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Author(s):
William H. Romme, Lisa Floyd-Hanna, David D. Hanna, Elisabeth Bartlett
Year Published:

Cataloging Information

Topic(s):
Fire Ecology
Fire Effects
Ecological - Second Order
Vegetation
Fire History
Recovery after fire
Resilience
Ecosystem(s):
Aspen woodland

NRFSN number: 11883
FRAMES RCS number: 13633
Record updated:

Aspen exhibits a variety of ecological roles. In southern Colorado, the 1880 landscape mosaic contained a range of stand ages, of which half were >70 years old and half were younger. Pure aspen stands in southern Colorado are widespread and may result from previous short fire intervals that eliminated local conifer seed sources. Aspen regeneration in northern Yellowstone Park is controlled by ungulate browsing pressure and fire, so it has been limited since 1920. However, an episode of aspen seedling establishment occurred after the 1988 fires. We urgently need additional detailed, local case studies of aspen ecology to inform management decisions.

Citation

Romme, William H.; Floyd-Hanna, Lisa; Hanna, David D.; Bartlett, Elisabeth.2001. Aspen's ecological role in the West. In: Shepperd, Wayne D.; Binkley, Dan; Bartos, Dale L.; Stohlgren, Thomas J.; Eskew, Lane G., comps. Sustaining aspen in western landscapes: symposium proceedings; 2000 June 13-15; Grand Junction, CO. Proceedings RMRS-P-18. Fort Collins, CO: USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 243-260.

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