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Author(s):
William A. Gould, Grizelle Gonzalez, Andrew T. Hudak
Year Published:

Cataloging Information

Topic(s):
Fuels
Fuel Descriptions
Ecosystem(s):
Montane wet mixed-conifer forest, Montane dry mixed-conifer forest

NRFSN number: 12115
FRAMES RCS number: 13843
Record updated:

Landscape fragmentation can affect fuel accumulation, increase the spatial variability of fuel loads, and affect the susceptibility of forests to fire. Fragmentation creates a complex environment in which to manage forests in the United States and Puerto Rico and few studies have related the combined effects of fragmentation, fragment size, forest type, and climate on biomass, downed woody debris, and decomposition. Our goal is to understand the variability in fuels and forest structure that is created by forest edges and fragmentation. This study has led to information that will lead to better prediction and mapping of fuel loads and fire behavior in fragmented forests and aid in management decisions on public forested lands in Puerto Rico, Idaho, Washington, Minnesota, and Alaska. We have been investigating the effect of forest fragmentation on fine woody debris, coarse woody debris, standing dead and live biomass accumulation, forest composition and structural attributes, and woody decomposition rates along gradients of climate, stand age, and fragment size by sampling these attributes along transects running from fragment edge to interior in fragments of different sizes (e.g. ha to km2), ages (e.g. open young secondary to older closed forests), and in different climates (e.g. tropical, temperate, and boreal). This project has three components: 1. Characterization of differences in forest fragment edges vs. interiors in a number of forest structural attributes through field sampling and analysis, 2. Characterization of the differences in forest fragment edges vs. interiors in terms of decay rates of wood stakes, and 3. Incorporation of fragment characteristics based on field measured relationships into mapping and analyses of spatial distribution of fuels. We hypothesized that the rates of productivity, mortality, and decay might be different in fragment edges vs. interiors and might be affected by fragment size and structure (open vs. closed), and that these effects would vary with climate. We hypothesized that the edge effect would be more pronounced where the edge environment was most different from the edge interior, i.e. closed vs. open forests, larger vs. smaller fragments, and moderate vs. extreme climates.

Citation

Gould, William A.; Gonzalez, Grizelle; Hudak, Andrew T. 2005. Landscape fragmentation and forest fuel accumulation: effects of fragment size, age, and climate. Joint Fire Science Project No. 01-1-3-37. Puerto Rico: USDA Forest Service, International Institute of Tropical Forestry. 12 p.

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