Long-term Changes in Forest Carbon and Nitrogen Cycling Caused by an Introduced Pest/Pathogen Complex

Lovett, Gary M.; Arthur, Mary A.; Weathers, Kathleen C.; Griffin, Jacob M.

doi:10.1007/s10021-010-9381-y

Cited by 61 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…Differences in litterfall nutrient content following MPB attack most likely reflect limited N resorption prior to senescence [30], [42]. However, while we expected these changes in litterfall quantity and quality to translate to subsequent shifts in N cycling as they reached the forest floor and became available for microbial processing and decomposition [12], [20], the shifts we observed for WbP were relatively subtle.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Nitrogen Cycling Responses to Mountain Pine Beetle Disturbance in a High Elevation Whitebark Pine Ecosystem

2013

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Ecological disturbances can significantly affect biogeochemical cycles in terrestrial ecosystems, but the biogeochemical consequences of the extensive mountain pine beetle outbreak in high elevation whitebark pine (WbP) (Pinus albicaulis) ecosystems of western North America have not been previously investigated. Mountain pine beetle attack has driven widespread WbP mortality, which could drive shifts in both the pools and fluxes of nitrogen (N) within these ecosystems. Because N availability can limit forest regrowth, understanding how beetle-induced mortality affects N cycling in WbP stands may be critical to understanding the trajectory of ecosystem recovery. Thus, we measured above- and belowground N pools and fluxes for trees representing three different times since beetle attack, including unattacked trees. Litterfall N inputs were more than ten times higher under recently attacked trees compared to unattacked trees. Soil inorganic N concentrations also increased following beetle attack, potentially driven by a more than two-fold increase in ammonium (NH4 +) concentrations in the surface soil organic horizon. However, there were no significant differences in mineral soil inorganic N or soil microbial biomass N concentrations between attacked and unattacked trees, implying that short-term changes in N cycling in response to the initial stages of WbP attack were restricted to the organic horizon. Our results suggest that while mountain pine beetle attack drives a pulse of N from the canopy to the forest floor, changes in litterfall quality and quantity do not have profound effects on soil biogeochemical cycling, at least in the short-term. However, continuous observation of these important ecosystems will be crucial to determining the long-term biogeochemical effects of mountain pine beetle outbreaks.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Nitrogen Cycling Responses to Mountain Pine Beetle Disturbance in a High Elevation Whitebark Pine Ecosystem

2013

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“…In contrast to increased beech dominance at our study site in the Adirondack Mountains, where beech basal area is very high (Morin et al 2005), beech may be replaced by species such as sugar maple or eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr.) in aftermath forests (including stands in New York state and in western Massachusetts) where beech basal area is lower (Twery and Patterson 1984;Runkle 1990;Lovett et al 2010). In addition to BBD, forest composition (especially sugar maple abundance) in northern hardwood forests can be influenced by factors such as deer browse and sugar maple decline caused by acid deposition (Horsley et al 2000;Duchesne et al 2002;Lovett and Mitchell 2004).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…through vigorous competition for light and below-ground resources or due to potential phytotoxic effects of beech leaf leachate . Such changes in forest composition can scale up to ecosystem-level processes by affecting nutrient cycling, litter decomposition, soil pH, exchangeable cations, and soil C:N ratios (Finzi et al 1998;Lovett et al 2010). Beech thickets can also decrease species richness and diversity of understory vegetation (Cale et al 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beech bark disease: spatial patterns of thicket formation and disease spread in an aftermath forest in the northeastern United States

et al. 2014

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Beech bark disease (BBD) has affected the composition, structure, and function of forests containing a significant proportion of American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) across North America. BBD spread has been investigated at landscape and regional scales, but few studies have examined spatial patterns of disease severity and spread within stands where forest management mitigation measures can be implemented. We analyzed changes in forest composition between 1985 and 2009 and fine-scale spatial patterns of BBD between 2000 and 2009 in a ϳ2 ha northern hardwood stand in the Adirondack Mountains of New York using location and disease severity of beech trees. A bivariate point pattern analysis was implemented to examine spatial patterns of beech thicket formation and BBD spread to beech saplings. Abundance of beech saplings increased near highly diseased canopy beech trees and around dead beech and sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.). Disease severity of beech saplings was highest in close proximity to highly cankered canopy beech trees. Thus, BBD leads to the formation of beech thickets, and thickets are often located where saplings are most likely to become infected, increasing the likelihood that secondary killing fronts will develop and lead to heavy BBD-induced mortality in aftermath northern hardwood forests of North America.Résumé : La maladie corticale du hêtre (MCH) a eu un impact sur la composition, la structure et la fonction des forêts composées d'une proportion importante de hêtre d'Amérique (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) partout en Amérique du Nord. La propagation de la MCH a été étudiée à l'échelle régionale et à l'échelle du paysage, mais peu d'études ont examiné le profil spatial de la propagation et de la sévérité de la maladie dans des peuplements où des pratiques d'aménagement visant à atténuer l'impact de la maladie peuvent être mis en oeuvre. Nous avons analysé les changements dans la composition de la forêt entre 1985 et 2009 ainsi que la répartition spatiale à une échelle fine de la MCH entre 2000 et 2009 dans un peuplement de feuillus nordiques d'environ deux hectares situé dans les monts Adirondack, dans l'État de New York, en utilisant la position des hêtres et la sévérité de la maladie. Une analyse bidimensionnelle de semis de points a été utilisée pour étudier la structure spatiale de la formation des fourrés de hêtre et la propagation de la MCH sur les gaules de hêtre. L'abondance des gaules de hêtre a augmenté près des hêtres dans le couvert forestier qui étaient très affectés par la maladie et autour des hêtres et des érables à sucre (Acer saccharum Marshall) morts. La sévérité de la maladie sur les gaules de hêtre était la plus élevée à proximité des hêtres dans le couvert forestier qui étaient sévèrement chancrés. La MCH entraîne par conséquent la formation de fourrés de hêtre qui sont souvent situés là où les gaules sont les plus sujettes à devenir infectées, ce qui augmente la probabilité que des fronts de mortalité secondaires se développent et entraînent une mortalité élevée induit...

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“…More research on the role of feedbacks is needed too (Paoletti et al 2007;Garrett et al 2011): not only will climate change affect plant health, but a regionally-toglobally declining plant health may in turn accelerate climate change because of the additional carbon emissions due to increased plant mortality and soil organic matter mineralization, so that plant disease management, by maintaining plant health, has a role in reducing and preventing greenhouse gas emissions (Mahmuti et al 2009;Lovett et al 2010;Busby and Canham 2011; but see Bernier et al 2011). Most importantly, research on climate change and plant health needs to reflect the variety of levels affected and the many viewpoints involved and tools available, from the molecular to the landscape scale, using network theory, meta-and risk analysis, in collaboration with various stakeholders, the publics and scientists outside plant health science.…”

Section: Plant Health and Climate Change: Conclusion And Research Gapsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of climate change on plant diseases—opinions and trends

et al. 2012

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There has been a remarkable scientific output on the topic of how climate change is likely to affect plant diseases. This overview addresses the need for review of this burgeoning literature by summarizing opinions of previous reviews and trends in recent studies on the impacts of climate change on plant health. Sudden Oak Death is used as an introductory case study: Californian forests could become even more susceptible to this emerging plant disease, if spring precipitations will be accompanied by warmer temperatures, although climate shifts may also affect the current synchronicity between host cambium activity and pathogen colonization rate. A summary of observed and predicted climate changes, as well as of direct effects of climate change on pathosystems, is provided. Prediction and management of climate change effects on plant health are complicated by indirect effects and the interactions with global change drivers. Uncertainty in models of plant disease development under climate change calls for a diversity of management strategies, from more participatory approaches to interdisciplinary science. Involvement of stakeholders and scientists from outside plant pathology shows the importance of trade-offs, for example in the land-sharing vs. sparing debate. Further research is needed on climate change and plant health in mountain, boreal, Mediterranean and tropical regions, with multiple climate change factors and scenarios (including our responses to it, e.g. the assisted migration of plants), in relation to endophytes, viruses and mycorrhiza, using long-term and large-scale datasets and considering various plant disease control methods.Keywords Adaptive ecosystem management . Biotic interactions . Landscape pathology . Phytophthora ramorum . Plant disease epidemiology . Tree fungal pathogens Up to the 1990s, there was little information about climate change impacts on plant disease. For example, Eur J Plant Pathol

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Long-term Changes in Forest Carbon and Nitrogen Cycling Caused by an Introduced Pest/Pathogen Complex

Cited by 61 publications

References 51 publications

Nitrogen Cycling Responses to Mountain Pine Beetle Disturbance in a High Elevation Whitebark Pine Ecosystem

Nitrogen Cycling Responses to Mountain Pine Beetle Disturbance in a High Elevation Whitebark Pine Ecosystem

Beech bark disease: spatial patterns of thicket formation and disease spread in an aftermath forest in the northeastern United States

Impacts of climate change on plant diseases—opinions and trends

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