An assessment of dead wood patterns and their relationships with biophysical characteristics in two landscapes with different disturbance histories in coastal Oregon, USA

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 940-956 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca S.H. Kennedy ◽  
Thomas A. Spies
Keyword(s):  
Dead Wood ◽  
Structural Type ◽  
Landscape Scale ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
Riparian Areas ◽  
Wood Volume ◽  
Source Areas ◽  
Topographic Positions ◽  
Vegetation And Climate ◽  
Biophysical Attributes

Understanding the relative importance of landscape history, topography, vegetation, and climate to dead wood patterns is important for assessing pattern–process relationships related to dead wood and associated biodiversity. We sampled dead wood at four topographic positions in two landscapes (1400–2100 km2) that experienced different wildfire and salvage histories in coastal Oregon. Study objectives were to (i) determine whether and how the landscapes differed in dead wood amounts and characteristics and (ii) evaluate relationships between dead wood characteristics and potentially related biophysical variables associated with historical and current vegetation, topography, climate, soils, and ecoregion. Despite differences in history, the two landscapes differed little in total dead wood volume; however, they differed in dead wood volume by structural type, decay class, and source (legacy/nonlegacy). Dead wood varied by topographic position, and topography was of greatest importance compared with other factors. In this mountainous region, upper topographic positions may be source areas for dead wood and riparian areas and streams sinks for dead wood. Climate explained more variance in dead wood in the landscape that burned earlier and was not salvaged. Landscape-scale patterns of dead wood are evident in landscapes with different disturbance histories and despite finer-scale variation in topography, vegetation, and other biophysical attributes.

Heterogeneity in ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir forests: age and size structure in unlogged and logged landscapes of central Colorado

2000 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 698-711 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merrill R Kaufmann ◽  
Claudia M Regan ◽  
Peter M Brown
Keyword(s):  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Size Structure ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Age Distribution ◽  
Landscape Scale ◽  
Tree Density ◽  
Tree Age ◽  
Riparian Areas ◽  
Forest Patches ◽  
Tree Removal

Tree age and size structures were compared within and among topographic categories in portions of a 35-km2 unlogged landscape and a comparable adjacent logged landscape. Tree density was generally higher in the logged landscape. One fifth of plots in the unlogged landscape had trees older than 400 years, but no trees older than 400 years remained in the logged landscape plots. Ten recruitment pulses were identified for the unlogged study area, accounting for 49% of all trees measured during 26% of the 421-year survival record. Recruitment pulses in the logged area accounted for fewer trees during a larger amount of time. Most recruitment periods in the unlogged landscape coincided with known past major fires. The mixed-severity historical fire regime created openings that persisted for as long as 148 years. The following components exist in the unlogged landscape: (i) forest patches having a distinct age cap reflecting regeneration following an earlier stand-replacing fire, (ii) uneven-aged forest patches having no evidence of an age cap, (ii) openings created by fire, and (iv) riparian areas. Results suggest that the logged landscape is poised to regain an old-growth age distribution, and tree removal in the logged landscape could restore the size distribution found in the unlogged landscape. However, the unlogged landscape has openings not found in the logged landscape that should be considered in restoration efforts at a landscape scale.

scholarly journals Bird Communities in Urban Riparian Areas: Response to the Local- and Landscape-Scale Environmental Variables

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 683
Author(s):  
Shiyi Guo ◽  
Chang Su ◽  
Kaoru Saito ◽  
Jiexin Cheng ◽  
Toru Terada
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Human Disturbance ◽  
Environmental Variables ◽  
Landscape Planning ◽  
Landscape Connectivity ◽  
Landscape Scale ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Riparian Areas ◽  
Total Contribution ◽  
The Impact

Understanding how environmental changes driven by urbanization impact the biodiversity in urban riparian areas has great importance for landscape planning and river ecosystem conservation. There have been many studies on the response of bird communities to different environmental variables in urban parks; however, although supporting some of the highest bird diversities, case studies in urban riparian areas remain limited. In existing research, few studies have considered the impact of both local waterfront characteristics and surrounding environmental variables at a larger scale. In this study, we selected birds as the indicator to clarify their response to both local- and landscape-scale environmental variables in riparian areas of Tsing river, Beijing, in terms of (a) vegetation composition, (b) human disturbance, (c) land cover, and (d) landscape connectivity. We hypothesized that birds with different biological characteristics may respond differently to environmental variables. Birds were then further grouped according to the habitat type, residential type, and feeding type. It turned out that the coverage of grass and the disturbance of pedestrians are the most influential variables. Besides, compared with the land cover and landscape connectivity, the total contribution of vegetation characteristics and human disturbance accounts for the main proportion of explained variance. Information pertaining to these environmental variables can provide evidence to support bird conservation efforts in urban areas, and the identified distance threshold provides a basis for future landscape connectivity assessments.

scholarly journals Optimal Continuous Cover Forest Management with a Lower Bound Constraint on Dead Wood

2019 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 202-209
Author(s):  
Janne Rämö ◽  
Aino Assmuth ◽  
Olli Tahvonen
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Dead Wood ◽  
Stand Density ◽  
Minor Effect ◽  
Biodiversity Indicator ◽  
Wood Volume ◽  
The Dead ◽  
A Minor ◽  
Timber Harvests

Abstract We analyze economically optimal continuous cover forestry with dead wood as a biodiversity indicator. We study mixed-species stands consisting of Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.), birch (Betula pendula Roth.), and other broadleaves (e.g., oak [Quercus sp.], maple [Acer sp.]). The analysis is based on an economic description of continuous cover forest management using an empirically estimated size-structured transition matrix model. We use size-specific decomposition rates for dead wood, with the lower limit on total dead wood volume varying between 0 and 40 m3 ha–1. The optimization problem is solved in its general dynamic form using gradient-based interior point methods. Increasing the dead wood volume requirement affects total stand density only slightly, but increases stand heterogeneity as other broadleaves are grown in higher numbers. In addition, increasing the dead wood requirement has only a minor effect on the total felled volume, but harvests shift from timber harvests to biodiversity fellings to maintain the required dead wood volume. In the optimal steady state with a high dead wood requirement, two harvesting cohorts emerge: one for timber harvests and the other for biodiversity fellings. Increasing the dead wood requirement decreases steady-state net timber income by up to 30 percent compared to the unconstrained solution.

scholarly journals A Permanent Research Platform for Ecological Studies in Intact Temperate Mountainous Forests from Slătioara UNESCO Site and Its Surroundings, Romania

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1004
Author(s):  
Gabriel Duduman ◽  
Mihai-Leonard Duduman ◽  
Daniel Avăcăriței ◽  
Ionuț Barnoaiea ◽  
Cătălina-Oana Barbu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Norway Spruce ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Dead Wood ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Wood Volume ◽  
Square Grid ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Research Platform ◽  
Unesco Site

This paper describes a permanent research platform (PRP) designed and implemented in “Codrul secular Slătioara” and its surroundings (2205.85 ha), having also the role of introductory paper for future research articles based on data collected from this platform. “Codrul secular Slătioara” is known as one of the largest temperate mountainous intact forests of Europe and, in 2017, it was included in UNESCO World Heritage List, as part of the “Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe”. Moreover, the PRP overlaps other three scientific reserves, the share of strictly protected forests exceeding 70%. This platform has a multiple role, being developed for research, conservation and educational activities. The PRP was designed for an ecological analysis of the intact forest ecosystems. It contains 193 circular sample plots, each of them of 500 m2, and it is structured on two levels. The first level contains 58 sample plots corresponding to a square grid of 500 × 500 m, stretching over the entire forested area, and the second level contains 135 plots, placed according to a square grid of 100 × 100 m, covering 136 ha within the core area of the UNESCO site. We measured the characteristics of 8296 living trees, 1743 standing dead trees, 1900 dead wood trunks, 3214 saplings, and the abundance–dominance indices of flora species. Thus, we identified 14 tree species, 17 shrub species, and 248 other cormophyte species forming the herbaceous layer. In terms of volume, the main tree species are Norway spruce, silver fir and European beech. The tallest species are Norway spruce (56 m) and silver fir (51 m). The average volume of living trees is 659 m3·ha−1, with a maximum of 1441 m3·ha−1. The mean total dead wood volume is about 158 m3·ha−1, with sample plots where the total dead wood volume exceeds 600 m3·ha−1. After presenting the results of preliminary data processing, the paper describes the main research topics to be further considered, based on the PRP, and the foresights related to the PRP’s monitoring and development.

The relative importance of stand and dead wood types for wood-dependent lichens in managed boreal forests

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 166-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Måns Svensson ◽  
Victor Johansson ◽  
Anders Dahlberg ◽  
Andreas Frisch ◽  
Göran Thor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Dead Wood ◽  
Relative Importance

scholarly journals Niche partitioning among dead wood-dependent beetles

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jakub Horák
Keyword(s):  
Dead Wood ◽  
Resource Competition ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Landscape Scale ◽  
Habitat Requirements ◽  
Wood Material ◽  
Neutral Drift ◽  
Species Abundances

AbstractNiche partitioning among species with virtually the same requirements is a fundamental concept in ecology. Nevertheless, some authors suggest that niches have little involvement in structuring communities. This study was done in the Pardubice Region (Czech Republic) on saproxylic beetles with morphologically similar larvae and very specific requirements, which are related to their obligatory dependence on dead wood material: Cucujus cinnaberinus, Pyrochroa coccinea, and Schizotus pectinicornis. This work was performed on 232 dead wood pieces at the landscape scale over six years. Based on the factors studied, the relationships among these species indicated that their co-occurrence based on species presence and absence was low, which indicated niche partitioning. However, based on analyses of habitat requirements and species composition using observed species abundances, there was no strong evidence for niche partitioning at either studied habitat levels, the tree and the microhabitat. The most likely reasons for the lack of strong niche partitioning were that dead wood is a rich resource and co-occurrence of saproxylic community was not driven by resource competition. This might be consistent with the theory that biodiversity could be controlled by the neutral drift of species abundance. Nevertheless, niche partitioning could be ongoing, meaning that the expanding C. cinnaberinus may have an advantage over the pyrochroids and could dominate in the long term.

scholarly journals Ecological assessment of dead wood volume in natural deciduous forests in the Vita river valley in Holosiivskyi National Nature Park

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (2) ◽  
pp. 45-54
Author(s):  
Олександр Юрійович Чорнобров ◽  
Людмила Петрівна Сотник ◽  
Орест Борисович Ходинь ◽  
Василь Васильович Коніщук ◽  
Ігор Ярославович Тимочко ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dead Wood ◽  
Ecological Assessment ◽  
River Valley ◽  
Deciduous Forests ◽  
Wood Volume ◽  
Nature Park
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