Recalcitrant Understory Layers Arrest, Delay, and Alter Forest Succession
Authored By: A. A. Royo, W. P. Carson
This section describes different ways that a recalcitrant understory layer can influence forest regeneration and stand development following a disturbance event. In the following sections we briefly review the literature to evaluate the evidence for three different successional pathways (Figure 2). These pathways include: (1) indefinite suppression of subsequent tree regeneration (arrested succession), (2) a protracted period of stand establishment (delayed succession), and (3) a differential reduction of tree seedling recruitment that constricts species composition in the ensuing forest stand (altered succession).
Subsections found in Recalcitrant Understory Layers Arrest, Delay, and Alter Forest Succession
- Arrested Succession : In a small number of documented cases, recalcitrant understory layers appear to exclude tree regeneration for extended periods of time.
- Delayed Succession : A recalcitrant understory layer can slow the growth rate of tree species, thereby slowing the rate of successional change without altering the eventual tree species composition.
- Altered Forest Succession : A recalcitrant understory layer may differentially reduce establishment among co-occurring tree species, thereby controlling the composition of the advance regeneration layer (George and Bazzaz 1999a, b).
Encyclopedia ID: p3098
