Looking beyond the mean: Drivers of variability in postfire stand development of conifers in Greater Yellowstone.

ABSTRACT: High-severity, infrequent fires in forests shape landscape mosaics of stand age and structure for decades to centuries, and forest structure can vary substantially even among same-aged stands. This variability among stand structures can affect landscape-scale carbon and nitrogen cycling, wildlife habitat availability, and vulnerability to subsequent disturbances. We used an individual-based forest process model (iLand) to ask: Over 300 years of postfire stand development, how does variation in early regeneration densities versus abiotic conditions influence among-stand structural variability for four conifer species widespread in western North America? We parameterized iLand for lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia), Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var.

SUBMITTER: Braziunas KH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7612775 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature