Effects of tree cutting and fire on understory vegetation in mixed conifer forests

Abella, Scott R.; Springer, Judith D.

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2014.09.009

Cited by 67 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 137 publications

(215 reference statements)

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“…In the coniferous‐broadleaf mixed forest in Central China, burning only suppressed the richness of woody species right after fire, whereas notably enhanced herb richness, cover, and density over the first 3 years. Our observations are consistent with those reported in a Quercus Pyrenaica forest (Calvo, Tárrega & Luis, ), an old‐growth ponderosa pine forest (Laughlin et al., ), and some mixed forests (Huisinga, Laughlin, Fulé, Springer & McGlone, ; Knapp et al., ), but contrast with the results of some other studies that the richness, cover, and/or density of understory plants need relatively longer time to recover after burning (Abella & Fornwalt, ; Abella & Springer, ; Metlen & Fiedler, ; Webster & Halpern, ). Fire severity influences postfire recovery of understory vegetation (Keeley, ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…In addition, understory plant species are more sensitive to disturbance than canopy trees, serving as a critical indicator of future community composition and ecosystem health (Gilliam, ; Meier, Bratton & Duffy, ). Fire has been widely found to increase the density, cover, and richness of understory species with time since fire (Abella & Springer, ; Metlen & Fiedler, ; Webster & Halpern, ). For example, the cover of graminoids maintains a consistent increase throughout the 10 postfire years in ponderosa pine forests of the United States (Abella & Fornwalt, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The changes have been attributed to the resistance and resilience of forest understory community to burning (Abella & Fornwalt, ; Metlen & Fiedler, ). However, the impacts of fire on understory vegetation recovery are highly variable because of differences in region (Abella & Springer, ) and forest type (e.g., coniferous and broadleaf; Veldman, Mattingly & Brudvig, ) as well as severity, frequency, and season of fires (Crotteau, Varner & Ritchie, ; Knapp, Schwilk, Kane & Keeley, ; Veldman et al., ). Fire can affect understory vegetation recovery in two different ways.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Fire rather than nitrogen addition affects understory plant communities in the short term in a coniferous‐broadleaf mixed forest

Yan-chun

Sun

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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Increasing fire risk and atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition have the potential to alter plant community structure and composition, with consequent impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. This study was conducted to examine short‐term responses of understory plant community to burning and N addition in a coniferous‐broadleaved mixed forest of the subtropical‐temperate transition zone in Central China. The experiment used a pair‐nested design, with four treatments (control, burning, N addition, and burning plus N addition) and five replicates. Species richness, cover, and density of woody and herbaceous plants were monitored for 3 years after a low‐severity fire in the spring of 2014. Burning, but not N addition, significantly stimulated the cover (+15.2%, absolute change) and density (+62.8%) of woody species as well as herb richness (+1.2 species/m2, absolute change), cover (+25.5%, absolute change), and density (+602.4%) across the seven sampling dates from June 2014 to October 2016. Light availability, soil temperature, and prefire community composition could be primarily responsible for the understory community recovery after the low‐severity fire. The observations suggest that light availability and soil temperature are more important than nutrients in structuring understory plant community in the mixed forest of the subtropical‐temperate transition zone in Central China. Legacy woody and herb species dominated the understory vegetation over the 3 years after fire, indicating strong resistance and resilience of forest understory plant community and biodiversity to abrupt environmental perturbation.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Fire rather than nitrogen addition affects understory plant communities in the short term in a coniferous‐broadleaf mixed forest

Yan-chun

Sun

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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“…Studies of how biodiversity is affected by various forestry practices (including fuel reduction) have recently been summarised in several literature reviews, e.g. [24][25][26][27][28]. Many such studies have also been included in meta-analyses, e.g.…”

Section: Scientific Basis For the Management Of Forest Set-asidesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although there are some existing reviews and meta-analyses relating to this topic, e.g. [24,25,30,31], a full systematic review with more complete coverage is possible. 2.…”

Section: What Are the Impacts Of Thinning Partial Harvestingmentioning

confidence: 99%

What is the impact of active management on biodiversity in boreal and temperate forests set aside for conservation or restoration? A systematic map

et al. 2015

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Background:The biodiversity of forests set aside from forestry is often considered best preserved by non-intervention. In many protected forests, however, remaining biodiversity values are legacies of past disturbances, e.g. recurring fires, grazing or small-scale felling. These forests may need active management to keep the characteristics that were the reason for setting them aside. Such management can be particularly relevant where lost ecological values need to be restored. In this review, we identified studies on a variety of interventions that could be useful for conserving or restoring any aspect of forest biodiversity in boreal and temperate regions. Since the review is based on Swedish initiatives, we have focused on forest types that are represented in Sweden, but such forests exist in many parts of the world. The wide scope of the review means that the set of studies is quite heterogeneous. As a first step towards a more complete synthesis, therefore, we have compiled a systematic map. Such a map gives an overview of the evidence base by providing a database with descriptions of relevant studies, but it does not synthesise reported results.Methods: Searches for literature were made using online publication databases, search engines, specialist websites and literature reviews. Search terms were developed in English, Finnish, French, German, Russian and Swedish. We searched not only for studies of interventions in actual forest set-asides, but also for appropriate evidence from commercially managed forests, since some practices applied there may be useful for conservation or restoration purposes too. Identified articles were screened for relevance using criteria set out in an a priori protocol. Descriptions of included studies are available in an Excel file, and also in an interactive GIS application that can be accessed at an external website.Results: Our searches identified nearly 17,000 articles. The 798 articles that remained after screening for relevance described 812 individual studies. Almost two-thirds of the included studies were conducted in North America, whereas most of the rest were performed in Europe. Of the European studies, 58 % were conducted in Finland or Sweden. The interventions most commonly studied were partial harvesting, prescribed burning, thinning, and grazing or exclusion from grazing. The outcomes most frequently reported were effects of interventions on trees, other vascular plants, dead wood, vertical stand structure and birds. Outcome metrics included e.g. abundance, richness of species (or genera), diversity indices, and community composition based on ordinations. Conclusions:This systematic map identifies a wealth of evidence on the impact of active management practices that could be utilised to conserve or restore biodiversity in forest set-asides. As such it should be of value to e.g.

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Vegetation dynamics following compound disturbance in a dry pine forest: fuel treatment then bark beetle outbreak

Crotteau

Keyes

Hood

et al. 2019

Ecological Applications

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In the western United States, restoration of forests with historically frequent, low‐severity fire regimes often includes fuel reduction that reestablish open, early‐seral conditions while reducing fuel continuity and loading. Between 2001 and 2016, fuel reduction (e.g., thinning, prescribed burning, etc.) was implemented on over 26 million hectares of federal lands alone in the United States, reflecting the urgency to mitigate risk from high‐severity wildfire. However, between 2001 and 2012, nearly 20 million hectares in the United States were impacted by mountain pine beetle (MPB; Dendroctonus ponderosae), compounding restoration effects in wildfire‐hazard‐treated stands. Knowledge of the effects of treatments followed by natural disturbance on long‐term forest structure and communities is needed, especially considering that fuel treatments are increasingly being implemented and warming climate is predicted to exacerbate disturbance frequency and severity. We tested the interacting effects of treatments designed to reduce high‐severity wildfire hazard in stands subsequently challenged by MPB outbreak on vegetation dynamics using a factorial experimental design (control, thin only, burn only, thin + burn) in a ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa)‐dominated forest. Stands were treated by 2002, then impacted by MPB outbreak from 2005 to 2012. We assessed change in overstory and understory forest community structure, composition, and diversity over time. There were distinct thinning, burning, and year effects. Thinning immediately reduced overstory density; pine density then declined 4.5 times more in unthinned than thinned treatments due to MPB. Burning immediately reduced graminoid, shrub, and total understory cover by as much as 52%, resulting in greater species evenness than unburned treatments, but differences disappeared by 2016 due to growth and MPB outbreak. Similarly, multivariate analyses indicated forest communities were starkly different after treatment but became more similar over time, though key understory and overstory attributes still distinguish control and thin + burn. This study shows the value of long‐term silvicultural experiments to evaluate treatment longevity and the compounded effects of treatment and natural disturbance. We demonstrate the homogenizing effects of treatment‐induced growth coupled with MPB‐caused tree mortality on management strategies that just treat the overstory (thinning) or understory (burning), showing that only combined treatments can provide the unique structural and compositional outcomes expected of restoration.

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Effects of tree cutting and fire on understory vegetation in mixed conifer forests

Cited by 67 publications

References 137 publications

Fire rather than nitrogen addition affects understory plant communities in the short term in a coniferous‐broadleaf mixed forest

Fire rather than nitrogen addition affects understory plant communities in the short term in a coniferous‐broadleaf mixed forest

What is the impact of active management on biodiversity in boreal and temperate forests set aside for conservation or restoration? A systematic map

Vegetation dynamics following compound disturbance in a dry pine forest: fuel treatment then bark beetle outbreak

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