Forest Succession on landslides above Lake Thomson, Fiordland

Forest succession on landslides in the Fiord Ecological Region, southwestern New Zealand

“…The quarter method was used for five plant categories as in Mark et al (1964) except that diameters of small-trees were not recorded and the mature forest was not resampled.…”

“…A brief description of each stand in 1986 is given in relation to the same stand in 1962 (Mark et al 1964) while the overall patterns are presented in Figures 2--6 (Fig. 2).…”

“…A quantitative description of forest succession based on the plant cover of three adjoining landslide slip faces (aged 15, 49, and 78 yr) and undisturbed montane rain forest at c. 280 m elevation in the Doubtful Ecological District, Fiord Region in 1962 (Mark et al 1964) was repeated in May 1986. This resurvey was conducted to relate the presumed succession of the variously aged slip faces to the actual succession that occurred over the 24-yr period.…”

“…The undisturbed site supported a c. 26 m tall forest dominated by Nothofagus menziesii (silver beech) with subdominant N. solandri var. cliffortioides, a subcanopy of W. racemosa, and a well developed herb layer of Blechnum discolor (Mark et al 1964). At the time of the resurvey, the slip-face stands were 39, 73, and 102 years old, respectively.…”

“…The initial survey (Mark et al 1964) included a brief summary of the relative abundance ofepiphyfic bryophytes in the slip-face stands, plus a detailed account of the microhabitats and relative abundance of lichens. In the resurvey, more detail was collected on epiphytic and terrestrial bryophytes but the general patterns of lichen distribution and abundance outlined in the original survey were reassessed.…”