The influence of epiphyte cover on branch temperature in a tropical tree

The air temperature around three branches loaded with epiphytes in a tropical lowland rain forest in French Guiana was measured from mid-June to mid-July 1997. These data represent the first direct measurements of temperature close to epiphyte-loaded branches in a tropical lowland forest. The epiphytic biomass of one of the branches was removed after two weeks of measurements. These differences in stripped versus unstripped branch temperatures were positive during day time. A maximum difference of 4.8 °C was measured on a single sunny day; the maximum of four mid-day hours averaged over all days was 2.3 °C. Maxima were determined at locations close to the branch, representing high accumulations of humus, while nearly no differences were detected 75 cm away from the branch. At night, the temperature was cooler after epiphyte biomass removal; differences were up to –0.5 °C. Close to the branch, evaporation of stored water in humus cools the environment while latent heat transformation on epiphyte surfaces raises temperature. Shading under a branch prevents heating. Epiphytes reduce air circulation, keeping unheated air on branch undersides. At night, auto-heating of humus may occur through increased rates of respiration.     

Separating forest continuity from tree age effects on plant diversity in the ground and epiphyte vegetation of a Central European mountain spruce forest

Forest continuity has been identified as an important factor influencing the structure and diversity of forest vegetation. Primary forests with centuries of continuity are usually more diverse than young secondary forests as forest are colonized only slowly and because the former are richer in old tree individuals. In the present study, performed in unmanaged high-elevation spruce forests of the Harz Mountains, Germany, we had the unique opportunity to separate the effects of forest continuity and tree age on plant diversity. We compared an old-growth spruce forest with century-long habitat continuity with an adjacent secondary spruce forest, which had naturally established on a former bog after 1796 when peat exploitation halted. Comparative analysis of the ground and epiphyte vegetation showed that the plant diversity of the old-growth forest was not higher than that of the secondary forest with a similar tree age of >200 years. Our results suggest that a period of >200 years was sufficient for the secondary forest to be colonized by the whole regional species pool of herbaceous and cryptogam forest plants and epiphytes. Therefore, it is likely that habitat structure, including the presence of old and decaying trees, was more important for determining plant diversity than the independent effect of forest continuity. Our results are probably not transferrable to spruce forests younger than 200 years and highly fragmented woodlands with long distances between new stands and old-growth forests that serve as diaspore sources. In addition, our results might be not transferable to remote areas without notable air pollution, as the epiphyte vegetation of the study area was influenced by SO₂ pollution in the second half of the 20th century.     

Edge effects: impact of anthropogenic activities on vegetation structure and diversity in western Umfurudzi Park,Zimbabwe

Understanding the patterns and intensity of anthropogenic impacts on habitats is important in the conservation of tropical ecosystems. The aim of the study was to establish the associated edge effects of anthropogenic disturbances on vegetation in western Umfurudzi Park, Zimbabwe. Three study strata were established using distance from the boundary into the park. Vegetation attributes and anthropogenic disturbance levels data were collected in 2012. Significant differences (P < 0.05) were noted on tree and shrub density, woody plant height, woody plant diversity, grass height and grass sward width across the three strata. Land clearing, livestock grazing and firewood collection were the most frequent and pronounced disturbances occurring along the park boundary. These disturbances decreased in intensity as distance from the boundary increased. We recommend the following: (i) the need to revisit the buffer zone concept and policy measures associated with ecosystem services and goods provision for communities surrounding protected areas, (ii) engaging neighbouring communities on sustainable ways of deriving ecosystem goods and services from buffer zones and protected areas and (iii) further studies on the regeneration and recovery of cleared patches along the boundary and their use by wildlife species in the park.     

Impact of pocket gopher disturbance on plant species diversity in a shortgrass prairie community

Summary We examined the impact of pocket gopher disturbances on the dynamics of a shortgrass prairie community. Through their burrowing activity, pocket gophers (Thomomys bottae) cast up mounds of soil which both kill existing vegetation and create sites for colonization by competitively-inferior plant species. Three major patterns emerge from these disturbances: First, we show that 10 of the most common herbaceous perennial dicots benefit from pocket gopher disturbance; that is, a greater proportion of seedlings are found in the open space created by pocket gopher disturbance than would be expected based on the availability of disturbed habitat. Additionally, these seedlings exhibited higher growth rates than adjacent seedlings of the same species growing in undisturbed habitat. Second, we tested two predictions of the Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis and found that species diversity was greatest for plots characterized by disturbances of intermediate age. However, we did not detect significant differences in diversity between plots characterized by intermediate and high levels of disturbance, indicating that many species are adapted to or at least tolerant of high levels of disturbance. Third, we noted that the abundance of grasses decreased with increasing disturbance, while the abundance of dicots increased with increasing disturbance.     

华南典型尾叶桉纯林经营对土壤理化性质、微生物和线虫群落的影响

桉树是我国华南地区的重要速生营林树种,具备极高的经济价值,然而我国桉树人工林的发展还存在巨大争议,桉树营林的生态环境效应还有待进一步考究。针对我国华南地区典型尾叶桉(Eucalyptus urophylla)纯林经营的潜在生态问题,选取广东鹤山森林生态系统国家野外研究站的10树种混交林(10 species mixed forest plantation, 10S)、30树种混交林(30 species mixed forest plantation, 30S)和桉树纯林(Eucalyptus monoculture, E)三种林型,另外设置桉树砍伐(Eucalyptus cutting, EC)和桉树砍伐清除林下灌草(Eucalyptus cutting and understory removal, ECUr)这两种常见经营措施的处理,通过比较不同林型和管理措施下土壤理化性质和生物指标的差异,解析了桉树营林对土壤理化特性、土壤微生物以及线虫群落的影响。本结果表明：三种林型间的土壤理化特性没有显著差异,但桉树纯林的土壤真菌生物量、真菌细菌比、食细菌线虫多度显著高于10和30树种混交林...     

Exploring the effect of soil management intensity on taxonomic and functional diversity of ants in Mediterranean olive groves

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Influence of landscape complexity and land management on woody plant diversity in northern Spain

Abstract. Changes in land use, particularly the type of forest management, and their spatial pattern, especially woody plant diversity, were related to each other in an area in the Basque region (Spain). The number and diversity of boundaries between landscape patches is related to the development of the spatial complexity of the landscape, C(s), measured in bits and defined as: C(s) = H(b) H(l), where H(b) is the boundary diversity H(1) the spatial heterogeneity generated by these boundaries. As to the vegetation types, changes in land use over the last 50 yr have resulted in a less diversified and more fragmented landscape, especially on a small scale. Forest plantation has become the predominant land use. The frequency of land use changes is studied regarding its influence on the present levels of woody plant diversity.     

Effects of selective logging on tree diversity,composition and plant functional type patterns in a Bornean rain forest

Abstract. The effects of selective logging on tree diversity, changes in tree species composition and plant functional types were studied with the use of seven permanent plots in virgin and in logged forest. All plots were located in a lowland dipterocarp rain forest in East Kalimantan on the island of Borneo. Just after logging and during the following 20 yr tree diversity measured as Fishers’α was not significantly affected in logged forest plots. Temporal shifts in tree species composition were analysed with Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Logged forest plots had much larger changes over time than virgin forest plots. In the smallest diameter class, some logged forest plots showed a distinct trajectory in PCA space compared to virgin forest plots, while in larger diameter classes movement of logged plots in PCA space was random. This suggests that there is no predetermined community to which logged forest plots tend to shift when recovering from logging. We found a significant negative correlation between diameter increments and the species‐specific wood densities of tree species. Species‐specific wood density and potential tree height were used to assign species to five PFTs. As expected, logging increased the fraction of softwood stems in small diameter classes. In the largest diameter classes (≥ 50 cm DBH) a strong decrease of softwood emergent stems was found in logged forest plots. After more than 20 yr no recruitment was found of softwood emergent stems in selectively logged forest.     

Species diversity, abundance, and vertical size structure of rattans in Borneo and Java

We studied rattan communities in four forest types in Borneo and Java to clarify the pattern of species diversity and vegetation structure. Within six plots of 4.82 ha in total, we found 42 rattan species in six genera with 4,736 stems (≥20 cm long). There was a significant positive correlation between rattans and trees in species diversity, decreasing in the order mixed dipterocarp (for rattans: Shannon–Wiener diversity index, H′ = 2.87–3.34) > alluvial (1.96) > lower montane (1.43) > peat swamp forests (1.34). This pattern coincided with the diversity of the regional flora. The density of rattan stems (ha^–1) decreased in the order lower montane (5,997) > mixed dipterocarp (598–992) > alluvial (592) > peat swamp forests (162). The maximum height of rattans would be determined by the canopy height, rather than by the maximum tree height. The rattan stem volume ranged from 0.25 to 1.88 m³ ha⁻¹ and was not correlated with the stem density. The cool montane climate seemed to decrease the maximum height of rattans, and a few small rattans made denser colonies. Swampy environments apparently suppressed the survival of non-climbing rattans strongly, but that of tall climbing rattans less so.     

中亚热带杉木人工林和米槠次生林凋落物添加与去除对土壤呼吸的影响

在未来大气CO₂浓度升高的背景下, 植被净初级生产力的增加将促使森林土壤碳输入增多。凋落物是土壤碳库的重要来源, 对土壤呼吸会产生重要影响。为了模拟植物净初级生产力提高、凋落物产量增加情景下凋落物对土壤呼吸和土壤碳库的影响, 2013年1月到2014年12月, 在福建省三明市陈大镇国有林场, 在杉木(Cunninghamia lanceolata)人工林和米槠(Castanopsis carlesii)次生林, 通过设置去除凋落物、添加凋落物和对照(保留凋落物, 不做任何处理)处理, 研究了土壤呼吸和土壤碳库的动态变化。研究发现: 土壤含水量在10%-25%范围内, 土壤呼吸温度敏感性指数(Q₁₀)随着土壤含水量的增加呈递增趋势, 当含水量<10%时, 由于干旱胁迫打破了土壤呼吸与温度之间的耦合, 改变了Q₁₀值, 使得Q₁₀值小于1。土壤呼吸与凋落物输入量呈显著的线性正相关关系, 杉木人工林对照和添加凋落物处理及米槠次生林对照处理, 土壤呼吸与2个月前的凋落物输入量相关性最好。而米槠次生林添加凋落物处理, 土壤呼吸与当月的凋落物输入量相关性最好, 不同林分凋落物呼吸对土壤呼吸的贡献率不同, 米槠次生林凋落物层呼吸年通量明显大于杉木人工林, 分别占各林分土壤总呼吸的34.4%和15.1%, 添加凋落物后, 杉木人工林和米槠次生林的土壤呼吸速率增加, 但添加凋落物处理的土壤呼吸年通量与对照的差值小于年凋落物输入量。因此, 在未来全球CO₂升高背景下, 植被碳储量的增加、凋落物增加并没有引起土壤呼吸成倍增加, 更有利于中亚热带地区土壤碳吸存。