Organic matter and nutrient dynamics of the forest and forest floor in the Hubbard Brook forest

Summary The forest floor is a major reservoir of organic matter and nutrients for the ecosystem and as such it influences or regulates most of the functional processes occurring throughout the ecosystem. This study reports on the nutrient and organic matter content of the forest floor of the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest during different seasons and attempts to correlate results from studies of vegetation, litter, decomposition, stemflow, throughfall, and soil. An organic matter budget is presented for an undisturbed watershed.Average weight of the forest floor on an undisturbed watershed ranged from 25,500 to 85,500 kg/ha. The weighted watershed average was 46,800 kg/ha. Although the F and H horizons did not vary significantly with time, the L horizon increased significantly during the period June to August largely as a result of a severe hail storm. The order of abundance of elements in the forest floor was N;CaFe>S>P>Mn>K>Mg>Na>Zn>Cu. The concentrations of Ca, K, and Mn decreased with depth in the forest floor while N, P, S, Na, Fe, Zn, and Cu concentrations increased. N:P ratios were similar in decomposing leaf tissue, the forest floor, litterfall, and net stemflow plus throughfall suggesting a similar pattern of cycling. S was proportional to N and P in decomposing leaf tissue, the forest floor, and litterfall. Net stemflow and throughfall were affected by a relatively large input of SO₄=-S from the atmosphere. Residence times for elements in the forest floor were affected by inputs other than litterfall (precipitation, stemflow, and throughfall). Calculation of residence times using all inputs caused smaller values than if litterfall alone was used. While all residence times were reduced, the major differences occurred for K, S, and Na. N and P showed relatively long residence times as a result of retranslocation and immobilization by decomposers. The slow turnover rate because of the strong demand and retention by all biota must account for the efficiency of the intrasystem cycling process for N and P. K showed the shortest residence time. A rapid and efficient uptake of K by vegetation seems to account for the efficient cycling of this element. The patterns of nutrient cycling are several depending on the chemical properties of the forest floor, and nutritional requirements of the biota.This is contribution No. 67 of the Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study. Financial support was provided by the National Science Foundation.     

Fungicides for forest trees,shade trees and forest products

The Botanical Review -     

Mycorrhizae and forest ecosystems

Summary Mycorrhizae play an important role in regulating patterns of energy and nutrient flux in terrestrial ecosystems. To conceptualize this role I develop the theory behind a simple index of the efficiency of soil resource acquisition by plant root systems (E). The morphological, physiological and demographic characteristics of mycorrhizae that define E appear to vary with environment and with plant community composition. This theory is elaborated with examples drawn from forest ecology literature. Some inconsistencies among observations of fine root dynamics are particularly revealing: (1) belowground carbon allocation vs soil fertility; (2) causes of root mortality; (3) root longevity vs decomposition rates. A comprehensive theory of mycorrhizal and ecosystem dynamics must await resolution of these inconsistencies and better quantitative information on mycorrhizal features affecting E.     

火对森林土壤的影响

林火是林地上自由蔓延的火,主要有计划火烧(控制火烧)和野火2种类型.火烧的严重程度决定了火灾的效果及其影响的持续时间.火能够通过燃烧有机质和改变粘土矿物来影响土壤结构,导致土壤容重增加和持水能力降低.长期来看,火烧引起土壤有机质减少.火烧之后土壤温度和pH值的升高会促进土壤呼吸,而微生物数量的减少、根系的死亡和可分解物质的减少则减弱土壤呼吸.林火消耗了森林的枯落物层,通过氧化、挥发、灰分颗粒对流、淋溶等途径减少了森林土壤的养分含量.火灾对土壤生物有重要影响,火灾引起的高温可直接杀死土壤微生物,同时通过改变土壤的各种理化性质及林地微环境,间接影响土壤微生物生存和群落的组成.火对土壤动物的影响显著小于对土壤微生物的影响,原因是前者具有更高的灵活性来逃避火灾.中低程度火烧主要通过土壤环境变化间接影响土壤酶,而严重火烧则通过高温直接使其变性.今后应开展跨学科的森林火灾长期研究,加强对火烧后土壤动物、微生物和生态系统之间相互关系的研究,注重计划用火、火灾对土壤有机碳、土壤养分库的稳定、土壤斥水性、水土流失强度和生物多样性影响方面的研究.     

Exotic vascular plant invasiveness and forest invasibility in urban boreal forest types

The riverine forests of the northern city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada display strong resilience to disturbance and are similar in species composition to southern boreal mixedwood forest types. This study addressed questions such as, how easily do exotic species become established in urban boreal forests (species invasiveness) and do urban boreal forest structural characteristics such as, native species richness, abundance, and vertical vegetation layers, confer resistance to exotic species establishment and spread (community invasibility)? Eighty-four forest stands were sampled and species composition and mean percent cover analyzed using ordination methods. Results showed that exotic tree/shrub types were of the most concern for invasion to urban boreal forests and that exotic species type, native habitat and propagule supply may be good indicators of invasive potential. Native forest structure appeared to confer a level of resistance to exotic species and medium to high disturbance intensity was associated with exotic species growth and spread without a corresponding loss in native species richness. Results provided large-scale evidence that diverse communities are less vulnerable to exotic species invasion, and that intermediate disturbance intensity supports species coexistence. From a management perspective, the retention of native species and native forest structure in urban forests is favored to minimize the impact of exotic species introductions, protect natural succession patterns, and minimize the spread of exotic species.     

Natural revegetation on forest topsoil and subsoil along roadsides in boreal forest

Questions: Does natural revegetation from indigenous soil improve the restoration success of roadside areas? What are the effects of topsoil, subsoil and fertilization on natural revegetation? Location: Akershus county, SE Norway (10°25′ E, 59° 44′ N). Methods: We used a recently constructed road through a boreal coniferous forest for a three year (2000–2002), fully replicated revegetation experiment (six replications). Treatments were soil type (two levels; one topsoil and one subsoil type) and fertilization (two levels; NPK and unfertilized control). Ordination methods, constrained ordination methods as well as univariate statistical methods, such as Wilcoxon's signed‐rank test and correlation analysis, were used to assess the relative importance and significance of treatments on the plant species composition. Results: There was no fertilization effect on species composition. The species composition on both soil types was stabilised by the second year. The species dominating the topsoil were more in accordance with the indigenous vegetation than was the case on the subsoil. The significant difference in species composition among blocks, persisting for the entire study period, indicated that local factors are important determinants of the outcome of revegetation. Conclusions: Unfertilized topsoil provides a revegetation result in better accordance with the indigenous vegetation than does subsoil.     

Long-term forest composition and its drivers in taiga forest in NW Russia

Understanding the processes behind long-term boreal forest dynamics can provide information that assists in predicting future boreal vegetation under changing environmental conditions. Here, we examine Holocene stand-scale vegetation dynamics and its drivers at the western boundary of the Russian taiga forest in NW Russia. Fossil pollen and conifer stomata records from four small hollow sites and two lake sites are used to reconstruct local vegetation dynamics during the Holocene. Variation partitioning is used to assess the relative importance of the potential drivers (temperature, forest fires and growing site wetness) to the long-term stand-scale dynamics in taiga forest. All the main tree taxa, including the boreal keystone species Picea abies (Norway spruce) and Larix sibirica (Siberian larch), have been locally present since 10,000 cal yr bp. The constant Holocene presence of L. sibirica at three small hollow sites suggests a fast postglacial immigration of the species in northern Europe. Picea was present but not dominant at all study sites until its expansion between 8,000 and 7,000 cal yr bp markedly changed the forest structure through the suppression of Betula (birch), Pinus (pine) and Larix. Our results demonstrate that in general, the Holocene forest dynamics in our study region have been driven by temperature, but during short intervals the role of local factors, especially forest fires, has been prominent. The comparison between sites reveals the importance of local factors in stand-scale dynamics in taiga forests. Therefore, the future responses of taiga forest to climate change will be predominantly modulated by the local characteristics at the site.     

基于森林生态系统服务权衡与协同的森林可持续管理

森林是水库、钱库、粮库、碳库,提供多种生态系统服务,对缓解全球气候变化、维护国土生态安全和促进经济社会可持续发展具有基础性、战略性作用。科学认识不同森林生态系统服务间的权衡与协同对实现森林多重效益和开展森林可持续管理至关重要,但森林生态系统服务间的协同或权衡关系存在较大不确定性、因不同研究而异,导致如何通过森林经营实现森林生态系统多种服务成为关键挑战。全面梳理森林生态系统多种服务之间协调与权衡研究现状后发现：(1)研究聚焦森林碳汇、木材供应、生物多样性、森林游憩等多种服务之间的关系与影响因子;天然林的协同效应高于人工林,林龄、林分密度、树种组成、气温、海拔、社会偏好、管理政策等是主要驱动因素;(2)对比不同森林经营模式或管理措施对森林生态系统多种服务的影响,可持续经营是协同实现森林多种效益的有效途径;(3)气候变化与森林生态系统多种服务之间的相互作用取决于气候因子种类与变化程度、森林类型、森林管理方式、区域环境等,当前重点围绕IPCC发布的未来气候变化情景开展研究;(4)借助InVEST、FSOS、CASA等工具,模拟优化森林管理情景,探索兼顾森林多目标的管理方案。同时,系统总结现有研...     

林隙干扰对森林生态系统的影响

林隙干扰通过改变森林微生境异质性和群落演替进程,对森林物种组成、林分结构和系统功能产生重要影响。本研究评述了有关林隙干扰对森林生态系统影响的最新研究进展,从物种生物学特性和环境因素两个方面分析了林隙干扰对森林物种组成变化的影响规律,基于群落组件和群落架构阐述了林隙干扰对森林结构的作用关系,梳理了林隙干扰对森林生态系统功能的影响机制。基于已有研究的分析和目前森林生态系统经营亟需解决的问题,提出未来研究所需关注的重点领域和问题: 林隙面积阈值确定方法;林隙闭合机制;林隙干扰对森林生态系统过程的影响;林隙干扰与森林生产力的关系。林隙干扰在促进物种更新和提升森林结构复杂性等方面具有优势,因此本研究可为我国低产低效人工林改造提供科学依据。     

Changes in forest biomass and linkage to climate and forest disturbances over Northeastern China

The forests of northeastern China store nearly half of the country's total biomass carbon stocks. In this study, we investigated the changes in forest biomass by using satellite observations and found that a significant increase in forest biomass took place between 2001 and 2010. To determine the possible reasons for this change, several statistical methods were used to analyze the correlations between forest biomass dynamics and forest disturbances (i.e. fires, insect damage, logging, and afforestation and reforestation), climatic factors, and forest development. Results showed that forest development was the most important contributor to the increasing trend of forest biomass from 2001 to 2010, and climate controls were the secondary important factor. Among the four types of forest disturbance considered in this study, forest recovery from fires, and afforestation and reforestation during the past few decades played an important role in short‐term biomass dynamics. This study provided observational evidence and valuable information for the relationships between forest biomass and climate as well as forest disturbances.     

Pollination and reproduction of a self-incompatible forest herb in hedgerow corridors and forest patches

Habitat-corridors are assumed to counteract the negative impacts of habitat loss and fragmentation, but their efficiency in doing so depends on the maintenance of ecological processes in corridor conditions. For plants dispersing in linear habitats, one of these critical processes is the maintenance of adequate pollen transfer to insure seed production within the corridor. This study focuses on a common, self-incompatible forest herb, Trillium grandiflorum, to assess plant–pollinator interactions and the influence of spatial processes on plant reproduction in hedgerow corridors compared to forests. First, using pollen supplementation experiments over 2 years, we quantified the extent of pollen limitation in both habitats, testing the prediction of greater limitation in small hedgerow populations than in forests. While pollen limitation of fruit and seed set was common, its magnitude did not differ between habitats. Variations among sites, however, suggested an influence of landscape context on pollination services. Second, we examined the effect of isolation on plant reproduction by monitoring fruit and seed production, as well as pollinator activity and assemblage, in small flower arrays transplanted in hedgerows at increasing distances from forest and from each other. We detected no difference in the proportion of flowers setting fruit or in pollinator activity with isolation, but we observed some differences in pollinator assemblages. Seed set, on the other hand, declined significantly with increasing isolation in the second year of the study, but not in the first year, suggesting altered pollen transfer with distance. Overall, plants in hedgerow corridors and forests benefited from similar pollination services. In this system, plant–pollinator interactions and reproduction seem to be influenced more by variations in resource distribution over years and landscapes than by local habitat conditions. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

红松林和针阔叶混交林下黏菌物种多样性研究

为探讨不同林型下黏菌物种多样性的差异,本文在凉水国家级自然保护区内红松林和针阔叶混交林两种林分中开展调查研究,共采集黏菌样本242份,基于形态特征鉴定为4目7科17属50种黏菌,其中鲜红团网菌Arcyria insignis、网格筛菌Cribraria paucidictyon和玫瑰绒泡菌Physarum roseum...     

森林更新与空间异质性

森林更换是一个重要的生态学过程,一直是森林生态系统动态研究中的主要领域之一。森林更新受物理环境、自然干扰、人为干扰、更新树种特性、树种对干扰的反应等因素及其相互作用的影响。这些生物和非生物的因素随空间和时间而不断变化,构成了森林的空间异质性和时间异质性,使森林更新具有空间和时间上的变化特点,表现在异质性的格局和过程中。探索森林更新与空间异质性的内在规律,可揭示空间格局对更新的生态学过程的潜在作用机制。本文主要综述了近年来有关森林更新与空间异质性研究的主要内容和一些观点,分析了更新中空间异质性的来源,着重评述了空间异质性的生境及更新树种的反应、小尺度的空间异质性与更新动态、林分中光有效性的空间异质性与更新格局以及土壤和更新的空间异质性尺度的关联性等方面的研究。     

Fine‐scale forest variability and biodiversity in the boreal mixedwood forest

Local spatial variation in species distributions is driven by a mix of abiotic and biotic factors, and understanding such hierarchical variation is important for conservation of biodiversity across larger scales. We sought to understand how variation in species composition of understory vascular plants, spiders, and carabid beetles is associated with concomitant spatial variation in forest structure on a 1‐ha permanent plot in a never‐cut mixedwood forest in central Alberta (Canada). Using correlations among dendrograms produced by cluster analysis we associated data about mapped distribution of all living and dead stems > 1 cm diameter at breast height with distributions of the three focal taxa sampled from regular grids across the plot. Variation in each of these species assemblages were significantly associated with several forest structure variables at various spatial scales, but the scale of the associations varied among assemblages. Variation in species richness and abundance was explained mostly by changes in basal area of trees across the plot; however, other variables (e.g. snag density and tree density) were also important, depending on assemblage. We conclude that fine‐scale habitat variation is important in structuring spatial distribution of the species of the forest floor, even within a relatively homogeneous natural forest. Thus, assessments that ignore within‐stand heterogeneity and management that ignores its maintenance will have limited utility as conservation measures for these taxa, which are major elements of forest biodiversity.     

小兴安岭带岭林区红松阔叶林景观多样性与稳定性研究

选取具有典型代表性的黑龙江省小兴安岭带岭林业局东方红林场为研究对象,在应用地理信息系统软件对现行森林经营措施进行分析的基础上,探讨了该林场景观分类、景观变化动态分析的结果和成因,并应用马尔可夫转移模型进行景观模拟预测.结果表明,研究期间东方红林场一级分类和二级分类的景观多样性指数较低,有林地面积占整个研究区域的91%以上,构成了景观的基质;1985～1993年间,有林地优势地位加强,优势度从0.611增加到0.692,顶极群落优势度增加70%;在以择伐为主伐更新措施条件下,红松阔叶林在201～209年间将达到稳定状态,面积为13 120～13 22 hm²,成为当地稳定的顶极植被群落.     

Canopy surface topography in a French Guiana forest and the folded forest theory

The canopy surface is an undulating surface that follows the irregular contours of the upper tree crowns and defines the inner and the outer limits of the forest volume. In French Guiana, the height of the canopy surface was surveyed in both a primary and a 20-years old clear-felled secondary forest plot. The topographic surface was displayed in a three-dimensional mesh, where X and Y are horizontal co-ordinates, and Z is the canopy height measured from the ground with an optical telemeter. The statistical dispersion of Z-data, and the spatial tree height variations, are interpreted at different levels of ecosystem organisation, from forest type (primary or secondary forest) to the trees themselves, following the folded forest model theory (Oldeman 1992, 1994). The vertical growth of trees creates a convex pattern in the relief of canopy surface, whereas gaps make concavities which delimit impact of perturbation on the forest structure. These events are either the result of the dynamic of single trees (emergent and decayed trees), or arise from the dynamic of a group of trees working together (group of emergent trees or complex gaps). At the plot scale, the elementary events, convexities and concavities, are gathered on similar topo-sequences, and form canopy units either higher or lower than the average canopy height. This study suggests that the topography of the canopy surface is defined by a complex nested system from trees, to groups of trees, to canopy units, within a delimited floristic and physical environment.