Forest landscape models: Definitions,characterization, and classification

Previous model classification efforts have led to a broad group of models from site-scale (non-spatial) gap models to continental-scale biogeographical models due to a lack of definition of landscape models. Such classifications become inefficient to compare approaches and techniques that are specifically associated with forest landscape modeling. This paper provides definitions of key terminologies commonly used in forest landscape modeling to classify forest landscape models. It presents a set of qualitative criteria for model classification. These criteria represent model definitions and key model implementation decisions, including the temporal resolution, number of spatial processes simulated, and approaches to simulate site-level succession. Four approaches of simulating site level succession are summarized: (1) no site-level succession (spatial processes as surrogates), (2) successional pathway, (3) vital attribute, and (4) model coupling. Computational load for the first three approaches is calculated using the Big O Notation, a standard method. Classification criteria are organized in a hierarchical order that creates a dichotomous tree with each end node representing a group of models with similar traits. The classified models fall into various groups ranging from theoretical and empirical to strategic and tactical. The paper summarizes the applications of forest landscape models into three categories: (1) spatiotemporal patterns of model objects, (2) sensitivities of model object to input parameters, and (3) scenario analyses. Finally, the paper discusses two dilemmas related to the use of forest landscape models: result validation and circular reasoning.     

Simulating restoration strategies for a southern boreal forest landscape with complex land ownership patterns

Restoring altered forest landscapes toward their ranges of natural variability (RNV) may enhance ecosystem sustainability and resiliency, but such efforts can be hampered by complex land ownership and management patterns. We evaluated restoration potential for southern-boreal forests in the ∼2.1 million ha Border Lakes Region of northern Minnesota (U.S.A.) and Ontario (Canada), where spatially distinct timber harvest and fire suppression histories have differentially altered forest conditions (composition, age–class distribution, and landscape structure) among major management areas, effectively resulting in forest landscape “bifurcation.” We used a forest landscape simulation model to evaluate potential for four hypothetical management and two natural disturbance scenarios to restore forest conditions and reduce bifurcation, including: (1) a current management scenario that simulated timber harvest and fire suppression practices among major landowners; (2) three restoration scenarios that simulated combinations of wildland fire use and cross-boundary timber harvest designed to emulate natural disturbance patterns; (3) a historical natural disturbance scenario that simulated pre-EuroAmerican settlement fire regimes and windthrow; and (4) a contemporary fire regime that simulated fire suppression, but no timber harvest. Forest composition and landscape structure for a 200-year model period were compared among scenarios, among major land management regions within scenarios, and to six RNV benchmarks. The current management scenario met only one RNV benchmark and did not move forest composition, age–class distribution, or landscape structures toward the RNV, and it increased forest landscape bifurcation between primarily timber-managed and wilderness areas. The historical natural disturbance scenario met five RNV benchmarks and the restoration scenarios as many as five, by generally restoring forest composition, age–class distributions, and landscape structures, and reducing bifurcation of forest conditions. The contemporary natural disturbance scenario met only one benchmark and generally created a forest landscape dominated by large patches of late-successional, fire-prone forests. Some forest types (e.g., white and red pine) declined in all scenarios, despite simulated restoration strategies. It may not be possible to achieve all objectives under a single management scenario, and complications, such as fire-risk, may limit strategies. However, our model suggests that timber harvest and fire regimes that emulate natural disturbance patterns can move forest landscapes toward the RNV.     

退耕坡地系统生态综合评价中几个景观生态学问题

退耕坡地系统属于退化土地生态系统,大部分是毁林(草)开荒形成的,是人为加速了自然生态系统的逆行演替而形成的低产脆弱的生态系统。对退化生态系统进行综合整治与恢复,以及人工生态系统的重建的理论基础是生态演替和人为设计理论。退耕还林(草)是通过一定的社会物质和能量的投入定向加速景观生态系统的演替过程。评价退耕地的生态经济效益是退耕还林(草)工程的重要组成部分,重点评定项目是否实现预期目标、项目的产出、效果和影响。本文应用景观生态学的理论:景观尺度与等级理论、景观空间格局与异质性理论、景观演化与干扰理论探讨了退耕地生态评价的内容、方法和应注意的问题,从而为退耕还林(草)工程的顺利进行提供有力的保障。     

Spatially explicit modeling of mixed-severity fire regimes and landscape dynamics

Simulation models of disturbance and succession are being increasingly applied to characterize landscape composition and dynamics under natural fire regimes, and to evaluate alternative management strategies for ecological restoration and fire hazard reduction. However, we have a limited understanding of how landscapes respond to changes in fire frequency, and about the sensitivity of model predictions to assumptions about successional pathways and fire behavior. We updated an existing landscape dynamics model (LADS) to simulate the complex interactions between forest dynamics, fire spread, and fire effects in dry forests of the interior Pacific Northwest. Experimental model runs were conducted on a hypothetical landscape at fire rotations ranging from 5 to 50 years. Three sensitivity analyses were carried out to explore the responses of landscape composition to (1) parameters characterizing succession and fire effects on vegetation, (2) the probability of fire spread into different successional stages, and (3) the size and spatial pattern of static fire refugia. The area of old open-canopy forests was highest at the shortest fire rotations, and was particularly sensitive to the probability of stand-replacement fire in open-canopy forests and to the fire-free period required for ingrowth to occur in open-canopy forests. The area of old closed-canopy forests increased with lengthening fire rotation, but always comprised a relatively small portion of the landscape (<10%). The area of old closed-canopy forests increased when fire spread was more rapid in open-canopy forests than in closed-canopy forests, and when the physical landscape incorporated large “fire refugia” with low fire spread rates. Old closed-canopy forests appear to comprise a relatively minor landscape component in mixed-severity fire regimes with fire rotations of 50 years or less. However, these results are sensitive to assumptions about the spatial interactions between fire spread, landscape vegetation patterns, and the underlying physical landscape.     

基于GIS平台的林火景观格局研究构想

现代林火管理需要在整合森林防灭火信息的基础上,对林火发生、发展、蔓延以及可燃物景观格局现状进行系统深入的分析,以期对林分可燃物进行科学合理的空间布局,并实现对林火防区可燃物未来演替格局的预测。通过对相关研究的综述分析,基于地理信息系统(GIS)平台的空间直观模型模拟,是针对把林火作为驱动因子的大时空尺度森林景观变化研究的强有力工具。提出了以林火景观生态格局为核心的研究框架,具体研究成果将直接为林火防区提供灭火策略和灭火指挥辅助决策的数源基础和定量化技术支持。     

The confluence of landscape context and site-level management in determining Midwestern savanna and woodland breeding bird communities

Species distributions are determined by complex interplays between multi-scale factors. Conservation management, however, often occurs at a single scale of the site level. This is true for bird communities of restored savannas and mixed woodlands in the central U.S. In this region, many historic open-canopy oak savanna habitats have become closed canopy mixed woodlands due to loss of landscape-scale disturbance from fire and grazing. Site-level management efforts return some mixed woodland habitats back to savanna through fire and mechanical thinning. Savanna and woodland historically formed complex mosaic landscapes at the ecotone between prairies and Eastern deciduous forests and now exist within landscapes that vary in amount of open (e.g., perennial grassland and row crop agriculture) and woodland habitat. To understand the interplay between site and landscape level factors in savanna restoration, we sampled the breeding bird community in four combinations of site and landscape: restored savanna in open landscapes, restored savanna in woodland landscapes, and closed canopy woodland in both landscapes. We found that the outcome of site-level savanna restoration depended on the surrounding landscape. Compared to other treatment types, restored savannas in open landscapes supported a distinctive bird community characterized by high species richness, bird abundance, and percent of ground feeders, shrub nesters, and edge species. Both savanna and woodland sites in the open landscape had a higher percent of species of conservation concern, while at both site and landscape levels, woodland was associated with a higher percent of area sensitive species and habitat specialists. Our results suggest savanna restoration efforts should focus on sites that exist either in open country or on edges where closed canopy forest meets open country. This strategy would combine site and landscape level benefits of savanna restoration for avian diversity, while also preserving the conservation benefits of large tracts of intact forest.     

Succession and management of tropical dry forests in the Americas: Review and new perspectives

Understanding tropical forest succession is critical for the development of tropical forest conservation strategies worldwide, given that tropical secondary forests can be considered the forests of the future. Tropical dry forests (TDF) are among the most threatened tropical ecosystems, there are more secondary forests and forest restoration efforts that require a better understanding of successional processes. The main goal of this synthesis for this special issue on the ecology and management of tropical dry forests in the Americas is to present a summarized review of the current knowledge of the ecology and management implications associated to TDF succession. We explore specific issues associated to tropical dry forest succession with emphasis on the use of chronosequences, plant diversity and composition, plant phenology and remote sensing, pollination, and animal–plant interactions; all under the integrating umbrella of ecosystem succession. We also emphasize the need to conduct socio-ecological research to understand changes in land-use history and its effects on succession and forest regeneration of TDF. We close this paper with some thoughts and ideas associated with the strong need for an integrating dimension not considered until today: the role of cyberinfrastructure and eco-informatics as a tool to support sound conservation, management and understanding of TDF in the Americas.     

Succession of mosses,liverworts and ferns on coarse woody debris,in relation to forest age and log decay in Tasmanian wet eucalypt forest

In managed forest landscapes, understanding successional processes is critical to management for sustainable biodiversity. Coarse woody debris is a key substrate for forest biodiversity, particularly because it undergoes complex succession reflecting the effects of changes in both forest structure and substrate characteristics. The present study used a chronosequence approach to investigate succession of mosses, liverworts and ferns on coarse woody debris following clearfell, burn, sow native forest silviculture in wet eucalypt forest in Tasmania, focussing on discriminating between the effects of forest age and log decay. It also compared successional processes following wildfire with those following clearfell, burn, sow silviculture. Forest regenerating after the latter form of regeneration showed clear ecological succession up to 43 years (the limit of available sites), characterised by increasing diversity and cover, and clearly delineated specialisation among species with regard to successional stage. Analyses of subsets of the full data-set indicated that the effects of forest age dominated this succession, with minimal effects of substrate change independent of forest age. Analysis of within forest microenvironments were consistent with the inference that microenvironmental changes related to forest age drive major successional changes in these forests. Comparative analysis indicated similarity between successional states in post-wildfire and post- clearfell, burn, sow regeneration after 43 years for logs of the same decay stages, and continuing succession on post-wildfire sites to at least 110 years. Overall, these data suggest that management to sustain fern and bryophyte diversity should ensure that areas of forest beyond 110 years are represented in the landscape at appropriate spatial scales.     

Historical fire and vegetation dynamics in dry forests of the interior Pacific Northwest,USA, and relationships to Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) habitat conservation

Regional conservation planning frequently relies on general assumptions about historical disturbance regimes to inform decisions about landscape restoration, reserve allocations, and landscape management. Spatially explicit simulations of landscape dynamics provide quantitative estimates of landscape structure and allow for the testing of alternative scenarios. We used a landscape fire succession model to estimate the historical range of variability of vegetation and fire in a dry forest landscape (size ca. 7900 km²) where the present-day risk of high severity fire threatens the persistence of older closed canopy forest which may serve as Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) habitat. Our results indicated that historically, older forest may have comprised the largest percentage of the landscape (∼35%), followed by early successional forest (∼25%), with about 9% of the landscape in a closed canopy older forest condition. The amount and condition of older forest varied by potential vegetation type and land use allocation type. Vegetation successional stages had fine-grained spatial heterogeneity in patch characteristics, with older forest tending to have the largest patch sizes among the successional stages. Increasing fire severities posed a greater risk to Northern Spotted Owl habitat than increasing fire sizes or frequencies under historical fire regimes. Improved understanding of historical landscape-specific fire and vegetation conditions and their variability can assist forest managers to promote landscape resilience and increases of older forest, in dry forests with restricted amounts of habitat for sensitive species.     

流域景观异质性及森林动态模拟研究进展

概述了流域景观异质性的相关概念、理论及研究, 通过对国内外大量文献资料的整理, 对景观异质性的成因及流域景观的组分进行了综述, 提出流域景观异质性的研究重点在于嵌套流域的尺度转换。当前遥感和地理信息系统广泛应用于景观生态研究, 遥感的重点在于解译分类, 而现代地理信息系统所具备的空间分析功能提供了景观异质性和动态模拟研究的新途径。景观动态研究的主要途径是模型模拟, 文中对以森林植被为主体对象的异质种群模型、林窗模型和空间直观景观模型进行了评述, 指出景观动态模拟重点在于参数化过程中类型变量的判别根据, 今后森林动态模型发展需要对空间属性和过程变化进行整合。     

Improving landscape connectivity in forest districts: A two-stage process for prioritizing agricultural patches for reforestation

Connectivity is a key concern in natural resource planning. Many studies have focused on the development of methods, tools and indices for the assessment of both components of connectivity: structural and functional. In particular, approaches based on graph theory principles have been recently proposed and are being increasingly applied to guide landscape connectivity conservation. However, forest planners and managers still need effective and operational methodologies to detect those landscapes where connectivity should be treated as a particularly critical conservation concern. In addition, in the Mediterranean, as in other parts of the world, socioeconomic changes in the last decades have driven the abandonment of many formerly cultivated lands. This poses both a challenge and an opportunity for managers intending to restore ecological connectivity in forested areas. In this context, setting adequate priorities for the reforestation of agricultural lands is of outmost importance. Here we show how a two-stage hierarchical methodology based on network analysis can be used to meet these needs. In particular, we apply a graph metric based on the measurement of habitat availability at the landscape scale (the Integral Index of Connectivity) to two Mediterranean forest districts in Spain with different management objectives and environmental heterogeneity. First, we identify those landscapes where efforts to improve forest connectivity should be concentrated. In a second stage, we prioritize within those landscapes the individual patches of agricultural lands that, being available for a potential reforestation program, would contribute most to uphold connectivity and ecological flows at wide spatial scales. We show how the extent of the agricultural patches is not strictly related to the contribution to connectivity they would provide if reforested, and how the results of such analysis vary with species traits (dispersal capabilities). We discuss the suitability of the proposed approach for forest landscape planning purposes and conclude that it can provide a useful diagnosis and helpful guidelines for the development of efficient reforestation programs that might be applied in a variety of situations for improving the ecological coherence of forest landscapes.     

Emphasis Areas as an Alternative to Buffer Zones and Reserved Areas in the Conservation of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Processes

Historically, buffer zones or reserved areas have been used to restrict the array of management actions within unique habitats or sensitive-species areas. This action, although necessary as an immediate protection measure, can create administrative fragmentation of the forest and associated problems over time. Rarely is the dynamic nature of the reserved or buffered area considered and the disturbance events that created and maintained these sites are not conserved. Sizes of buffer zones and reserved areas generally reflect concern for a single management action, such as local timber harvest activities, and do not reflect adequate concern for other disturbances such as fire, livestock grazing, insect hazard, or flooding that involve much larger landscape scales. Boundaries are usually hard in the sense that few management activities are allowed. However, management may be required to maintain the unique habitat and adjacent landscapes in dynamic forest ecosystems of eastern Oregon and Washington. We suggest a variable-source emphasis area that has multiple but softer boundaries that vary according to the spatial scale of the potential disturbance. Disturbances are evaluated at relative scales for their impact on the featured species or habitat and on sustainability of the associated landscape. Unique habitats or sensitive species are emphasized in management goals but required disturbance events are encouraged for long-term sustainability of the sensitive species, unique habitats, and associated landscapes.     

林火干扰与森林群落动态研究综述

林火是森林生态系统最常见的干扰类型,在森林群落演替中起着重要的作用。本文回顾了林火对森林群落演替的影响、物种对火干扰的适应、火干扰与森林更新、火干扰与物种和景观多样性、火干扰森林群落动态的研究方法,讨论了未来研究方向。     

森林多目标规划软件GISCAME及其生物量模块研究进展

在景观尺度,德国的GISCAME把权属、经营措施等森林经理学方法对森林功能与服务的影响加入到森林多目标规划中,对多权属区域森林多目标权衡分析具有重要意义。以生物量规划为例,该平台引入一种提高生物量和生态服务价值在时间和空间上动态权衡的土地利用策略模型,通过生长与收获模型结合的评估方法,解决了小班经营决策和区域规划目标不统一的问题,用情景分析来检验不同措施选择在应对气候变化和生物量增加要求上的差异。从森林经营管理的角度来看,该系统在生长与收获模型、森林调查数据、权属转换率、可及性、保护等级、皆伐或者间伐经营措施改变等方面还存在不确定性假设问题。为将GISCAME平台引进到我国森林经营管理中还需要加强嵌套精准模拟和景观资源可及性等问题研究,系统探索森林权属功能潜力及森林保护等级功能潜力数量差异,为森林景观精准规划与经营管理提供科学参考。     

The distance to structural complement (DiSCo) approach for expressing forest structure described by Aerial Photograph Interpretation data sets

At the landscape-level Aerial Photograph Interpretation (API) is one of the oldest and most common tools for mapping forest structure. The variety of attributes available for API classifications can produce 100s of different patch types as a basis for mapping landscape mosaics. However, these maps are often difficult to interpret or use for monitoring the impacts of management and natural disturbance. In this study, we demonstrate an approach for quantifying the landscape forest structure described by API data sets. For this purpose we utilised a forest dataset comprising 1197 field plots and API mapping of crown structural characteristics for 773,280 ha of State Forest in Victoria, Australia. Our approach involved: (i) stratification of the landscape into distinct forest communities; (ii) construction of stand-level structural complexity indices for each forest community; (iii) use of stand-level indices of structural complexity to classify API typing into distinct canopy structural classes; (iv) calculation of the distance from each point within a landscape grid to achieve a full complement of canopy structural classes within each forest community. We term our methodology the distance to structural complement (DiSCo) approach, because it identifies the minimum distance to achieve a full complement of structural units within the landscape. We demonstrate the use of these values in mapping landscape structure and their potential for monitoring and modelling the effects of disturbance at this scale, including impacts on heterogeneity, connectivity, individual faunal species and particular forest communities.     

Effects of landscape patterns on species density and abundance of trees in a tropical subdeciduous forest of the Yucatan Peninsula

Most studies of the effects of fragmentation and landscape patterns on plant communities focus on particular patches and on local species richness (α-diversity), while few studies examine different patch-types at the whole landscape level and address effects on abundance and composition of species or functional groups. The present study aims to identify and characterize relationships between patch-type metrics and species density and abundance of trees using four tropical subdeciduous forest landscapes in the Yucatan Peninsula considering the entire landscape as the unit of study. Species density and abundance of different groups of tree species resulting from hierarchical clustering were related to landscape patterns of patch-types (area, edge, shape, similarity and contrast) using regression analysis and Akaike Information Criterion (AIC). The abundance of tree species in the oldest stages of succession was associated with percentage of land of a patch-type. Total area may favor the establishment of shade-tolerant tree species in the study area because as the area of forest patches increases, the area of forest interior conditions also increases. Conversely, the abundance of species at early and intermediate stages was related to total edge contrast and edge density, respectively. Fragmentation increases the proportion of edge zones of a patch-type, creating contrasting microclimate conditions that could promote the establishment of pioneer and light-demanding species. Thus, the combined effect of total area and edge length of a patch-type may enhance total tree species richness in the study area by favoring species with different life-history strategies. The appearance of area, shape, edge and contrast in most of the regression models suggests that some generalization can be made about the effects of spatial geometry of patch-types on species composition and abundance of tropical trees. Understanding associations between landscape metrics and species density and abundance of objectively derived groups or guilds of species can provide important insights on the effects of fragmentation and landscape pattern on these guilds and on overall α-diversity, as well as guidelines for their conservation and management.     

深圳梅林山公园乡土植物群落景观设计

合理应用乡土观赏植物,营造"近自然"植物群落景观,是当今园林绿化的发展趋势。深圳市梅林山公园具有丰富的植被类型和植物资源,绿化设计根据现有植被类型的不同特点,提出相应的改造和恢复方法。对于生态和景观效益好的沟谷季雨林、低地常绿季雨林、山地常绿阔叶林、常绿落叶混交林,采用封山育林的策略,促进其自然演替;对于人工林、果林、灌草丛、防火林和采石场,有针对性的选取优良乡土植物进行改造和恢复;对于景区和登山路的绿化设计,采用乡土和园林植物相结合,营造自然、美观、保健和生态的群落景观。     

Analysis of forest landscape dynamics based on Forest Landscape Restoration: a case study of Yong’an city,Fujian province,China

Forest landscape restoration (FLR) is a process that aims to regain ecological integrity and enhance human well-being in deforested or degraded forest landscapes. To ensure that restoration efforts are successful, the first step is to understand the dynamics of the forest landscape and the dominant forces responsible for its change. Taking Yong’an city, Fujian province in China as a case for study, this paper constructed a Markov model to predict the dynamics of the forest landscape based on sample-plot data of Continuous Forest Inventory at a county level. The study area was divided into eight landscape element types based on FLR, including approximated primary forest, secondary broad-leaved forest, secondary forest of Pinus massoniana, natural bamboo forest, planted forest, non-timber product forest, degraded forest land and non-forestry land. The analysis showed the following: (1) the extent of reforestation of planted forest, non-timber product forest and secondary forest of Pinus massoniana would be greater than that of deforestation of approximated primary forest, broad-leaved secondary forest and natural bamboo forest. Therefore, the total area covered by forest would increase steadily. (2) Conversely, conversion among different landscape element types would occur frequently and have high transition proportions. (3) Remarkable decrease of the extent of approximated primary forest, together with the conversion from degraded forest land to secondary forest, would probably result in the decline of forest volume. (4) Forest productivity in the meantime will not be maintained or enhanced because of the conversion from secondary forest to planted forest. These results suggest that the direct and underlying driving force of landscape dynamics should be understood and addressed in the upcoming studies for remnant approximated primary forest protection, secondary forest management and degraded forest land rehabilitation. The conclusion is that the Markov model can be used to analyze the forest landscape dynamics for FLR based on sample-plot survey data of Continuous Forest Inventory at a county level.     

Climate change effects on historical range and variability of two large landscapes in western Montana,USA

Quantifying the historical range and variability of landscape composition and structure using simulation modeling is becoming an important means of assessing current landscape condition and prioritizing landscapes for ecosystem restoration. However, most simulated time series are generated using static climate conditions which fail to account for the predicted major changes in future climate. This paper presents a simulation study that generates reference landscape compositions for all combinations of three climate scenarios (warm-wet, hot-dry, and current) and three fire regime scenarios (half historical, historical, and double historical fire frequencies) to determine if future climate change has an effect on landscape dynamics. We applied the spatially explicit, state-and-transition, landscape fire succession model LANDSUM to two large landscapes in west-central Montana, USA. LANDSUM was parameterized and initialized using spatial data generated from the LANDFIRE prototype project. Biophysical settings, critical spatial inputs to LANDSUM, were empirically modeled across the landscape using environmental gradients created from historical and modeled future climate daily weather data summaries. Successional pathways and disturbance probabilities were assigned to these biophysical settings based on existing field data and extensive literature reviews. To assess the impact of changes in climate and fire regime, we compared simulated area burned and landscape composition over time among the different simulation scenario combinations using response variables of Sorenson's index (a global measure of similarity) and area occupied by the dominant vegetation class (simple indicator of change in landscape composition). Results show that simulated time series using future predicted climate scenarios are significantly different from the simulated historical time series and any changes in the fire regime tend to create more dissimilar and more variable simulated time series. Our study results indicate that historical time series should be used in conjunction with simulated future time series as references for managing landscapes.     

燃烧概率模型在林火管理中的应用

火是多数森林生态系统中一个重要的干扰因素,影响景观结构和生态系统的稳定。利用燃烧概率（BP）模型可以模拟景观尺度上的火发生和蔓延过程,描述一个区域空间上的火发生概率和潜在的火行为特征。该模型已经成为林火管理的重要工具,也可为林火管理的规划和政策制定提供必要的信息。作为森林管理和林火扑救的一个科学工具,BP模型在林火扑救资源配置、管理策略制定、火灾风险评估等方面得到广泛应用。文中综述了BP模型在风险分析、可燃物管理、气候变化影响评估等方面的研究进展。基于BP模型模拟技术解决林火管理中的问题,可为开展有针对性的林火管理措施提供参考依据,通过林火管理降低景观尺度上的火灾风险,提高林火管理效益。