Abstract
An inventory of the vegetation types of Castelporziano Estate (Rome), including examples of Mediterranean ecosystems in excellent preserved condition, was compiled. Because Leaf Area Index (LAI) changed with forest structure and developmental stages, maximum LAI provided a good estimate of maximum biomass accumulation. Plant biomass estimation, ranging from 61 tons ha-1 to 360 tons ha-1, fitted well into 14 biomass classes; the highest values (from 301 tons ha-1 to 360 tons ha-1) were related to stratified forested vegetation types, including the more mature Pinus pinea plantations, Quercus ilex evergreen forests and broad leaf mixed forests. LAI ranged from 0.5 to 4.5, and changed with forest structure, increasing with the increase of plant biomass. Leaf area index measurements fitted well into nine LAI classes, and the highest values were related to the stratified vegetation types. Biomass and LAI maps might be employed as a computerised mapped information system for natural resource policy, regional planning, and landscape management. Long-term monitoring may easily be achieved by LAI measurements which can be converted to biomass values by the identified relationship between plant biomass and LAI.
Highlights
New vision of landscape ecology requires long-term research to understand the dynamic of ecosystems, and management can be defined as an activity for achieving specific conservation goals accorcting to natural, seminatural, or cultivated resources
In order to achieve this it is necessary to survey the current and the potential inventories of species and ecosystems (Safriel et al 1997) that provide information on the status of ecosystems giving a sense of the resources dynamics (Halvorson and Maender 1994; Halvorson 1998)
Changes in plant and stand processes are mectiated by the local state of disturbance and one would expect that variation in structure could have the effect of altering processes in terrestrial ecosystems (Shugart et at. 1997)
Summary
New vision of landscape ecology requires long-term research to understand the dynamic of ecosystems, and management can be defined as an activity for achieving specific conservation goals accorcting to natural, seminatural, or cultivated resources. Landscape can be thought as a mosaic in different stages of recovery from natural disturbances. Changes in plant and stand processes are mectiated by the local state of disturbance and one would expect that variation in structure could have the effect of altering processes in terrestrial ecosystems Several reports (Wittwer 1983; Botkin 1986; Pierce and Running 1988; Gratani 1997; Gratani and Foti 1998) identify leaf area index (LAI) as the most important variable for characterising vegetation structure and functioning for global researches, inclucting estimation of plant productivity and determination of canopy cover densities (Kaufmann and Troendle 1981). Since LAI changes with forest structure and developmental stages, maximum LAI at forest maturity is a good estimator of maximum biomass accumulation (Waring 1983; Gratani and Fiorentino 1988; Shao et at. 1995)
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