Tree uprooting: review of terminology, process, and environmental implications

1989 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randall J. Schaetzl ◽  
Donald L. Johnson ◽  
Scott F. Burns ◽  
Thomas W. Small
Keyword(s):  
Soil Disturbance ◽  
Natural Process ◽  
Environmental Implications ◽  
Widespread Occurrence ◽  
Forested Areas ◽  
Forested Landscapes ◽  
Tree Uprooting ◽  
Root Plate ◽  
Weakened Condition ◽  
Lines Of Evidence

Floralturbation, the mixing of soil by the action of plants, is an important pedologic process in forested areas. The uprooting of trees, the most obvious form of floralturbation, is a natural process found in nearly all forested landscapes. The term uprooting is distinct from such terms as treethrow, treefall, and blowdown, which imply processes that may occur without soil disturbance, as in bole snap. Uprooting is exacerbated by shallow rooting, topographic exposure, weakened condition of the tree, certain cutting practices, and (or) low soil cohesion and shear strength. The root plate of an uprooted tree may deteriorate into a pit-mound pair, the size and shape of which depends on the characteristics of the root plate and the amount of backward displacement during uprooting. This paper (i) provides a synthesis of related terminology on the topics of treefall and uprooting, (ii) examines various lines of evidence for the widespread occurrence of uprooting, (iii) summarizes disturbance cycles for catastrophic uprooting events in different environments, (iv) discusses several examples of the economic import and scale of widespread uprooting events, and (v) reviews environmental factors and silvicultural practices that may lead to increased uprooting or can be used to minimize its likelihood.

Forest soil disturbance intervals inferred from soil charcoal radiocarbon dates

2003 ◽  
Vol 33 (12) ◽  
pp. 2514-2518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel G Gavin
Keyword(s):  
Forest Soil ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Soil Disturbance ◽  
Organic Horizon ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Soil Charcoal ◽  
Old Growth Forest ◽  
Soil Disturbances ◽  
Tree Uprooting

Forest soil disturbance intervals are usually too long to measure using plot-based studies, and thus they are poorly understood. The mean soil disturbance interval (MSDI) in an old-growth forest on the west coast of Vancouver Island was estimated from radiocarbon dates of charcoal from organic and mineral soil horizons. Two assumptions are required to estimate the MSDI: (1) charcoal from forest fires is deposited within the organic horizon and eventually mixed into deeper mineral horizons by soil disturbances, and (2) the probability of soil disturbance is spatially homogeneous and affected only by the time since the last fire or the last soil disturbance. The MSDI is then estimated by the rate at which the proportion of undisturbed sample sites (determined by the proportion of sites with charcoal from the most recent fire in the organic horizon) decreases with increasing time since the last fire. Soil charcoal evidence of time since fire was determined at 83 sites using 141 radiocarbon dates. The estimated MSDI was greater on slopes (ca. 2010 years) than on terraces (ca. 920 years). The long periods between soil disturbances, especially on slopes, are consistent with other evidence from the study area that suggests infrequent tree uprooting is the predominant mode of soil disturbance.

Biogenic Imprint on Hillslopes in the Sudety Mts. — Origin and Consequences of the Tree Uprooting Process

2014 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Łukasz Pawlik
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Qualitative Description ◽  
Main Subject ◽  
Diameter At Breast Height ◽  
Geomorphological Mapping ◽  
Breast Height ◽  
The World ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Tree Uprooting ◽  
Root Plate

AbstractThe main subject of this article is the tree uprooting process and its effects on forested hillslopes in the Sudety Mts. The research has been carried out between 2010 and 2012 in the Karkonosze National Park (KNP), Stołowe Mountains National Park (SMNP) and Suche Mts. The methods included: detailed geomorphological mapping and measurements of root plates of recently fallen trees and relict treethrow mounds and pits (called pit-and-mound microtopography), their qualitative description and measurements of diameter at breast height (dbh) of uprooted tree trunks.The mean root plate volume was 0.3-1.4 mIt has been shown that tree uprooting can contribute to the evolution of regolith and soils and it is an important factor of their disturbances. This reflects results from other sites in the World. However, in the Sudety Mts. the significance of tree uprooting has been validated only locally and it is suggested that its importance decreases proportionally to the area under consideration. Here, biogenic transport is limited to treethrow pits on gentle hillslopes but can be much more effective at steeper sites.

scholarly journals Quantifying the impact of severe bushfires on biodiversity to inform conservation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelsee Baranowski ◽  
Christina Faust ◽  
Peggy Eby ◽  
Nita Bharti
Keyword(s):  
Satellite Data ◽  
Ecosystem Health ◽  
Fire Regimes ◽  
Fire Season ◽  
Ecosystem Recovery ◽  
Affected Area ◽  
Forested Areas ◽  
Forested Landscapes ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The Impact

Abstract The unusually severe 2019-2020 Australian bushfire season destroyed large areas of habitat along the southeastern coast. We assess the differences between this fire season and previous ones to understand their impacts and potential recovery. We used thermal satellite data to quantify the extent of eastern Australian bushfires from 2012-2020. During the 2019-2020 anomalous fire season, 134 mega-fires, each over 10,000 ha, burned 62.5% of the total affected area, including critical forested landscapes. Previous fire seasons were characterized by smaller, scattered fires in mostly non-forested areas. The anomalous fire season had direct negative impacts on wildlife including grey-headed flying foxes, which experienced substantial declines in immediately available foraging forest habitat, particularly key winter resources. We identified important areas for managing wildlife resources and supporting ecosystem health in the coming decades. Our research also identifies key monitoring areas to improve our understanding of ecosystem recovery and resilience in changing fire regimes.

Tree death as a crucial geomorphic agent in temperate forests: effects of weak and severe disturbances from local to continental scale

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavel Šamonil ◽  
Pavel Daněk ◽  
James A. Lutz ◽  
Jakub Jaroš ◽  
Anna Rousová ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Terrestrial Ecosystem ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Ecosystem Dynamics ◽  
Retention Capacity ◽  
Tree Species Composition ◽  
Continental Scale ◽  
Standing Trees ◽  
Forested Landscapes ◽  
Tree Uprooting ◽  
Hillslope Processes

<p>Hillslope processes in terrestrial ecosystems are significantly modified by changes in climate and land use. At the same time they strongly influence ecosystem retention capacity, pedocomplexity and biodiversity. This undoubtedly makes hillslope processes one of the crucial components of terrestrial ecosystem dynamics. In this study we focus on the long overlooked biogeomorphological impact of tree death in forested landscapes. Tree uprooting caused by strong storms affects soil and regolith formation and movement quite differently from the decomposition of intact root systems of standing trees that died due to e.g. fire or bark beetle infestation. We quantify the biogeomorphic processes associated with tree death in various terrestrial forest ecosystems and specifically assess (i) the significance of these processes in hillslope dynamics (e.g. slope denudation) of forested landscapes and (ii) the extent to which infrequent severe disturbances can shape these dynamics.</p><p>We used data from repeated tree censuses carried out in ten permanent forest plots (13–74 ha in area) located in Central Europe and North America, differing in a range of characteristics such as tree species composition, climate and disturbance regime. In total, life history of more than 134,000 trees was recorded over periods of up to 47 years, during which about one third of these trees died. Using this information together with empirical models and allometric equations we were able to quantify the average areas and volumes of soil annually affected by dying trees. These quantities differed markedly between sites with different disturbance regimes. Tree uprooting-related volumes accounted annually for 0.01–13.5 m<sup>3</sup>ha<sup>−1</sup> reaching maximum values on sites with occurrence of infrequent strong windstorms (Zofin and Boubin primeval forests, Czech Republic). Volumes related to trees that died standing ranged anually between 0.17 and 20.7 m<sup>3</sup>ha<sup>−1</sup> and were highest in the presence of stand-replacing fires (Yosemite National Park, U.S.). Comparison of these quantities with long-term erosion rates derived using cosmogenic nuclides (<sup>10</sup>Be) suggests that on certain sites, over the last few millennia, tree uprooting can be the main driver of soil erosion.</p>

Magnitude of sediment transport due to extreme windthrow event in small catchments in the Tatra Mountains

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dariusz Strzyżowski
Keyword(s):  
Sediment Transport ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Field Work ◽  
Sediment Flux ◽  
Tatra Mountains ◽  
Mountain Areas ◽  
Wind Events ◽  
Tree Uprooting ◽  
The Tatra Mountains ◽  
Root Plate

<p>In the forested mountain areas tree uprooting plays important role among many other geomorphic processes. In some cases, during extreme wind events, large patches of forest may be destroyed, which causes transport of significant amount of sediment.</p><p>The aim of this research was to investigate magnitude of sediment transport during one intense windthrow event, which took place on 25 December 2013 in the Tatra Mountains, southern Poland. The research was conducted in three second- to third-order catchments (16-81 ha), in which 34 to 94 percent of their areas were affected by windthrow. This was achieved by combining field measurements and GIS analyses. During field work root plates located within selected research polygons were measured in order to recognize the amount of sediment transported by a single uprooted tree. Then, each root plate located in the investigated catchments was mapped in GIS software using high-resolution (40 mm) orthophoto. Based on this, total volume of sediment displaced by uprooted trees within each catchment was estimated. Next, taking into account directions of tree fall and slope inclination within each uprooted tree, sediment flux by windthrow event in 2013 was calculated.</p><p>In total 211 uprooted trees were measured in the field. Mean volume of measured root plates was 1.84 m<sup>3</sup>. It was assumed that half of that value is accounted for roots of a tree, thus on average 0.92 m<sup>3</sup> of sediment was transported by each root plate. Analysis of the orthophoto allowed for identification of 4650 uprooted trees located in the investigated catchments. Most of the trees have fallen in downslope direction. Sediment flux by windthrow event in 2013 calculated for each catchment was 1.0–4.6 × 10<sup>–3</sup> m<sup>3</sup> m<sup>–1</sup>.</p>

Discourses of Nature Conservation and Heritage Management in the Past, Present and Future: Discussing Heritage and Sustainable Development from Swedish Experiences

2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 368-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Skoglund ◽  
Eva Svensson
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Nature Conservation ◽  
Heritage Management ◽  
Ecological Modernization ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
New Business ◽  
Integrated Policy ◽  
Forested Areas ◽  
Forested Landscapes ◽  
Agricultural Areas

The relationship between heritage management and nature conservation in Sweden has changed over time, from an earlier division between the two sectors – with nature conservation attached to the growing movement of environmental politics – towards more integrated ways of working under the umbrella of sustainable development. As forests have been associated with nature, the earlier divide has been more evident with forested areas than agricultural areas, a view that has contributed to the marginalization of such landscapes and their inhabitants. With the more integrated policy, heritage management is drawn into the societal discourse of ecological modernization, where environmental and sustainability issues have become new business ideas and sources of further economic growth. From an ecological modernization perspective, nature and cultural heritage are today (touristic) commodities, enforcing the power of the urban world over the rural world and thus risk contributing to further marginalization of the inhabitants. However, heritage sites appear to function as boundary objects in local communities, and may thus function as meeting places and sources of enhancement of community pride. Therefore, we argue for community participation and public communication within the heritage sector, especially concerning marginalized, forested landscapes in order to contribute to an increased knowledge and understanding of the local heritage and history, thus opening the way for creative local processes.

Spatial pedocomplexity in old-growth temperate forest driven by tree-uprooting: its formation and role in forest dynamics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Román-Sánchez ◽  
Pavel Samonil
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Soil Disturbance ◽  
Theoretical Distribution ◽  
P Value ◽  
Great Effort ◽  
Old Growth ◽  
Soil Evolution ◽  
Forest Reserve ◽  
Chemical Soil ◽  
Tree Uprooting

<p>Soil formation is a complex process that depends on topography, biota, bedrock, climate, and time. Despite of the great effort dedicated to explore soil evolution, little is known about the role of stochastic phenomena such as soil disturbance in spatial pedocomplexity formation in old-growth temperate forests. Within this study we aim to (i) reveal spatial pattern of chemical soil properties, (ii) explain differences in spatial pedocomplexity formation in A and B soil horizons.</p><p>The issue was studied in Zofinsky Primeval Forest Reserve (hereinafter Zofin) in SW Czech Republic. The Zofin has been strictly protected since 1838 and it represented the 4th oldest forest reserve in Europe. Zofin belongs to the global network of forest research plots ForestGeo (www.forestgeo.si.edu/) as the first site in continental Europe. We sampled 309 soil profiles on an area of 74 ha. In total 34 chemical soil properties were analysed in A and B horizons, particularly those, which affect soil evolution and tree growth. We analysed concentrations of Al, Fe, Mn, Ca, Na, Sr, Si fractions, characteristics of sorption complex (CEC, EA, base content), pH etc. </p><p>We used descriptive statistics and geostatistics to spatial pedocomplexity study. The experimental variograms were modelled to fit them to the best theoretical distribution. From the theoretical distribution we calculated the spatial properties in each soil elements as the range, sill and nugget. Then, using AIC estimator, we selected the same best model for both horizons to compare the spatial parameters through parametric or not parametric statistical test depending on the normalization of the data.</p><p>The results indicate, for the first time, significantly longer ranges of spatial autocorrelation of soil properties in A horizon with comparison to B horizon, which is not common in geostatistical studies. It is most likely associated with rejuvenation of soil after tree uprooting. Neoformation of A horizon after soil disturbance proceeds quite rapidly and therefore some formerly disturbed A horizons are matured above immature B horizons. The range in both horizons for all chemical soil properties is independent (p-value <0.05), indicating that the driving factors for disturbance in horizon A and B are different. However, for rather biogenic soil properties as Mg, Ca, Na, EA, K there is dependence for horizon A and B (p-value>0.05), indicating similar effect of these elements in both horizons.</p>

A Novel Perspective on Mapping Snow Cover Under Forest Canopy With Sentinel-2 Multispectral Optical Satellite Sensor Over Black Forest Germany

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnab Muhuri
Keyword(s):  
Snow Cover ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Optical Data ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
Black Forest ◽  
Forested Areas ◽  
Forested Landscapes ◽  
Sentinel 2

<p>Previous investigations have reported that the performance of the traditional snow cover mapping algorithms based on the Normalized Difference Snow Index (NDSI), derived from a multispectral optical airborne/spaceborne sensor, significantly degrades on transitioning from non-forested to forested landscapes. The thick canopy cover in forested landscapes obscures both the upwelling and the downwelling radiance and hence impairs the detection of the underlying snow cover on the forest floor via NDSI thresholding due to the shift in the apparent threshold. Although NDSI has been reported to be an ineffective index for extracting snow information from forested areas, this investigation presents contrary views. A novel perspective is introduced on exploiting the temporal NDSI-NDVI statistics for extracting snow information under the canopy, as has been also reported important in the past literature when considered together, to reconstruct the actual snow cover scenario over the mixed landscape, comprising both forested areas of varying densities and open vegetation-free patches. The Black Forest (Schwarzwald) is a large forested mountainous terrain at about 200-1500 m above sea level situated in the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg in the southwest corner of Germany. The region is bounded by the Rhine river valley to the west and south stretching in an oblong manner with a length of about 160 km and breadth of up to 50 km. The Black Forest consists of approximately 80% coniferous (spruce, fir, and pine) and 20% deciduous (beech, birch, and oak), with about 70% of the region under forest cover. Seasonal snowmelt water and natural springs originating in this region sources major European rivers like the Danube and the tributaries of the Rhein like the Murg and the Neckar. Therefore, it is essential to monitor snow accumulation under the canopy to accurately forecast and investigate the influence of the snowmelt runoff in such major catchments. One of the test sites is situated in the Murg catchment at Hundseck near the town of Baden-Baden at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range. This investigation employs Sentinel-2 multispectral optical data from the previous season in order to test the proposed approach. The proposed method is tested with the European Space Agency's open-access Sentinel-2 multispectral optical satellite data, over the Hundseck test site in the Black Forest. The snow extent map is validated with the Normalized Difference Forest Snow Index (NDFSI), which was proposed as an alternative for NDSI to map the canopy underlying snow in evergreen forests. The proposed algorithm is simple and computationally frugal. Temporal NDSI-NDVI statistics in conjunction with mathematical morphological operation has resulted in significant improvement in the detection of under canopy snow cover. It is noteworthy that the performance of the algorithm inherently shows a dependence on the forest LAI. An improvement of more than 50% is achieved in the under-canopy snow cover mapping. A priori knowledge regarding the LAI of forests will enable adaptive tuning of the algorithm locally for better performance under dense canopy conditions.</p>

scholarly journals Molecular evidence for sex reversal in wild populations of green frogs (Rana clamitans)

PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e6449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Max R. Lambert ◽  
Tien Tran ◽  
Andrzej Kilian ◽  
Tariq Ezaz ◽  
David K. Skelly
Keyword(s):  
Sex Determination ◽  
Sex Reversal ◽  
Natural Process ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Molecular Evidence ◽  
Rana Clamitans ◽  
Green Frog ◽  
Wild Populations ◽  
Rearing Conditions ◽  
Forested Landscapes

In vertebrates, sex determination occurs along a continuum from strictly genotypic (GSD), where sex is entirely guided by genes, to strictly environmental (ESD), where rearing conditions, like temperature, determine phenotypic sex. Along this continuum are taxa which have combined genetic and environmental contributions to sex determination (GSD + EE), where some individuals experience environmental effects which cause them to sex reverse and develop their phenotypic sex opposite their genotypic sex. Amphibians are often assumed to be strictly GSD with sex reversal typically considered abnormal. Despite calls to understand the relative natural and anthropogenic causes of amphibian sex reversal, sex reversal has not been closely studied across populations of any wild amphibian, particularly in contrasting environmental conditions. Here, we use sex-linked molecular markers to discover sex reversal in wild populations of green frogs (Rana clamitans) inhabiting ponds in either undeveloped, forested landscapes or in suburban neighborhoods. Our work here begins to suggest that sex reversal may be common within and across green frog populations, occurring in 12 of 16 populations and with frequencies of 2–16% of individuals sampled within populations. Additionally, our results also suggest that intersex phenotypic males and sex reversal are not correlated with each other and are also not correlated with suburban land use. While sex reversal and intersex are often considered aberrant responses to human activities and associated pollution, we found no such associations here. Our data perhaps begin to suggest that, relative to what is often suggested, sex reversal may be a relatively natural process in amphibians. Future research should focus on assessing interactions between genes and the environment to understand the molecular and exogenous basis of sex determination in green frogs and in other amphibians.

TREE UPROOTING: REVIEW OF TYPES AND PATTERNS OF SOIL DISTURBANCE

1990 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 277-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randall J. Schaetzl ◽  
Scott F. Burns ◽  
Thomas W. Small ◽  
Donald L. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Soil Disturbance ◽  
Tree Uprooting
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