Ecosystem Dynamics
| Authors: | Melissa Thomas-Van Gundy, Beverly Collins, Peter S. White, Saskia L. van de Gevel |
| Year: | 2026 |
| Type: | Book Chapter |
| Station: | Northern Research Station |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-19616-3_5 |
| Source: | Ecology and Restoration of Red Spruce Ecosystems in the Central and Southern Appalachians, Switzerland: Springer Nature |
Abstract
In this chapter, we review and synthesize the literature on the dynamics of central and southern Appalachian red spruce ( Picea rubens ) and spruce-fir forests under five topics. We begin with gap dynamics in old-growth forests by describing the natural dynamics and the contrasting strategies of the major tree species: red spruce, Fraser fir ( Abies fraseri ), yellow birch ( Betula alleghaniensis ), and pin cherry ( Prunus pensylvanica ). We then discuss four topics that address human impacts on these dynamics: broad-scale logging and remnant old-growth forests; the balsam woolly adelgid ( Adelges piceae ); pollutant deposition and exposure; and climate change. We also discuss potential interactions among these disturbances. In general, ecosystem dynamics are driven by red spruce’s high shade tolerance, long life span, and small canopy gaps due to mortality of individual or small groups of trees. Forests in the southern Appalachians have the additional disturbance dynamic of mortality from balsam woolly adelgid. While silvicultural prescriptions for commercial management of spruce-dominated forests are in use in forests in New England and Canada, demonstrated success for commercial scale management is currently lacking for the central and southern Appalachians.