Structure and Composition of a Dry Mixed-Conifer Forest in Absence of Contemporary Treatments, Southwest, USA
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Study Design
2.2. Field Methods
2.3. Data Analysis
3. Results
3.1. Forest Structure and Composition
3.1.1. Overstory
3.1.2. Midstory
3.1.3. Sapling and Seedling
3.2. Species Rank Abundance Curves
3.3. Structure and Composition Variability
4. Discussion
4.1. Overstory
4.2. Midstory
4.3. Sapling and Seedling
4.4. Structure and Composition Variability
5. Conclusions
Acknowledgments
Author Contributions
Conflicts of Interest
References
- Korb, J.E.; Daniels, M.L.; Laughlin, D.C.; Fulé, P.Z. Understory communities of warm-dry, mixed-conifer forests in Southwestern Colorado. Southwest. Nat. 2007, 52, 493–503. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Stevens, J.T.; Safford, H.D.; North, M.P.; Fried, J.S.; Gray, A.N.; Brown, P.M.; Dolanc, C.R.; Dobrowski, S.Z.; Falk, D.A.; Farris, C.A.; et al. Average stand age from forest inventory plots does not describe historical fire regimes in ponderosa pine and mixed-conifer forests of western North America. PLoS ONE 2016, 11, e0147688. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Parsons, D.J.; DeBenedetti, S.H. Impact of fire suppression on a mixed conifer forest. For. Ecol. Manag. 1979, 2, 21–33. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- White, M.A.; Vankat, J.L. Middle and high elevation coniferous forest communities on the North Rim region of Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, USA. Vegetation 1993, 109, 161–174. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Fulé, P.Z.; Crouse, J.E.; Heinlein, T.A.; Moore, M.M.; Covington, W.W.; Verkamp, G. Mixed-severity fire regime in a high-elevation forest of Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA. Landsc. Ecol. 2003, 18, 465–486. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Heinlein, T.A.; Moore, M.M.; Fulé, P.Z.; Covington, W.W. Fire history and stand structure of two ponderosa pine–mixed conifer sites: San Francisco Peaks, Arizona USA. Int. J. Wildland Fire 2005, 14, 307–320. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Knapp, E.E.; Skinner, C.N.; North, M.P.; Estes, B.L. Long-term overstory and understory change following logging and fire exclusion in a Sierra Nevada mixed-conifer forest. For. Ecol. Manag. 2013, 310, 903–914. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Harris, L.; Taylor, A.H. Topography, fuels, and fire exclusion drive fire severity of the Rim Fire in an old-growth mixed-conifer forest, Yosemite National Park, USA. Ecosys. 2015, 18, 1192–1208. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Collins, B.M.; Lydersen, J.M.; Fry, D.L.; Wilkin, K.; Moody, T.; Stephens, S. Variability in vegetation and surface fuels across mixed-conifer-dominated landscapes with over 40 years of natural fire. For. Ecol. Manag. 2016, 381, 74–83. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Yocom-Kent, L.L.; Fulé, P.Z.; Bunn, W.A.; Gdula, E.G. Historical high-severity fire patches in mixed-conifer forests. Can. J. For. Res. 2015, 45, 1587–1596. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Mast, J.N.; Wolf, J.J. Ectonal changes and altered tree spatial patterns in lower mixed-conifer forests, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, U.S.A. Landsc. Ecol. 2004, 19, 167–180. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Hagmann, R.K.; Franklin, J.F.; Johnson, K.N. Historical conditions in mixed-conifer forests on the eastern slopes of the northern Oregon Cascade Range, USA. For. Ecol. Manag. 2014, 330, 158–170. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Merschel, A.G.; Spies, T.A.; Heyerdahl, E.K. Mixed-conifer forests of central Oregon: Effects of logging and fire exclusion vary with environment. Ecol. Appl. 2014, 24, 1670–1688. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Stephens, S.L.; Lydersen, J.M.; Collins, B.M.; Fry, D.L.; Meyer, M.D. Historical and current landscape-scale ponderosa pine and mixed conifer forest structure in the Southern Sierra Nevada. Ecosphere 2015, 6, 1–63. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Stevens-Rumann, C.S.; Sieg, C.H.; Hunter, M.E. Ten years after wildfires: How does varying tree mortality impact fire hazard and forest resiliency? For. Ecol. Manag. 2012, 267, 199–208. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Diffenbaugh, N.S.; Giorgi, F.; Pal, J.S. Climate change hotspots in the United States. Geophys. Res. Lett. 2008, 35, L16709. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Franklin, J.F.; Spies, T.A.; van Pelt, R.; Carey, A.B.; Thornburgh, D.A.; Berg, D.R.; Lindenmayer, D.B.; Harmon, M.E.; Keeton, W.S.; Shaw, D.C.; et al. Disturbances and structural development of natural forest ecosystems with silvicultural implications, using Douglas-fir forests as an example. For. Ecol. Manag. 2002, 155, 399–423. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Saud, P.; Wang, J.; Lin, W.; Sharma, B.D.; Hartley, D.S. A life cycle analysis of forest carbon balance and carbon emissions of timber harvesting in West Virginia. Wood Fiber Sci. 2013, 45, 250–267. [Google Scholar]
- Dick-Peddie, W.A.; Moir, W.H.; Spellenberg, R. New Mexico Vegetation—Past, Present, and Future; University of New Mexico Press: Albuquerque, NM, USA, 1999; p. 280. [Google Scholar]
- Kaufmann, M.R.; Huckaby, L.S.; Regan, C.M.; Popp, J. Forest Reference Conditions for Ecosystem Management in the Sacramento Mountains, New Mexico; USDA Forest Service General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-19; USDA Forest Service: Fort Collins, CO, USA, 1998.
- Western Regional Climate Center. Cloudcroft, New Mexico Average Total Precipitation. Available online: http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?nm1931 (accessed on 2 May 2017).
- USDA Forest Service. Soil and Water Survey for Cloudcroft and Mayhill Districts; Unpublished Report; Lincoln National Forest: Alamogordo, NM, USA, 1977.
- Stohlgren, T.J.; Falker, M.B.; Schell, L.D. A modified-Whittaker nested vegetation sampling method. Vegetation 1995, 117, 155–170. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Mueller-Dombois, D.; Ellenberg, H. Aims and Methods of Vegetation Ecology; John Wiley and Sons: New York, NY, USA, 1974; p. 547. [Google Scholar]
- Lynch, T.B.; Saud, P.; Dipesh, K.C.; Will, R.E. Plantation site index comparisons for shortleaf pine and loblolly pine in Oklahoma, USA. For. Sci. 2016, 62, 546–552. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Ducey, M.J. Predicting crown size and shape from simple stand variables. J. Sustain. For. 2009, 28, 5–21. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Saud, P.; Lynch, T.N.; Anup, K.C.; Guldin, J.M. Using quadratic mean diameter and relative spacing index to enhance height–diameter and crown ratio models fitted to longitudinal data. Forestry 2016, 89, 215–229. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- SAS Institute Inc. SAS Enterprise Guide 7.1. Cary, North Carolina. 2014. Available online: https://support.sas.com/documentation/onlinedoc/guide/ (accessed on 30 May 2017).
- Lepš, J.; Šmilauer, P. Multivariate Analysis of Ecological Data Using CANOCO; Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK, 2003; p. 376. [Google Scholar]
- Ter Braak, C.J.F.; Šmilauer, P. Canoco Reference Manual and User’s Guide: Software for Ordination, version 5.0; Microcomputer Power: Ithaca, NY, USA, 2012; p. 496. [Google Scholar]
- Kindt, R.; Coe, R. Tree Diversity Analysis: A Manual and Software for Common Statistical Methods for Ecological and Biodiversity Studies; World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF): Nairobi, Kenya, 2005; ISBN 92-9059-179-X. [Google Scholar]
- R Core Team. R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing; R Foundation for Statistical Computing: Vienna, Austria, 2016; Available online: https://www.R-project.org/ (accessed on 8 May 2017).
- Brown, P.M.; Kaye, M.W.; Huckaby, L.S.; Baisan, C.H. Fire history along environmental gradients in the Sacramento Mountains, New Mexico: Influences of local patterns and regional processes. Ecoscience 2001, 8, 115–126. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Dieterich, J.H. Fire history of southwestern mixed conifer: A case study. For. Ecol. Manag. 1983, 6, 13–31. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Fulé, P.Z.; Korb, J.E.; Wu, R. Changes in forest structure of a mixed conifer forest, Southwestern Colorado, USA. For. Ecol. Manag. 2009, 258, 1200–1210. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Minnich, R.A.; Barbour, M.G.; Burk, J.H.; Fernau, R.F. Sixty years of change in Californian conifer forests of the San Bernardino Mountains. Conserv. Biol. 1995, 9, 902–914. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Ansley, J.S.; Battles, J.J. Forest composition, structure, and change in an old growth mixed conifer forest in the northern Sierra Nevada. J. Torrey Bot. Soc. 1998, 125, 297–308. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Fulé, P.Z.; Covington, W.W.; Stoddard, M.T.; Bertolette, D. “Minimal impact” restoration treatments have limited effects on forest structure and fuels at Grand Canyon, USA. Restor. Ecol. 2006, 14, 357–368. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Fulé, P.Z.; Heinlein, T.A.; Covington, W.W.; Moore, M.M. Assessing fire regimes on Grand Canyon landscapes with fire scar and fire record data. Int. J. Wildland Fire 2003, 12, 129–145. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Kashian, D.M.; Romme, W.H.; Regan, C.M. Reconciling divergent interpretations of quaking aspen decline on the northern Colorado Front Range. Ecol. Appl. 2007, 17, 1296–1311. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Cryer, D.H.; Murray, J.E. Aspen regeneration and soils. Rangelands 1992, 14, 223–226. [Google Scholar]
- Woolsey, T.S. Western Yellow Pine in Arizona and New Mexico; Forest Service Bulletin 101; U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Government Printing Office: Washington, DC, USA, 1911.
- Lydersen, J.; North, M. Topographic variation in structure of mixed-conifer forests under an active-fire regime. Ecosystems 2012, 15, 1134–1146. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Korb, J.E.; Fulé, P.Z.; Wu, R. Variability of warm/dry mixed conifer forests in southwestern Colorado, USA: Implications for ecological restoration. For. Ecol. Manag. 2013, 304, 182–191. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Beaty, R.M.; Taylor, A.H. Fire disturbance and forest structure in old-growth mixed conifer forests in the northern Sierra Nevada, California. J. Veg. Sci. 2007, 18, 879–890. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Scholl, A.E.; Taylor, A.H. Fire regimes, forest change, and self-organization in an old-growth mixed-conifer forest, Yosemite National Park, USA. Ecol. Appl. 2010, 20, 362–380. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Taylor, A.H.; Skinner, C.N. Spatial patterns and controls on historical fire regimes and forest structure in the Klamath Mountains. Ecol. Appl. 2003, 13, 704–719. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Flathers, K.N.; Kolb, T.E.; Bradford, J.B.; Waring, K.M.; Moser, W.K. Long-term thinning alters ponderosa pine reproduction in northern Arizona. For. Ecol. Manag. 2016, 374, 154–165. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Hanks, J.P.; Dick-Peddie, W.A. Vegetation patterns of the White Mountains, New Mexico. Southwest. Nat. 1974, 18, 371–381. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Geographical Attributes | Tree Level Attributes | Stand Level Attributes | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Crown | DBH | Height | HLC | BA | Density | DMHT | QMD | RSI | ||
Aspect | North | 27.7 ± 1.7 | 41.7 ± 2.0 | 20.2 A ± 0.5 | 9.8 A ± 0.6 | 36.7 ± 4.2 | 504 ± 63 | 22.3 A ± 1.9 | 33.2 ± 0.2 | 0.26 A ± 0.04 |
South | 27.1 ± 1.1 | 39.9 ± 1.3 | 17.7 B ± 0.5 | 7.9 B ± 0.3 | 33.9 ± 1.7 | 460 ± 12 | 19.9 B ± 2.0 | 32.8 ± 0.3 | 0.23 B ± 0.03 | |
Site | Benson | 32.3 A ± 1.1 | 45.9 A ± 1.7 | 20.7 A ± 0.7 | 9.2 AB ± 0.7 | 37.6 A ± 3.4 | 426 B ± 39 | 22.9 A ± 1.9 | 36.1 A ± 0.2 | 0.24 AB ± 0.04 |
Fork | 24.8 B ± 1.4 | 40.3 B ± 1.9 | 17.5 B ± 0.7 | 7.9 B ± 0.2 | 28.7 B ± 0.9 | 402 B ± 32 | 20.1 B ± 2.1 | 32.1 B ± 0.3 | 0.27 A ± 0.02 | |
Pump | 25.2 B ± 1.6 | 36.2 B ± 1.4 | 18.6 B ± 0.6 | 9.6 A ± 0.8 | 39.8 A ± 4.7 | 618 A ± 67 | 20.3 B ± 1.6 | 30.8 B ± 0.2 | 0.23 B ± 0.05 |
Tree Species a | Diameter Class and Aspect | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0–2.54 cm (Seedling) | >2.54–12.70 cm (Sapling) | >12.70–30.48 cm (Midstory) | > 30.48 cm (Overstory) | Total Mean | ||||||
South | North | South | North | South | North | South | North | South | North | |
Conifer | ||||||||||
PSME | 72 * ± 9 | 37 * ± 8 | 218 * ± 14 | 115 * ± 14 | 161 * ± 17 | 79 * ± 10 | 109 * ± 6 | 65 * ± 5 | 541 * ± 28 | 286 * ± 25 |
ABCO | 20 * ± 6 | 130 * ± 23 | 42 * ± 12 | 255 * ± 26 | 18 * ± 6 | 110 * ± 12 | 7 * ± 2 | 58 * ± 5 | 83 * ± 20 | 524 * ± 42 |
PIST | 44 * ± 5 | 2 * ± 1 | 122 * ± 12 | 24 * ± 4 | 90 * ± 12 | 19 * ± 5 | 22 * ± 2 | 6 * ± 1 | 265 * ± 22 | 50 * ± 8 |
PIPO | 2 ± 1 | - | 4 ± 2 | - | 8 * ± 2 | 2 * ± 1 | 16 * ± 3 | 0.12 * ± 0.12 | 29 * ± 4 | 2 * ± 1 |
PISP | - | 35 ± 21 | 1 * ± 0.5 | 35 * ± 14 | - | 6 * ± 2 | 0.24 * ± 0.24 | 5 * ± 1 | 1 * ± 0.6 | 74 * ± 32 |
Sub-total | 138* ± 11 | 205 * ± 36 | 387 ± 20 | 428 ± 33 | 276 * ± 20 | 216 * ± 16 | 155 * ± 7 | 135 * ± 7 | 919 ± 36 | 937 ± 59 |
Non-conifer | ||||||||||
POTR | - | - | 4 ± 2 | 4 ± 2 | 33 * ± 12 | 115 * ± 24 | 0.3 * ± 0.3 | 22 * ± 4 | 36 * ± 13 | 138 * ± 25 |
QUGA | 9 ± 5 | 16 ± 7 | 28 ± 8 | 27 ± 9 | 7 ± 4 | 9 ± 3 | 0.16 ± 0.16 | 0.24 ± 0.24 | 43 ± 11 | 49 ± 15 |
RONE | - | 3 ± 1 | 0.4 * ± 0.4 | 17 * ± 5 | - | 12 ± 9 | - | - | 0.4 * ± 0.4 | 40 * ± 11 |
ACGL | - | - | 0.8 ± 0.8 | 1 ± 0.7 | 4 ± 2 | 3 ± 2 | - | - | 5 ± 2 | 4 ± 2 |
Sub-total | 9 ± 5 | 18 ± 7 | 34 ± 9 | 48 ± 12 | 44 * ± 12 | 140 * ± 26 | 1 * ± 1 | 22 * ± 4 | 83 * ± 17 | 221 * ± 31 |
Total mean | 147 * ± 13 | 223 * ± 37 | 422 ± 22 | 477 ± 36 | 321 ± 24 | 356 ± 33 | 155 ± 6 | 157 ± 8 | 1001 * ± 40 | 1159 * ± 70 |
Tree Species a | Diameter Class and Aspect | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
>2.54–12.70 cm (Sapling) | >12.70–30.48 cm (Midstory) | >30.48 cm (Overstory) | Total Mean (m2·ha−1) | |||||
South | North | South | North | South | North | South | North | |
Conifer | ||||||||
PSME | 0.93 * ± 0.06 | 0.49 * ± 0.06 | 5.84 * ± 0.52 | 2.81 * ± 0.33 | 17.61 * ± 0.99 | 10.85 * ± 0.86 | 24.09 * ± 1.04 | 13.97 * ± 0.97 |
ABCO | 0.14 * ± 0.03 | 0.90 * ± 0.08 | 0.60 * ± 0.17 | 3.86 * ± 0.38 | 0.93 * ± 0.22 | 9.55 * ± 0.72 | 1.64 * ± 0.35 | 14.11 * ± 0.84 |
PIST | 0.54 * ± 0.05 | 0.13 * ± 0.03 | 2.95 * ± 0.34 | 0.59 * ± 0.13 | 2.98 * ± 0.27 | 1.01 * ± 0.18 | 6.32 * ± 0.47 | 1.70 * ± 0.26 |
PIPO | 0.02 ± 0.01 | - | 0.42 * ± 0.11 | 0.10 * ± 0.05 | 2.14 * ± 0.34 | 0.02 * ± 0.02 | 2.55 * ± 0.38 | 0.12 * ± 0.05 |
PISP | 0.003 * ± 0.02 | 0.10 * ± 0.03 | - | 0.32 ± 0.12 | 0.02 * ± 0.02 | 0.68 * ± 0.17 | 0.03 * ± 0.02 | 1.08 * ± 0.26 |
Sub-total | 1.63 ± 0.08 | 1.62 ± 0.11 | 9.82 * ± 0.59 | 7.65 * ± 0.50 | 23.68 ± 0.94 | 22.12 ± 1.10 | 34.64 * ± 0.95 | 30.98 * ± 1.09 |
Non-conifer | ||||||||
POTR | 0.04 ± 0.02 | 0.03 ± 0.02 | 0.90 * ± 0.29 | 4.64 * ± 0.92 | 0.02 * ± 0.02 | 2.15 * ± 0.44 | 0.92 * ± 0.30 | 6.71 * ± 1.12 |
QUGA | 0.14 ± 0.09 | 0.12 ± 0.04 | 0.12 ± 0.06 | 0.29 ± 0.09 | 0.02 ± 0.02 | 0.02 ± 0.02 | 0.27 ± 0.09 | 0.43 ± 0.10 |
RONE | <0.000 * | 0.07 * ± 0.02 | - | 0.29 ± 0.20 | - | - | <0.000 * | 0.36 * ± 0.21 |
ACGL | 0.008 ± 0.005 | 0.004 ± 0.004 | 0.07 ± 0.04 | 0.10 ± 0.05 | - | - | 0.07 ± 0.04 | 0.10 ± 0.05 |
Sub-total | 0.19 ± 0.05 | 0.23 ± 0.05 | 1.09 * ± 0.30 | 5.32 * ± 0.95 | 0.05 * ± 0.03 | 2.17 * ± 0.44 | 1.27 * ± 0.31 | 7.59 * ± 1.14 |
Total mean | 1.81 ± 0.90 | 1.85 ± 0.14 | 10.73 ± 0.65 | 12.98 ± 1.15 | 23.72 ± 0.93 | 24.29 ± 1.04 | 35.90 * ± 0.97 | 38.58 * ± 1.27 |
© 2017 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
Cram, D.; Saud, P.; Baker, T. Structure and Composition of a Dry Mixed-Conifer Forest in Absence of Contemporary Treatments, Southwest, USA. Forests 2017, 8, 349. https://doi.org/10.3390/f8090349
Cram D, Saud P, Baker T. Structure and Composition of a Dry Mixed-Conifer Forest in Absence of Contemporary Treatments, Southwest, USA. Forests. 2017; 8(9):349. https://doi.org/10.3390/f8090349
Chicago/Turabian StyleCram, Douglas, Pradip Saud, and Terrell Baker. 2017. "Structure and Composition of a Dry Mixed-Conifer Forest in Absence of Contemporary Treatments, Southwest, USA" Forests 8, no. 9: 349. https://doi.org/10.3390/f8090349