Macrolichen and bryophyte responses to coarse woody debris characteristics in sub-boreal spruce forest

Botting, Rachel S.; DeLong, Craig

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2009.08.036

Cited by 36 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…The loss of habitat has led to population declines in many of these species (Siitonen 2001). Thus, the formation and maintenance of CWD are crucial factors for successful biodiversity management in forests (Botting and De Long 2009;Lassauce et al 2011;Seibold et al 2015). Which dead wood types that individual species are utilizing has been well explored in some regions, especially for macrofungi (Junninen and Komonen 2011) and beetles (Grove 2002), but less for other wood dependent species groups, such as lichens.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In several cases, snags have been found to be more species rich than logs (Kuusinen and Siitonen 1998;Humphrey et al 2002;Runnel et al 2013), but both these habitats host unique species (Hämäläinen et al 2014). The age and decay stage of dead wood generally affect lichen species richness and composition (Nascimbene et al 2008;Botting and De Long 2009;Caruso and Rudolphi 2009;Svensson et al 2013). In boreal forests, fire has been found to decrease species richness of lichens (Hämäläinen et al 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Large proportion of wood dependent lichens in boreal pine forest are confined to old hard wood

et al. 2017

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Intensive forest management has led to a population decline in many species, including those dependent on dead wood. Many lichens are known to depend on dead wood, but their habitat requirements have been little studied. In this study we investigated the habitat requirements of wood dependent lichens on coarse dead wood (diameter [10 cm) of Scots pine Pinus sylvestris in managed boreal forests in central Sweden. Twenty-one wood dependent lichen species were recorded, of which eleven were confined to old (estimated to be [120 years old) and hard dead wood. Almost all of this wood has emanated from kelo trees, i.e. decorticated and resin-impregnated standing pine trees that died long time ago. We found four red-listed species, of which two were exclusive and two highly associated with old and hard wood. Lichen species composition differed significantly among dead wood types (low stumps, snags, logs), wood hardness, wood age and occurrence of fire scars. Snags had higher number of species per dead wood area than logs and low stumps, and old snags had higher number of species per dead wood area than young ones. Since wood from kelo trees harbours a specialized lichen flora, conservation of wood dependent lichens requires management strategies ensuring the future presence of this wood type. Besides preserving available kelo wood, the formation of this substratum should be supported by setting aside P. sylvestris forests and subject these to prescribed burnings as well as to allow wild fires in some of these forests.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Large proportion of wood dependent lichens in boreal pine forest are confined to old hard wood

et al. 2017

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“…The observed higher bryophyte species richness, and particularly that of redlisted species, on larger CWD might be due to larger area of available substrate, higher longevity, higher moistureholding capacity and/or less chance of overgrowing of logs by epigeous species (Kruys et al 1999). The lower bryophyte species richness on tipped logs held above ground by a root plate, compared to snapped logs, might also be explained by a less favourable microclimate on logs held above ground, and by less chance of colonization by epigeous species (Botting, DeLong 2009). Mean bryophyte richness was lower on spruce logs in decay stage 1, likely due to greater number of species preferring more decayed logs as substrate, the generally poor epiphytic flora that survive on freshly dead wood, and the short period of time for colonization by epixylic species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…snag versus log), bole diameter (Holeksa et al 2008) and other factors like environmental conditions (Ranius et al 2004). Also height above ground of a log is related (negatively) to decay stage, and hence to diversity of saproxylic species (Botting, DeLong 2009). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bryophyte and polypore richness and indicators in relation to type, age and decay stage of coarse woody debris of Picea abies

2017

EEB

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Coarse woody debris (CWD), which is in low supply in intensively managed forest, is an essential habitat for many species of bryophytes, fungi and insects. We investigated richness of bryophyte and polypore species on CWD of Norway spruce Picea abies (L.) Karst. in relation to CWD type, size, decay stage and age since mortality. We also identified indicator species for the bryophyte and polypore communities on dead trees in various decay stages. CWD age since mortality was determined to assess the time period of potential colonization by the indicator species. The study was conducted in Latvia, located in the hemi-boreal forest zone, where such information was generally lacking. The larger part of spruce CWD was in early decay stages, due to the legacy of forest management and recent disturbance events. The maximum age of spruce CWD was 48 years, and age of the majority of CWD pieces in advanced decay stages was 20 to 40 years. The estimated ages of CWD suggest a more rapid decay rate in the mesotrophic habitat studied in the Eastern Baltic region than reported previously for northern Scandinavia and mountainous regions. Bryophyte species richness was significantly affected by CWD diameter, type (higher on snapped logs) and decay stage (lowest in initial decay stage). Polypore species richness was significantly lower on snags, and higher on logs in early decay stages. A succession of epixlyic species was shown from common polypore species Fomitopsis pinicola and Trichaptum abietinum at start of wood decay to indicator bryophytes like Nowellia curvifolia in early decay stages after loss of bark, Lepidozia reptans and Jamesoniella autumnalis in mid stages and Herzogiella seligeri with epigeous species in late decay stages.

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“…The age and decay stage of dead wood generally affect lichens species richness and composition (Nascimbene et al, 2008a;Botting and DeLong, 2009;Caruso and Rudolphi, 2009). The effect of substrate age was visible for stumps; while total species number remained fairly similar, a clear difference in assemblage composition was observed between the new (9 years old) and older (pre-harvest) stumps (IV).…”

Section: Fwd and Stumpsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Retention forestry and intensified biomass harvest: epiphytic lichen assemblages under opposing ecological effects in pine-dominated boreal forests

Hämäläinen¹

2016

Diss. For.

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Intensive forestry has led to changes in the structure and function of boreal forests and to the endangerment of forest-dwelling species. Different management methods, such as retention forestry, have been developed to counter the negative biodiversity impacts, although forest use has intensified at the same time: for example, stumps and logging residues are commonly harvested for biofuel. This thesis examines the potential impacts of biofuel harvest, retention forestry and prescribed burning on epiphytic lichen assemblages in pine-dominated boreal forests. In addition, post-harvest dynamics of retention trees were studied to assess their capacity to support species diversity in the early successional forests. The study is based on a large, empirical dataset collected in eastern Finland from 24 study sites that were treated experimentally with a combination of retention harvest and prescribed burning, and, additionally, from 13 sites that represent different stages of forest succession.The results show that retention forestry has the potential to maintain pre-harvest legacies and support high lichen diversity on harvested sites: 85 lichen species, including Red-Listed species and dead wood specialists, were recorded on retained Scots pines (Pinus sylvestris L.) or their dead wood legacies 11 years post-harvest. However, the outcome of retention forestry is affected by post-harvest mortality rates and the fall patterns of the retained trees, which in turn differ depending on the retention tree volume, possible application of prescribed burning, and tree-level factors.Prescribed burning of harvested sites increased retention tree mortality rates and decreased epiphytic lichen richness 11-12 years post-fire. However, in combination with high retention volumes, burning created more diverse dead wood habitats than retention forestry alone. Thus, despite the initial negative effect, the application of prescribed burning on part of the harvested sites could eventually increase lichen diversity at the landscape scale.Scots pine stumps on harvested sites hosted 83 lichen species, and may be a valuable habitat resource for wood-dwelling lichens if dead wood volumes in the landscape are otherwise low. Therefore, large-scale stump harvest may decrease lichen diversity. Instead, fine woody debris was found to be a less valuable substrate for epiphytic lichens and could be harvested for biofuel without notable effects on lichen populations.This study shows that retention forestry can be used to enhance lichen species richness in managed forests, while stump harvest has the opposite effect by reducing lichens' habitats. Prescribed burning decreases lichen species richness at the stand scale but may enhance it at the landscape scale, provided that burning is avoided on the most valuable, lichen-rich stands.

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Macrolichen and bryophyte responses to coarse woody debris characteristics in sub-boreal spruce forest

Cited by 36 publications

References 25 publications

Large proportion of wood dependent lichens in boreal pine forest are confined to old hard wood

Large proportion of wood dependent lichens in boreal pine forest are confined to old hard wood

Bryophyte and polypore richness and indicators in relation to type, age and decay stage of coarse woody debris of Picea abies

Retention forestry and intensified biomass harvest: epiphytic lichen assemblages under opposing ecological effects in pine-dominated boreal forests

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