Research Database
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Accelerated forest restoration may benefit spotted owls through landscape complementation
Year: 2024
Animals often rely on the presence of multiple, spatially segregated cover types to satisfy their ecological needs; the juxtaposition of these cover types is called landscape complementation. In ecosystems that have been homogenized because of human land use, such as fire-suppressed forests, management activities have the potential to increase the heterogeneity of cover types and, therefore, landscape complementation. We modeled changes to California spotted owl (Strix occidentalis occidentalis) nesting/roosting habitat, foraging habitat and habitat co-occurrence (i.e. landscape…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Stand diversity increases pine resistance and resilience to compound disturbance
Year: 2024
BackgroundDrought, fire, and insects are increasing mortality of pine species throughout the northern temperate zone as climate change progresses. Tree survival may be enhanced by forest diversity, with growth rates often higher in mixed stands, but whether tree defenses are likewise aided remains in question. We tested how forest diversity-productivity patterns relate to growth and defense over three centuries of climate change, competition, wildfire, and bark beetle attack. We used detailed census data from a fully mapped 25.6-ha forest dynamics plot in California, USA to…
Publication Type: Journal Article