Multi-decade tree mortality in temperate old-growth forests of Europe and North America
non-equilibrial dynamics and species-individualistic response to disturbance
Abstract
Aim: Old-growth, mesic temperate forests are often assumed to be structured by gap-phase processes, resulting in quasi-equilibrial long-term dynamics. This assumption influences management focused on simulation of natural disturbance dynamics and is embedded in most models of forest successional dynamics. We use multi-decade monitoring of permanent plots in old-growth forests to assess demographic assumptions directly with respect to tree mortality rates. Location: Sixteen sites in mesic, temperate old-growth forests in eastern North America and Europe with multi-decade monitoring. Time period: Variable across sites, spanning c. 20%78 years from 1936 to 2014. Major taxa studied: Tree species of late-successional, cool-temperate forests of Europe and eastern North America. Methods: We calculated and compared the annualized mortality rates (m), with confidence intervals, by species, size class and measurement interval, for tree species of sufficient abundance. Results: Retrospective analysis shows dynamic and diverse demographic properties across populations and sites. Stand-scale mortality rates of 0.7%2.5%/ year average higher than previous estimates for old-growth temperate forests. Variations among species, over time and among size classes, suggest that gap-phase models are inadequate to explain stand dynamics, implying instead that rare disturbance events of moderate severity have long-lasting effects in old-growth forests and that indirect anthropogenic influences affect old-growth, unlogged forests. Main conclusions: Multi-decade baseline data, essential for understanding community assembly and long-term dynamics in these %slow systems,% are rare and poorly integrated. Our analysis demonstrates the value of the few long-term, %legacy% data sets. Results suggest that differences in life history interact with complex disturbance histories, resulting in non-equilibrial dynamics in old-growth temperate tree communities, and that changes in disturbance patterns through anthropogenic climate change might, there%fore, be an important driver of ecosystem change.
Keywords
dolgoročne študije;pragozdovi;raziskovalne ploskve;stopnja umrljivosti dreves;long-term studies;old-growth forest;permanent plots;temperate forest;tree mortality rates;
Data
| Language: | English |
|---|---|
| Year of publishing: | 2021 |
| Typology: | 1.01 - Original Scientific Article |
| Organization: | UL BF - Biotechnical Faculty |
| UDC: | 630*1 |
| COBISS: |
62542083
|
| ISSN: | 1466-8238 |
| Views: | 196 |
| Downloads: | 23 |
| Average score: | 0 (0 votes) |
| Metadata: |
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Other data
| Secondary language: | Slovenian |
|---|---|
| Secondary keywords: | dolgoročne študije;pragozdovi;raziskovalne ploskve;stopnja umrljivosti dreves; |
| Embargo end date (OpenAIRE): | 2022-04-19 |
| Pages: | str. 1311-1333 |
| Volume: | ǂVol. ǂ30 |
| Issue: | ǂiss. ǂ6 |
| Chronology: | 2021 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/geb.13291 |
| ID: | 13394684 |
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