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10 pages, 2171 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Coarse Woody Debris Following Silviculture Treatments in Southwest Mixed-Conifer Forest

by Pradip Saud, Douglas Cram, Samuel Smallidge and Terrell Baker

Forests 2018, 9(6), 347; https://doi.org/10.3390/f9060347 - 12 Jun 2018

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3289

Coarse woody debris (CWD) is an important component in the structure and function of southwestern mixed-conifer forest ecosystems. However, fire suppression and exclusion policies have changed the structure and fuel loads, including CWD, during the last 130 years. Consequently, managers are faced with [...] Read more.

Coarse woody debris (CWD) is an important component in the structure and function of southwestern mixed-conifer forest ecosystems. However, fire suppression and exclusion policies have changed the structure and fuel loads, including CWD, during the last 130 years. Consequently, managers are faced with the threat of stand replacement fires over large spatial areas and are seeking solutions to these challenges using silvicultural techniques. Our paper presents CWD characteristics based on 100-h and 1000-h time-lag fuels before (2006) and after (2016) silvicultural treatments including harvest, prescribed fire, and no treatment (control) on mixed-conifer forests in southcentral New Mexico, USA. Results indicated late-season broadcast burns characterized by mild fire behavior reduced 100-h CWD (Mg ha⁻¹) and potentially 1000-h CWD. However, because control sites also saw reduced 1000-h CWD, this result was confounded. Harvest treatments maintained 1000-h CWD, which could be considered a compensatory response given the decrease in CWD on adjacent control sites over the same time period. This was supported by an increase in 1000-h logs per 75 m transect on harvest sites as compared to control sites. Silvicultural prescriptions including prescribed fire are useful tools to increase or decrease CWD to meet management objectives. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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2752 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Dynamics of Coarse Woody Debris Characteristics in the Qinling Mountain Forests in China

by Jie Yuan, Shibu Jose, Xiaofeng Zheng, Fei Cheng, Lin Hou, Jingxia Li and Shuoxin Zhang

Forests 2017, 8(10), 403; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8100403 - 23 Oct 2017

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4834

Abstract

Coarse woody debris (CWD) is an essential component in defining the structure and function of forest ecosystems. Long-term dynamics of CWD characteristics not only affect the release rates of chemical elements from CWD, but also the species diversity of inhabiting plants, animals, insects, [...] Read more.

Coarse woody debris (CWD) is an essential component in defining the structure and function of forest ecosystems. Long-term dynamics of CWD characteristics not only affect the release rates of chemical elements from CWD, but also the species diversity of inhabiting plants, animals, insects, and microorganisms as well as the overall health of ecosystems. However, few quantitative studies have been done on the long-term dynamics of CWD characteristics in forest ecosystems in China. In this study, we conducted nine tree censuses between 1996 and 2016 at the Huoditang Experimental Forest in the Qinling Mountains of China. We quantified forest biomass including CWD and CWD characteristics such as decay states and diameter classes during this period and correlated with stand, site, and climatic variables. The forest biomass was dominated by live tree biomass (88%); followed by CWD mass (6%–10%). Understory biomass contributed only a small portion (1%–4%) of the overall biomass. Significant differences in average annual increment of CWD mass were found among forest stands of different species (p < 0.0001). Forest biomass, stand age, forest type, aspect, slope, stand density, annual average temperature, and precipitation were all significantly correlated with CWD mass (p < 0.05), with forest type exhibiting the strongest correlation (r² = 0.8256). Over time, the annual mass of different CWD characteristics increased linearly from 1996–2016 across all forest types. Our study revealed that forest biomass, including CWD characteristics, varied by forest type. Stand and site characteristics (forest biomass, forest type, aspect, slope and stand density) along with temperature and precipitation played a major role in the dynamics of CWD in the studied forest ecosystems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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1801 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperCommunication

Differential Effects of Coarse Woody Debris on Microbial and Soil Properties in Pinus densiflora Sieb. et Zucc. Forests

by Seongjun Kim, Guanlin Li, Seung Hyun Han, Hanna Chang, Hyun-Jun Kim and Yowhan Son

Forests 2017, 8(8), 292; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8080292 - 11 Aug 2017

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4150

Abstract

Although coarse woody debris (CWD) is important for soil functioning, the mechanism which affects soil properties beneath CWD are unclear. Here, initial changes in microbial and soil properties were studied using homogenous CWD samples in eight Korean red pine (Pinus densiflora Sieb. [...] Read more.

Although coarse woody debris (CWD) is important for soil functioning, the mechanism which affects soil properties beneath CWD are unclear. Here, initial changes in microbial and soil properties were studied using homogenous CWD samples in eight Korean red pine (Pinus densiflora Sieb. et Zucc.) forests. For each forest, CWD samples (diameter: 11.1 ± 0.1 cm; length: 10.2 ± 0.0 cm) from similarly aged Korean red pine trees were laid on the mineral soil surface from May to June, 2016, and soils were sampled at points beneath CWD and at a distance of 1 m from the CWD after 1 year. Soils beneath the CWD had higher moisture but lower inorganic nitrogen (N) and a higher microbial biomass C (carbon)/N ratio than those sampled 1 m from the CWD. No differences in total C and N, labile C, pH, and C substrate utilization between the soils were significant. The difference in inorganic N between the soils decreased with increasing CWD decomposition, whereas that for microbial biomass fraction in total C and N increased correspondingly. Our results showed that soil microbial affinity for retaining N might become higher than that for retaining C under the presence of CWD, which possibly alters N availability and generates a spatial heterogeneity in forest soils. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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1475 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Carbon and Nitrogen Accumulation and Decomposition from Coarse Woody Debris in a Naturally Regenerated Korean Red Pine (Pinus densiflora S. et Z.) Forest

by Nam Jin Noh, Tae Kyung Yoon, Rae-Hyun Kim, Nicholas W. Bolton, Choonsig Kim and Yowhan Son

Forests 2017, 8(6), 214; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8060214 - 16 Jun 2017

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 6324

Abstract

The contribution of coarse woody debris (CWD) to forest carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) dynamics is poorly quantified. This study quantified total C and N content in CWD and estimated the decomposition rates of CWD at different decay stages in a 70-year-old naturally [...] Read more.

The contribution of coarse woody debris (CWD) to forest carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) dynamics is poorly quantified. This study quantified total C and N content in CWD and estimated the decomposition rates of CWD at different decay stages in a 70-year-old naturally regenerated Korean red pine forest (Pinus densiflora S. et Z.). The N concentration in CWD varied among species and decay classes (from 0.15% to 0.82%), and exhibited a decreasing pattern in C:N ratios with increasing decay class. Total CWD amounts of 4.84 Mg C ha⁻¹, dominated by pine logs (45.4%) and decay class III (40.0%), contained total N of 20.48 kg N ha⁻¹, which was approximately nine times the N input from annual tree mortality. In addition, this study demonstrated that the decay constant rate k was 0.2497 for needle litter, whereas k values were 0.0438, 0.0693, 0.1054, and 0.1947 for red pine CWD of decay class I, II, III, and IV, respectively. The decay rates were significantly related to wood density, N concentration, and C:N ratio across the decay classes of CWD. The results suggest that the C:N ratio of CWD is a key factor affecting its decomposition. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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950 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Carbon Stocks of Fine Woody Debris in Coppice Oak Forests at Different Development Stages

by Ender Makineci, Serdar Akburak, Alper Gün Özturna and Doğanay Tolunay

Forests 2017, 8(6), 199; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8060199 - 08 Jun 2017

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4445

Abstract

Dead woody debris is a significant component of the carbon cycle in forest ecosystems. This study was conducted in coppice-originated oak forests to determine carbon stocks of dead woody debris in addition to carbon stocks of different ecosystem compartments from the same area [...] Read more.

Dead woody debris is a significant component of the carbon cycle in forest ecosystems. This study was conducted in coppice-originated oak forests to determine carbon stocks of dead woody debris in addition to carbon stocks of different ecosystem compartments from the same area and forests which were formerly elucidated. Weight and carbon stocks of woody debris were determined with recent samplings and compared among development stages (diameter at breast height (DBH, D_1.3m)), namely small-diameter forests (SDF) = 0–8 cm, medium diameter forests (MDF) = 8–20 cm, and large-diameter forests (LDF) = 20–36 cm). Total woody debris was collected in samplings; as bilateral diameters of all woody debris parts were less than 10 cm, all woody parts were in the “fine woody debris (FWD)” class. The carbon concentrations of FWD were about 48% for all stages. Mass (0.78–4.92 Mg·ha⁻¹) and carbon stocks (0.38–2.39 Mg·ha⁻¹) of FWD were significantly (p > 0.05) different among development stages. FWD carbon stocks were observed to have significant correlation with D_1.3m, age, basal area, and carbon stocks of aboveground biomass (Spearman rank correlation coefficients; 0.757, 0.735, 0.709, and 0.694, respectively). The most important effects on carbon budgets of fine woody debris were determined to be coppice management and intensive utilization. Also, national forestry management, treatments of traditional former coppice, and conversion to high forest were emphasized as having substantial effects. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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2945 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Plant Debris and Its Contribution to Ecosystem Carbon Storage in Successional Larix gmelinii Forests in Northeastern China

by Jianxiao Zhu, Xuli Zhou, Wenjing Fang, Xinyu Xiong, Biao Zhu, Chengjun Ji and Jingyun Fang

Forests 2017, 8(6), 191; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8060191 - 31 May 2017

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 6773

Abstract

Plant debris, including woody debris and litter, is an essential but frequently overlooked component of carbon (C) storage in forest ecosystems. Here, we examined the C storage of plant debris and its contribution to total ecosystem C storage in an age sequence of [...] Read more.

Plant debris, including woody debris and litter, is an essential but frequently overlooked component of carbon (C) storage in forest ecosystems. Here, we examined the C storage of plant debris and its contribution to total ecosystem C storage in an age sequence of six larch (Larix gmelinii) forest stands (15, 36, 45, 54, 65, and 138 years old) in northeastern China. The plant debris C storage increased from 6.0 ± 0.5 Mg·C·ha−1 in the 15-year-old stand to a maximum of 9.3 ± 1.8 Mg·C·ha−1 in the 138-year-old stand. The C storage of woody debris increased during stand development in a sigmoidal pattern, increasing from 0.7 ± 0.2 Mg·C·ha−1 in the 15-year-old stand to 4.7 ± 1.3 Mg·C·ha−1 in the 138-year-old stand. However, the C storage of litter (4.6−5.4 Mg·C·ha−1) did not vary with stand age in this larch chronosequence. In addition, the ratio of woody debris to live tree biomass C storage was relatively stable across stands (approximately 3.3%). These results highlight the importance of considering successional development and stand characteristics in assessing changes of plant debris and total ecosystem C storage in the larch forest ecosystem Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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2006 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Branch Wood Decomposition of Tree Species in a Deciduous Temperate Forest in Korea

by Sangsub Cha, Hee-Myung Chae, Sang-Hoon Lee and Jae-Kuk Shim

Forests 2017, 8(5), 176; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8050176 - 19 May 2017

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5526

Abstract

Woody debris, which is supplied by branch litter, is an important component of forest ecosystems as it contains large quantities of organic matter and nutrients. We evaluated changes in branch wood dry weight and nutrient content of six common species (Fraxinus rhynchophylla [...] Read more.

Woody debris, which is supplied by branch litter, is an important component of forest ecosystems as it contains large quantities of organic matter and nutrients. We evaluated changes in branch wood dry weight and nutrient content of six common species (Fraxinus rhynchophylla, Pinus densiflora, Prunus sargentii, Quercus mongolica, Acer pseudosieboldianum, and Symplocos chinensis for. pilosa) in a deciduous temperate forest in Korea for 40 months. Branch wood disk samples 1.4–1.6 cm thick were cut, and mass loss was measured over time using the litterbag method. No significant differences in mass loss were recorded among the six tree species. Further, mass loss was negatively correlated with initial lignin concentration and positively correlated with both initial cellulose concentration and wood density for each species. Species with high wood cellulose content had high wood density while the lignin content in wood was relatively low. Accordingly, cellulose contributed to wood density, creating a relatively lower lignin content, and the decreased lignin concentration increased the wood decomposition rate. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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970 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Critical Habitat Elements, with an Emphasis on Coarse Woody Debris, Associated with Ant Presence or Absence in the Moist Cold Sub-Boreal Forests of the Interior of British Columbia

by Robert J. Higgins, Michael G. Gillingham and B. Staffan Lindgren

Forests 2017, 8(4), 129; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8040129 - 20 Apr 2017

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 4216

Abstract

Given both the ubiquity and ecological roles described for ants in British Columbia, an understanding of the habitat elements critical to predicting their presence is desirable. We used logistic regression to model the presence and absence of ants in sub-boreal lodgepole pine ( [...] Read more.

Given both the ubiquity and ecological roles described for ants in British Columbia, an understanding of the habitat elements critical to predicting their presence is desirable. We used logistic regression to model the presence and absence of ants in sub-boreal lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm. ex S. Watson) forests of west-central British Columbia (BC). Methodological emphasis was placed on the association between ants and coarse woody debris (CWD) because of a high degree of utilization of this resource for nesting. Five species of ants, Camponotus herculeanus (L.), Formica aserva Forel, F. neorufibarbis Emery, Leptothorax muscorum (Nylander), and Myrmica alaskensis Wheeler, comprised approximately 90% of all captures in samples of CWD within five seral ages (2–3, 8–10, 13–15, 23–25 years post-harvest, and non-harvested stands). Seral age, presence of other ant colonies of the same species, decay class of CWD, its surface area, and whether the wood was downed woody debris (DWD) or a stump, were significant variables affecting ant presence or absence. These results are explained in the context of ant species autecology as it relates to living in cool climates. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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Review

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1167 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

Responses of Ground-Dwelling Invertebrates to Gap Formation and Accumulation of Woody Debris from Invasive Species, Wind, and Salvage Logging

by Kayla I. Perry and Daniel A. Herms

Forests 2017, 8(5), 174; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8050174 - 18 May 2017

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 5352

Abstract

Natural and anthropogenic disturbances alter canopy structure, understory vegetation, amount of woody debris, and the litter and soil layers in forest ecosystems. These environmental changes impact forest communities, including ground-dwelling invertebrates that are key regulators of ecosystem processes. Variation in frequency, intensity, duration, [...] Read more.

Natural and anthropogenic disturbances alter canopy structure, understory vegetation, amount of woody debris, and the litter and soil layers in forest ecosystems. These environmental changes impact forest communities, including ground-dwelling invertebrates that are key regulators of ecosystem processes. Variation in frequency, intensity, duration, and spatial scale of disturbances affect the magnitude of these environmental changes and how forest communities and ecosystems are impacted over time. We propose conceptual models that describe the dynamic temporal effects of disturbance caused by invasive insects, wind, and salvage logging on canopy gap formation and accumulation of coarse woody debris (CWD), and their impacts on ground-dwelling invertebrate communities. In the context of this framework, predictions are generated and their implications for ground-dwelling invertebrate communities are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coarse Woody Debris of Forests in a Changing World)

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