Initial observations on tree mortality following a severe drought in 2012 in two Indiana state forests and implications for long-term compositional dynamics

Abstract

Compositional and structural changes in response to silvicultural treatments in forest stands are well documented (e.g., Saunders and Wagner 2008), but the stochastic nature of natural disturbance events often precludes direct observation of their impacts on stand dynamics. Though the current dominance of oak-hickory forest types in the Central Hardwoods Forest region (CHFR) has been largely attributed to anthropogenic disturbance, some have postulated that periodic severe droughts may also have limited the dominance of more vigorous competitors. Morrisey et al. (2008), for example, found in a study of 70 clearcut stands on highly productive sites in the Hoosier National Forest that oak (Quercus spp.) persisted, and occasionally increased in dominance, through the stem exclusion phase of stand development; they attributed this to differential mortality among oaks and more site-sensitive yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.), particularly on more exposed slope positions and xeric sites (Beck 1990). Several other researchers (e.g., Hilt 1985, Parker and Swank 1982) have made similar observations of yellow-poplar's relative susceptibility to drought events.

Parent Publication

• Proceedings 19th Central Hardwood Forest Conference

Citation

Meier, Andrew R.; Saunders, Mike R. 2014. Initial observations on tree mortality following a severe drought in 2012 in two Indiana state forests and implications for long-term compositional dynamics. In: Groninger, John W.; Holzmueller, Eric J.; Nielsen, Clayton K.; Dey, Daniel C., eds. Proceedings, 19th Central Hardwood Forest Conference; 2014 March 10-12; Carbondale, IL. General Technical Report NRS-P-142. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 347-350.