Treesearch

This publication provides an overview of forest resource attributes for Rhode Island based on an annual inventory conducted by the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program at the Northern Research Station of the U.S. Forest Service. These estimates, along with web-posted core tables, will be updated annually. For more information please refer to page 3 of this report.

The effect of drying method on selected material properties of nanocellulose was investigated. Samples of nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) were each subjected to four separate drying methods: air-drying, freeze-drying, spray-drying, and supercritical-drying. The thermal stability and crystallinity of the dried nanocellulose were evaluated using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and X-ray diffraction. Supercritical-drying produced NFCs with the least thermal stability and the lowest crystallinity index. Air-drying or spray-drying produced NFCs which were more...

Few studies have quantified pathogen impacts to ecosystem processes, despite the fact that pathogens cause or contribute to regional-scale tree mortality.
We measured litterfall mass, litterfall chemistry, and soil nitrogen (N) cycling associated with multiple hosts along a gradient of mortality caused by Phytophthora ramorum, the cause of sudden oak death.
In redwood forests, the epidemiological and ecological characteristics of the major overstory species determine disease patterns and the magnitude and nature of ecosystem change. Bay laurel (Umbellularia californica) has high...

Climate change is already affecting many fish and wildlife populations. Managing these populations requires an understanding of the nature, magnitude, and distribution of current and future climate impacts. Scientists and managers have at their disposal a wide array of models for projecting climate impacts that can be used to build such an understanding. Here, we provide a broad overview of the types of models available for forecasting the effects of climate change on key processes that affect fish and wildlife habitat (hydrology, fire, and vegetation), as well as on individual species...

Undebarked ponderosa pine chips were treated by hot water extraction to modify the chemical composition. In the treated pine (TP) , the mass was reduced by approximately 20%, and the extract was composed mainly of degradation products of hemicelluloses. Wood flour produced from TP and unextracted chips (untreated pine, UP) was blended with high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and polypropylene (PP) and was extruded into wood plastic composites (WPCs). Formulations for WPCs consisted of 58% pine, 32% plastic, and 10% other additives. WPC based on HDPE+TP and PP+TP absorbed 46-45% less water...

The mechanisms of drought resistance that allow plants to successfully establish at different stages of secondary succession in tropical dry forests are not well understood. We characterized mechanisms of drought resistance in early and late-successional species and tested whether risk of drought differs across sites at different successional stages, and whether early and late-successional species differ in resistance to experimentally imposed soil drought. The microenvironment in early successional sites was warmer and drier than in mature forest. Nevertheless, successional groups did not...

Mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins (Coleoptera: CurcuIionidae: Scolytinae), is among the primary causes of mature lodgepole pine, Pinus contorta variety latifolia mortality. Verbenone is the only antiaggregant semiochemical commercially available for reducing mountain pine beetle infestation of lodgepole pine. The success of verbenone treatments has varied greatly in previous studies because of differences in study duration, beetle population size, tree size, or other factors. To determine the ability of verbenone to protect lodgepole pine over long-term mountain pine...

Insects are ectotherms that cannot regulate their own temperature, and thus rely on and are at the disposal of the surrounding environment. In this study, long-term climatic data are used to stratify forested regions of Alaska into climatic zones based on temperature and precipitation. Temperature and precipitation are shown to be important ecological drivers in determining the distribution of aspen leaf miner (Phyllocnistis populiella Chambers) and the aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) host in the state of Alaska. Climatic regions based on temperatures and precipitation accounted for 83...

Anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition has had substantial impacts on forests of North America. Managers seek to monitor deposition to identify areas of concern and establish critical loads, which define the amount of deposition that can be tolerated by ecosystems without causing substantial harm. We present a new monitoring approach that estimates throughfall inorganic N deposition from N concentration in lichens collected on site. Across 84 study sites in western North America with measured throughfall, a single regression model effectively estimated N deposition from lichen N concentratio...

Elicitin-mediated acquisition of plant sterols is required for growth and sporulation of Phytophthora spp. This study examined the interactions between elicitins, sterols, and tannins. Ground leaf tissue, sterols, and tannin-enriched extracts were obtained from three different plant species (California bay laurel, California black oak, and Oregon white oak) in order to evaluate the effect of differing sterol/tannin contents on Phytophthora ramorum growth.