scholarly journals Terrestrial Bryophyte and Lichen Responses to Canopy Opening in Pine-Moss-Lichen Forests

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dale Vitt ◽  
Laura Finnegan ◽  
Melissa House
Keyword(s):  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Timber Harvest ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Ground Layer ◽  
Bare Ground ◽  
Montane Forests ◽  
Canopy Opening ◽  
Feather Mosses ◽  
Winter Food ◽  
Reindeer Lichens

Pinus contorta-dominated montane forests of western Canada with relatively dense tree canopies have ground layers with abundant bryophytes, especially the feather mosses (Pleurozium schreberi and Hylocomium splendens), while those with more open canopies are dominated by species of reindeer lichens, especially Cladonia arbuscula s.l. and C. rangiferina s.l. Woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou), which are a threatened species in Alberta, prefer open, Cladonia-dominated forests for their winter food supply. This study investigated if opening the canopy by thinning mature montane forests of the Canadian Rocky Mountain foothills would change the abundance of lichens and bryophytes. In 1997, forests were thinned by removing 20%, 40%, and 60% by volume. In 2016, 19 years after treatment, we re-surveyed a subset of these plots (n = 97) for lichen and bryophyte abundance and species richness by utilizing the amount of canopy opening at the plot level as our prime gradient. We then used ordination to determine the relationship of control plots to treatment plots. In uncut forest, the control plots were highly variable, but were mostly dominated by feather mosses, with little or no bare ground. Feather moss abundance was lower in treatment plots when compared to control plots, while cover of bare ground was greater. Overall, 19 years after treatment, we found that, in treatment plots, lichen abundance remained stable or slightly increased, feather mosses decreased markedly, and unoccupied space was double that of the control plots. We conclude that the canopy opening had little effect on understory and ground layer diversity, but considering species abundance (1) bryophytes have not recovered after canopy opening, (2) populations of reindeer lichens increased marginally, but have not colonized areas left bare from bryophyte dieback, and (3), after 19 years there, remains unoccupied areas of bare ground in plots with a reduced canopy cover. Our study demonstrated that, with canopy cover reduction resulting from forest thinning operations, the ground layer diversity is maintained, but recovery of ground layers in old-growth pine-dominated forests is not promoted. Therefore, timber harvest that partially opens the tree canopy is unlikely to benefit caribou by augmenting or accelerating winter food availability and habitat suitability for caribou.

Zoning, land use, and urban tree canopy cover: The importance of scale

2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah K. Mincey ◽  
Mikaela Schmitt-Harsh ◽  
Richard Thurau
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Urban Tree ◽  
Tree Canopy Cover ◽  
Urban Tree Canopy

scholarly journals Diversity of Medicinal Plants among Different Tree Canopies

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 2640
Author(s):  
Muhammad Zubair ◽  
Akash Jamil ◽  
Syed Bilal Hussain ◽  
Ahsan Ul Haq ◽  
Ahmad Hussain ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Coniferous Forest ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Tree Cover ◽  
Open Spaces ◽  
Floral Diversity ◽  
Tree Canopy Cover ◽  
Closed Canopy

The moist temperate forests in Northern Pakistan are home to a variety of flora and fauna that are pivotal in sustaining the livelihoods of the local communities. In these forests, distribution and richness of vegetation, especially that of medicinal plants, is rarely reported. In this study, we carried out a vegetation survey in District Balakot, located in Northeastern Pakistan, to characterize the diversity of medicinal plants under different canopies of coniferous forest. The experimental site was divided into three major categories (viz., closed canopy, open spaces, and partial tree cover). A sampling plot of 100 m2 was established on each site to measure species diversity, dominance, and evenness. To observe richness and abundance, the rarefaction and rank abundance curves were plotted. Results revealed that a total of 45 species representing 34 families were available in the study site. Medicinal plants were the most abundant (45%) followed by edible plants (26%). Tree canopy cover affected the overall growth of medicinal plants on the basis of abundance and richness. The site with partial canopy exhibited the highest diversity, dominance, and abundance compared to open spaces and closed canopy. These findings are instrumental in identifying the wealth of the medicinal floral diversity in the northeastern temperate forest of Balakot and the opportunity to sustain the livelihoods of local communities with the help of public/private partnership.

scholarly journals Estimating Forest Canopy Cover by Multiscale Remote Sensing in Northeast Jiangxi, China

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 433
Author(s):  
Xiaolan Huang ◽  
Weicheng Wu ◽  
Tingting Shen ◽  
Lifeng Xie ◽  
Yaozu Qin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Google Earth ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Landsat Data ◽  
High Resolution Data ◽  
Modis Ndvi ◽  
Tree Canopy Cover

This research was focused on estimation of tree canopy cover (CC) by multiscale remote sensing in south China. The key aim is to establish the relationship between CC and woody NDVI (NDVIW) or to build a CC-NDVIW model taking northeast Jiangxi as an example. Based on field CC measurements, this research used Google Earth as a complementary source to measure CC. In total, 63 sample plots of CC were created, among which 45 were applied for modeling and the remaining 18 were employed for verification. In order to ascertain the ratio R of NDVIW to the satellite observed NDVI, a 20-year time-series MODIS NDVI dataset was utilized for decomposition to obtain the NDVIW component, and then the ratio R was calculated with the equation R = (NDVIW/NDVI) *100%, respectively, for forest (CC >60%), medium woodland (CC = 25–60%) and sparse woodland (CC 1–25%). Landsat TM and OLI images that had been orthorectified by the provider USGS were atmospherically corrected using the COST model and used to derive NDVIL. R was multiplied for the NDVIL image to extract the woody NDVI (NDVIWL) from Landsat data for each of these plots. The 45 plots of CC data were linearly fitted to the NDVIWL, and a model with CC = 103.843 NDVIW + 6.157 (R2 = 0.881) was obtained. This equation was applied to predict CC at the 18 verification plots and a good agreement was found (R2 = 0.897). This validated CC-NDVIW model was further applied to the woody NDVI of forest, medium woodland and sparse woodland derived from Landsat data for regional CC estimation. An independent group of 24 measured plots was utilized for validation of the results, and an accuracy of 83.0% was obtained. Thence, the developed model has high predictivity and is suitable for large-scale estimation of CC using high-resolution data.

scholarly journals Landscape-scale quantification of fire-induced change in canopy cover following mountain pine beetle outbreak and timber harvest

2017 ◽  
Vol 391 ◽  
pp. 164-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Ryan McCarley ◽  
Crystal A. Kolden ◽  
Nicole M. Vaillant ◽  
Andrew T. Hudak ◽  
Alistair M.S. Smith ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mountain Pine Beetle ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Timber Harvest ◽  
Landscape Scale ◽  
Mountain Pine ◽  
Pine Beetle

Short-term effects of timber harvest and forest edges on ground-layer mosses and liverworts

2005 ◽  
Vol 83 (6) ◽  
pp. 610-620 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cara R Nelson ◽  
Charles B Halpern
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Edge Effects ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Timber Harvest ◽  
Ground Layer ◽  
Limited Information ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Logging Effects ◽  
Structural Retention

Limited information exists on the effects of forest management practices on bryophytes, despite their importance to forest ecosystems. We examined short-term responses of ground-layer bryophytes to logging disturbance and creation of edges in mature Pseudotsuga forests of western Washington (USA). The abundance and richness of species were measured in four 1-ha forest aggregates (patches of intact forest) and in surrounding logged areas before and after structural retention harvests. One year after treatment, species richness, total cover, and frequency of most moss and liverwort taxa declined within harvest areas. Within forest aggregates, mosses did not show significant edge effects; however, richness and abundance of liverworts declined with proximity to the aggregate edge. Our results suggest that, over short time frames, 1-ha-sized aggregates are sufficient to maintain most common mosses through structural retention harvests but are not large enough to prevent declines or losses of liverworts. Thus, current standards for structural retention, which allow for aggregates as small as 0.2 ha, may be inadequate to retain the diversity and abundance of species found in mature, undisturbed forests.Key words: bryophyte, edge effects, forest borders, forest management, logging effects, structural retention harvest.

scholarly journals Environmental Factors Associated With Loa loa Microfilaria Prevalence and Intensity in Diverse Bioecological Zones of Cameroon

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xavier Badia-Rius ◽  
Hannah Betts ◽  
Samuel Wanji ◽  
David Molyneux ◽  
Mark J. Taylor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
Polynomial Regression ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Nonparametric Tests ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Mean Annual Temperature ◽  
Loa Loa ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Tree Canopy Cover

Loiasis (African Eye Worm) is a filarial infection caused by Loa loa and transmitted by Chrysops vectors, which are confined to the tropical rainforests of Central and West Africa. Loiasis is a major impediment to control and elimination programmes that use the drug ivermectin due to the risk of serious adverse events. There is an urgent need to better refine and map high-risk communities. This study aimed to quantify and predict environmental factors associated with loiasis across five bioecological zones in Cameroon. The L. loa microfilaria (mf) prevalence (%) and intensity (mf number/ml) data from 42 villages within an Equatorial Rainforest and Savannah region were examined in relation to climate, topographic and forest-related data derived from satellite remote sensing sources. Differences between zones and regions were examined using nonparametric tests, and the relationship between L. loa mf prevalence, mf intensity, and the environmental factors using polynomial regression models. Overall, the L. loa mf prevalence was 11.6%, L. loa intensity 927.4 mf/ml, mean annual temperature 23.7°C, annual precipitation 2143.2 mm, elevation 790 m, tree canopy cover 46.7%, and canopy height 19.3m. Significant differences between the Equatorial Rainforest and Savannah region were found. Within the Equatorial Rainforest region, no significant differences were found. However, within the Savannah region, significant differences between the three bioecological zones were found, and the regression models indicated that tree canopy cover and elevation were significant predictors, explaining 85.1% of the L. loa mf prevalence (adjusted R2 = 0.851; p<0.001) and tree cover alone was significant, explaining 58.1% of the mf intensity (adjusted R2 = 0.581; p<0.001). The study highlights that environmental analysis can help delineate risk at different geographical scales, which may be practical for developing larger scale operational plans for mapping and implementing safe effective interventions.

scholarly journals Do Trees in Halifax Grow on Money?: A Comparison of Urban Tree Canopy Cover and Median Household Income in North End and South End Halifax

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kendra Marshman
Keyword(s):  
Population Density ◽  
Household Income ◽  
Urban Forest ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Median Household Income ◽  
Tree Canopy Cover ◽  
Urban Tree Canopy ◽  
Statistics Canada ◽  
North End

Trees in the city provide numerous ecological, health, and social benefits to urban residents. Studies from large North American cities have confirmed a spatial pattern that higher urban forest tree canopy positively correlates with higher levels of affluence. The just distribution of trees will become increasingly important for urban planners and foresters as there is a national trend towards living in cities. This research report investigates the equity of distribution of urban tree canopy cover in two neighbourhoods on the peninsula of Halifax, Nova Scotia. High spatial resolution land cover data from 2007 and 2006 Statistics Canada census data was used to create maps and tables to answer the research question. The socio-economic indicators of median household income and population density are represented based on census tract dissemination areas from the 2006 Statistics Canada long survey. Preliminary results indicate lower median household income and higher population density in the chosen study area of North End Halifax compared to higher median household income and lower population density in the chosen study area of South End Halifax. Tree canopy cover density is slightly lower in North End Halifax (5.3%) than in South End Halifax (7.6%). These preliminary results coincide with findings of other researchers that higher household income and lower population density at the neighbourhood level may result in increased urban forest canopy. However, further research and more reliant tree canopy cover data is needed to determine the accuracy of these findings. 

scholarly journals Miami-Dade County Urban Tree Canopy Analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hartwig Hochmair ◽  
◽  
Adam Benjamin ◽  
Daniel Gann ◽  
Levente Juhasz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Urban Development ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Dade County ◽  
Impervious Surfaces ◽  
Vector Data ◽  
Bare Ground ◽  
Urban Tree ◽  
Wetland Water ◽  
Urban Tree Canopy

This assessment focuses on describing urban tree canopy (UTC) within the Urban Development Boundary of Miami-Dade County, as defined by the Miami-Dade County Transportation Planning Organization (Figure 1). The area (intracoastal water areas excluded) encompasses approximately 1147 km2 (443 mi2). A combination of remote sensing and publicly available vector data was used to classify the following land cover classes: tree canopy/shrubs, grass, bare ground, wetland, water, building, street/railroad, other impervious surfaces, and cropland.

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