Structure and dendroecology of Thuja occidentalis in disjunct stands south of its contiguous range in the central Appalachian Mountains, USA

作     者：Joshua A. Kincaid 

作者机构：Shenandoah University 1460 University Drive Winchester VA 22601 USA 

出 版 物：《Forest Ecosystems》 (森林生态系统（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2017年第4卷第1期

页      面：55-65页

核心收录：

学科分类：0710[理学-生物学] 0830[工学-环境科学与工程（可授工学、理学、农学学位）] 0907[农学-林学] 0829[工学-林业工程] 09[农学] 0903[农学-农业资源与环境] 0901[农学-作物学] 0833[工学-城乡规划学] 0713[理学-生态学] 0834[工学-风景园林学（可授工学、农学学位）] 

主　　题：Northern white cedar Disturbance Climate Range Disjunct Radial growth Regeneration 

摘      要：Background： Information on forest structure, growth, and disturbance history is essential for effective forest management in a dynamic landscape. Because most of our research concerning the ecology and growth of Thujo ocddenralis comes from sites in northern portions of its range, highly contextual biotic and abiotic factors that affect the species in more southern locales may not be fully accounted for. This research characterized the structural attributes and growth dynamics of Thuja occidentolis in disjunct forest stands south of its contiguous range margin. Methods： The Thujo occidentalis forests examined in this research were located in the central Appalachian Mountains, USA, approximately 440 km south of the contiguous range margin of the species. Forest structural attributes were characterized in two Thujo occidentalis forest stands, which are rare in the region. Tree-ring chronologies were used to examine the influences of disturbance and climate on the growth of Thuja occidentolis. Results： The forests contained a total of 13 tree species with Thuja occidentalis contributing substantially to the basal area of the sites. Thujo occidentalis stems were absent in the smallest size class, while hardwood species were abundant in the smallest classes. Thuja occidentalis stems also were absent from the 〈 70 years age class. By contrast, Thuja occidentalis snags were abundant within stands. Growth-release events were distributed across the disturbance chronology and generally affected a small number of trees. The Thujo occidentolis tree-ring chronology possessed an interseries correlation of 0.62 and mean sensitivity of 0.25. The correlation between mean temperature and Thuja occidentalis growth was weak and variable. Growth and moisture variables were more strongly correlated, and this relationship was predominantly positive. Conclusions： Structural attributes indicate the forests are in the understory reinitiation stage of forest development. Silvicultural manipul