The Effects of Rehabilitation Treatments on Landscape Function Within a Softwood Plantation After Fire: Implications for Catchment Management

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiyu Liu ◽  
Matthew J Colloff ◽  
David Freudenberger
Keyword(s):  
Nutrient Cycling ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Water Infiltration ◽  
Native Forest ◽  
Pine Plantation ◽  
Australian Capital Territory ◽  
Surface Stability ◽  
Trees And Shrubs

Abstract There is global interest in enhancing the ecosystem services provided by landscapes and catchments dominated by plantation (monoculture) forestry. Partial reversion of plantations to locally native species (reforestation) is one option. However, the ecological outcomes of this kind of plantation reversion are poorly known. The partial reforestation of a pine plantation (Pinus radiata D. Don 1836) in the Australian Capital Territory with native species following a wildfire provides a rare case study of the environmental consequences of such a reversion. We estimated changes in landscape functionality by measuring indices of water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability across five landscape-scale treatments after the 2003 Lower Cotter Catchment bushfire: (1) natural regeneration of a native forest burned in 2003, (2) burned pine plantation replanted to pines, (3) burned plantation replanted to native trees and shrubs, (4) burned plantation allowed to naturally regenerate, and (5) forest roads rehabilitated by planting native trees and shrubs. At 14 years after the fire, we found that the regenerating native forest had the highest indices of water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability. The burned pine plantation that was replanted to pines in 2005 had indices of functionality that were higher than the burned plantation areas that were either allowed to naturally regenerate to native eucalypt forest or were planted with native forest species. These two types of native forest rehabilitation treatments had only minor differences in functionality. The rehabilitated closed roads were the least functional. We found that a pine plantation at the closed canopy stage can supply regulating services of water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability comparable to a native forest at a similar stage postfire; however, a significant limitation of the plantation was its low ecosystem resilience. It required massive soil disturbance to replant postfire and long-term maintenance of an extensive unpaved road network. The active or passive rehabilitation of native forest is justified to improve the natural resilience to wildfire. However, this rehabilitation of a native forest following use as a pine plantation is a multidecade process in this relatively low-rainfall environment. Study Implications The 2003 Canberra bushfire destroyed the entire pine plantation at Lower Cotter Catchment, a water catchment in Australian Capital Territory, but also provided an opportunity to examine and quantify changes in ecosystem functions with different restoration treatments. Landscape Function Analysis, including three indices (water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability), was used in this study. Findings suggest that both native eucalyptus forests and pine plantations recovered to relatively high levels of functionality within just 15 years after the bushfire, compared with all other restoration treatments, but plantations of Pinus radiata are not resilient to wildfire from a commercial perspective. These results help to justify the controversial decision to restore the majority of the catchment with native species in 2005. However, long-term monitoring is needed to determine how long it will take for the replanted and natural regeneration treatments to approach the functionality of the native forest.

Native species dominate the millipede fauna in a second-rotation Pinus radiata plantation in Tasmania, Australia

2005 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Mesibov
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Radiata ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Local Scale ◽  
Native Forest ◽  
Historical Records ◽  
Pine Plantation ◽  
North Central ◽  
Abandoned Farmland ◽  
Plantation Development ◽  
Survey Results

Soil-dwelling millipedes were methodically hand-sampled in two second-rotation Pinus radiata stands in Stoodley Plantation in north-central Tasmania. Eleven of 14 species collected were natives, and native millipedes comprised 83% of the 1 456 identified specimens. The average millipede catch in 40 x 0.5 m2 quadrats was 74 individuals/m2. All nine of the native species of Chordeumatida, Polydesmida and Polyzoniida found in the survey had previously been collected in native forest within a 10 km radius of the pine plantation. Historical records indicate that Stoodley Plantation was established on abandoned farmland, and the two sampled areas have carried P. radiata for at least 60 years. The survey results support the suggestion that plantation development on cleared farmland can assist in local-scale conservation of native invertebrates.

The Response of Small Mammals to Clearing and Burning of Eucalypt Forest in South-eastern Australia

1979 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 151 ◽  
Author(s):  
GR Friend
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Early Summer ◽  
Native Forest ◽  
Pine Plantation ◽  
Eucalypt Forest ◽  
Population Turnover ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Antechinus Stuartii ◽  
Rattus Fuscipes

Before, during and after a clearing operation for pine plantation establishment, small mammals were trapped on ridges which were to be cleared of all vegetation, and in adjacent gullies which were to be permanently retained under native forest. Rattus fuscipes was the most abundant native species on all grids throughout the study, while R. lutreolus, Antechinus stuartii and A. swainsonii were in low abundance. Clearing in early summer, the breeding season in most of these species, resulted in an acceleration and accentuation of population turnover. Some juveniles and subadults may have moved from the ridges during clearing, while breeding adults remained and probably perished. Populations of R. fuscipes on ridge areas were drastically reduced by clearing and windrowing, but subadults recolonized the affected areas within 1-2 months. Results for the other three native species were inconclusive, due to the few individuals captured at any time during the study. The exotic species Mus musculus began to invade immediately following windrow burning.

scholarly journals Soil enzyme responses to land use change in the tropical rainforest of the Colombian Amazon region

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. e0255669
Author(s):  
Adriana M. Silva-Olaya ◽  
Dúber A. Mora-Motta ◽  
Maurício R. Cherubin ◽  
Daniel Grados ◽  
Anil Somenahally ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Nutrient Cycling ◽  
Soil Enzymes ◽  
Soil Layer ◽  
Low Fertility ◽  
Native Forest ◽  
N Losses ◽  
Colombian Amazon

Soil enzymes mediate key processes and functions of the soils, such as organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling in both natural and agricultural ecosystems. Here, we studied the activity of five extracellular soil enzymes involved in the C, N, and P-mineralizing process in both litter and surface soil layer of rainforest in the northwest region of the Colombian Amazon and the response of those soil enzymes to land use change. The experimental study design included six study sites for comparing long-term pasture systems to native forest and regeneration practices after pasture, within the main landscapes of the region, mountain and hill landscapes separately. Results showed considerable enzymatic activity in the litter layer of the forest, highlighting the vital role of this compartment in the nutrient cycling of low fertility soils from tropical regions. With the land use transition to pastures, changes in soil enzymatic activities were driven by the management of pastures, with SOC and N losses and reduced absolute activity of soil enzymes in long-term pastures under continuous grazing (25 years). However, the enzyme activities expressed per unit of SOC did not show changes in C and N-acquiring enzymes, suggesting a higher mineralization potential in pastures. Enzymatic stoichiometry analysis indicated a microbial P limitation that could lead to a high catabolic activity with a potential increase in the use of SOC by microbial communities in the search for P, thus affecting soil C sequestration, soil quality and the provision of soil-related ecosystem services.

scholarly journals A greener Greenland? Climatic potential and long-term constraints on future expansions of trees and shrubs

2013 ◽  
Vol 368 (1624) ◽  
pp. 20120479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Signe Normand ◽  
Christophe Randin ◽  
Ralf Ohlemüller ◽  
Christian Bay ◽  
Toke T. Høye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Native Species ◽  
First Century ◽  
Small Subset ◽  
Arctic Ecosystems ◽  
Niche Modelling ◽  
Tundra Vegetation ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Trees And Shrubs ◽  
The Last Glacial

Warming-induced expansion of trees and shrubs into tundra vegetation will strongly impact Arctic ecosystems. Today, a small subset of the boreal woody flora found during certain Plio-Pleistocene warm periods inhabits Greenland. Whether the twenty-first century warming will induce a re-colonization of a rich woody flora depends on the roles of climate and migration limitations in shaping species ranges. Using potential treeline and climatic niche modelling, we project shifts in areas climatically suitable for tree growth and 56 Greenlandic, North American and European tree and shrub species from the Last Glacial Maximum through the present and into the future. In combination with observed tree plantings, our modelling highlights that a majority of the non-native species find climatically suitable conditions in certain parts of Greenland today, even in areas harbouring no native trees. Analyses of analogous climates indicate that these conditions are widespread outside Greenland, thus increasing the likelihood of woody invasions. Nonetheless, we find a substantial migration lag for Greenland's current and future woody flora. In conclusion, the projected climatic scope for future expansions is strongly limited by dispersal, soil development and other disequilibrium dynamics, with plantings and unintentional seed dispersal by humans having potentially large impacts on spread rates.

Ongoing succession of biological soil crusts increases water repellency — a case study on Arenosols in Sekule, Slovakia

Biologia ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 68 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvie Drahorad ◽  
Daniel Steckenmesser ◽  
Peter Felix-Henningsen ◽  
Ľubomír Lichner ◽  
Marek Rodný
Keyword(s):  
Soil Surface ◽  
Water Repellency ◽  
Biological Soil Crusts ◽  
Water Infiltration ◽  
Water Conductivity ◽  
Surface Stability ◽  
Surface Protection ◽  
Soil Crusts ◽  
Surface Sealing ◽  
Successional Stages

AbstractAfter soil surface disturbances biological soil crusts (BSC) cover rapidly the topmost soil millimeters. Depending on BSC age, development of soil water repellency, water infiltration and soil surface stability are influenced by this thin surface sealing. Within this study disturbed, early- mid- and late successional stages of BSC development were examined along a recovery transect. The results show an increase in water repellency and a decrease in water sorptivity and conductivity with ongoing BSC succession. Penetration resistance data shows very stable thin surface protection by cyanobacteria in early successional BSC that is non-repellent. Later successional stages show increased water repellency and lower water conductivity. We conclude that BSC development induces changes in surface structure and wettability. The soil surface wettability is strongly linked to the BSC community composition.

scholarly journals Cascading community and ecosystem consequences of introduced coconut palms (Cocos nucifera) in tropical islands

2017 ◽  
Vol 95 (3) ◽  
pp. 139-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.S. Young ◽  
A. Miller-ter Kuile ◽  
D.J. McCauley ◽  
R. Dirzo
Keyword(s):  
Native Species ◽  
Cocos Nucifera ◽  
Biotic Interactions ◽  
Native Forest ◽  
Dominant Form ◽  
Cascading Effects ◽  
Tropical Oceans ◽  
Faunal Communities ◽  
Cocos Nucifera L

Biological invasions are a pervasive and dominant form of anthropogenic disturbance. However, we seldom have the opportunity to evaluate the long-term, indirect, and often slow-moving cascading effects of invasions at the community and ecosystem scale. Here we synthesize the collective knowledge from 10 years of study on the influence of the deep historical introduction of coconut palms (Cocos nucifera L.) across a series of islets at Palmyra Atoll. Through a suite of pathways, we find this palm drives near-complete ecosystem state change when it becomes dominant. Abiotic conditions are transformed, with major soil nutrients 2.7–11.5 times lower and water stress 15% elevated in palm-dominated forests compared with native forest. Faunal communities are likewise dramatically altered, not only in composition but also in behavior, body size, and body condition. Biotic interactions, including herbivory rates, palatability, and seed predation, are likewise changed. Cumulatively, these changes transform food webs, leading to dramatically shortened and simplified food chains in invaded ecosystems. Many of these changes appear to create slow-acting feedback loops that favor the palm at the expense of native species. Given the widespread nature of this historical introduction, many island and coastal regions of tropical oceans may be similarly transformed.

Oithona davisae: naturalization in the Black sea, inter-annual and seasonal dynamics, effect on the structure of the planktonic copepod community

2019 ◽  
Vol 59 (6) ◽  
pp. 1008-1015
Author(s):  
A. D. Gubanova ◽  
O. A. Garbazey ◽  
D. A. Altukhov ◽  
V. S. Mukhanov ◽  
E. V. Popova
Keyword(s):  
Black Sea ◽  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Significant Decline ◽  
Acartia Tonsa ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Copepod Community ◽  
Oithona Davisae ◽  
Sevastopol Bay

Long-term (20032014) routine observations of zooplankton in Sevastopol Bay (the Black Sea) have allowed the naturalization of the invasive copepod Oithona davisae to be studied in the Black Sea coastal waters. Inter-annual and seasonal variability of the species and their impact on the native copepod community have been analyzed. The invasion of O. davisae and their undoubted dominance in terms of abundance were shown to alter the community structure but, at the same time, the abundances of the native species did not decrease, excepting the Black Sea earlier invader Acartia tonsa. A significant decline in A. tonsa numbers over the stages of O. davisae establishment and naturalization provided evidence of competition between the species. O. davisae have been demonstrated to gain competitive advantage over A. tonsa, that ensured their fast dispersal in the Black Sea, acclimatization in the new habitat and the successful competition over native species.

scholarly journals Long Term Interactions of Native and Invasive Species in a Marine Protected Area Suggest Complex Cascading Effects Challenging Conservation Outcomes

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 71
Author(s):  
Charalampos Dimitriadis ◽  
Ivoni Fournari-Konstantinidou ◽  
Laurent Sourbès ◽  
Drosos Koutsoubas ◽  
Stelios Katsanevakis
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
Habitat Degradation ◽  
Population Increase ◽  
Rocky Reef ◽  
Cascading Effects ◽  
High Level

Understanding the interactions among invasive species, native species and marine protected areas (MPAs), and the long-term regime shifts in MPAs is receiving increased attention, since biological invasions can alter the structure and functioning of the protected ecosystems and challenge conservation efforts. Here we found evidence of marked modifications in the rocky reef associated biota in a Mediterranean MPA from 2009 to 2019 through visual census surveys, due to the presence of invasive species altering the structure of the ecosystem and triggering complex cascading effects on the long term. Low levels of the populations of native high-level predators were accompanied by the population increase and high performance of both native and invasive fish herbivores. Subsequently the overgrazing and habitat degradation resulted in cascading effects towards the diminishing of the native and invasive invertebrate grazers and omnivorous benthic species. Our study represents a good showcase of how invasive species can coexist or exclude native biota and at the same time regulate or out-compete other established invaders and native species.

scholarly journals MICRONUTRIENT CONTENTS IN THE PROFILE OF A RECOVERED SOIL WITH SEWAGE SLUDGE AND NATIVE SPECIES OF ATLANTIC FOREST

FLORESTA ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 485
Author(s):  
Lívia Mara Lima Goulart ◽  
Marianne Fidalgo de Faria ◽  
Grasiela Spada ◽  
Thiago Tássio de Souza Silva ◽  
Iraê Amaral Guerrini
Keyword(s):  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Soil Profile ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Control Treatment ◽  
Mineral Fertilization ◽  
Promising Alternative ◽  
Final Destination ◽  
Potassium Supplementation

The use of sewage sludge in agriculture and recovery of degraded areas has been shown as a promising alternative for its final destination. Studies on micronutrient levels after sludge application are necessary to avoid soil contamination at toxic levels. The objective of this work was to verify the micronutrient contents in the soil profile and pH, up to one-meter-deep, nine years after the application of sewage sludge and planting of native species of the Atlantic Forest. The experiment was implemented in a degraded Quartzeneic Neosol and conducted in randomized blocks with four replicates and eight treatments, consisting of six doses of sewage sludge (0, 2.5, 5, 10, 15 and 20 Mg ha-1, with supplementation of potassium due to low concentration in the residue), besides the control treatment, mineral fertilization and only potassium supplementation. After nine years, the contents of all micronutrients evaluated presented a significant response to the application of the treatments, and the application of sewage sludge provided an increase in their contents. Soil pH remained stable at sites receiving mineral fertilization and potassium supplementation. Only manganese and zinc showed mobility in the soil profile. The application of sewage sludge in degraded soil increases the micronutrient content and decreases its movement in the soil profile, and the application of the maximum dose of the residue does not provide toxic levels of these elements in the soil in the long term.

Performance evaluation of jointed plain concrete pavements with sealed and unsealed joints in North Texas

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (7) ◽  
pp. 601-608
Author(s):  
Mena I. Souliman ◽  
Ashish Tripathi ◽  
Lubinda F. Walubita ◽  
Mayzan M. Isied
Keyword(s):  
Field Performance ◽  
Plain Concrete ◽  
Water Infiltration ◽  
Concrete Pavements ◽  
North Texas ◽  
Pavement Distress ◽  
Initial Cost ◽  
Additional Costs ◽  
Cost Of Construction

Joint sealing in jointed plain concrete pavement (JPCP) has been practiced throughout the world for many years as it improves the performance of concrete pavements. The infiltration of water is a common problem in concrete pavements and often increases distresses, such as faulting and pumping. For this reason, sealing the joints can help reduce water infiltration. Additionally, the infiltration of sand and small stones, aggregates, or debris into the joints can also be prevented, consequently reducing joint spalling in concrete pavements. However, it is also reported that joint sealing increases the initial cost of construction, especially if the joints need to be resealed, which leads to some additional costs. In this study, the pavement distress data was collected from the long-term pavement performance (LTPP) database for all the JPCPs sections in North Texas. The study illustrates the relative field performance in terms of spalling, faulting, roughness, and deflections of JPCP sections for both sealed and unsealed LTPP sections of North Texas.

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