Late-Holocene Disturbance Regimes in Forests of the Puget Sound Basin: Is Douglas-fir Dominance an Artifact?

9873692 Brubaker这项研究将检查的假设，即“古老的”森林的普吉湾低地西部华盛顿可能是一个相对较新的功能在西北景观。这将通过检查从普吉特海湾低地代表性地区的小洞穴中采集的花粉芯来完成。如果他们的假设是正确的，将迫使人们重新考虑目前的假设，即“原始”森林结构和与之相关的物种代表该地区的“自然”平衡条件。这项研究还将提供一个例子，一个不平衡的系统所造成的不断变化的干扰制度，这是很难在现代生态系统的研究。这项研究有可能提供所需的证据，以消除西北森林的平衡神话，并加深我们对生物惯性，储存效应和过程的理解，有助于非平衡条件。

9873692BrubakerThis study will examine the hypothesis that the "old-growth" forests of the Puget Sound Lowlands of western Washington may be a relative new feature in the Northwestern landscape. This will be done by the examination of pollen cores taken from small hollows in a representative area of the Puget Sound Lowlands. If their hypothesis is correct, it will force a reconsideration of the current assumption that the "old-growth" forest structure and species associated with it represents "natural" equilibrium conditions in that area. This study will also provide an example of a non-equilibrium system created by a changing disturbance regime, which are difficult to study in modern ecosystems. This research has the potential to provide evidence needed to dispel the equilibrium myth of northwestern Forests and sharpen our understanding of biological inertia, storage effects and processes contributing to the non-equilibrium conditions.