Old‐growth forest structure in a low‐productivity hypermaritime rainforest in coastal British Columbia, Canada

Hericium abietis was isolated from a sporocarp collected near Quesnel Lake in the central interior of British Columbia and successfully cultivated indoors on conifer sawdust. Key words: Hericium abietis, mushroom cultivation, old growth forest.

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STUDIES IN FOREST PATHOLOGY: XIV. DECAY OF DOUGLAS FIR IN THE COASTAL REGION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

Canadian Journal of Botany ◽

10.1139/b54-060 ◽

1954 ◽

Vol 32 (5) ◽

pp. 630-653 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

G. P. Thomas ◽

R. W. Thomas

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Coastal Region ◽

Douglas Fir ◽

Tree Age ◽

Separate Analysis ◽

Average Amount ◽

Old Growth ◽

Dead Trees ◽

Select Group ◽

Coastal British Columbia

An investigation of Douglas fir, Pseudotsuga taxifolia (Poir.) Britton, in coastal British Columbia has shown that decay losses in old-growth stands are low, amounting to 2.6 and 7.3% of the gross volume of living and combined living and dead trees respectively. Twenty-five decay-producing fungi were isolated from living trees and 29 from dead trees. The most important of these were Fomes pini (Thore) Lloyd, Polyporus schweinitzii Fries, and Fomes pinicola (Sw.) Cke. Certain irregularities in the occurrence of decay-producing fungi and the amounts of decay associated with them were traced to the influences of site, tree age or size, latitude, and stand history. Root infections were the most frequent but branch-stub infections caused the greatest average amount of decay. An examination of tree abnormalities showed that a select group of them, sporophores and swollen knots of Fomes pini in particular, are useful indicators of hidden decay. A separate analysis of dead trees has shown that they occasion ally form a high proportion of Douglas fir stands and that much of the wood in such trees is sound.

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Contrasting terrestrial lichen, liverwort, and moss diversity between old-growth and young second-growth forest on two soil textures in central British Columbia

Canadian Journal of Botany ◽

10.1139/b05-146 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 84 (1) ◽

pp. 120-132 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Rachel S. Botting ◽

Arthur L. Fredeen

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Forest Age ◽

Old Growth ◽

Moss Species ◽

Old Growth Forest ◽

Dominant Soil ◽

Lichen Cover ◽

Second Growth ◽

Terrestrial Lichen ◽

Woody Substrates

The diversity and abundance of terrestrial lichens, mosses, and liverworts were examined and compared between two ages of forest (old-growth and young second-growth) on two dominant soil types (fine- and coarse-textured soils) in subboreal spruce forests in central British Columbia. Major differences in species composition were found between forest ages, with 30% of species found only in old-growth forest and 21% found only in young second-growth forest. Liverworts were much more common in old-growth sites with half the liverwort species found exclusively in old-growth, and 90% of the recorded liverwort observations occurring there. Different moss species assemblages dominated old-growth and second-growth sites, with much of the terrestrial cover of second-growth sites composed of Polytrichum juniperinum Hedw. Young second-growth forest had higher cover of lichen species than old-growth forest. Lichens and bryophytes used different terrestrial substrates in each forest age, with higher cover of mosses and lichens occurring on woody substrates in old-growth, irrespective of substrate availability. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling ordination clearly separated plots by forest age and also showed soil texture to be a defining variable. Though not statistically significant, there was increased bryophyte diversity on coarse-textured soils and increased lichen cover on fine-textured soils.

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HABITAT USE BY RIPARIAN AND UPLAND BIRDS IN OLD-GROWTH COASTAL BRITISH COLUMBIA RAINFOREST

The Wilson Bulletin ◽

10.1676/03-124.1 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 117 (3) ◽

pp. 245-257 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

SUSAN M. SHIRLEY

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Habitat Use ◽

Old Growth ◽

Coastal British Columbia

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Intra-annual variability in isotopic and total nitrogen in tree rings of old growth Sitka spruce from coastal British Columbia

Botany ◽

10.1139/cjb-2018-0112 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 96 (12) ◽

pp. 851-857 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

T.E. Reimchen ◽

Estelle Arbellay

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Tree Ring ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Sitka Spruce ◽

Picea Sitchensis ◽

Wilcoxon Test ◽

Old Growth ◽

Ecological Processes ◽

Annual Variability ◽

Coastal British Columbia

Tree-ring studies using increment cores have increasingly measured elemental (N) and isotopic (δ15N) nitrogen values to evaluate environmental changes in the nitrogen cycle. The paucity of nitrogen in wood has constrained tree-ring analyses to annual resolution. Based on 77 rings and 310 sub-rings, we provide evidence for substantial intra-annual variability in N and δ15N values in the heartwood of 11 geographically widely separated, old growth Sitka spruce [Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carrière] trees from coastal British Columbia. The range of N and δ15N values within rings (intra-annual level) was on average equal to or up to seven-times the range among rings (inter-annual level). Most rings showed a seasonal reduction in N values from early to late growth and a corresponding increase to the early growth of the following season (P < 0.05 to 0.001, Mann–Whitney–Wilcoxon test). By contrast, intra-annual changes in δ15N values were highly variable among years and among trees, ranging from pronounced oscillations (4.0‰) to reasonable consistency. Our results allude to the potential importance of such intra-ring data for interpreting seasonal trends in nitrogen use and increasing understanding of ecological processes in the marine–terrestrial interface.

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Population genetic structure of tailed frogs (Ascaphus truei) in clearcut and old-growth stream habitats in south coastal British Columbia

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z05-141 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 83 (11) ◽

pp. 1460-1468 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

T R Wahbe ◽

C Ritland ◽

F L Bunnell ◽

K Ritland

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Genetic Structure ◽

Population Genetic ◽

Isolation By Distance ◽

Physical Distance ◽

Future Research ◽

Ecological Data ◽

Old Growth ◽

Ascaphus Truei ◽

Coastal British Columbia

Ascaphus truei Stejneger, 1899 relies on cool, fast-flowing, forested mountain streams, which receive little protection from logging activities. During recovery of post-logging habitats, local extirpation of Ascaphus is a concern because their recolonization may be slow. In British Columbia, Oregon, and California, coastal Ascaphus populations are designated as "at risk". To infer fragmentation impacts from patterns of genetic structure, we used RAPD molecular markers and compared population genetic structures of Ascaphus larvae in an old growth with an adjacent clearcut stream located in coastal British Columbia. In the clearcut, larvae were less genetically diverse than in the old growth and exhibited no relationship between physical distance and genetic relatedness, whereas in the old growth, genetic similarity decreased with physical distance. Patterns of gene flow between the clearcut and old-growth streams were significantly different. The clearcut population went through a bottleneck/founding event, but also exhibited greater dispersal. The frogs were perhaps searching for new habitat (which would lower isolation by distance) and suffering mortality (which would decrease diversity). Most problems in conservation will require genetic and ecological data, and future research should aim to incorporate methodologies from both fields.

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Recovery of Forest Structure Following Large-Scale Windthrows in the Northwestern Amazon

Forests ◽

10.3390/f12060667 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (6) ◽

pp. 667

Author(s):

J. David Urquiza Muñoz ◽

Daniel Magnabosco Marra ◽

Robinson I. Negrón-Juarez ◽

Rodil Tello-Espinoza ◽

Waldemar Alegría-Muñoz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Forest Structure ◽

Large Scale ◽

Tree Mortality ◽

Basal Area ◽

Forest Recovery ◽

Old Growth ◽

Study Region ◽

Central Amazon ◽

Old Growth Forest ◽

Study Sites

The dynamics of forest recovery after windthrows (i.e., broken or uprooted trees by wind) are poorly understood in tropical forests. The Northwestern Amazon (NWA) is characterized by a higher occurrence of windthrows, greater rainfall, and higher annual tree mortality rates (~2%) than the Central Amazon (CA). We combined forest inventory data from three sites in the Iquitos region of Peru, with recovery periods spanning 2, 12, and 22 years following windthrow events. Study sites and sampling areas were selected by assessing the windthrow severity using remote sensing. At each site, we recorded all trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 10 cm along transects, capturing the range of windthrow severity from old-growth to highly disturbed (mortality > 60%) forest. Across all damage classes, tree density and basal area recovered to >90% of the old-growth values after 20 years. Aboveground biomass (AGB) in old-growth forest was 380 (±156) Mg ha−1. In extremely disturbed areas, AGB was still reduced to 163 (±68) Mg ha−1 after 2 years and 323 (± 139) Mg ha−1 after 12 years. This recovery rate is ~50% faster than that reported for Central Amazon forests. The faster recovery of forest structure in our study region may be a function of its higher productivity and adaptability to more frequent and severe windthrows. These varying rates of recovery highlight the importance of extreme wind and rainfall on shaping gradients of forest structure in the Amazon, and the different vulnerabilities of these forests to natural disturbances whose severity and frequency are being altered by climate change.

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Birds in patches of old-growth ash forest, in a matrix of younger forest

Pacific Conservation Biology ◽

10.1071/pc980111 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 111 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Richard H. Loyn

Keyword(s):

Forest Structure ◽

Patch Size ◽

Forest Birds ◽

Old Growth ◽

Forest Patches ◽

Bird Abundance ◽

Old Growth Forest ◽

Generalized Linear Modelling ◽

Mountain Ash ◽

Context Variables

Birds were studied at 57 sites in Mountain Ash forests in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia in spring and summer 1995/96. The sites represented 41 patches of old-growth forest (up to 390 ha in size) in a matrix of regrowth mostly from severe fires in 1939 (57 years previously), with multiple sites in the four largest patches of old-growth and eight sites in 1939 regrowth. Relative bird abundance was assessed by an area-search technique. Generalized linear modelling was used to develop predictive models by regressing abundance of groups of bird species against patch size, isolation and some basic habitat and context variables. Total bird abundance (of all species combined) tended to be higher in old-growth patches than in 1939 regrowth, but not significantly. There was no trend in total abundance with patch size or isolation. Fruit-eating birds tended to be commonest in small patches. Bark-foragers and uncommon birds favoured large patches, though the latter were most common in 1939 regrowth. More variation was explained by habitat and context variables such as aspect, altitude and forest structure. Unevenaged forest structure was often associated with small patches. It was concluded that old-growth forest patches can have similar values per hectare for forest birds whether they are large or small. The regrowth forest matrix appears to protect small patches from factors which reduce densities of forest birds in small forest patches in farmland. The data support the current policy of retaining all old-growth ash forest patches. A range of factors should be considered in selecting regrowth stands of various sizes to regrow as old forest of the future, including their intrinsic potential to develop particular habitats and produce a mix of forest stuctures in the landscape.

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Activity levels of Marbled Murrelets in different inland habitats in the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z93-129 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 71 (5) ◽

pp. 977-984 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Michael S. Rodway ◽

Heidi M. Regehr ◽

Jean-Pierre L. Savard

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

High Elevation ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Old Growth ◽

Marbled Murrelet ◽

Queen Charlotte Islands ◽

Old Growth Forest ◽

Second Growth ◽

Old Growth Forests ◽

Marbled Murrelets

We compared Marbled Murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) activity levels in May, June, and July 1990 in four habitats in the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia: alpine, old-growth forest at high elevation, old-growth forest at low elevation, and second-growth forest. The number of Marbled Murrelet detections was highest in old-growth forests. In alpine areas, small numbers of murrelet detections were mostly of distant birds flying over low-elevation forest. Numbers of detections were higher in low-elevation than in high-elevation old-growth forests in May and July, but not in June. Proportions of detections within smaller radii of survey stations were higher in low elevation forest in all months. The highest activity levels were associated with old-growth forest stands of large Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) and western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla). The few detections that occurred in second-growth forests were mostly of distant birds. Stations in second-growth forest close to stands of old-growth forest had more frequent detections than stations with no old-growth forest nearby. Our results support the association of Marbled Murrelets with old-growth forests. Limitations of the survey methodology are discussed.

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