Natural succession and clearcutting as drivers of environmental heterogeneity and beta diversity in North American boreal forests

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dc.contributor.authorGarcĂ­a-Tejero, Sergio
dc.contributor.authorSpence, John R.
dc.contributor.authorO'Halloran, John
dc.contributor.authorBourassa, Stephane
dc.contributor.authorOxbrough, Anne
dc.contributor.funderEdge Hill Universityen
dc.contributor.funderDaishowa-Marubeni International Ltden
dc.contributor.funderCanadian Forest Products Ltden
dc.contributor.funderAlberta Ministry of Agricultureen
dc.contributor.funderForestry and the Foothills Research Instituteen
dc.date.accessioned2019-09-02T14:35:47Z
dc.date.available2019-09-02T14:35:47Z
dc.date.issued2018-11-02
dc.description.abstractClear-cutting alters natural ecosystem processes by reducing landscape heterogeneity. It is the dominant harvesting technique across the boreal zone, yet understanding of how environmental heterogeneity and beta diversity are structured in forest ecosystems and post-clear cut is lacking. We use ground-dwelling arthropods as models to determine how natural succession (progression from deciduous to mixed to coniferous cover types) and clear-cutting change boreal forests, exploring the role of environmental heterogeneity in shaping beta diversity across multiple spatial scales (between-cover types and between-stands of the same cover type (1600 to 8500 m), between-plots (100 to 400 m) and within-plots (20 to 40 m)). We characterise environmental heterogeneity as variability in combined structural, vegetational and soil parameters, and beta diversity, as variability in assemblage composition. Clear-cutting homogenised forest environments across all spatial scales, reducing total environmental heterogeneity by 35%. Arthropod beta diversity reflected these changes at larger scales suggesting that environmental heterogeneity is useful in explaining beta diversity both between-cover types and between-stands of the same cover type. However, at smaller scales, within- and between-plots spider beta diversity reflected the lower environmental heterogeneity in regenerating stands, whereas staphylinid and carabids assemblages were not homogenised 12 years post-harvest. Differences in environmental heterogeneity and staphylinid beta diversity between cover types were also important at small scales. In regenerating stands, we detected a subtle yet notable effect of pre-felling cover type on environmental heterogeneity and arthropods, where pre-felling cover type accounted for a significant amount of variance in beta diversity, indicating that biological legacies (e.g. soil pH reflecting pre-harvest conditions) may have a role in driving beta diversity even 12 years post-harvest. This study highlights the importance of understanding site history when predicting impacts of change in forest ecosystems. Further, to understand drivers of beta diversity we must identify biological legacies shaping community structure.en
dc.description.sponsorshipEMEND Projecten
dc.description.statusPeer revieweden
dc.description.versionPublished Versionen
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.articleide0206931en
dc.identifier.citationGarcía-Tejero, S., Spence, J.R., O’Halloran, J., Bourassa, S. and Oxbrough, A., 2018. Natural succession and clearcutting as drivers of environmental heterogeneity and beta diversity in North American boreal forests. PloS one, 13(11), (e0206931). DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0206931en
dc.identifier.doi10.1371/journal.pone.0206931en
dc.identifier.eissn1932-6203
dc.identifier.endpage16en
dc.identifier.issued11en
dc.identifier.journaltitlePLOS Oneen
dc.identifier.startpage1en
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10468/8431
dc.identifier.volume13en
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherPLOSen
dc.relation.projectinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/FP7::SP3::PEOPLE/229520/EU/IRCSET International Mobility Fellowships in Science Engineering and Technology: co-funded by Marie Curie Actions/INSPIREen
dc.relation.urihttps://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0206931
dc.rights© 2018 Garcı´a-Tejero et alen
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/en
dc.subjectEcosystem processesen
dc.subjectLandscape heterogeneityen
dc.subjectEnvironmenten
dc.subjectClear-cuttingen
dc.subjectBeta diversityen
dc.titleNatural succession and clearcutting as drivers of environmental heterogeneity and beta diversity in North American boreal forestsen
dc.typeArticle (peer-reviewed)en
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