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Betula seedling establishment in response to forest decline induced canopy degeneration
Author(s) -
Perkins T. D.,
Klein R. M.,
Vogelmann H. W.,
Badger' G. J.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
european journal of forest pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.535
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1439-0329
pISSN - 0300-1237
DOI - 10.1111/j.1439-0329.1988.tb00924.x
Subject(s) - seedling , canopy , biology , microclimate , quadrat , betulaceae , betula pubescens , forestry , botany , tree canopy , picea abies , ecology , geography , shrub
High mortality of dominant tree species, especially red spruce ( Picea rubens ) in the transition and lower montane coniferous zones on Camels Hump, Vermont, USA, has resulted in changes in the microclimate of the forest floor. Regeneration of tree seedlings (2 em dbh) was measured within one‐meter‐square quadrats and compared with results from the same forest zones in 1965. Yellow birch ( Betula allegbaniensis ) and heart‐leaved paper birch ( B. papyrifera var. cordifolia ) show large increases in seedling density, particularly in the zones where canopy decline and light intensity changes have been highest. The effects that increased birch establishment will have on the luture structure and composition of these forests are unknown.