Downed Coarse Woody Debris Dynamics in Ash (Fraxinus spp.) Stands Invaded by Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire)

Perry, Kayla I.; Herms, Daniel A.; Klooster, Wendy S.; Smith, Annemarie; Hartzler, Diane M.; Coyle, David R.; Gandhi, Kamal J. K.

doi:10.3390/f9040191

Cited by 12 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 76 publications

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“…The resulting influx of detritus can affect stand development processes for decades in some locations [13]. However, a changing climate is not the only factor leading to recent increases in tree mortality: Invasions of diseases such as sudden oak disease (Phytophthora ramorum) [14] and insects such as the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) [15,16] and hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae) [17] are causing wide spread mortality of their new host tree species. Moreover, there is increasing evidence that small scale mortality (i.e., so-called regular or background mortality) has been increasing in western North America [18,19] and southern Europe [11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Release of coarse woody detritus-related carbon: a synthesis across forest biomes

Harmon

Fasth

Yatskov

et al. 2020

Carbon Balance Manage

109

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Background: Recent increases in forest tree mortality should increase the abundance coarse woody detritus (CWD) and ultimately lead to increased atmospheric carbon dioxide. However, the time course of carbon release from CWD is not well understood. We compiled CWD decomposition rate-constants (i.e., k) to examine how tree species, piece diameter, position (i.e., standing versus downed), canopy openness, and macroclimate influenced k. To illustrate their implications we modeled the effect of species and position on estimates of decomposition-related carbon flux. We examined a subset of currently used models to determine if their structure accounted for these factors. Results: Globally k of downed CWD varied at least 244-fold with interspecies variation at individual sites up to 76-fold. While k generally decreased with increasing piece diameter, under open canopies the opposite occurred. Standing CWD sometimes exhibited little decomposition, but sometimes had k values up to 3 times faster than downed CWD. There was a clear response of k to mean annual temperature of ≈ 2.6 times per 10 ℃; however, there was considerable variation for a given mean annual temperature related to species, diameter, and position. A key feature of carbon release from CWD after disturbance was the "evolution" of the ecosystem-level k value as positions and species mixtures of the remaining CWD changed. Variations in decomposition caused by disturbance (e.g., changes in species, positions, sizes, and microclimate) had the potential to cause net carbon fluxes to the atmosphere to be highly nonlinear. While several models currently being used for carbon accounting and assessing land-use/climate change would potentially capture some of these post disturbance changes in fluxes and carbon balances, many would not. Conclusions: While much has been learned in the last 5 decades about CWD decomposition, to fully understand the time course of carbon release from increased mortality and other aspects of global change a new phase of global CWD research that is more systematic, experimental, and replicated needs to be initiated. If our findings are to be fully applied in modeling, an approach acknowledging how the rate of carbon release evolves over time should be implemented.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Release of coarse woody detritus-related carbon: a synthesis across forest biomes

Harmon

Fasth

Yatskov

et al. 2020

Carbon Balance Manage

109

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“…Individual gaps from EAB-induced ash mortality are relatively small because most ash species exist in diverse forest communities . The speed, synchrony, and specificity of EAB-induced ash mortality make it a unique phenomenon in eastern North America [91,96,97], and warrant a focus on the indirect effects of ash mortality on ground-dwelling invertebrate communities.…”

Section: Responses Of Ground-dwelling Invertebrates To Patterns Ofmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ash mortality caused by EAB increases the frequency of gaps in the canopy and ash CWD on the forest floor [35,91,97]. For invasive insects, such as EAB, an inverse temporal relationship is predicted for the effect sizes of canopy gaps and accumulation of CWD on ground-dwelling invertebrate communities (Figure 1).…”

Section: Responses Of Ground-dwelling Invertebrates To Patterns Ofmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dynamic Responses of Ground-Dwelling Invertebrate Communities to Disturbance in Forest Ecosystems

Perry

Herms

2019

Insects

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In forest ecosystems, natural and anthropogenic disturbances alter canopy structure, understory vegetation, amount of woody debris, and the properties of litter and soil layers. The magnitude of these environmental changes is context-dependent and determined by the properties of the disturbance, such as the frequency, intensity, duration, and extent. Therefore, disturbances can dynamically impact forest communities over time, including populations of ground-dwelling invertebrates that regulate key ecosystem processes. We propose conceptual models that describe the dynamic temporal effects of canopy gap formation and coarse woody debris accumulation following disturbances caused by invasive insects, wind, and salvage logging, and their impacts on ground-dwelling invertebrate communities. Within this framework, predictions are generated, literature on ground-dwelling invertebrate communities is synthesized, and pertinent knowledge gaps identified.

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“…Impacts of CWD, in contrast, are predicted to increase over time [76] as ash trees die, standing snags fall, and CWD accumulates and decomposes on the forest floor. For example, Higham et al [74] observed rapid accumulation of CWD across a chronosequence of ash mortality in Ohio, and in the Upper Huron River watershed, the number of fallen ash trees increased by 76% from 2008-2012, and volume of ash CWD increased by 53% [77].…”

Section: Ground-dwelling Invertebratesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological Impacts of Emerald Ash Borer in Forests at the Epicenter of the Invasion in North America

Klooster

Gandhi

Long

et al. 2018

Forests

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We review research on ecological impacts of emerald ash borer (EAB)-induced ash mortality in the Upper Huron River watershed in southeast Michigan near the epicenter of the invasion of North America, where forests have been impacted longer than any others in North America. By 2009, mortality of green, white, and black ash exceeded 99%, and ash seed production and regeneration had ceased. This left an orphaned cohort of saplings too small to be infested, the fate of which may depend on the ability of natural enemies to regulate EAB populations at low densities. There was no relationship between patterns of ash mortality and ash density, ash importance, or community composition. Most trees died over a five-year period, resulting in relatively simultaneous, widespread gap formation. Disturbance resulting from gap formation and accumulation of coarse woody debris caused by ash mortality had cascading impacts on forest communities, including successional trajectories, growth of non-native invasive plants, soil dwelling and herbivorous arthropod communities, and bird foraging behavior, abundance, and community composition. These and other impacts on forest ecosystems are likely to be experienced elsewhere as EAB continues to spread.

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Downed Coarse Woody Debris Dynamics in Ash (Fraxinus spp.) Stands Invaded by Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire)

Cited by 12 publications

References 76 publications

Release of coarse woody detritus-related carbon: a synthesis across forest biomes

Release of coarse woody detritus-related carbon: a synthesis across forest biomes

Dynamic Responses of Ground-Dwelling Invertebrate Communities to Disturbance in Forest Ecosystems

Ecological Impacts of Emerald Ash Borer in Forests at the Epicenter of the Invasion in North America

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