Short-Term Dynamics of Vegetation Diversity and Aboveground Biomass of Picea abies (L.) H. Karst. Forests after Heavy Windstorm Disturbance

Abstract

Although forest disturbances have become more frequent and severe due to ongoing climate change, our understanding of post-disturbance development of vegetation and tree–herb layer interactions remains limited. An extreme windstorm, which occurred on 19 November 2004, destroyed Picea abies (L.) H. Karst dominated forests in the High Tatra Mts. Here, we studied short-term changes in diversity, species composition, and aboveground biomass of trees and herb layer vegetation, including mutual relationships that elucidate tree–herb interactions during post-disturbance succession. Assessment of species composition and tree biomass measurements were performed at 50 sample plots (4 × 4 m) along two transects 12, 14, and 16 years after the forest destruction. Heights and stem base diameters of about 730 trees were measured and subsequently used for the calculation of aboveground tree biomass using species-specific allometric relationships. Aboveground biomass of herb layer was quantified at 300 subplots (20 × 20 cm) by destructive sampling. Species richness and spatial vegetation heterogeneity did not significantly change, and species composition exhibited small changes in accordance with expected successional trajectories. While aboveground tree biomass increased by about 190%, biomass of annual herb shoots decreased by about 68% and biomass of perennial herb shoots was stable during the studied period. The contribution of trees to total aboveground biomass increased from 83% to 97%. After 16 years of forest stands recovery, tree biomass represented approximately 13% of forest biomass before the disturbance. Herb layer biomass, particularly the biomass of annual herb shoots, was more closely related to tree cover than to tree biomass and its decline could be assigned to gradual tree growth. Our study provides clear evidence that short-term successional processes in post-disturbance vegetation are much better detectable by biomass than by diversity or compositional measures and emphasized the importance of light conditions in tree–herb competitive interactions.

Trade-offs or complementarity between biomass production and biodiversity in European forests: a review

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Young Silver Birch Grows Faster and Allocates Higher Portion of Biomass into Stem Than Norway Spruce, a Case Study from a Post-Disturbance Forest

“…The transects are 4 m wide and 300 m long. Detailed data from both transects have already been analyzed in our previous works, which thoroughly describe their stand properties [13,23].…”

Endangered Forest Communities in Central Europe: Mapping Current and Potential Distributions of Euro-Siberian Steppic Woods with Quercus spp. in South Slovak Basin

“…We studied the effects of forest successional stages and management intensity on the abundance and species richness [4]. Similar studies have been conducted in the territory of the Slovak Republic with a focus on damage to soil and remaining forest stands by machines, evaluation of abiotic controls of wind disturbance using the generalized additive model [5][6][7], with a focus on spruce forests [8,9], and an analysis of the qualitative features of beech and oak trunks as a determinant of quality assessment [10].…”