O estudo teve por objetivo analisar alguns aspectos de dinâmica florestal que pudessem ser utilizados no monitoramento de áreas restauradas. O plantio destas áreas foi baseado no mesmo modelo de restauração. Tal modelo está fundamentado em conceitos de sucessão secundária, utilização preferencial de espécies nativas regionais, e parâmetros de densidade dos indivíduos conforme encontrado para os remanescentes florestais da região. A primeira área (área A) está situada a margem esquerda do rio Piracicaba, na área urbana deste município. No plantio desta área foram utilizadas 35 espécies. Esta área foi plantada em 1991, estando com 10 anos na época em que foi realizado o estudo. A segunda área (área B) está situada às margens da represa de abastecimento municipal de Iracemápolis. O plantio desta área, onde foram utilizadas 140 espécies, teve início em 1987 apresentando, aproximadamente, 14 anos na época em que foi realizado o estudo. Em cada uma destas áreas, foram instaladas 10 parcelas de 10 x 10m, dentro das quais foram alocadas, de forma aleatória, 9 subparcelas para avalição dos indicadores selecionados. O banco de sementes foi avaliado mediante 30 amostras de solo em subparcelas de 0,25 x 0,25m realizadas nas estações chuvosa e seca de 2001. A chuva de sementes foi quantificada mensalmente através da amostra do material depositado em 30 coletores de 0,5 x 0,5m. Para a amostragem do estrato de regeneração foi realizado o levantamento de todos os indivíduos entre 0,30 e 2m presentes dentro de 30 subparcelas de 1 x 1m. O banco de sementes da área A apresentou densidade média de 328,53 sementes.m -2 na estação chuvosa e de 245,87 sementes.m -2 na seca. Na área B a densidade encontrada nas amostras do banco de sementes foi 1.131,73 sementes. m -2 na estação chuvosa e 685,30 sementes.m -2 na estação seca. Não foi verificada variação sazonal no banco de sementes para as duas áreas. A maior parte das espécies encontradas no banco foi caracterizada como herbácea. Na análise da chuva de sementes foram verificadas variações sazonais na frutificação e espaciais na dispersão das sementes. A densidade média de sementes depositadas no período de um ano foi de 591,33 sementes.m -2. A maior porcentagem de indivíduos depositado nos coletores apresentou síndrome de dispersão zoocórica. Espécies iniciais foram predominantes na chuva de sementes. O estrato de regeneração da área A apresentou baixa riqueza de espécies, sendo a maior parte dos indivíduos amostrados pertencentes a uma única espécie, Leucaena leucochephala. Nesta área foram encontrada apenas 2 espécies e a densidade obtida foi inferior a um. Na área B foram encontradas 15 espécies de 11 famílias, sendo a densidade média obtida igual 1 indivíduo.m -2. Os resultados indicam que na área B foi possível criar uma ambiente favorável a regeneração natural e que na área A esta regeneração pode estar sendo limitada em função da agressividade e atividade alelopática da Leucaena leucocephala. Também o número inicial das espécies, a idade e o tamanho das áreas, a qualidade do terreno e a intensidade de manejos anteriores podem influenciar este resultado. Dentre os indicadores selecionados, o estrato de regeneração foi o mais confiável para o monitoramento das áreas. / The study was seeking to analyze some aspects of forestry dynamics that could be used in monitoring restored areas. The planting of these areas was based on the same restoration models. Such models are based in concepts of secondary succession, regional native species preferential usage and density parameters of the individuals as it's found for the forestry remains in the region. The first area (A) is located at the left margin of the Piracicaba River, in the urban area of this town. In the planting of this area 35 species were used. The area was planted in 1991, being 10 years old by the time of the study. The second area (B) is located at the margins of the city water supply dam in Iracemápolis. The planting of this area, where 140 species were used, began in 1987, being around 14 years old when the study was performed. In each of these areas, ten 10 x 10m parcels were installed, inside of which nine sub-parcels for evaluating the selected indicators were randomly placed. The seed bank was evaluated by 30 soil samples in 0,25 x 0,25m sub-parcels, performed in the dry and wet seasons in 2001. The seed rain was monthly quantified through samples of the material allocated in thirty 0,50 x 0,50m collectors. For the regeneration stratum sampling, a counting of all the individuals between 0,30 and 2 m was performed, inside thirty 1 x 1m sub-parcels. The seed bank in area A showed average density of 328,53 seeds.m -2 in the rainy season and 245,87 seeds.m -2 in the dry one. In area B, the density was 1.131,73 seeds.m -2 in the rainy season and 685,30 seeds.m -2 in the dry one. Seasonal variation in the seed bank was not verified for both areas. Most of the species found in the bank was classified as herbaceous. In the seed rain analysis, seasonal variations in fruiting were verified, likewise spatial ones in the seeds dispersion. The average seeds density found within a year period was 591,33 seeds.m -2. The highest percentage of individuals found on the collectors showed zoochoric dispersion syndrome. Early species were majority in the seed rain. The regeneration stratum in area A showed low species diversity, being the majority from a unique species, Leucaena leucochephala. In this area, only two species were found and the average density was below one. In area B, 15 species of 11 families were found, being the average density equals one individual.m -2. The results show that in area B it was possible to create a favorable environment to a natural regeneration, and in area A this regeneration can be limited due to the Leucaena leucochephala aggressiveness and alelopathic activity. Also, the initial number of the species, the age and the size of the areas, the quality of the land and the intensity of previous management can influence the results.

Ash dieback is a severe disease of ash trees (Fraxinus spp.), caused by the invasive fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus. In its native East Asia, H. fraxineus is a harmless endophyte, but since its accidental import into Europe in the early 1990s it has infected over 90% of ash trees in some areas, with long-term mortality sometimes exceeding 90%. The disease was discovered in Great Britain in 2012, and has since spread rapidly. This thesis investigates some of the possible impacts on biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and society, and in doing so identifies ways to alleviate some impacts. Britain has only 13% tree cover (among the lowest in Europe), so may be particularly vulnerable to ash loss. Better understanding of the effects and how to minimise them is critical to deliver an evidence-based response. First, we investigated impacts in woodlands by experimentally killing woodland ash trees by ring-barking. We found no short-term effect of ash loss on ground flora or earthworm communities, or on the regeneration or growth of other woody species. Observational evidence suggested that remaining canopy trees rapidly filled gaps left by ash, perhaps contributing to stability. Our woodlands appeared to be remarkably resilient to ash loss, although there may be long-term effects or impacts on other species that this experiment failed to observe. To investigate broader-scale impacts, we required high-quality abundance maps for ash and other trees across Britain. Using species distribution modelling and random forest regression, we developed a protocol to produce abundance maps from readily available data. We tested the predictive power of the resulting maps using cross validation. Our maps are the best available for abundance of British tree species, and will be useful across a wide range of disciplines. We then used them to model ecosystem vulnerability to ash loss, based on the abundance of ash and other tree species, and their ecological trait similarity. We identified areas at risk of the largest impacts, and produced guidance for positive management actions to minimise ecological change. Lastly, we investigated the financial impacts of ash dieback, estimating the total cost to Britain at £9.2 billion. This figure is many times larger than the value of lost trade if biosecurity were improved to prevent future invasions, questioning the validity of financial arguments against biosecurity. We also found that loss of ecosystem services accounted for less than a third of the total cost, suggesting that ecosystem service assessments may miss a large proportion of the true cost of biodiversity loss. Overall, we found that some impacts may be less than expected, such as local effects on woodland ground flora, and others, such as the economic cost, may be much larger than expected. However, the resilience of ecosystems to a major shock such as loss of a common species, and actions to mitigate the impacts, depend on having a diversity of other trees present. The ash dieback outbreak highlights the importance of preventing other severe pests and diseases of trees from being introduced; something that has been increasing exponentially, largely due to international trade in trees. This thesis provides further firm evidence that there is an ecological and social imperative to halt this trend.

The invasibility, or susceptibility of an ecosystem to biological invasion is influenced by changes in biotic and abiotic resistance often due to shifts in disturbance regime. The magnitude of invasive propagule pressure interacts with an ecosystem's invasibility to determine the extent of a biological invasion. I examined how propagule pressure, forest community structure and disturbance interact to influence the invasibility of temperate Pacific Northwest forests by the newly-invasive grass, Brachypodium sylvaticum. My goal was to identify which of these factors is most instrumental in enabling the shift from establishment to population growth in B. sylvaticum at the edge of its expanding range. Both observational and experimental studies were employed to identify the many ecological components of this problem. Ecological sampling methods were used to identify trends in B. sylvaticum habitat preference and signs of habitat disturbance. In addition, an experimental study was performed to test the effects of soil and vegetation disturbance on B. sylvaticum seedling propagation. I found that while soil disturbance did not have a significant effect on seedling propagation, vegetation disturbance was implicated in B. sylvaticum spread. Higher propagule pressure and coniferous forest type were also strong predictors of increased B. sylvaticum seedling propagation and survival within established sites. My study demonstrates how propagule pressure and plant community dynamics interact to shift the invasibility of Pacific Northwest forests and facilitate the transition from establishment to spread in the invasion of B. sylvaticum.

Abstract not available

The aim of this research project was to use 15N nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to better understand nitrogen (N) cycling processes in forest plantations. In particular, the studies were designed to link to the effects of forest management practices and environmental conditions. 15N NMR cross polarization/magic angle spinning (CPMAS) and dipolar dephasing (DD)-CPMAS experiments of some simple N-containing compounds found widely in nature were first undertaken. This was done in order to understand how different sample conditions, such as the presence of moisture, sample mixing and dilution, affected the intensity and the observability of the NMR peaks corresponding to N containing functional groups. Our results exhibited changes in NMR signal intensities and various time constants calculated. In the case of variable contact time experiments, use of an equation that predicts both a bi-exponential rise and decay was found to fit the data obtained more accurately. The optimised parameters for 15N NMR CPMAS were then used along with other analytical techniques such as ion chromatography, total C and N and elemental analyses to study plant nutrient uptake, plant decomposition and the effect of forest ecosystem disturbances, in this case an insect infestation. These analytical data were also correlated with the changes in the 13C NMR spectra in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the chemical transformations in the forest ecosystem. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

<p>This dissertation examines issues concerning sap flux scaled estimates of the canopy-averaged transpiration rate of trees per unit leaf area (E_L) and stomatal conductance (G_S), as well as their implications in the water and carbon balance of individuals and stands, with the final goal of an integrated assessment of 11 years of such data from two species (<italic>Pinus taeda</italic> and <italic>Liquidambar styraciflua</italic>) at the Duke Free Air Carbon dioxide Enrichment (Duke FACE) facility. These issues include (1) the effects of allometric relationships and xylem characteristics on the gas phase transport of water from leaves and the hydraulic supply of it, (2) consideration of the hydraulic capacitance in the inference of stomatal behavior from sap flux data and (3) the dynamic modeling of stomatal conductance to environmental drivers using Bayesian techniques. It is shown that a) for resolution of sap flux in conifers at the scale of minutes under dynamic conditions, time constants for both stomatal responses and hydraulic capacitance of sapwood must be considered, (b) nighttime conductance can lead to large errors in rates of sap flux measured under some conditions, (c) variation in allometry between <italic>P. taeda</italic> individuals can lead to different rates of transpiration and carbon assimilation per unit leaf area and that (d) hydraulic time constants for the stems of mature <italic>P. taeda</italic> at Duke FACE trees varied by the stem length considered and were on the order of 30-45 minutes for a 10-m segment. An analysis incorporating all these elements leads to the conclusions that (e) both elevated CO₂ (eCO₂) and fertilization (FR) resulted in proportionally larger reductions in the E_L and G_S of P. taeda as soil moisture decreased with (f) eCO₂ having little to no effect in months of high soil moisture and (g) FR leading to ~14% reduction of GS under high soil moisture in absence of eCO₂, while (h) both eCO₂ and FR led to reduced E_L and G_S of <italic>L. styraciflua</italic> across soil moisture conditions.</p> / Dissertation

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