Treesearch

Indigenous Knowledge, Practice, and Belief Systems (IKPBS) are an ecological and cultural framework with which Indigenous communities have (and continue to) adaptively manage their land since time immemorial. In the current context of climate change and colonial forest and fire management in the western US, Indigenously-led ecological research and cultural revitalization offers a path forward where tribal sovereignty of land stewardship is maintained and the resiliency of natural systems are reestablished. We describe our process of developing an Indigenous-Directed Research (IDR) partnersh...

Understanding how different tree species affect soil microbial communities is crucial for sustainable forestry and ecosystem management practices. Despite Black walnut (Juglans nigra L.) forestry having a rich history, the overall comprehension of how this hardwood species influences soil remains incomplete. In earlier studies, we examined the effects of hardwood plantations on soil chemical properties and their interaction with microbial biomass, however, we highlight the importance of studying the soil microbial communities and their relationship with soil properties in greater depth....

Soil fungal communities are critical for forest ecosystem functions in the Central Hardwood Region (CHR) of the USA. This evaluation, which took place in 2022–2023, investigates the influence of Juglans nigra (BW, black walnut) and Quercus rubra (NRO, Northern red oak) on soil properties and fungal community structures across three CHR sites. The objectives of this study are to investigate how the fungal communities identified beneath J. nigra and Q. rubra serve to influence biodiversity and soil health within hardwood plantations. Soils from two locations in Indiana and one in Michigan...

Coastal fog occurs along many of the world’s west coast continental environments. It is particularly consequential during summer when an increased frequency of fog co-occurs with the seasonal dryness characteristic of most west coast climate systems, for example, in the Pacific coast of North and South America, the southwestern African coast, and southern coastal Europe. Understanding coastal fog formation and effects has consequences for many disciplines, including the physical (e.g., atmospheric science, oceanography), biological (e.g., biogeography, ecophysiology), and socio-ecological...

Black walnut (Juglans nigra) has an estimated population of more than 340 million trees and 4.9 billion cubic feet of net volume on forest land across the eastern United States. Over the past decade, the number and net volume of black walnut trees have increased by 11 percent and 23 percent, respectively. This article will examine the factors driving these increases as well as other important variables such as tree damage and seedling regeneration using the latest data from the USDA Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program. Although orchards are excluded, the analyses...

Atlanta, Georgia's (USA) proposed South River Forest (SRF) is a 3,500-acre area straddling southeast Atlanta and parts of neighboring DeKalb County that would include non-contiguous greenspace and developed land uses. Catalyzed by the 2017 Atlanta City Designprocess, the SRF concept recognizes the ecologically rich, urban forest patches in this predominantly African American part of the metro area. SRF advocates point to the climate and environmental equity benefits of green space conservation for underserved communities and the personal benefits of having wildland-like outdoor recreation...

We assessed changes in fundamental climate-niche space for lizard and snake species in western North America under modeled climate scenarios to inform natural resource managers of possible shifts in species distributions. We generated eight distribution models for each of 130 snake and lizard species in western North America under six time-by-climate scenarios. We combined the highest-performing models per species into a single ensemble model for each scenario. Maps were generated from the ensemble models to depict climate-niche space for each species and scenario. Patterns of species...

Recent and projected changes in climate over this century pose an unprecedented threat to the health, diversity, and productivity of forest ecosystems. Forests have migrated and adapted to long-term changes in climate over thousands to millions of years; however, natural migration rates and adaptive responses of tree populations cannot match the rapid pace of current climate change. Consequently, more climate-informed approaches to reforestation are needed as current reforestation strategies using local seed sources may no longer be adequate to meet forest management objectives. Assisted...

Losses in crop yield due to invasive insects, weeds, pathogens, and herbivores cost trillions of dollars per year globally. To prevent further spread of invasive agricultural pest species, continuous monitoring and prevention are crucial. Once introduced, however, assessing the impact of an invasive pest on agricultural production and testing management strategies are essential. The green iguana (Iguana iguana), a globally widespread invasive herbivore, is considered a possible agricultural pest although no quantitative data on its impact are available. In this study, we evaluated the...

Globalization has spread thousands of invasive insect species into new world regions, causing severe losses in ecosystem services. Previous work proposed that plant invasions facilitate insect invasions through the creation of niches for non-native herbivores. Despite the impact of insect invasions, a comprehensive understanding is lacking on how invasion success varies among insect feeding groups. We therefore compiled the predominant larval trophic groups (herbivores, predators, parasites, detritivores, and brood-carers) for 5,839 non-native insect species in nine world regions to...