Linking multiple-level tree traits with biomass accumulation in native tree species used for reforestation in Panama

To improve establishment yield and carbon accumulation during reforestation, analyses of species adaptations to local environments are needed. Here we measured, at the individual scale, links between biomass accumulation and multiple-level tree traits: biomass partitioning, crown morphology and leaf physiology. The study was carried out on one- and three-year-old individuals of five tropical tree species assigned to pioneer (P) or non-pioneer (NP) functional groups. Among the species, Cedrela odorata, Luehea seemannii and Hura crepitans showed the greatest biomass accumulation. On our seasonally dry site, species performance during the first year was dependent on a greater investment in above-ground foraging, while performance after three years was mainly related to water relations. However, large biomass accumulations were not simply associated with an efficient water use but also with contrasting water uses, based on inter-specific relationships. Generally, greater carbon isotope discrimination (Δ_leaf) was related to greater allocation to roots. Species with high Δ_leaf generally showed high leaf potential nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE), suggesting that lower water use efficiency (WUE) increases the efficiency of photosynthetically active N. Also, PNUE was negatively correlated to leaf mass per area (LMA), implying that photosynthetically active N is diluted as total leaf mass increases. Finally, no distinction in measured traits, including biomass accumulation, was observed between the two functional groups.     

Ages and long-term growth patterns of four threatened Vietnamese tree species

Conservation of threatened tree species requires basic information on growth rates and ages. This information is lacking for many species, but can be obtained relatively easily from tree ring analysis. We studied four threatened Vietnamese species: three conifers from high-elevation forests (Calocedrus macrolepis, Dacrydium elatum and Pinus kwangtungensis) and one broad-leaved species from lowland forest (Annamocarya sinensis). We collected increment cores from remnant populations in protected areas and measured ring width. We built chronologies and found significant correlations with rainfall (all species) and temperature (two species), indicating that rings were formed annually. Diameter-age trajectories showed that species reached reproductive size at 60–80 years. Maximum observed ages were 128–229 years. Some species showed large variation in long-term growth rates among individuals, which was partially explained by strong persistence of growth differences. We also assessed whether growth rates changed over time. For certain size categories in some species, we found higher recent growth rates of juvenile trees compared to those in the distant past. This shift requires a cautious interpretation, but is consistent with a CO₂ fertilization effect. For other size categories, we found contrasting results: extant large trees had higher growth rates as small juveniles compared to extant small trees. Such correlations, which we found for all species, suggest a ‘juvenile selection effect’: the preferential survival of fast-growing juveniles to the canopy. Information on ages, historical growth rates and juvenile selection effect is relevant for the planning of conservation actions.     

Bryophytes display allelopathic interactions with tree species in native forest ecosystems

Bryophytes are widespread in terrestrial ecosystems but little is known about their influence on vascular species. Water‐soluble leachates (0%, 1%, 5%, 10% concentration) derived from 18 species of bryophytes (mosses 11 species; liverworts 7 species) were tested on the germination and seedling growth of Lactuca sativa and two common trees Melicytus ramiflorus (Violaceae) and Fuchsia excorticata (Onagraceae) in southern New Zealand forests. Bryophyte water soluble extracts (BWSE) have minor impact on seed germination of Lactuca, stimulatory effects on radical growth at low (1%) concentrations and inhibitory effects at higher concentrations (5–10%). For Melicytus the BWSE had variable effects, with evidence of strong stimulatory (Dendrohypopterygium filiculiforme) and inhibitory (Lepidozia concinna) effects on germination, but generally inhibited radical growth. BWSE at all test concentrations consistently inhibit both germination and seedling radicle growth in Fuchsia. The toxicity effect of water‐soluble leachates varies significantly between bryophyte species but not consistently between mosses and liverworts. Bryophyte species exhibiting strongest inhibition effects under control conditions were associated with significantly reduced densities of broadleaved tree seedlings in forest ecosystems. Our results demonstrate that some bryophyte species via allelopathic interactions can inhibit seedling establishment and growth of forest trees. This mechanism provides an additional factor constraining the spatial distribution of the regeneration niche in forest communities.     

Maximum tree: a consistent estimator of the species tree

We propose a model based approach to use multiple gene trees to estimate the species tree. The coalescent process requires that gene divergences occur earlier than species divergences when there is any polymorphism in the ancestral species. Under this scenario, speciation times are restricted to be smaller than the corresponding gene split times. The maximum tree (MT) is the tree with the largest possible speciation times in the space of species trees restricted by available gene trees. If all populations have the same population size, the MT is the maximum likelihood estimate of the species tree. It can be shown the MT is a consistent estimator of the species tree even when the MT is built upon the estimates of the true gene trees if the gene tree estimates are statistically consistent. The MT converges in probability to the true species tree at an exponential rate.     

Quickly identifying tree species susceptible to extinction: a case study of seven tree species at Northeast China Transect

Quickly predicting which species are most susceptible to extirpation in a defined area is important for conservation and environmental monitoring. We hypothesised that the susceptibility of tree species to extinction in an area could be inferred by the spatial and temporal dynamics of its populations. Here we use change in population size, population spatial variability, spatial autocorrelation, spatial cohesion, crash rate, and recovery rate to characterise the relative susceptibility to extirpation for seven tree species along the Northeast China Transect from 1986 to 1994. Betula dahurica Pall. and Populus davidiana Dode. were found to have a higher susceptibility to loss than Pinus koraiensis Siebold et Zucc., Betula costata Trautv., and Larix olgensis A. Henry in this area during this time period. The same methods could be useful to monitor and predict the susceptibility of species extinction at a larger regional scale.     

Occurrence of nodulation in unexplored leguminous trees native to the West African tropical rainforest and inoculation response of native species useful in reforestation

Despite the abundance and diversity of timber tree legumes in the West African rainforest, their ability to form nitrogen-fixing nodules in symbiosis with rhizobia, and their response to rhizobial inoculation, remain poorly documented. In the first part of this study the occurrence of nodulation was determined in 156 leguminous species growing in six natural forest areas in Guinea, mostly mature trees. In the second part, an in situ experiment of rhizobial inoculation was performed on eight selected tree species belonging to three genera: Albizia, Erythrophleum and Millettia. Of the 97 plant species and 14 genera that had never been examined before this study, 31 species and four genera were reported to be nodulated. After 4 months of growing in a nursery and a further 11 months after transplantation of plants to the field, we observed a highly significant (P < 0.001) and positive effect of inoculation with Bradyrhizobium sp. strains on the growth of the eight tree species tested. The importance of determining the nodulation ability of unexplored local trees and subsequently using this information for inoculation in reforestation programmes was demonstrated.     

An exotic species is the favorite prey of a native enemy

Although native enemies in an exotic species'' new range are considered to affect its ability to invade, few studies have evaluated predation pressures from native enemies on exotic species in their new range. The exotic prey naiveté hypothesis (EPNH) states that exotic species may be at a disadvantage because of its naïveté towards native enemies and, therefore, may suffer higher predation pressures from the enemy than native prey species. Corollaries of this hypothesis include the native enemy preferring exotic species over native species and the diet of the enemy being influenced by the abundance of the exotic species. We comprehensively tested this hypothesis using introduced North American bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus, referred to as bullfrog), a native red-banded snake (Dinodon rufozonatum, the enemy) and four native anuran species in permanent still water bodies as a model system in Daishan, China. We investigated reciprocal recognition between snakes and anuran species (bullfrogs and three common native species) and the diet preference of the snakes for bullfrogs and the three species in laboratory experiments, and the diet preference and bullfrog density in the wild. Bullfrogs are naive to the snakes, but the native anurans are not. However, the snakes can identify bullfrogs as prey, and in fact, prefer bullfrogs over the native anurans in manipulative experiments with and without a control for body size and in the wild, indicating that bullfrogs are subjected to higher predation pressures from the snakes than the native species. The proportion of bullfrogs in the snakes'' diet is positively correlated with the abundance of bullfrogs in the wild. Our results provide strong evidence for the EPNH. The results highlight the biological resistance of native enemies to naïve exotic species.     

Lower order roots more palatable to herbivores: a case study with two temperate tree species

Determining which kinds of roots are likely to be consumed by root herbivores may improve our understanding of the mechanistic control on fine root dynamics. Here, we tested the hypothesis that root herbivores prefer to consume the distal lower order roots in their branching networks. Insecticide was applied to soil to quantify effects of root herbivores on root biomass and production in the first five orders (the distal roots numbered as first-order) in Fraxinus mandshurica and Larix gmelinii plantations from May 2008 to July 2009. Root morphology, chemistry, anatomy and physiology were measured simultaneously across branching orders. Among the first five order roots, significant consumptions by herbivores were found only for the two distal lower order roots throughout growing seasons, with 62% of biomass and 57% of production for F. mandshurica, and 71% and 79% for L. gmelinii, respectively. Our results suggest that the distal lower order roots are more palatable and attractive to root herbivores in both plantations, probably because they have higher tissue N, greater respiration rates and lower cellulose. Thus, overlooking herbivore consumption may lead to large underestimation in root biomass and production, which are critical in determining C budget and nutrient cycles in forest ecosystems.     

Dealing with incongruence in the quest for the species tree: a case study from the orchid genus Satyrium

A species tree was reconstructed for the mainly African terrestrial orchid genus Satyrium. Separate phylogenetic analysis of both plastid and ribosomal nuclear DNA sequences for 63 species, revealed extensive topological conflict. Here we describe a detailed protocol to deal with incongruence involving three steps: identifying incongruence and testing its significance, assessing the cause of incongruence, and reconstructing the species tree. The Incongruence Length Difference test revealed that many cases of incongruence were non-significant. For the remaining significant cases, results from taxon jack-knifing experiments and parametric bootstrap suggested that non-biological artefacts such as sparse taxon sampling and long-branch attraction could be excluded as causes for the observed incongruence. In order to evaluate biological causes, such as orthology/paralogy conflation, lineage sorting, and hybridization, the number of events was counted that needs to be invoked a-posteriori to explain the observed pattern. In most cases where incongruence was significant, this resulted in a similar number of events for each of these different causes. Only for the three species from south east Asia, that form a monophyletic clade, hybridization was favoured over the alternative causes. This conclusion is based on the large number of events that needs to be invoked, in order for either orthology/paralogy conflation or lineage sorting to have been the cause of the incongruence+morphological evidence. The final species tree presented here is the product of the combined analysis of plastid and ITS sequences for all non-incongruent species and a-posteriori grafting of the incongruent clades or accessions onto the tree.     

Light acclimation of four native tree species in felling gaps within a tropical mountain rainforest

Ecuadorian mountain rainforests are declining dramatically due to deforestation. Exploitation of remaining forests has led to low abundances of native, valuable timber species. Enrichment planting of selected native tree species into forest gaps is a strategy that may increase their abundance and maintain biodiversity. However, the development of successful planting strategies requires knowledge of environmental demands on, and ecological requirements of, native species during their establishment. This knowledge is currently lacking for mid- and late-successional species in Central American forests. Two deciduous, mid-successional (Cedrela montana, Tabebuia chrysantha) and two evergreen, late-successional native tree species (Nectandra membranacea, Podocarpus sprucei) were planted into felling gaps. Photosynthetic performance and growth in height of these species were assessed along light gradients during seedling establishment to test whether species-specific light responses were related to plant successional traits. Both mid-successional species benefited from higher light levels in gaps up to 30% canopy openness_60°. In larger gaps, C. montana exhibited a significant decline in growth. As expected, growth of the late-successional species was only marginally increased at higher light levels. Nevertheless, the photosynthetic apparatus of N. membranacea displayed rapid acclimation to higher light conditions in gaps. Plant response to felling gaps may not always be predicted based on successional status. Our results suggest that the four investigated species may coexist in the same gap by occupying different niches along light gradients. This arrangement may offer an ecological basis to increase the abundance of valuable timber species through enrichment planting in Ecuador mountain rainforests.     

Effect of a native tree on seedling establishment of two exotic invasive species in a semiarid ecosystem

Theory predicts that in more stressful environments, positive plant-plant interactions should be more important than negative ones. For instance, in arid and semiarid regions, amelioration of soil drought produced by the shade of established plants could facilitate establishment of other species, in spite of light reduction. However, this theory has not been tested widely in the context of plant invasion. In this paper we evaluated the hypothesis that in a semiarid ecosystem of central Chile, the native tree, Lithrea caustica, should facilitate through positive shading effects, the seedling establishment of two widely planted and invasive forestry species, Pinus radiata and Eucalyptus globulus. We assessed the seedling establishment examining two processes: seedling recruitment (including germination) and subsequent seedling survival. We sowed seeds (to assess recruitment) and planted 8 months old seedlings (to assess seedling survival) of each exotic species under Lithrea patches, open sites and under an artificial shade mimicking Lithrea shading. The study was repeated in a north-facing and a south-facing slope in the study area located in a xeric zone within the distribution range of plantations of these species in central Chile. Our results show that in a north-facing slope Lithrea had positive effects on recruitment of both species, which was produced by shading. These effects were counteracted by negative effects on seedling survival but through a different mechanism, which suggests that Lithrea would have no significant effect on the whole seedling establishment process of Pinus radiata nor Eucalyptus globulus in this habitat. In turn, in a south-facing slope Lithrea had no significant effect on recruitment but had a negative effect on seedling survival, which was not produced by shading. This suggests that in this habitat Lithrea has a negative effect on the seedling establishment of these exotic species. Our results suggest that the effect of the native Lithrea caustica on the seedling establishment of these exotic species is dependent upon the life-cycle phase (recruitment or seedling survival) and habitat even within the same semiarid ecosystem. In contrast to the expected positive effects Lithrea is unlikely to facilitate seedling establishment of these exotic species in this area, and in fact in some habitats this effect could be negative. However, our results also suggest that a common mechanism proposed to resist invasion in forest ecosystems such as shading, probably is not sufficient to inhibit invasion in a semiarid region.     

An environmental and economic analysis of the wood-pellet chain: two case studies in Southern Italy

Purpose

Wood pellet heating systems are considered as an essential component of European plans to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The goal of this analysis was to estimate and compare the environmental impacts and the costs of the production of packed wood pellets. Two pellet production systems, using roundwood logs (case 1) and mainly sawdust (case 2), have been analysed in 2015 in Basilicata region (Southern Italy).

Methods

A life cycle assessment (LCA) analysis was applied to calculate the environmental impact indicators of each system, whilst a life cycle cost (LCC) analysis was implemented to evaluate the pellets’ cost production. Hence, the functional unit chosen was 1 t of produced pellets. The system boundaries considered for the purpose of the current investigation were from the tree felling to the pellet packaging. In particular, the following activities were considered: motor-manual felling and delimbing with a chainsaw, timber yarding with a tractor along the forest track, loading and transportation of the logs to the collection point, transportation of timber to the factories for a distance of 35 km, pellet production and pellet packaging in low-density polyethylene bags with a total weight of 15 kg bag^?1.

Results and discussion

The production of 1 t of pellets emitted about 83 kg of CO₂eq in case 1 and 38 kg in case 2. In addition, 2.7 kg of SO₂eq and 0.005 kg of PO³ ₄-eq were produced in case 1 and 1.4 kg of SO₂eq and 0.002 kg of PO³ ₄-eq in case 2. Mineral extraction was equal to 0.9 MJ surplus energy in both cases. Case 1 led to higher environmental impacts (about 50% more), essentially for the operation of pelletisation, and in particular for the higher consumption of electricity that characterised it, whereas the production costs were 172 and 113 € t^?1 in case 1 and case 2, respectively. In both study cases, consumption costs (costs for raw material, electricity consumption, fuel usage) were the most important cost items.

Conclusions

Our studies highlight how, in both cases, the operations carried out in the forest produced the minor part of the environmental impact but, at the same time, were the most expensive operations. Further, our studies show how mixing lumbering by-products (sawdust) and forest management products (lumbers) can be an efficient solution to reduce both manufacturing costs and environmental impacts to produce wood pellets.

     

Competition and soil fungi affect the physiological and growth traits of an alien and a native tree species

Competition plays an important role in the replacement of native species by alien plants. A greenhouse experiment was conducted to investigate whether the competition pattern of alien Robinia pseudoacacia L. and native Quercus acutissima Carr. is affected by soil sterilization. Physiological traits, such as gas-exchange parameters and chlorophyll (Chl) content, and growth traits, such as the biomass accumulation of the two species, were examined in natural soil or in soil sterilized with benomyl. The results show that native Q. acutissima inhibits the growth of R. pseudoacacia in natural soil. When the two plants coexisted and competed under sterilization treatment, R. pseudoacacia was less inhibited by Q. acutissima and the competition of R. pseudoacacia decreased the growth of Q. acutissima in terms of biomass, Chl a, Chl b, total Chl, and Chl a/b. These results suggest that soil sterilization benefits the growth of R. pseudoacacia and changes the competition pattern by the changed soil biota. Soil sterilization increased the biomass of root nodules, which ultimately benefits the growth of R. pseudoacacia and root nodule bacteria may be important in the dispersal and invasion process of nitrogen-fixing alien plants such as R. pseudoacacia.     

Resource-use efficiencies of three indigenous tree species planted in resource islands created by shrubs: implications for reforestation of subtropical degraded shrublands

Shrub resource islands are characterized by resources accumulated shrubby areas surrounded by relative barren soils. This research aims to determine resource-use efficiency of native trees species planted on shrub resource islands, and to determine how the planted trees may influence the resource islands in degraded shrublands in South China. Shrub (Rhodomyrtus tomentosa) resource islands were left unplanted or were planted with 0.5-year-old indigenous tree species Schima superba, Castanopsis fissa, and Michelia macclurei. The results indicate that, after 2.5?years, the tree seedlings did not modify the physical traits (light, air temperature, and soil water) but tended to increase soil nutrients (soil organic carbon and soil nitrogen) and soil microbial biomass of the resource islands. Relative to S. superba and M. macclurei, C. fissa had greater effects on soil nutrients and microbial biomass but showed lower plant growth, survival, and resource-use efficiencies (for water, light, energy, and nitrogen). These results rejected our initial assumption that shrub resource islands would effectively promote the growth and resource utility of all the indigenous tree species and shorten the reforestation course in subtropical degraded shrubland. C. fissa performed poorly when growing on shrub resource islands, but its role in soil nutrient accumulation might have long-term impacts on the restoration of degraded shrubland. In contrast, S. superba and M. macclurei could make better use of the shrub resource islands therefore accelerating the construction of native plantations.     

Influences of size and sex on invasive species aggression and native species vulnerability: a case for modern regression techniques

Animal behaviour is of fundamental importance but is often overlooked in biological invasion research. A problem with such studies is that they may add pressure to already threatened species and subject vulnerable individuals to increased risk. One solution is to obtain the maximum possible information from the generated data using a variety of statistical techniques, instead of solely using simple versions of linear regression or generalized linear models as is customary. Here, we exemplify and compare the use of modern regression techniques which have very different conceptual backgrounds and aims (negative binomial models, zero-inflated regression, and expectile regression), and which have rarely been applied to behavioural data in biological invasion studies. We show that our data display overdispersion, which is frequent in ecological and behavioural data, and that conventional statistical methods such as Poisson generalized linear models are inadequate in this case. Expectile regression is similar to quantile regression and allows the estimation of functional relationships between variables for all portions of a probability distribution and is thus well suited for modelling boundaries in polygonal relationships or cases with heterogeneous variances which are frequent in behavioural data. We applied various statistical techniques to aggression in invasive mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki, and the concomitant vulnerability of native toothcarp, Aphanius iberus, in relation to individual size and sex. We found that medium sized male G. holbrooki carry out the majority of aggressive acts and that smaller and medium size A. iberus are most vulnerable. Of the regression techniques used, only negative binomial models and zero-inflated and expectile Poisson regressions revealed these relationships.     

An analysis of altitudinal behavior of tree species in Subansiri district,Eastern Himalaya

Plant species diversity and endemism demonstrate a definite trend along altitude. We analyzed the (i) pattern of tree diversity and its endemic subset (ii) frequency distribution of altitudinal range and (iii) upper & lower distributional limits of each tree species along altitudinal gradients in eastern Himalaya. The study was conducted in Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh. Data on the tree species (cbh ≥ 15 cm) were gathered every 200 m steps between 200 m and 2200 m gradients. Tree diversity demonstrated a greater variation along the gradients. A total of 336 species (of which 26 are endemic) were recorded belonging to 185 genera and 78 families. The alpha diversity demonstrated a decreasing pattern with two maxima (i.e., elevational peaks) along the gradients; one in 601–1000 m and the other in 1601–1800 m, corresponding to transition zones between tropical-subtropical and subtropical-temperate forests. Pattern diversity revealed a narrow range along the gradients. Frequency of altitudinal range was distributed between 1 and 41. Only one species (Altingia excelsa) showed widest amplitude, occurring over the entire range. Highest level of species turnover was found in 400–600 m step at lower elevational limit whereas for upper elevational limit, the highest turn over was recorded between 800 and 1000 m. Tree diversity decreased and its endemic subset increased along the gradients. Two maximas in tree diversity pattern correspond to forest transition zones with subtropical-temperate transition is narrower than tropical-subtropical. The pattern observed here could be attributed to varied microclimates or environmental heterogeneity. If altitudinal amplitude of a species is considered as an aspect of its niche breadth, it is clear from these results that niche breadth in these organisms is in fact independent of the diversity of the assemblage in which they occur. This analysis calls for detailed floristic studies to determine the breadth of changes between adjacent forest types and details of local species richness in high diversity areas.     

Relating tree growth to rainfall in Bolivian rain forests: a test for six species using tree ring analysis

Many tropical regions show one distinct dry season. Often, this seasonality induces cambial dormancy of trees, particularly if these belong to deciduous species. This will often lead to the formation of annual rings. The aim of this study was to determine whether tree species in the Bolivian Amazon region form annual rings and to study the influence of the total amount and seasonal distribution of rainfall on diameter growth. Ring widths were measured on stem discs of a total of 154 trees belonging to six rain forest species. By correlating ring width and monthly rainfall data we proved the annual character of the tree rings for four of our study species. For two other species the annual character was proved by counting rings on trees of known age and by radiocarbon dating. The results of the climate–growth analysis show a positive relationship between tree growth and rainfall in certain periods of the year, indicating that rainfall plays a major role in tree growth. Three species showed a strong relationship with rainfall at the beginning of the rainy season, while one species is most sensitive to the rainfall at the end of the previous growing season. These results clearly demonstrate that tree ring analysis can be successfully applied in the tropics and that it is a promising method for various research disciplines.