Mortality, structure, and regeneration in whitebark pine stands impacted by mountain pine beetle in the southern Sierra Nevada

Abstract

Whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis Engelm.) is vulnerable to mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) attack throughout western North America, but beetle outbreaks in the southwestern portion of the range (i.e., Sierra Nevada) have been spatially limited until recently. We examined patterns of mortality, structure, and regeneration in whitebark pine stands impacted by mountain pine beetle in the southern Sierra Nevada. Mortality was greatest in medium to large diameter (>10–20 cm dbh) trees, resulting in declines in mean and maximum tree diameter and tree size class diversity following an outbreak. Severity of beetle attack was positively related to mean tree diameter and density. Density of young (<3 years old) whitebark pine seedling clusters was positively related to severity of beetle attack on mature stands. All sites showed a stable production of whitebark pine regeneration within at least the past 30–40 years, with a pulse of new seedlings in the past 3 years in beetle-impacted stands. Our results show that mountain pine beetle outbreaks in the southern Sierra Nevada result in substantial changes in whitebark pine stand structure and suggest low resistance but high resilience to initial attack, especially in the absence of white pine blister rust.