Undergrowth

About: Undergrowth is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 795 publications have been published within this topic receiving 11911 citations. The topic is also known as: understorey & underbrush.

Change in CO2 balance under a series of forestry activities in a cool‐temperate mixed forest with dense undergrowth

Abstract: To evaluate the effects on CO2 exchange of clearcutting a mixed forest and replacing it with a plantation, 4.5 years of continuous eddy covariance measurements of CO2 fluxes and soil respiration measurements were conducted in a conifer-broadleaf mixed forest in Hokkaido, Japan. The mixed forest was a weak carbon sink (net ecosystem exchange, � 44gCm � 2 yr � 1 ), and it became a large carbon source (569gCm � 2 yr � 1 ) after clearcutting. However, the large emission in the harvest year rapidly decreased in the following 2 years (495 and 153gCm � 2 yr � 1 , respectively) as the gross primary production (GPP) increased, while the total ecosystem respiration (RE) remained relatively stable. The rapid increase in GPP was attributed to an increase in biomass and photosynthetic activity of Sasa dwarf bamboo, an understory species. Soil respiration increased in the 3 years following clearcutting, in the first year mainly owing to the change in the gap ratio of the forest, and in the following years because of increased root respiration by the bamboo. The ratio of soil respiration to RE increased from 44% in the forest to nearly 100% after clearcutting, and aboveground parts of the vegetation contributed little to the RE although the respiration chamber measurements showed heterogeneous soil condition after clearcutting.

A possible role of plantations for primate conservation in Madagascar.

Abstract: The utilization of eucalyptus plantations by seven sympatric species of prosimians was studied in the eastern rainforest of Madagascar. The species were Avahi laniger, Cheirogaleus major, Hapalemur griseus, Indri indri, Lemur fulvus, Lepilemur mustelinus, and Microcebus rufus. None of the lemurs was ever found in young eucalyptus plantations with little undergrowth. This was mainly due to the lack of travel opportunities within the shrub layer and between the shrubs and the canopy. Food (mainly berries) is seasonally available in the shrub layer but cannot be exploited because frugivorous lemurs cannot reach it. Old eucalyptus plantations with dense undergrowth are used by all prosimian species. They provide food as well as travel and resting facilities. Mixed tree plantations in the western part of Madagascar were used by groups of Lemur fulvus, Lepilemur mustelinus, and Propithecus verreauxi. According to these results, old eucalyptus plantations and mixed tree species plantations could be used to provide firewood and construction wood for the human population. They also might extend the habitat for lemurs and serve as buffers against human disturbance.

A Synthesis of Studies by the Harvest Method: Primary Production Relations in the Temperate Deciduous Forests of Japan

Abstract: In Japan many studies on primary forest production utilizing the harvest method have been published since 1952 which include various forest types ranging from boreal conifer forests of northern Japan to tropical forests of Cambodia and Thailand, and from pine groves of the seashore to the creeping pine carpets of alpine timberline. These studies, which present data on more than 300 stands were reviewed recently by Kira and Shidei (1967) and recorded in a recent IBP handbook (Newbould, 1967). Satoo (1968b) also has synthesized the existing data on woodlands of Pinus densiflora. Since most of these investigations have been in the interest of silviculture, data for broadleaved deciduous forests, which are of less commercial value, are not often compared with coniferous forests. Almost all of them lack information on root and undergrowth biomass, and data for primary production are very limited. Because of steady progress in methodology, these data are not always based on the same method, even for the same investigator(s). This makes it difficult to compare the existing data, and, if we select the data by method, data obtained by one and the same method are too scarce to be synthesized. Thus, the contents of this synthesis are inevitably of more or less tentative nature; yet, it is hoped that this summary may be of use as a starting point for more advanced studies.

Habitat selection by the highly endangered long-horned beetle Rosalia alpina in Southern Europe: a multiple spatial scale assessment

Abstract: Despite the popularity of the saproxylic cerambycid Rosalia alpina as a flagship species, its ecology is still poorly know, especially in the southern part of its range. Detailed information on its habitat preferences is needed to plan appropriate management. We set our multiple spatial scale assessment of habitat preferences in a beech forest of central Italy whose landscape, featuring both unmanaged forest and two types of grazed open forest, allowed us to look at the influence of different land uses. Preferred trees occurred in open sites, and those close to tall undergrowth were avoided. A range of moribund or dead trees were used: those preferred had a lower percentage canopy closure, significantly thicker bark, and were more sun-exposed, than the average. Logistic regression showed that the most important variables for selection were distance from nearest occupied tree, bark thickness, undergrowth height and irradiation. Occurrence likelihood augmented as the distance from nearest other occupied tree increased. Despite being mostly unmanaged, forest was avoided, whereas open forest (with trees pruned by ‘shredding’) was used more than expected. Although intensive forestry limits the availability of dead wood, closed forest may be unsuitable when shadowing useful substrate. The disappearance of traditional forms of forest management as shredding and moderate cattle grazing may lead to woody vegetation expansion and habitat closure eventually threatening the persistence of R. alpina. The return to traditional habitat management would be beneficial to R. alpina, an issue that conservation plans should carefully take it into account.