Light spectra distributions were measured in two different montane forests: temperate and tropical. Spectral light measurements were made in different sized canopy gaps in the conifer forest at H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest in Oregon, USA. Researchers at Oregon State University created these gaps of 20 m, 30 m, and 50 m in diameter. In the tropical cloud forest, spectral light measurements were made in two plots that were permanently established at La Mucuy Parque Nacional in Venezuela, in collaboration with researchers at Universidad de Los Andes. In both studies, spectra and distributions of physiologically active light were analyzed: red, far-red, R/FR ratio, and blue light.

Orientador: Massanori Takaki / Resumo: O objetivo geral da pesquisa foi estudar aspectos da germinação de sementes de Platymiscium floribundum Vog. em laboratório e viveiro e desenvolvimento das mudas em condições de viveiro e natural sob o dossel, com vistas a estabelecer indicadores biológicos quanto à fisiologia e ecologia da germinação e desenvolvimento das plantas para subsidiar projetos de conservação, de manejo e de revegetação de áreas alteradas ou desprotegidas. Tendo como enfoque o estudo das temperaturas cardeais de germinação das sementes e o estabelecimento de padrões tecnológicos de análise foram testadas, em condições controladas de laboratório, temperaturas no intervalo de 10 a 40ºC, com presença contínua e ausência total de luz branca. Verificou-se que a faixa limite de germinação está entre 10 e 12,5 e 37,5 e 40ºC; a 10ºC iniciou-se somente a protrusão radicular, sem emissão da raiz primária e, a 40ºC, houve morte total das sementes. A faixa ótima de temperatura para a germinação, na presença contínua de luz, está entre 15 a 25ºC, com maiores índices de velocidades de germinação a 20 e 25ºC. Para o estudo ecofisiológico foram testadas as interações entre diferentes regimes de temperatura, quantidades de água e luz. As temperaturas onde a germinação das sementes se mostrou superior foram 25, 20 e 15ºC. Os resultados de germinação com as quantidades de água do ii substrato de 30 e 60mL foram superiores à de 90mL. Os percentuais de germinação foram inferiores à medida que se associaram elevadas quantidades de água e temperatura. As sementes da espécie apresentaram insensibilidade à luz, germinando tanto na presença quanto na ausência de luz, não apresentando variação significativa entre os espectros de luz testados. Os resultados indicam que P. floribundum apresenta plasticidade... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The purpose of the present work was the study of germination under laboratory and nursery conditions and seedling development under nursery and field conditions for getting biological indicators of ecophysiology of germination and establishment of Platymiscium floribundum Vog for conservation, management and reforestation projects. Determination of cardinal, and optimum temperatures was done by isothermic incubations in the range of 10 to 40°C, under continuous white light and darkness. The minimum temperature was 12.5°C and the maximum 37.5°C. At 10°C, only radicle protrusion was observed and at 40°C the seeds have died. The optimum temperature range from 15 to 25°C with highest germination rate at 20 to 25°C. For ecophysiological study, different temperatures were tested under different conditions of substrate humidity and light. The germination under low humidity (30mL) and moderate humidity (60mL) of the substrate was higher than high humidity (90mL). Seeds of P. floribundum were light insensitive. The seedling emergence capacity under nursery conditions were high under both natural light (NL) and far red light (FR) in all tested shading percentage (10, 18, 30, 50 and 80 shading), with high seedling survival under 30 and 80% shading NL and 18, 30 and 50% shading FR. Seedling development was high under FR at 18, 30 and 50% and in stem diameter at all WL treatments. Plants accumulated more root and aerial dry matter under NL. By aerial to root dry matter ratio, highest aerial development was observed under 0, 30, 18 and 80% shading WL and 18 and 80% shading FR. Analysis of seedling development was carried out under natural conditions under two shading intensities under canopy at Serra da Cantareira, São Paulo... (Complete abstract, click electronic address below) / Doutor

Forest canopy structure is strongly influenced by stand density due to changing competitive interactions among the individual trees and in turn directly influences stemwood volume production. The structure and dynamics of forest canopies, particularly in relation to the production of stemwood, were examined in unmanaged, even-aged stands of two dissimilar tree species, Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm. and Abies lasiocarpa (Hook.) Nutt. The analysis of structure-production relationships was guided by a conceptual model which generated hypotheses and led to examination of assumptions incorporated in the model. Mean crown dimensions were related to stand density through a negative exponential function for both species, but because of differing shade-tolerances, mean crown size of lodgepole pine was affected more by increasing density than was mean crown size of subalpine fir. More importantly, examination of the model assumptions indicated that adequate characterization of canopy structure should account for the influence of both crown shyness and stand height. Stand density also influenced the amount and distribution of leaf area in these forest stands. The more plastic mean leaf area of lodgepole pine led to a constant leaf area index over a range of density and, thus, was consistent with conventional wisdom which assumes closed canopied forest stands support stable leaf area indices across a wide range of densities. The less plastic mean leaf area of subalpine fir, however, led to positive correlation between leaf area index and density. Changes in mean crown dimensions and mean leaf area influenced the production of stemwood volume such that large mean crown sizes were less efficient than small mean crown sizes. The decrease in efficiency was attributed to accumulation of large branch biomass in large crowns to support foliage far from the stem. Increased support costs were indicated by the increasing proportion of crown volume which was nonfoliated as mean crown size increased. The assumption that accumulated branch biomass was responsible for the observed declines in efficiency for forest trees was reinforced by a comparison of structure-production relationships for lodgepole pine and the annual Helianthus annuus L.

The spectral distribution of the global radiation from 0.4 to 2.5 microns penetrating deciduous and coniferous canopies were measured during clear days between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. using a double-quartz monochromator. In the visible region (0.4 to 0.7 micron) the average relative spectral transmissions under both canopies are about one percent beginning at 0.4 micron and decreasing to about half a percent at 0.67 micron. There is only a small peak in the green (0.55 micron) transmission under deciduous stands while there is none under coniferous canopies. The slightly higher transmission in the blue (0.4 micron) is attributed to the direct sky radiation penetrating through the gaps in the canopies. There is a steep increase in the transmission at about 0.7 micron. The increase is relatively higher under deciduous stands compared to coniferous stands. In the infrared region from 0.8 to about 1.4 microns, the average relative spectral transmission under deciduous stands is about 10 percent which is double the transmission under coniferous canopies. The transmission under deciduous stands is about twice that of the coniferous stands throughout the near infrared with very low transmission in the water absorption band at 1.45 and practically no transmission at all in the 1.90 micron-band. The absolute spectral transmission exhibit a somewhat different distribution, especially in the visible region. Since the highest intensity of the solar spectrum in the open is located in the 0.5 micron-band, this is also reflected in the absolute values. The small peak in the green under deciduous stands is now indicated as a slight shift of the peak to the 0.55 micron-band. The water absorption bands at the 0.95 and 1.15 microns are also distinct, with hardly no transmission at all beyond 1.7 microns. The spectral transmittance of forest canopies differ from those reported for single leaves in the proportion of radiation transmitted in the visible and infrared regions. For example, the ratio of the transmission at 0.55 micron to that at 1.10 micron-band is about one to twelve compared to about one to five in single leaves. A deciduous canopy consisting of several layers of leaves wi ll only allow a very small amount of transmission, mostly in the green portion and somewhat more in the infrared region between 0.72 and 1.40 microns. Under natural conditions in the forest, there exists a very weak "green" shadow and a somewhat stronger "infrared" shadow. The altered spectral composition may influence the understory vegetation as regards photosynthesis, seed germination, and the photoperiodic responses in the forest floor.

Because riparian canopy controls most energy inputs to stream ecosystems, it directly affects the structure of aquatic food webs and the ecological processes that govern interactions among trophic levels. This study addresses the interdependence among riparian canopy, benthic community structure, and the carrying capacity of high desert streams for salmonid fishes. In streams in the lower John Day River Basin in eastern Oregon, algal, invertebrate, and fish communities were compared in reaches with varying densities of riparian canopy. Water temperatures varied with the density and upstream extent of canopy. Densely canopied sites were cool, while sites with high irradiances had temperatures exceeding the upper lethal limit for salmonids. Periphyton and grazer biomasses were greater in well-lighted sites, but 90% of grazer biomass consisted of Dicosmoecus gilvipes, a large caddisfly inedible by juvenile trout. Warmer water increased metabolic demands for salmonids, while the overwhelming dominance of Dicosmoecus in open sites shifted energy flow away from trout and shrunk their food base. High water temperatures, however, provided suitable habitat for many warmwater fishes which would otherwise not enter tributaries of this size. At higher elevation study sites in Camp Creek, light levels were higher and less variable than at the lower sites. Periphyton and invertebrate abundances were not correlated with irradiance. Rather, periphyton was maintained at low levels by grazers, particularly Dicosmoecus and snails. Manipulations of fish densities in enclosures showed that trout and dace had no negative impacts on numbers of invertebrate prey, and that grazers played a larger role in regulating lower trophic levels than did fish. Dicosmoecus acted as a keystone species in the benthic food web of Camp Creek by simultaneously influencing the trophic level both below and above its own. When irradiance was experimentally reduced under artificial canopies, periphyton standing crops were not different from those in open control pools after 4 wks. However, grazers were more abundant in open pools. The cropping of periphyton to uniform levels in both sunlight and shade indicated that mobile grazers targeted sites of varying productivities. Comparisons between benthic communities in Camp Creek and in a densely canopied reference stream suggested that benthic community structure shifted to accommodate changes in energy resources that occur when canopy density is altered. / Graduation date: 1998

The accurate simulation of snowpack deposition and ablation beneath forested areas is confounded by the fact that the vegetation canopy strongly affects the snow surface energy balance. The canopy alters the radiation balance of the snowcover, and reduces the wind speed at the snow surface. Data collected as part of the BOREAS experiment are used to analyze the effects of a variety of forest canopies on the climate at the snow surface. Simple algorithms are developed and used to adjust climate data collected above forest canopies to the snow surface. A 2-layer coupled energy- and mass-balance snowmelt model is used to simulate the deposition and ablation of the snowpack at five forested sites within the Canadian boreal forest for the 1994-1995 snow season. Results of the snowcover simulations indicate that the net snowcover energy balance remains close to zero for the winter months, but exhibits a sharp increase in the spring months. The rapid energy gain in the spring is strongly controlled by canopy cover, and is dominated by net radiation fluxes, with minor contributions from sensible, latent, soil, and advected energy fluxes. Net snowcover irradiance dominates during the spring months due to increased solar intensity and longer day lengths, coupled with increased radiation transmission through canopies at high sun angles, and reduced snowcover albedo resulting from the deposition of fine organic debris. Turbulent (sensible and latent) energy fluxes comprise a relatively minor portion of the net snowcover energy exchange, indicating that the sub-canopy snowcover is relatively insensitive to the meteorological parameters controlling these fluxes. The low thermal conductivity of organic-rich boreal soils must be considered for studies focusing on snowcover development when soil heat flux comprises a large portion of the snowcover energy balance. Model outputs at all sites generally show good agreement with measured snow depths, indicating that the techniques used in these investigations accurately simulate both the deposition and ablation of seasonal snowcovers. Results indicate that snowcovers in the boreal environment may be more sensitive to land-use transitions, rather than climate shifts, due to the strong control exerted by vegetation canopies on radiation transfer processes. The results also suggest that simple canopy adjustment algorithms may be effectively applied to spatially distributed snowcover simulations. More data is required to evaluate the accuracy of these methods for computing energy transfer within canopies having significantly different structures than the sites used in this study. / Graduation date: 1999

Potato ground cover and spectral data were measured in the Columbia Basin during the 1990 growing season. Three spectral were correlated with ground cover; normalized difference, near infrared-red ratio, and the first derivative of the spectral curve at 750 nm. All models were statistically significant at the 99% level. Normalized was most correlated followed by the near infrared-red ratio, and the first derivative of the spectral curve at 750 nm. / Graduation date: 1992

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 2003. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the World Wide Web.

Several alien plants are invading subtropical forest ecosystems through canopy gaps, resulting in the loss of native species biodiversity. The loss of native species in such habitats may result in reduced ecosystem functioning. The control and eradication of these invaders requires accurate mapping of the levels of invasion in canopy gaps. Our study tested (i) the utility of WorldView-2 imagery to map forest canopy gaps, and (ii) an integration of WorldView-2 data with environmental data to model the probability of occurrence of invasive Chromolaena odorata (triffid weed) in Dukuduku forest canopy gaps of KwaZulu- Natal, South Africa. Both pixel-based classification and object-based classification were explored for the delineation of forest canopy gaps. The overall classification accuracies increased by ± 12% from a spectrally resampled 4 band image similar to Landsat (74.64%) to an 8 band WorldView-2 imagery (86.90%). This indicates that the new bands of WorldView such as the red edge band can improve on the capability of common red, blue, green and near-infrared bands in delineating forest canopy gaps. The maximum likelihood classifier (MLC) in pixel-based classification yielded the overall classification accuracy of 86.90% on an 8 band WorldView-2 image, while the modified plant senescence reflectance index (mPSRI) in object-based classification yielded 93.69%. The McNemar’s test indicated that there was a statistical difference between the MLC and the mPSRI. The mPSRI is a vegetation index that incorporates the use of the red edge band, which solves a saturation problem common in sensors such as Landsat and SPOT. An integrated model (with both WorldView-2 data and environmental data) used to predict the occurrence of Chromolaena odorata in forest gaps yielded a deviance of about 42% (D2 = 0.42), compared to the model derived from environmental data only (D2 = 0.12) and WorldView-2 data only (D2 = 0.20). A D2 of 0.42 means that a model can explain about 42% of the variability of the presence/absence of Chromolaena odorata in forest gaps. The Distance to Stream and Aspect were the significant environmental variables (ρ < 0.05) which were positively correlated with presence/absence of Chromolaena in forest gaps. WorldView-2 bands such as the coastal band (λ425 nm) yellow band (λ605 nm) and the nearinfrared- 1 (λ833 nm) are positively and significantly related to the presence/absence of invasive species (ρ < 0.05). On the other hand, a significant negative correlation (ρ < 0.05) of near-infrared-2 band (λ950 nm) and the red edge normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI725) suggests that the probability of occurrence of invasive Chromolaena increases forest gaps with low vegetation density. This study highlights the importance of WorldView- 2 imagery and its application in subtropical indigenous coastal forest monitoring. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.

This study has provided a landscape level estimate of leaf area index (LAI) and net primary productivity (NPP) for a temperate broadleaf forest ecosystem in south-central Indiana. The estimates were compared with the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) biophysical products LAI and NPP from both spatial and temporal perspectives. The evidence suggests that field-based estimates were poorly correlated with global MODIS data due to the simplifying assumptions of the MODIS global applicability, saturation problems of the red reflectance in highly vegetated areas, homogeneous land cover types of the study area, and other design assumptions of the field-based estimates. To improve the localized applicability of MODIS product algorithms, an empirical and localized algorithm combining in-situ measurements, the buildup of a localized biophysical model, and remote sensing-derived data were suggested for each local-scaled ecosystem. / Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management