Successional replacement mediated by frequency and severity of wind and snow disturbances in a Picea-Abies forest

Abstract

Abstract Question: How do wind and snow disturbances affect the successional replacement of Picea glehnii by Abies sachalinensis in a sub-alpine coniferous forest? Location: Cool temperate, northern Japan. Methods: Tree demography (growth, mortality and recruitment rates) was determined by repeated measurements of stem diameter and height, and multiple censuses in four Picea-Abies stands undergoing succession. Above-ground stand biomass, residence time and tree growth trajectories of the component species were estimated to examine successional changes in structure and dynamics. Individual based simulations were used to examine the effects of disturbances that slowed down succession. Multiple regression analyses were used to determine the relative importance of disturbance frequency and intensity on species composition during succession. Results: Above-ground biomass was larger in P. glehnii than in A. sachalinensis stands, whereas residence time, a proxy of productivity, was much shorter for A. sachalinen...