Treesearch

Soil carbon is an important component of the terrestrial carbon cycle and could be augmented through improved soil management to mitigate climate change. However, data gaps for numerous regions and a lack of understanding of the heterogeneity of biogeochemical processes across diverse soil landscapes hinder the development of large-scale representations of soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics. In this Perspective, we outline how understanding soil formation processes and complexity at the landscape scale can inform predictions of soil organic matter (SOM) cycling and soil carbon sequestration...

Eastern spruce-fir forests, characterized by red spruce (Picea rubens) and balsam fir (Abies balsamea), cover millions of acres in the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada. Many spruce-fir forests are managed for wood production and wildlife habitat. To best manage these forests for the resources they provide, it is important to determine the stocking, that is, the size and number of trees in a given stand. The stocking provides different levels of growth and canopy closure, which informs managers when and how to thin the stand. Researchers from the U.S. Department of...

Long-term planning is crucial in forestry, where decisions often need to be made decades in advance. However, anticipating the future is difficult because changes are happening faster and becoming more complex. In addition, many changes that could affect forestry— for example, social trends, technological advances, and economic disruptions—come from fields outside of forestry.

Forest Landscape Models (FLMs) project responses to different climate, disturbance, and management scenarios and can inform decision-making that shapes ecosystems. However, use of FLM outputs by decision makers can be hampered by a lack of transparency and credibility in the calibration of modeled processes. Landscape modelers typically use fine-scaled (i.e., plot- or stand-level) information to calibrate the growth functions central to FLMs, but methods vary widely and are often poorly documented. We suggest best practices for calibration and assessment of tree growth in FLMs adapted from...

Urban tree canopy (UTC) cover is rarely distributed equitably across social groups, space, and time. Over the past 20 years, research on the social, spatial, and temporal dynamics of UTC has grown considerably as municipalities adopt ambitious tree canopy cover goals. Yet less is known about how these three dimensions of tree canopy intersect. This paper brings these research areas together by examining i) which sets of social variables—population density, socioeconomic status, or lifestyle—are associated with UTC cover on residential lands, ii) how those relationships vary from front to...

Forest operations, including timber harvest, are an important component of managing forests. Operations are often planned or designed around anticipated weather based on past climate conditions. Climate change is altering current weather patterns and may complicate forest operations. With consideration of current climate in planning and practices, foresters, loggers, landowners, and land managers can continue efficient and sustainable forest operations. Adapting to climate change can begin with gathering relevant information, evaluating risks, and creating plans that reduce risk. It can...

Oak dieback disease caused by the fungus Paecilomyces formosus threatens oak trees in the Zagros forests in western Iran. Various insects, such as wood-infesting beetles (Coleoptera), may play a role in dissemination of P. formosus. We collected larvae and adult insects from branch wood of oak trees with dieback symptoms in the Zagros forests. For larval identification, the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase I (COXI) was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Fungal isolates from wood and insects collected from the sampled oaks were identified by morphology, acid production on...

Understanding government experience with hazard buyouts can enhance future efforts. We conducted a study of state and local government perspectives about buyouts after Hurricane Sandy in the New York area, including three jurisdictions that participated in buyouts and two that did not. Respondents differentiated outcomes for buyout participants, which they saw as financially beneficial, and outcomes for residents remaining, including limited open space and risk reduction benefits. The perceived benefits and drawbacks of buyouts were dependent on site and local government characteristics....

This document provides descriptions and definitions to help users interpret and understand key concepts presented on the Climate Change Atlas website. Information is intended to support users in exploring and using the data and model outputs in the Climate Change Atlas. As users progress through this document, information builds upon previous concepts with exercises and examples. The guide concludes with a more in-depth description of the scientific methods used to model species habitat suitability, migration potential, and adaptability scores. This document will serve as an archive of...

The subject of our proposed book is broadly ecological silviculture, which is a transformative approach for managing forests ecosystems based on emulation of natural models of development and that explicitly incorporates ecological objectives into prescriptions for on-the-ground activities. Specifically, our proposal is for a book that presents examples of comprehensive forest developmental models and corresponding ecological silvicultural systems for major temperate and boreal forests in North America, as well as select forest ecosystems in Europe, South American, and Australasia. These...