The demography of range boundaries versus range cores in eastern US tree species.

ABSTRACT: Regional species-climate correlations are well documented, but little is known about the ecological processes responsible for generating these patterns. Using the data from over 690,000 individual trees I estimated five demographic rates--canopy growth, understorey growth, canopy lifespan, understorey lifespan and per capita reproduction--for 19 common eastern US tree species, within the core and the northern and southern boundaries, of the species range. Most species showed statistically significant boundary versus core differences in most rates at both boundary types. Differences in canopy and understorey growth were relatively small in magnitude but consistent among species, being lower at the northern (average -17%) and higher at the southern (average +12%) boundaries. Differences in l

SUBMITTER: Purves DW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2677233 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature