Seedling occurrence in alpine treeline conifers: A case study from the central Rocky Mountains,USA |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Senckenberg Natural History Collections Dresden, Königsbrücker Landstraße 159, D-01109 Dresden, Germany;2. Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt, Friedensplatz 1, D-64283 Darmstadt, Germany;1. Center for Natural History, Hamburg University, Bundesstraße 55, D-20146 Hamburg, Germany;2. Institute of Geology, University of Hamburg, Bundesstrasse 55, D-20146 Hamburg, Germany;3. Department of Earth Sciences, Brock University, 500 Glenridge Avenue, St. Catharines, Ontario L2S 3A1, Canada;4. Palaeoecology, Department of Physical Geography, Heidelberglaan 2, 3584 CS Utrecht, The Netherlands;5. Department of Biology, Brandon University, 270 18th Street, Brandon, Manitoba R7A 6A9, Canada;1. Unité de Modélisation du Climat et des Cycles Biogéochimiques, Université de Liège, Quartier Agora, Bât. B5c, Allée du 6 Août 19C, B-4000 Liège, Belgium;2. Senckenberg Research Institute, Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, ROCEEH Research Center “The Role of Culture in Early Expansions of Humans”, Senckenberganlage 25, D-60325 Frankfurt M, Germany;3. Steinmann Institute, University of Bonn, Nussallee 8, D-53115 Bonn, Germany;4. Senckenberg Research Institute, Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (BiK-F), Frankfurt M, Germany;5. School of Environment, Earth, and Ecosystem Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, United Kingdom;6. Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.20 Nanxincun, Xiangshan, Beijing 100093, China;1. Departament de Dinàmica de la Terra i de l''Oceà, Facultat de Ciències de la Terra, Universitat de Barcelona-UB, 08028 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain;2. Department of Geology, American University of Beirut-AUB, 11-0236 Beirut, Lebanon;1. Ecology and Biodiversity Services (EBS), Indraprasth, lane-1, Ring Road, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India;2. Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, HNBGU, Srinagar, Uttarakhand, India |
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| Abstract: | Information concerning the occurrence of very young (1- to 10-year-old) tree seedlings in the alpine treeline ecotone is rare. Seedling occurrence of the dominant conifers Picea engelmannii and Abies lasiocarpa was measured in the treeline ecotone of the Medicine Bow Mountains, Wyoming (central Rocky Mountains, USA), an area composed of elongated tree islands separated by open meadows (ribbon forest) that grade into the closed forest. No seedlings were found on the windward sides of tree islands, while a mean of 0.6 seedlings.m–2 occurred on the leeward (downward) sides. These values compared to the 4.2 seedlings.m–2 in the closed forest. In addition, a strong correspondence was found between snowpack depth and seedling abundance, with depths that were either too shallow (< 0.5 m) or too deep (> 1.5 m) associated with fewer or no seedlings. A. lasiocarpa seedlings made up much less of the overall seedling population in the ribbon forest (6 %) than in the closed forest (22 %). Seedling establishment in this portion of the alpine treeline ecotone appears to be occurring at a low rate that differs between the two dominant species and may be strongly influenced by wind-driven snow accumulation patterns. |
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