Doctoral Dissertation Research: A Multi-Scale Analysis of Disturbance Dynamics in Hardwood Forest Communities on the Cumberland Plateau, USA

将采用植物区系调查和树木生态学方法，调查自然森林干扰事件在次生混合阔叶林群落的坎伯兰高原。这些信息将提供洞察力的作用，小规模的自然干扰事件在塑造组合物，结构和功能，在个人，人口，社区和生态系统水平的混合阔叶林。在美国东部，大部分的间隙尺度扰动研究都集中在古老的残留物上。由于19世纪和20世纪的自然和人为影响，美国东部的大多数林地都是由二次生长的混合硬木林组成。森林干扰动态可能不同的老的生长残余和成熟的第二次生长的立场。干扰特征和森林响应的差异归因于生物多样性，生物量的安排，和树龄分布的变化。这项研究将在坎伯兰高原进行，该高原已被列为西半球最多样化和濒危的生态区之一。不幸的是，关于坎伯兰高原森林资源和过程的资料还很缺乏。坎伯兰高原生态系统的定量生态信息是当前野生动物栖息地，土地管理，保护和恢复工作所需要的。这项研究将是第一个专门解决的时空格局的自然间隙尺度的干扰和森林对这些干扰的反应在次生混合硬木林的坎伯兰高原。 研究人员将（1）量化次生阔叶混交林群落的物种组成和林分结构，（2）记录干扰历史和气候对这些群落树木径向生长的影响，和（3）量化的时空格局的间隙尺度干扰和不同树种的反应，在这些第二-生长的林分，以确定这些事件对物种组成和结构的影响，在混合阔叶林林坎伯兰高原。林分的历史和干扰生态学的知识是很重要的森林资源的适当管理。该项目将量化自然干扰动态和干扰对坎伯兰高原物种多样性的影响，以帮助该地区目前的保护工作。该项目的成果将与地方、私人、州和联邦管理和保护组织分享。树轮数据将提供给国际树轮数据库，并将补充美国东部存在数据缺口的硬木树种的急需信息。这项研究的结果将在多个学科的专业会议上发表，并将在田纳西州和亚拉巴马的幼儿园到12年级学生的推广计划中实施。

Floristic inventory and dendroecological methods will be used to investigate natural forest disturbance events in secondary mixed hardwood communities on the Cumberland Plateau. This information will provide insights on the role of small-scale natural disturbance events in shaping composition, structure, and function at the individual, population, community, and ecosystem level in mixed hardwood forests. The majority of gap-scale disturbance studies in the eastern United States have focused on old-growth remnants. Due to natural and anthropogenic influences during the 19th and 20th centuries, most forested lands in the eastern United States are comprised of second-growth, mixed hardwood stands. Forest disturbance dynamics likely differ between old-growth remnants and mature second-growth stands. Differences in disturbance characteristics and forest response are attributed to variations in biological diversity, biomass arrangement, and tree-age distribution. The study will be conducted on the Cumberland Plateau, which has been listed as one of the most diverse and endangered ecoregions in the western hemisphere. Unfortunately, information on forest resources and processes on the Cumberland Plateau is lacking. Quantitative ecological information about Cumberland Plateau ecosystems is needed for current wildlife habitat, land management, conservation, and restoration efforts. This research will be the first to specifically address the spatio-temporal patterns of natural gap-scale disturbances and the forest response to these disturbances in secondary mixed hardwood forests on the Cumberland Plateau. The researchers will (1) quantify species composition and stand structure in secondary mixed hardwood forest communities, (2) document the disturbance history and climatic influences on radial growth of trees these communities, and (3) quantify spatio-temporal patterns of gap-scale disturbances and the response of different tree species in these second-growth stands to determine the influence of these events on species composition and structure in mixed hardwood forest stands on the Cumberland Plateau.Knowledge of stand history and disturbance ecology is important for the proper management of forest resources. This project will quantify natural disturbance dynamics and the influence of disturbance on species diversity on the Cumberland Plateau to aid in current conservation efforts in the region. The results from this project will be shared with local, private, state, and federal management and conservation organizations. Tree-ring data will be contributed to the International Tree-Ring Data Bank and will add much needed information from hardwood tree species in the eastern United States where a data gap exists. The findings of this research will be presented at a number of professional meetings in multiple disciplines and will also be implemented into outreach programs for kindergarten through12th grade students in Tennessee and Alabama.