LONG-TERM STUDIES OF FOREST DYNAMIC IN THE DUKE FOREST, SOUTH EASTERN UNITED STATES: A SYNTHESIS (REVIEW)

doi:10.3773/j.issn.1005-264x.2008.02.007

Abstract

Abstract:

A growing need for long-term condition and trend information across natural and anthropogenic landscapes is promoting interest in long-term permanent plot research. In this review, we introduced the 76-year history of management and research on forest dynamics in the Duke Forest, NC. This forest has been intensively studied since the early 1930s and has become a model system for ecological and environmental education and research in the eastern United States. We summarize and assess research in the Duke Forest on forest environment, the current network of long-term permanent vegetation plots, survey protocols, data management procedures, and major research findings from those long-term plot data. We also summarize more broadly the current status of long-term research on the natural dynamics of Piedmont forests of the southeastern United States. Lessons learned from the Duke Forest research site could inform the design of a world-wide, long-term network of research plots for monitoring and assessment of forest dynamics and trends in species composition and biodiversity.

Key words: Duke Forest, species diversity, forest succession, spatial pattern, disturbance ecology, long-term permanent plot, the eastern deciduous forests, Piedmont Plateau

XI Wei-Min, PEET Robert K. LONG-TERM STUDIES OF FOREST DYNAMIC IN THE DUKE FOREST, SOUTH EASTERN UNITED STATES: A SYNTHESIS (REVIEW)[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2008, 32(2): 299-318.

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URL: https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/10.3773/j.issn.1005-264x.2008.02.007

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Figures/Tables 5

Fig.1 The locations of the Duke Forest in North Carolina and the seven mapped permanent plots (MPPs) and the 34 long-term permanent sample plots (PSPs) in Durham Division and Korstian Division of the Duke Forest, North Carolina, USA The sub-areas within the two divisions are the forest cover types. PSPs are the long-term permanent sample plots which were established in the early 1930s.Note the legends of forest cover types are not shown in this figure (Data source: the Duke Forest office, Duke University 2001)

Fig. 2 Old-field succession on Piedmont and four-stage forest succession model and hypothesized tree species diversity curve (as shown in solid line) over time.

Fig.3 Photographs illustrating major forest landscape types in the Duke Forest, North Carolina, USA. Photographs are by Weimin Xi Upper left: This sign shows the 100-year land use history and various management practices have been conducted after the 1996 Hurricane Fran for this damaged area, including salvaging, chopping, site preparation burning, and planting of loblolly pines. Upper right: This 2001 photograph shows a typical oak-dominated upland hardwood stand (PSP 10) in the Duke Forest. The majority of upland hardwoods is second growth and is significantly influenced by soil type, physiology and past disturbance. Lower left: This 2001 photograph shows the Graveyard plot loblolly pine stand of Duke Forest. The Graveyard plot was an even-aged (ca. 80-year-old), post-agriculture loblolly stand in transition to hardwood dominance. Lower right: The mixed-aged lowland alluvial hardwood forest. Lowland forests (or bottomland hardwood areas) occupy mainly mesic/hydric sites

Fig.4 3D visualization of long-term forest stand dynamics in the Duke Forest, North Carolina, USA (The images are created by Weimin Xi) The upper right and upper left graphic images together show visualization of forest stand dynamics in the Bormann plot of Duke Forest, North Carolina, USA. The lower right and lower left show 3D visualization of forest stand dynamics in PSP 17 plot of Duke Forest, North Carolina, USA. These 3-Dimesion graphic images were generated using our improved Stand Visualization System (SVS), which originally developed by the Pacific Northwest Research Station of the USDA Forest Service with data from field survey records of the forest stand from 1950 to 1997 for the Bormann plot, and 1933 to 2001 for the PSP 17. Note in the upper right image of Bormann plot, there are some fallen trees by the 1996 Hurricane Fan. These images provide a representation of dynamics of stand conditions in both plots over a 47-year and 67-year period. The Bormann plot is 1.96 hm2 in size (140 m long and 140 m wide), and the PSP 17 is 0.04 hm2 in size (20.1 m long and 20.1 m wide)

Fig.5 Depletion curves illustrating differences in mortality rates of trees from two upland, mixed-aged, mixed-species stands

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