Disentangling the impacts of exogenous disturbances on forest stands to assess multi-centennial tree-ring reconstructions of avalanche activity in the upper Goms Valley (Canton of Valais, Switzerland)

Favillier, Adrien; Guillet, Sèbastien; Morel, Pauline; Corona, Christophe; Lopez-Saez, Jérôme; Eckert, Nicolas; Cánovas, Juan Antonio Ballesteros; Peiry, Jean‐Luc; Stoffel, Markus

doi:10.1016/j.quageo.2017.09.001

Cited by 21 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…We adapted a classification system from previous dendrogeomorphological studies to qualitatively rank the trauma severity and tree growth response from avalanche impacts using numerical scores ranked 1 through 5 (Reardon et al, 2008). This classification scheme identified more prominent avalanche damage responses with higher-quality scores and allowed us to remain consistent with previous work (Corona et al, 2012;Favillier et al, 2018) (Table 2). To compare our ability to capture avalanche/trauma events using cores versus those captured using cross sections, we sampled a subset (n = 40) of the cross sections by analyzing four 5 mm wide rectangles to mimic a core sample from an increment borer.…”

Section: Avalanche Event Identificationsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…RI is return interval. W it is weighted index as per Favillier (2017Favillier ( , 2018. RAAI is regional avalanche activity index as per Germain et al (2009).…”

Section: Classification Description Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, inferring avalanche frequency requires the use of E. Peitzsch et al: A regional spatiotemporal analysis of large magnitude snow avalanches using tree rings dendrochronological methods to document damaging events or geomorphic response within individual trees at individual path to regional scales. Even in regions with historical records, tree-ring dating methods can be used to extend or validate uncertain historical avalanche records, which has led to the broad implementation of these methods in mountainous regions throughout the world (e.g., Corona et al, 2012;Favillier et al, 2018;Schläppy et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Butler and Sawyer (2008) provided a review of current methodologies and types of tree-ring responses used in avalanche dendrochronological studies. Favillier et al (2018) provided a more recent comprehensive graphical summary of dendrochronological avalanche studies throughout the world. Numerous studies used dendrochronological techniques to develop avalanche chronologies for remote regions without historical avalanche records or areas with inconsistent avalanche observations (Butler and Malanson, 1985a;Germain et al, 2009;Reardon et al, 2008;Šilhán and Tichavský, 2017;Voiculescu et al, 2016), and many studies used these techniques to examine avalanches across space and time (Table A1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A regional spatiotemporal analysis of large magnitude snow avalanches using tree rings

Peitzsch

Hendrikx

Stahle

et al. 2021

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Snow avalanches affect transportation corridors and settlements worldwide. In many mountainous regions, robust records of avalanche frequency and magnitude are sparse or non-existent. However, dendrochronological methods can be used to fill this gap and infer historical avalanche patterns. In this study, we developed a tree-ring-based avalanche chronology for large magnitude avalanche events (size ≥∼D3) using dendrochronological techniques for a portion of the US northern Rocky Mountains. We used a strategic sampling design to examine avalanche activity through time and across nested spatial scales (i.e., from individual paths, four distinct subregions, and the region). We analyzed 673 samples in total from 647 suitable trees collected from 12 avalanche paths from which 2134 growth disturbances were identified over the years 1636 to 2017 CE. Using existing indexing approaches, we developed a regional avalanche activity index to discriminate avalanche events from noise in the tree-ring record. Large magnitude avalanches, common across the region, occurred in 30 individual years and exhibited a median return interval of approximately 3 years (mean = 5.21 years). The median large magnitude avalanche return interval (3–8 years) and the total number of avalanche years (12–18) varies throughout the four subregions, suggesting the important influence of local terrain and weather factors. We tested subsampling routines for regional representation, finding that sampling 8 random paths out of a total of 12 avalanche paths in the region captures up to 83 % of the regional chronology, whereas four paths capture only 43 % to 73 %. The greatest value probability of detection for any given path in our dataset is 40 %, suggesting that sampling a single path would capture no more than 40 % of the regional avalanche activity. Results emphasize the importance of sample size, scale, and spatial extent when attempting to derive a regional large magnitude avalanche event chronology from tree-ring records.

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Section: Avalanche Event Identificationsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…RI is return interval. W it is weighted index as per Favillier (2017Favillier ( , 2018. RAAI is regional avalanche activity index as per Germain et al (2009).…”

Section: Classification Description Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

A regional spatiotemporal analysis of large magnitude snow avalanches using tree rings

Peitzsch

Hendrikx

Stahle

et al. 2021

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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“…Previous studies have used the frequency and intra‐ring position of TRDs to reconstruct long‐term patterns of conifer tree damage from snow avalanches (Ballesteros‐Cánovas et al, 2018; Butler & Sawyer, 2008; Casteller et al, 2007; Favillier et al, 2017; Schläppy et al, 2016; Stoffel et al, 2006; Stoffel & Hitz, 2008), rockfalls (Schneuwly, Stoffel, & Bollschweiler, 2009; Sorg et al, 2015; Stoffel et al, 2005; Stoffel & Perret, 2006), ice‐damage or debris impacts due to flooding (Ballesteros et al, 2010; Lepage & Bégin, 1996; Zaginaev et al, 2016), other geomorphic disturbances (Stoffel, 2008; Stoffel & Bollschweiler, 2009), and bark beetle attacks (DeRose et al, 2017). We know of no study that has used TRDs to reconstruct winter storminess.…”

Section: Background: Tangential Rows Of Traumatic Resin Ducts In Tree Ringsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Traumatic Resin Ducts in Alaska Mountain Hemlock Trees Provide a New Proxy for Winter Storminess

et al. 2019

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Winter is a critical season for land‐surface feedbacks and ecosystem processes; however, most high‐latitude paleo‐environmental reconstructions are blind to cold season conditions. Here we introduce a winter‐sensitive, paleo‐proxy record that is based on the relative frequency of tangential rows of traumatic resin ducts (TRDs) in the annual growth rings of mountain hemlocks (Tsuga mertensiana) growing near treeline in Southeast Alaska. Hemlocks produce a row of TRDs in the earlywood portion of their annual rings in response to cambial damage incurred during winter. Multidecadal bouts of TRD production were followed by growth‐leader replacement, reaction wood formation, and divergence in radial growth between storm‐damaged trees and less exposed mountain hemlock forests. These patterns are consistent with TRDs being a response to tree damage caused by ice and snowstorms, a conclusion supported by the krummholz tree architecture at these sites. This relationship is further corroborated by significant correlations between our TRD record and the strength of the wintertime Aleutian Low (AL) pressure system that is linked to tree‐damaging agents like wind, precipitation, and ice storm strength in Southeast Alaska. The combined TRD/krummholz architecture record indicates that abrupt shifts between strong and weak AL phases occurred every several decades since CE 1700 and that the 1800s had relatively long AL phases with heavy snowpacks. In addition to describing the magnitude and tempo of wintertime climate change in Northwestern North America, these results suggest that North Pacific Decadal Variability underlies the long‐term dynamics of treeline ecosystems along the northeast Pacific coast.

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Dating of rockfall damage in trees yields insights into meteorological triggers of process activity in the French Alps

Mainieri

Corona

Chartoire

et al. 2020

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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Rockfall release is a rather unpredictable process. As a result, the occurrence of rockfall often threatens humans and (infra)structures. The assessment of potential drivers of rockfall activity therefore remains a major challenge, even if the relative influence of rainfall, snowmelt, or freeze-thaw cycles has long been identified in short-term monitoring projects. In the absence of longer-term assessments of rockfall triggers and possible changes thereof, our knowledge of rockfall dynamics remains still lacunary as a result of the persisting scarcity of exhaustive and precise rockfall databases. Over the last decades, several studies have employed growth disturbances (GDs) in tree-ring series to reconstruct rockfall activity. Paradoxically, these series were only rarely compared to meteorological records. In this study, we capitalize on the homogeneity of a centennial-old reforestation plot to develop two reconstructions -R1 including only growth suppressions, and R2 based on injurieswith limited biases related to decreasing sample size and changes in exposed diameters back in time. By doing so, our study also and quite clearly highlights the large potential that protection forests have in terms of yielding reliable, multidecadal rockfall reconstructions. From a methodological perspective, we find no synchronicity between R1 and R2, as well as an absence of meteorological controls on rockfall processes in R1. This observation pleads for a careful selection of GDs in future reconstructions. In terms of process dynamics, we demonstrate that summer intense rainfall events (>10 mm day À1 ) are the main drivers for rockfall activity at our study site. Despite the stringency of our detection procedure, correlations between rockfall activity and meteorological variables remain comparable to those reported in previous studies, as a result of the complexity and multiplicity of triggering factors. We therefore call for a more systematic coupling of tree-ring analysis with rockfall and microclimatic monitoring in future studies.

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Disentangling the impacts of exogenous disturbances on forest stands to assess multi-centennial tree-ring reconstructions of avalanche activity in the upper Goms Valley (Canton of Valais, Switzerland)

Cited by 21 publications

References 69 publications

A regional spatiotemporal analysis of large magnitude snow avalanches using tree rings

A regional spatiotemporal analysis of large magnitude snow avalanches using tree rings

Traumatic Resin Ducts in Alaska Mountain Hemlock Trees Provide a New Proxy for Winter Storminess

Dating of rockfall damage in trees yields insights into meteorological triggers of process activity in the French Alps

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