scholarly journals Temporal pattern in basal area prediction error of a growth model for Quebec’s temperate forest

2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (02) ◽  
pp. 141-150
Author(s):  
Hugues Power ◽  
Isabelle Auger
Keyword(s):  
Nous Avons ◽  
Growth Model ◽  
Prediction Error ◽  
Temporal Pattern ◽  
Acer Saccharum ◽  
Temperate Forest ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Modèle De Croissance

Pour les utilisateurs, l’évaluation des performances et de la fiabilité d’un modèle de croissance est essentielle. Cependant, les biais spécifiques à l’espèce et à l’année d’observation sont rarement signalés, bien que des changements dans les conditions de croissance soient susceptibles d’augmenter la présence de tels biais dans les modèles. Dans cette étude, nous avons analysé l’erreur de prévision de la surface terrière d’Artemis, un modèle de croissance à l’échelle de l’arbre. Même si les prévisions du modèle étaient peu biaisées dans la plupart des conditions, nous avons détecté des tendances liées à l’espèce et à l’année d’observation. Ces tendances étaient les plus fortes pour l’érable à sucre (Acer saccharum Marsh.), pour lequel une sous-estimation de la surface terrière en 1975 évoluait vers une surestimation en 2010. Pour le sapin baumier (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.), la tendance contraire a pu être observée. Une meilleure prise en compte par le modèle des conditions de croissance et des perturbations biotiques pourrait aider à diminuer les biais. Ces résultats sont pertinents pour les développeurs et pour les utilisateurs, qui doivent savoir que les prévisions du modèle de croissance pour ces deux espèces sont susceptibles d’être de plus en plus biaisées avec l’allongement de la période de simulation.

scholarly journals Long-term compositional changes following partial disturbance revealed by the resurvey of logging concession limits in the northern temperate forest of eastern Canada

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (7) ◽  
pp. 943-949 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor Danneyrolles ◽  
Dominique Arseneault ◽  
Yves Bergeron
Keyword(s):  
Acer Saccharum ◽  
Temperate Forest ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Forest Composition ◽  
Betula Alleghaniensis ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Partial Cutting ◽  
Compositional Changes

Land use changes that are linked to European settlement of North America have transformed northeastern temperate forest landscapes. Many studies report a regional increase of young early-successional forests due to high disturbance rates since the preindustrial era (fire, land clearing, and clear-cuts). In this study, we document specific compositional changes to present-day mature forest landscapes, which have only been managed with partial cutting (high-grading and diameter-limit cuts) since the preindustrial era in southwestern Quebec. We resurveyed 108 forest observations that were extracted from logbooks of former logging concession limits (surveyed between 1870 and 1890). Results highlight an increase in mid- to late-successional shade-tolerant taxa (Betula alleghaniensis Britton, Thuja occidentalis L., Acer saccharum Marsh.) at the expense of preindustrial dominant conifers (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill., Pinus strobus L.). Former logging activities and spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana Clemens) outbreaks appear to be the main drivers of these changes, which were also strongly structured across the topographic gradient. To some extent, these results highlight the relevance of partial cutting management, as it has allowed long-term maintenance of a mid- to late-successional forest composition, while also pointing the need for P. strobus restoration. We conclude that by allowing site-specific comparisons, the resurvey of historical observations greatly improve the analytical strengths of historical reconstruction.

Seedling recruitment in a northern temperate forest: the relative importance of supply and establishment limitation

2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 978-989 ◽  
Author(s):  
John P Caspersen ◽  
Megan Saprunoff
Keyword(s):  
Acer Saccharum ◽  
Temperate Forest ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Seedling Emergence ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Common Species ◽  
Fagus Grandifolia ◽  
Betula Alleghaniensis ◽  
Recruitment Failure ◽  
Niche Differences

We quantified supply and establishment limitation as components of seedling recruitment for five species common to the temperate forests of central Ontario. Establishment limitation was the primary cause of recruitment failure for the three most common species: Acer saccharum Marsh., Betula alleghaniensis Britt., and Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carrière. The main barrier to establishment (including germination and seedling emergence) was a lack of suitable substrates, rather than a lack of light. Supply limitation, on the other hand, was the primary cause of recruitment failure for two less common species, Abies balsamea (L.) Mill. and Fagus grandifolia Ehrh. The cause of supply limitation was a lack of parent trees, in the case of A. balsamea, and low fecundity, in the case of F. grandifolia. Our results suggest that niche differences (i.e., germination requirements) are more important than dispersal in structuring temperate forest communities. Our results also suggest that availability of suitable substrates is the primary factor limiting seedling recruitment following logging.

scholarly journals A Dynamic Stand Growth Model System for Loblolly Pine Responding to Mid-Rotation Treatments

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 556
Author(s):  
Mauricio Zapata-Cuartas ◽  
Bronson P. Bullock ◽  
Cristian R. Montes ◽  
Michael B. Kane
Keyword(s):  
Growth Model ◽  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Model System ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Site Quality ◽  
Response To Treatment ◽  
Plantation Management ◽  
Vegetation Control ◽  
Dominant Height

Intensive loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantation management in the southeastern United States includes mid-rotation silvicultural practices (MRSP) like thinning, fertilization, competitive vegetation control, and their combinations. Consistent and well-designed long-term studies considering interactions of MRSP are required to produce accurate projections and evaluate management decisions. Here we use longitudinal data from the regional Mid-Rotation Treatment study established by the Plantation Management Research Cooperative (PMRC) at the University of Georgia across the southeast U.S. to fit and validate a new dynamic model system rooted in theoretical and biological principles. A Weibull pdf was used as a modifier function coupled with the basal area growth model. The growth model system and error projection functions were estimated simultaneously. The new formulation results in a compatible and consistent growth and yield system and provides temporal responses to treatment. The results indicated that the model projections reproduce the observed behavior of stand characteristics. The model has high predictive accuracy (the cross-validation variance explained was 96.2%, 99.7%, and 98.6%; and the prediction root mean square distance was 0.704 m, 19.1 trees ha−1, and 1.03 m2ha−1 for dominant height (DH), trees per hectare (N), and basal area (BA), respectively), and can be used to project the current stand attributes following combinations of MRSP and with different thinning intensities. Simulations across southern physiographic regions allow us to conclude that the most overall ranking of MRSP after thinning is fertilization + competitive vegetation control (Fert + CVC) > fertilization only (Fert) > competitive vegetation control only (CVC), and Fert + CVC show less than additive effect. Because of the model structure, the response to treatment changes with location, age of application, and dominant height growth as indicators of site quality. Therefore, the proposed model adequately represents regional growth conditions.

Present-day expansion of American beech in northeastern hardwood forests: Does soil base status matter?

2009 ◽  
Vol 39 (12) ◽  
pp. 2273-2282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Duchesne ◽  
Rock Ouimet
Keyword(s):  
Acer Saccharum ◽  
Sugar Maple ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Base Cation ◽  
Hardwood Forests ◽  
Fagus Grandifolia ◽  
Soil Base ◽  
Large Area ◽  
American Beech ◽  
Permanent Sample Plots

Recently, sugar maple ( Acer saccharum Marsh.) decline in northeastern North America has been regarded as a major factor structuring hardwood forests by favouring American beech ( Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) in the understory of maple-dominated stands. To determine whether soil fertility differences associated with sugar maple decline may have promoted the expansion of American beech, we explored the relationships between the soil base status and the sapling and tree strata density and composition, using data from 426 permanent sample plots distributed throughout Quebec. Our results indicate that American beech is currently expanding in the sugar maple range of Quebec. The abundance and proportion of American beech in the sapling stratum are mainly associated with the proportion of American beech in the tree stratum, the relative basal area of dead sugar maple trees, and the base status of soils. In accordance with the many studies reporting on the high sensitivity of sugar maple to the acid–base status of soils and the decline of the sugar maple population, this study supports the hypothesis that soil base cation depletion, caused in part by atmospheric acid deposition, is among the main factors involved in the present-day expansion of American beech over a large area in Quebec.

scholarly journals Stand Structure and Composition 32 Years after Precommercial Thinning Treatments in a Mixed Northern Conifer Stand in Central Maine

2011 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 92-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron R. Weiskittel ◽  
Laura S. Kenefic ◽  
Rongxia Li ◽  
John Brissette
Keyword(s):  
Stand Structure ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Mixed Species ◽  
Precommercial Thinning ◽  
Large Trees ◽  
Stand Attributes ◽  
And Control

Abstract The effects of four precommercial thinning (PCT) treatments on an even-aged northern conifer stand in Maine were investigated by examining stand structure and composition 32 years after treatment. Replicated treatments applied in 1976 included: (1) control (no PCT), (2) row thinning (rowthin; 5-ft-wide row removal with 3-ft-wide residual strips), (3) row thinning with crop tree release (rowthin+CTR; 5-ft-wide row removal with crop tree release at 8-ft intervals in 3-ft-wide residual strips), and (4) crop tree release (CTR; release of selected crop trees at 8×8-ft intervals). PCT plots had more large trees and fewer small trees than the control in 2008. There were no other significant differences between the rowthin and control. The rowthin+CTR and CTR treatments had lower total and hardwood basal area (BA) and higher merchantable conifer BA than the control. CTR also resulted in more red spruce (Picea rubens [Sarg.]) and less balsam fir (Abies balsamea [L.]) than the other treatments. Although stand structures for rowthin+CTR and CTR were similar, the percentage of spruce in CTR was greater. Although the less-intensive rowthin+CTR treatment may provide many of the same benefits as CTR, the latter would be the preferred treatment if increasing the spruce component of a stand is an objective. Overall, early thinning treatments were found to have long-term effects on key stand attributes, even more than 30 years after treatment in areas with mixed species composition and moderate site potential.

Long-term impact of liming on growth and vigor of northern hardwoods

2011 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 1295-1307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert P. Long ◽  
Stephen B. Horsley ◽  
Thomas J. Hall
Keyword(s):  
Acer Saccharum ◽  
Sugar Maple ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Fagus Grandifolia ◽  
Northern Hardwood ◽  
Crown Health ◽  
Lime Application ◽  
Species Specific

Sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) is a keystone species in the northern hardwood forest, and decline episodes have negatively affected the growth and health of sugar maple in portions of its range over the past 50+ years. Crown health, growth, survival, and flower and seed production of sugar maple were negatively affected by a widespread decline event in the mid-1980s on the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau in northern Pennsylvania. A long-term liming study was initiated in 1985 to evaluate responses to a one-time application of 22.4 Mg·ha–1 of dolomitic limestone in four northern hardwood stands. Over the 23-year period ending in 2008, sugar maple basal area increment (BAINC) increased significantly (P ≤ 0.05) in limed plots from 1995 through 2008, whereas American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) BAINC was unaffected. For black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.), the third principal overstory species, BAINC and survival were reduced in limed plots compared with unlimed plots. Foliar Ca and Mg remained significantly higher in sugar maple foliage sampled 21 years after lime application, showing persistence of the lime effect. These results show long-term species-specific responses to lime application.

Attributes of forest strips used by snowshoe hare in winter within clear-cut boreal landscapes

2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (10) ◽  
pp. 2521-2527 ◽  
Author(s):  
François Potvin ◽  
Normand Bertrand ◽  
Jean Ferron
Keyword(s):  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Snowshoe Hare ◽  
Forest Patches ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Important Prey ◽  
South Central ◽  
Snowshoe Hares ◽  
Riparian Strips

The snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus Erxleben) is an important prey for many predators in the boreal forest. In this biome, clear-cut landscapes are generally large and consist of aggregated cutting blocks separated by narrow forest strips (typically 60–100 m wide). To identify attributes of forest strips that are important for snowshoe hares, we measured the use of strips using track counts over two winters in six clear-cut landscapes (23–256 km2) in south-central Quebec. Surveys were conducted in 20 riparian strips (RS), 20 upland strips (US), and 15 control sites (CO) at the periphery of clear-cut landscapes. Overall, 392 signs of hare presence were recorded along 50 km of transects. Snowshoe hares were present in one-third of the strips surveyed and were five times less abundant in US and RS than in CO. The species avoided strip edges. Hares were more common in the wider strips (>100 m), in the strips adjacent to residual forest patches (≥25 ha), or in those having a denser shrub canopy, which is often associated with a greater basal area in balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.). To maintain snowshoe hare at moderate densities in large clear-cut landscapes, we suggest leaving uncut forest strips >100 m wide in areas having a good shrub cover with presence of balsam fir.

Assessment of sugar maple health based on basal area growth pattern

2003 ◽  
Vol 33 (11) ◽  
pp. 2074-2080 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Duchesne ◽  
Rock Ouimet ◽  
Claude Morneau
Keyword(s):  
Growth Pattern ◽  
Acer Saccharum ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Sugar Maple ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Tree Age ◽  
Tree Health ◽  
Health Decline ◽  
Area Growth ◽  
Natural Range

The first tree health decline symptoms usually observed are foliar deficiency symptoms, foliage loss, and dieback. To improve the subjective nature and unspecificity of these assessments, we examined sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) radial growth and health to develop an indicator of sugar maple tree health status based on radial growth pattern. We used the basal area increment (BAI) of 328 tree-ring collections from 16 sites located in southern Quebec, throughout the sugarbush natural range, that were categorized by defoliation class. BAI of trees with decline symptoms was significantly lower than that of healthy trees in 9 of the 16 stands. BAI trends since 1955 showed an inverse relationship with tree decline class measured in 1989, irrespective of tree age. The results indicate that declining trees in these stands have not recovered based on BAI. They also suggest that the decrease in slope of BAI predated the observed symptoms of sugar maple decline by at least one decade. Results suggest that sugar maple vigor and health can be assessed by measuring tree's BAI trend, an indicator that may be useful for the diagnosis of sugar maple health and status years before the appearance of visible canopy symptoms.

scholarly journals Similarity between seed rain and neighbouring mature tree communities in an old-growth temperate forest

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (6) ◽  
pp. 2435-2444
Author(s):  
Yunyun Wang ◽  
Jalene M. LaMontagne ◽  
Fei Lin ◽  
Zuoqiang Yuan ◽  
Ji Ye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Temperate Forest ◽  
Community Dynamics ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Seed Rain ◽  
Mature Trees ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Deposition Patterns ◽  
Tree Communities ◽  
Tree Traits

Abstract Seed distribution and deposition patterns around parent trees are strongly affected by functional traits and therefore influence the development of plant communities. To assess the limitations of seed dispersal and the extent to which diaspore and neighbouring parental traits explain seed rain, we used a 9-year seed data set based on 150 seed traps in a 25-ha area of a temperate forest in the Changbai Mountain. Among 480,598 seeds belonging to 12 families, 17 genera, and 26 species were identified, only 54% of the species with mature trees in the community were represented in seeds collected over the 9 years, indicating a limitation in seed dispersal. Understory species were most limited; overstory species were least limited. Species with wind-dispersed seed had the least limitation, while the lowest similarity in species richness was for animal-dispersed species followed by gravity-dispersed species; fleshy-fruited species had stronger dispersal limitations than dry-fruited species. Generalized linear mixed models showed that relative basal area had a significant positive effect on seed abundance in traps, while the contribution of diaspore traits was low for nearly all groups. These results suggest that tree traits had the strongest contribution to seed dispersal and deposition for all functional groups examined here. These findings strengthen the knowledge that tree traits are key in explaining seed deposition patterns, at least at the primary dispersal stage. This improved knowledge of sources of seeds that are dispersed could facilitate greater understanding of seedling and community dynamics in temperate forests.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document