Comparison of conventional eight-point crown projections with LIDAR-based virtual crown projections in a temperate old-growth forest

Introduction   

Sight-based field measurements of tree crown projection area and canopy height are common praxis in forest science but difficult to validate. We quantified their measurement errors based on the virtual representation of an 11-species old-growth forest provided by high-resolution terrestrial LIDAR (light detection and ranging) measurements.     

The use of terrestrial LiDAR technology in forest science: application fields,benefits and challenges

• Introduction  

The use of terrestrial LiDAR (light detection and ranging) scanners in forest environments is being studied extensively at present due to the high potential of this technology to acquire three-dimensional data on standing trees rapidly and accurately. This article aims to establish the state-of-the-art in this emerging area.     

Canopy structure analysis for estimating forest regeneration dynamics and growth in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Nothofagus pumilio</Emphasis> forests

•Introduction   

Silviculture systems applied in Nothofagus pumilio forests are based on opening the canopy to stimulate natural regeneration by modifying light and soil moisture. The objective is to evaluate regeneration dynamics of N. pumilio along different forest canopy and solar radiation gradients.     

Understory dynamics after disturbance accelerate succession from spruce to beech-dominated forest—the Siggaboda case study

??Context

It is assumed that climate change will favour European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) to Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.) at its northern range margins due to climate change and induced disturbance events.

??Aims

An old-growth mixed forest of spruce and beech, situated near the northern beech margin, was studied to reveal effects of disturbances and response processes on natural forest dynamics, focussing on the understory.

??Methods

We carried out analyses on understory dynamics of beech and spruce in relation to overstory release. This was done based on a sequence of stand and tree vitality inventories after a series of abiotic and biotic disturbances.

??Results

It became apparent that beech (understory) has a larger adaptive capacity to disturbance impacts and overstory release (68 % standing volume loss) than spruce. Understory dynamics can play a key role for forest succession from spruce to beech-dominated forests. Disturbances display an acceleration effect on forest succession in the face of climate change.

??Conclusion

Beech is poised strategically to replace spruce as the dominant tree species at the study area. Due to an increasing productivity and a lower risk of stand failure, beech may raise into the focus of forestry in southern Sweden.     

Determining the rate of change in a mixed deciduous forest monitored for 50 years

Introduction   

Trees in two compartments of the mixed deciduous forest Draved Forest have been monitored regularly for 50 years.     

Natural conifer regeneration patterns in temperate forests across the Inland Northwest,USA

Key message

Natural regeneration patterns of conifer species were studied. Seedling regeneration follows patterns responding to stand structure and site condition factors along shade and drought tolerance gradients. Our findings can assist in adaptive forest management for maintaining sustainable regeneration and plant biodiversity.

Context

Seedling regeneration can vary with stand factors of overstory trees and understory non-tree vegetation and site conditions.

Aims

Natural seedling regeneration patterns of coniferous species were investigated using Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data of 10 common species across the Inland Northwest, USA.

Methods

Zero-inflated negative binomial models were developed to understand the responses of natural regeneration to stand factors and site conditions.

Results

Seedling occurrence varies along shade and drought tolerance gradients responding to stand structure and site conditions. Two moderate shade-tolerant species of different drought tolerance contributed as a transition. Strong response patterns were revealed for seedling density, in which seedling density was improved with the presence of conspecific trees while limited by competition, especially from the understory vegetation layer.

Conclusion

Overstory structure and understory vegetation could improve or hinder natural regeneration of coniferous tree species given different shade tolerance and site conditions. Our findings can be effectively implemented in adaptive forest management for maintaining sustainable regeneration of specific conifers in broad temperate mixed forests.

     

Synergistic use of very high-frequency radar and discrete-return lidar for estimating biomass in temperate hardwood and mixed forests

• Introduction   

Accurate estimation of aboveground biomass is essential to better understand the carbon cycle in forest ecosystems.     

Modeling dominant height growth of maritime pine in Portugal using GADA methodology with parameters depending on soil and climate variables

• Background  

Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster Ait.) is a common conifer species in Portugal that contributes significantly to the national economy. Accurate classification of forest productivity based on site index and height growth dynamics is the main basis for sustainable forest management of this species.     

Two-year dynamics of foliage labelling in 8-year-old <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus pinaster</Emphasis> trees with <Superscript>15</Superscript>N, <Superscript>26</Superscript>Mg and <Superscript>42</Superscript>Ca—simulation of Ca transport in xylem using an upscaling approach

• Introduction   

Atmospheric deposition is an important input of major nutrients into forest ecosystems. The long-term goal of this work was to apply stable isotope methodology to assess atmospheric nutrient deposition in forest systems.     

Multinomial logit estimation of a diameter growth matrix model of two Mediterranean pine species in Spain

• Introduction   

Understanding diameter growth of the Mediterranean pine species is fundamental for evaluating and making appropriate strategic decisions in forest management. A matrix diameter growth model for two Mediterranean pine forest ecosystems in Spain has been developed.     

Influence of tree species on carbon and nitrogen transformation patterns in forest floor profiles

• Background   

Among forest management practices, forest tree species substitution influences biogeochemical cycles and soil interactions rapidly (decades) and significantly.     

At which spatial scale are plant species composition and diversity affected in beech forests?

• Context  

Landscape structure is crucial for forest conservation in regions where the natural forest is fragmented. Practical conservation is currently shifting from local stands to a landscape perspective, although few studies have tested the relative effects of different spatial scales on plant species composition and diversity in forests.     

Plant diversity of secondary forests in response to anthropogenic disturbance levels in montane regions of northeastern China

The effects of anthropogenic disturbances on forest structure and plant diversity of secondary forest ecosystems were evaluated based on the classification by site factors in the montane regions of northeastern China. Forty-five sample plots containing 720 sub-plots of overstory species (8 m × 8 m), 1,440 quadrats of understory species (2 m × 2 m), and 1,440 quadrats of herbaceous layer species (1 m × 1 m) were clustered into five groups (G1, G2, G3, G4 and G5) by site variables with Hierarchical Cluster Analysis. Meanwhile, the disturbance levels corresponding to the five groups were determined according to the factors influencing human disturbances (D0-G2, D1-G1, D2-G3, D3-G5, and D4-G4). Species diversities of overstory, understory, herbaceous layer and overall species were evaluated using species number, Margalef index, Pielou index, Shannon–Wiener index, and Simpson index; and β-diversities (Whittaker index, Cody index). Basal area of stands exhibited a decreasing trend along the disturbance level due to a gradual increase in the extraction of timber by the human disturbances. The indices of species diversity suggested that overstory and understory species were distributed evenly among the groups or disturbance levels. There were no absolutely dominant tree species in the secondary forest ecosystems. The differences in site factors and the current disturbance intensities were not intense enough to lead to loose changes in overstory and understory species. The species diversity indices exhibited the maximum values at D3 (G5) for herbaceous layer species; this may suggest that the current disturbance intensities were intense enough to lead the changes of herbaceous layer species. Three rare and endangered species (Juglans mandshurica, Fraxinus mandshurica and Acanthopanax senticosus) were found within the secondary forests. These rare and endangered species appeared in each clustered group or disturbance level, which suggested that the current disturbance intensity in the study area was not strong enough to influence the distribution of rare and endangered species. The current disturbances in the secondary forests may not lead to a decrease in stability and complexity of the overstory and understory species, but the higher disturbance level may be intense enough to change the habitat fitness for the herbaceous species. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized authors.     

Differential overstory leaf flushing contributes to the formation of a patchy understory

Understory individuals were found to form patches in a 100-year-old deciduous broad-leaved forest. The closed forest canopy was uniform, and so the light conditions at various locations across the forest floor differed little after the leaf flush of the overstory. To explain the distribution pattern in the understory, a hypothesis was proposed: in spring, the forest floor is divided into patches according to the timing of leaf flush of the overstory individuals, and the light conditions are more favorable for understory plants under the crowns of trees with later-flushing leaves. In the plot, three groups of early, intermediate, and late, were recognized in the overstory concerning the timing of leaf flush. As for the start of leaf flush, a difference of 31.6 days was recognized among tree species, and for the end of leaf flush, a difference of 40.3 days. In the spring of 1998, the relative photosynthetic-photon-flux density under an intensively studiedCastanea crenata tree (late-flushing species) usually showed higher values than that under a similarly studiedAcer mono tree (early-flushing species). Analysis of the spatial-distribution pattern using Morisita’s1δ index revealed that the understory community had an aggregated distribution. In the overstory, the late- and the intermediate-flushing-species groups showed aggregated distributions, while the early-flushing-species group showed random distribution. Spatial correlation between the understory and the overstory was analyzed by using Morisita’sRδ index. The distribution of whole understory community spatially co-occurred with that of the late-flushing-species group of the overstory. In contrast, the understory community was less developed below the members of the early-flushing-species group of the overstory. We consider that the data presented here support our hypothesis, and we suggest that the growth and survival of understory individuals were promoted in the places receiving light for long periods in spring.     

Estimation of stomatal ozone uptake of deciduous trees in East Asia

• Background   

To assess ozone risks to temperate deciduous forest trees in East Asia, the stomatal ozone uptake was estimated based on a flux-based modeling approach.     

Influence of typhoon disturbances on the understory light regime and stand dynamics of a subtropical rain forest in northeastern Taiwan

In 1996 and 1997 we examined the effects of typhoon disturbance on the understory light environment and sapling dynamics of the Fu-shan Experimental Forest, a subtropical rain forest in northeastern Taiwan. Mean understory light levels were approximately 30% of those in the open immediately following the two 1996 typhoons which affected the forest, yet in 1997, following two more typhoons, mean understory light levels were 10%–20% of those in the open. The decline of understory light levels to those present prior to the typhoons was more rapid in 1996 than in 1997, even though the two typhoons in 1996 were more intense than those in 1997. This difference might be the result of the timing of the typhoons. In 1996 the typhoons occurred earlier in the growing season, before August 1 rather than the middle and end of August in 1997. The regular defoliation caused by the frequent typhoons that impact Fu-shan (average of 1.4 per year) and the low stature of the forest (mean canopy height of 10.6m), results in much higher light levels beneath the canopy (9%–30% of levels in the open) than those found in most tropical and temperate forests. As a result, understory light levels are not limiting the distribution of canopy tree saplings within the forest and there is no evidence that canopy gaps play an important role in canopy tree regeneration within the Fu-shan Experiment Forest. This is in contrast with the pattern reported for some tropical forests. With frequent typhoons impacting northeastern Taiwan, the forests of this region are perpetually recovering from wind disturbances.     

Unexpected seedling growth in the understory of post-agricultural forests from Eastern Canada

•Introduction  

The agricultural landscape in Eastern Canada has drastically changed in the last decades. Whilst certain forest communities are disappearing, post-agricultural forests are emerging from old fields colonized by fast-growing tree species.     

Climate/growth relationships in a <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus cembra</Emphasis> high-elevation network in the Southern French Alps

•Introduction  

In the context of climate change, assessing climate–growth relationships is of high importance in order to understand how forest ecosystems evolve and to test climate models at regional scale.     

Carbon in heartwood,sapwood and bark along the stem profile in three Mediterranean <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus</Emphasis> species

• Context   

Understanding biological processes in forests is necessary to orientate ecosystem management towards potential C sequestration. To achieve this, information is required about changes in forest biomass C pools, including the stem components (bark, sapwood and heartwood).