Treesearch

To judge the accuracy of international forest product statistics, we checked the consistency of the reported con- sumption of wood and fiber with the production of wood products. Using goal programming, we estimated for 180 countries the consumption of industrial roundwood and of paper-making fibers nearest to the reported consump- tion, given the reported production of sawnwood, wood-based panels, pulp and paper and paperboard, and prior estimates of the input–output coefficients. The results suggested that for the 3-year average 2013–2015, industrial roundwood consumption was under-reported...

Decomposition contributes to global ecosystem function by contributing to nutrient recycling, energy flow, and limiting biomass accumulation. The decomposer organisms influencing this process form diverse, complex, and highly dynamic communities that often specialize on different plant or animal resources. Despite performing the same net role, there is a need to conceptually synthesize information on the structure and function of decomposer communities across the spectrum of dead plant and animal resources. A lack of synthesis has limited cross-disciplinary learning and research in...

Rarity and life history traits inform multiple dimensions of intrinsic risk to climate and environmental change and can help systematically identify at-risk species. We quantified relative geographic rarity (area of occupancy), climate niche breadth, and life history traits for 114 freshwater fishes, amphibians, and reptiles in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. Our approach leveraged presence-only, publicly available data and traits-based inference to evaluate area of occupancy, climate sensitivity (i.e., climate niche breadth), and a Rarity and Climate Sensitivity (RCS) index of all species...

In Mediterranean areas, dry deposition is a major component of the total atmospheric N input to natural habitats, particularly to forest ecosystems. An innovative approach, combining the empirical inferential method (EIM) for surface deposition of NO3- and NH4+ with stomatal uptake of NH3, HNO3 and NO2 derived from the DO3SE (Deposition of Ozone and Stomatal Exchange) model, was used to estimate total dry deposition of inorganic N air pollutants in four holm oak forests under Mediterranean conditions in Spain. The estimated total deposition varied among the sites and matched the geographica...

Wildfires consume existing forest fuels but also leave behind dead shrubs and trees that become fuel to future wildfires. Harvesting firekilled trees is sometimes proposed as an economical approach for reducing future fuels and wildfire severity. Postfire logging, however, is controversial. Some question its fuel reduction benefits and its ecological impacts.David W. Peterson, a research forester with the USDA Forest Service, and his colleagues investigated the long-term effects of postfire logging on woody fuels in 255 coniferous forest stands that burned with high fire severity in 68...

Restoration of bottomland hardwoods in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV) has increased over the past 3 decades to restore the resource, increase wildlife habitat, improve water quality, and enhance forest health and production. However, establishment successes of afforestation efforts in this region have been highly variable. This study attempted to employ proven establishment operations with new concepts to further supplement our understanding of oak establishment on bottomland sites. Two locations were established using minimum site preparation and intensive site preparation...

Repeated fire is key to the viability of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) ecosystems, but its acceptance as a management tool may depend on satisfactory longleaf pine growth. This is because longleaf pine establishment often has the dual-purpose of ecosystem restoration and stemwood production. Timely recovery of scorched foliage among longleaf pine seedlings and saplings supports maximum juvenile growth. We identified two means of foliage re-establishment in the growing season after prescribed fire regardless of the season of fire application. New foliage growth after spring or fall...

The potential for baldcypress (Taxodium distichum var. distichum) and pondcypress (T. distichum var. imbricarium) plantations has been further evaluated through two silvicultural and genetic studies in Florida. On a flatwoods site, initial bedding+compost, which resulted in better early growth and survival than just bedding, and in turn no bedding, enhanced soil properties and plantation productivity through 16 years with stand basal area averaging 179 square feet per acre at a 10- x 3-foot spacing and 136 square feet per acre at a 10- x 6-foot spacing and associated tree diameters at...

A challenge for managers of bottomland hardwood forests is the lack of information about economic tradeoffs among different management approaches. This study evaluated economic tradeoffs, in terms of timber revenue, between even- and uneven-aged management approaches in four common bottomland hardwood forest types in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV). Even and uneven-aged management scenarios were simulated using the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Forest Vegetation Simulator. Data from 107 stands, representing a wide-range of initial conditions, were acquired from...

Continued emphasis on woody biomass production under short rotation woody crop strategies has focused on both hybrid poplar and eastern cottonwood. The advantages of hybrid poplars in comparison to eastern cottonwood include superior rooting, better wood properties, and the ability to grow well on upland sites. Unfortunately, one specific disease, Septoria musiva, which results in stem canker and mortality, has shown to be the most serious impediment to the use of hybrid poplars in the Southern United States. Although disease still ranks as a significant problem in the Southern United...