were observed at the 50-cm [19.7-in.] depth where the open site was ∼1°C higher than the brush-pile or reference sites; and (7) regrowth of vegetation in the canopy gaps during the first 3 years reduced forest floor temperatures to or below the temperature at the 2-cm depth in the reference site. These results have potential ecological importance to the northern hardwood forest ecosystem. North. J. Appl. For. 21(4):209 –219.

Calcium and magnesium in wood of northern hardwood forest species: relations to site characteristics

1999 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
M A Arthur ◽  
T G Siccama ◽  
R D Yanai
Keyword(s):  
Sugar Maple ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Fagus Grandifolia ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Betula Alleghaniensis ◽  
Forest Species ◽  
White Birch ◽  
Yellow Birch ◽  
Northern Hardwood

Improving estimates of the nutrient content of boles in forest ecosystems requires more information on how the chemistry of wood varies with characteristics of the tree and site. We examined Ca and Mg concentrations in wood at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest. Species examined were the dominant tree species of the northern hardwood forest and the spruce-fir forest. The concentrations of Ca and Mg, respectively, in lightwood of these species, mass weighted by elevation, were 661 and 145 µg/g for sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.), 664 and 140 µg/g for American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.), 515 and 93 µg/g for yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis Britt.), 525 and 70 µg/g for red spruce (Picea rubens Sarg.), 555 and 118 µg/g for balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.), and 393 and 101 µg/g for white birch (Betula papyrifera Marsh.). There were significant patterns in Ca and Mg concentrations with wood age. The size of the tree was not an important source of variation. Beech showed significantly greater concentrations of both Ca (30%) and Mg (33%) in trees growing in moist sites relative to drier sites; sugar maple and yellow birch were less sensitive to mesotopography. In addition to species differences in lightwood chemistry, Ca and Mg concentrations in wood decreased with increasing elevation, coinciding with a pattern of decreasing Ca and Mg in the forest floor. Differences in Ca and Mg concentration in lightwood accounted for by elevation ranged from 12 to 23% for Ca and 16 to 30% for Mg for the three northern hardwood species. At the ecosystem scale, the magnitude of the elevational effect on lightwood chemistry, weighted by species, amounts to 18% of lightwood Ca in the watershed and 24% of lightwood Mg but only 2% of aboveground biomass Ca and 7% of aboveground Mg.

scholarly journals Validation and refinement of allometric equations for roots of northern hardwoods

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (9) ◽  
pp. 1777-1783 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur ◽  
Steven P. Hamburg ◽  
Ruth D. Yanai
Keyword(s):  
Sugar Maple ◽  
Lateral Roots ◽  
Fagus Grandifolia ◽  
Allometric Equations ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Sampling Effort ◽  
Betula Alleghaniensis ◽  
Northern Hardwood ◽  
Mean Error

The allometric equations developed by Whittaker et al. (1974. Ecol. Monogr. 44: 233–252) at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest have been used to estimate biomass and productivity in northern hardwood forest systems for over three decades. Few other species-specific allometric estimates of belowground biomass are available because of the difficulty in collecting the data, and such equations are rarely validated. Using previously unpublished data from Whittaker’s sampling effort, we extended the equations to predict the root crown and lateral root components for the three dominant species of the northern hardwood forest: American beech ( Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.), yellow birch ( Betula alleghaniensis Britt), and sugar maple ( Acer saccharum Marsh.). We also refined the allometric models by eliminating the use of very small trees for which the original data were unreliable. We validated these new models of the relationship of tree diameter to the mass of root crowns and lateral roots using root mass data collected from 12 northern hardwood stands of varying age in central New Hampshire. These models provide accurate estimates of lateral roots (<10 cm diameter) in northern hardwood stands >20 years old (mean error 24%–32%). For the younger stands that we studied, allometric equations substantially underestimated observed root biomass (mean error >60%), presumably due to remnant mature root systems from harvested trees supporting young root-sprouted trees.

scholarly journals Experimental approach and initial forest response to a simulated ice storm experiment in a northern hardwood forest

PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (9) ◽  
pp. e0239619
Author(s):  
Lindsey E. Rustad ◽  
John L. Campbell ◽  
Charles T. Driscoll ◽  
Timothy J. Fahey ◽  
Peter M. Groffman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Approach ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Ice Storm ◽  
Northern Hardwood

Ecosystem Nitrogen Response to a Simulated Ice Storm in a Northern Hardwood Forest

Ecosystems ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 1186-1205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie N. Weitzman ◽  
Peter M. Groffman ◽  
John L. Campbell ◽  
Charles T. Driscoll ◽  
Robert T. Fahey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Northern Hardwood Forest ◽  
Ice Storm ◽  
Nitrogen Response ◽  
Northern Hardwood
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