Differential responses of Bolivian timber species to prescribed fire and other gap treatments
The article followed the establishment and growth response of 13 commercial tree species to canopy opening, above-ground biomass removal, and experimental burns of low and high intensities in a lowland dry forest in Bolivia. Three patterns of response to treatments were observed among the most abund...
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Published in | New forests Vol. 30; no. 1; pp. 1 - 20 |
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Main Authors | , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Dordrecht
Springer Nature B.V
01.07.2005
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | The article followed the establishment and growth response of
13 commercial tree species to canopy opening, above-ground biomass removal, and experimental
burns of low and high intensities in a lowland dry forest in Bolivia. Three patterns of
response to treatments were observed among the most abundant commercial tree species. (1)
Shade-intolerant species regenerated mostly from seed and had the highest survival and
growth rates following high-intensity burns. (2) Shade-tolerant species were abundant in gap
control and plant removal treatments. Treatments had little effect on the height growth of
these species. (3) Individuals of root sprouting species were most abundant following plant
removal and low-intensity burn treatments. Treatments had little effect on the height growth
of these species. The wide variation in species responses to gap treatments found in this
study not only reinforces the concept that species are distributed along a continuum of
shade-tolerance levels, but that other aspects of species biology, such as seed dispersal
type or sprouting behavior, further differentiate regeneration strategies. The variety of
regeneration strategies found among the species at this forest site will require a flexible
management scheme that mixes more intensive silvicultural treatments such as prescribed
burning with less intensive treatments. |
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Bibliography: | 1772 ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-1 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 0169-4286 1573-5095 |
DOI: | 10.1007/s11056-004-0762-y |