Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape Model
Simulating long-term, landscape level changes in forest composition requires estimates of stand age to initialize succession models. Detailed stand ages are rarely available, and even general information on stand history often is lacking. We used data from USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and An...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2021-01-01
|
| Series: | International Journal of Forestry Research |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/6650821 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849410274161852416 |
|---|---|
| author | Richard H. Odom W. Mark Ford |
| author_facet | Richard H. Odom W. Mark Ford |
| author_sort | Richard H. Odom |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Simulating long-term, landscape level changes in forest composition requires estimates of stand age to initialize succession models. Detailed stand ages are rarely available, and even general information on stand history often is lacking. We used data from USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) database to estimate broad age classes for a forested landscape to simulate changes in landscape composition and structure relative to climate change at Fort Drum, a 43,000 ha U.S. Army installation in northwestern New York. Using simple linear regression, we developed relationships between tree diameter and age for FIA site trees from the host and adjacent ecoregions and applied those relationships to forest stands at Fort Drum. We observed that approximately half of the variation in age was explained by diameter breast height (DBH) across all species studied (r2 = 0.42 for sugar maple Acer saccharum to 0.63 for white ash Fraxinus americana). We then used age-diameter relationships from published research on northern hardwood species to calibrate results from the FIA-based analysis. With predicted stand age, we used tree species life histories and environmental conditions represented by ecological site types to parameterize a stochastic forest landscape model (LANDIS-II) to spatially and temporally model successional changes in forest communities at Fort Drum. Forest stands modeled over 100 years without significant disturbance appeared to reflect expected patterns of increasing dominance by shade-tolerant mesophytic tree species such as sugar maple, red maple (Acer rubrum), and eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) where soil moisture was sufficient. On drier sandy soils, eastern white pine (Pinus strobus), red pine (P. resinosa), northern red oak (Quercus rubra), and white oak (Q. alba) continued to be important components throughout the modeling period with no net loss at the landscape scale. Our results suggest that despite abundant precipitation and relatively low evapotranspiration rates for the region, low soil water holding capacity and fertility may be limiting factors for the spread of mesophytic species on excessively drained soils in the region. Increasing atmospheric temperatures projected for the region could alter moisture regimes for many coarse-textured soils providing a possible mechanism for expansion of xerophytic tree species. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7851fc117a2f4e36b9681e9ddd464a9f |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1687-9368 1687-9376 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Forestry Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-7851fc117a2f4e36b9681e9ddd464a9f2025-08-20T03:35:11ZengWileyInternational Journal of Forestry Research1687-93681687-93762021-01-01202110.1155/2021/66508216650821Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape ModelRichard H. Odom0W. Mark Ford1Geospatial and Environmental Analysis Program, 106 Cheatham Hall, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USAU.S. Geological Survey, Virginia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, 106 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USASimulating long-term, landscape level changes in forest composition requires estimates of stand age to initialize succession models. Detailed stand ages are rarely available, and even general information on stand history often is lacking. We used data from USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) database to estimate broad age classes for a forested landscape to simulate changes in landscape composition and structure relative to climate change at Fort Drum, a 43,000 ha U.S. Army installation in northwestern New York. Using simple linear regression, we developed relationships between tree diameter and age for FIA site trees from the host and adjacent ecoregions and applied those relationships to forest stands at Fort Drum. We observed that approximately half of the variation in age was explained by diameter breast height (DBH) across all species studied (r2 = 0.42 for sugar maple Acer saccharum to 0.63 for white ash Fraxinus americana). We then used age-diameter relationships from published research on northern hardwood species to calibrate results from the FIA-based analysis. With predicted stand age, we used tree species life histories and environmental conditions represented by ecological site types to parameterize a stochastic forest landscape model (LANDIS-II) to spatially and temporally model successional changes in forest communities at Fort Drum. Forest stands modeled over 100 years without significant disturbance appeared to reflect expected patterns of increasing dominance by shade-tolerant mesophytic tree species such as sugar maple, red maple (Acer rubrum), and eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) where soil moisture was sufficient. On drier sandy soils, eastern white pine (Pinus strobus), red pine (P. resinosa), northern red oak (Quercus rubra), and white oak (Q. alba) continued to be important components throughout the modeling period with no net loss at the landscape scale. Our results suggest that despite abundant precipitation and relatively low evapotranspiration rates for the region, low soil water holding capacity and fertility may be limiting factors for the spread of mesophytic species on excessively drained soils in the region. Increasing atmospheric temperatures projected for the region could alter moisture regimes for many coarse-textured soils providing a possible mechanism for expansion of xerophytic tree species.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/6650821 |
| spellingShingle | Richard H. Odom W. Mark Ford Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape Model International Journal of Forestry Research |
| title | Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape Model |
| title_full | Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape Model |
| title_fullStr | Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape Model |
| title_full_unstemmed | Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape Model |
| title_short | Developing Species-Age Cohorts from Forest Inventory and Analysis Data to Parameterize a Forest Landscape Model |
| title_sort | developing species age cohorts from forest inventory and analysis data to parameterize a forest landscape model |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/6650821 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT richardhodom developingspeciesagecohortsfromforestinventoryandanalysisdatatoparameterizeaforestlandscapemodel AT wmarkford developingspeciesagecohortsfromforestinventoryandanalysisdatatoparameterizeaforestlandscapemodel |