Treesearch

Monitoring programs designed to track ecosystem changes in response to both stressors and disturbances use repeated observations of ecosystem attributes. Such programs can increase our understanding of how interactions among resilience to disturbance, resistance to invasive species, and “change agents” including management actions influence resource conditions (or status) and trends and outcomes of conservation and restoration actions. This type of monitoring information provides the basis for adaptive management. The overarching goal of an integrated monitoring and adaptive management...

Management actions that enable adaptation to climate change and promote resilience to disturbance are becoming increasingly important in the sagebrush biome. In recent decades temperatures have increased, growing seasons have lengthened, and in many areas the timing and amount of precipitation has changed (Chambers et al. 2017 [hereafter, Part 1], section 4; Kunkel et al. 2013a,b,c). Global climate change models are used to project future changes in temperature and precipitation based on relative concentration pathways of likely emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other trace gases and...

Improved use of forest biomass has been presented as a viable option to satisfy a portion of the demand for sustainable alternative sources of energy. Yet, there are considerable gaps in our understanding related to the efficiencies of current state-of-the-art forest biomass recovery systems. Southern pine plantation biomass stands typically exhibit higher stand densities and smaller-diameter trees than conventional stands, which, in turn, may result in reduced recovery efficiencies. In this study, the impact of new harvest systems for biomass recovery was investigated in typical southern...

The Science Framework is part of an unprecedented conservation effort underway across 11 States in the western United States to address threats to sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystems and the species that depend on them. Sagebrush ecosystems provide a large diversity of habitats and support more than 350 species of vertebrates (Suring et al. 2005). These ecosystems currently make up only about 59 percent of their historical area, and the primary patterns, processes, and components of many sagebrush ecosystems have been significantly altered since Euro-American settlement in the mid-1800s...

Multiple lines of evidence suggest that plant water-use efficiency (WUE)—the ratio of carbon assimilation to water loss—has increased in recent decades. Although rising atmospheric CO2 has been proposed as the principal cause, the underlying physiological mechanisms are still being debated, and implications for the global water cycle remain uncertain. Here, we addressed this gap using 30-y tree ring records of carbon and oxygen isotope measurements and basal area increment from 12 species in 8 North American mature temperate forests. Our goal was to separate the contributions of enhanced...

Propagating and releasing freshwater mussels (Unionida) into the wild can contribute substantially to conservation and perhaps ecosystem restoration, but poorly conceived projects can waste money and public good will, and harm mussel populations and ecosystems. Moving from vague, emotional reactions about mussel restoration to more rigorous discussions and analyses can help focus efforts to where they do the most good. We suggest that: (i) projects to restore mussels for conservation goals to sites where known environmental problems have been eliminated or mitigated have good prospects for...

Phosphorus (P) eutrophication in the water bodies is of global concern. The role of biochar in the mitigation of (P) eutrophication has recently received substantial attention. Agriculture is the main source of P in the water bodies, as a result of excessive fertilizer and manure application. Excessive P results in excessive primary production in the water bodies, leading to anoxic conditions, growth of toxic algae blooms, altering plant species composition and biomass. Therefore, resulting in food web disruption, fish kill, toxins production and recreation areas degradation. When biochar...

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) eutrophication in marine ecosystems is a global problem. Marine eutrophication has a negative impact on food security, ecosystem health and economy through disruptions in tourism, fisheries and health industries. Both N and P have known point and non-point sources. Control of point sources has been easier than non-point sources particularly agricultural sources for both N and P as well as fossil fuel combustion for N, which remains a major challenge. Implementing mitigation strategies for N has been reported to be effective for P mitigation; however, the...

Phenotypic trait variation can be linked to genomic sequence variation. These differences range from a single nucleotide to larger insertion and deletion (indel) of chromosomal segments. Indels can change the copy number of affected genes, which can create complex phenotypic trait variation through effects on gene expression. For example, gene dosage variation has been associated with various human chronic diseases. Here we systematically explored the effect of induced gene dosage variation on quantitative trait variation in Populus. We show that gene dosage variation at specific chromosoma...

Adventitious roots occur naturally in many species and can also be induced from explants of some tree species including Populus, providing an important means of clonal propagation. Auxin has been identified as playing a crucial role in adventitious root formation, but the associated molecular regulatory mechanisms need to be elucidated. In this study, we examined the role of PagFBL1, the hybrid poplar (Populus alba× P. glandulosa clone 84K) homolog of Arabidopsis auxin receptor TIR1, in adventitious root formation in poplar. Similar to the distribution pattern of auxin during initiation of...