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Introduction to Forest Ecology

• Ecosystems operate as dynamic networks
• They rely on the interaction between living organisms and the non-living environment in a defined area.
• Ecosystems integrate biotic and abiotic components, maintain functionality through energy flow and material cycling, and exhibit complex interdependencies.
• These elements create a self-sustaining system where each component is vital for overall health and stability.
• A forest ecosystem is a specialized terrestrial system with interconnected components
• Trees are dominant structural elements, along with wildlife, microorganisms, and the physical environment (soil, climate, water, minerals).
• Components are arranged in vertical layers like canopy, understory, and forest floor, creating diverse habitats and niches.
• Ecosystems maintain functionality through food webs, nutrient cycles, and dynamic component interactions.
• These elements operate across scales, from forest stands to landscapes, forming ecological relationships.
• This integration allows the ecosystem to sustain itself, provide essential ecological services, support biodiversity, and maintain ecological balance.
• Physical environmental factors shape forest ecosystems through climate, soil, water availability, rock substrate, and sunlight.
• These work with climate patterns, topography, and soil to create ecosystem conditions.
• These factors influence tree growth, species distribution, and insect populations, impacting diversity and supporting specific forest types and ecosystems

Forest Ecosystem Attributes

• Forest ecosystems have five major attributes contributing to overall function as a dynamic environmental system.
• Structure: Vertical and horizontal organization, including canopy layers and tree spatial distribution.
• Function: Nutrient cycling (decomposition and uptake), carbon sequestration (CO₂ absorption), and water cycling (transpiration and precipitation).
• Complexity: Biodiversity, food webs, and ecological relationships contribute to ecosystem stability.
• Interaction and Interdependency: Demonstrated through symbiotic relationships between biotic and abiotic components.
• Temporal Change: Dynamic nature shown through ecological succession, from pioneer species to climax communities that adapts ecosystems to environmental changes.

Forest Ecosystem Structural Elements

• Key structural elements in forest ecosystems work together to support vital ecological functions.
• The vertical structure includes distinct canopy layers (overstory, midstory, understory) and height stratification of vegetation.
• This arrangement facilitates diverse habitat creation and resource utilization.
• Horizontal structure encompasses the spatial distribution of trees and vegetation, including gap dynamics and patch patterns.
• Special features like edge zones, wildlife trees, and snags enhance biodiversity and complexity.
• These structural elements support nutrient cycling (decomposition and uptake), water cycling (precipitation and transpiration), and energy capture through photosynthesis.
• Structural elements create a complex system enabling forests to maintain ecological processes and support diverse life forms.

Natural vs. Human-Caused Disturbances

• Forest ecosystems undergo natural and human-caused disturbances affecting structure and function.
• Natural disturbances like wildfires trigger regeneration and maintain fire-dependent species.
• Other natural disturbances include insect infestations, diseases, wind throw events, avalanches, floods, and droughts.
• Human disturbances manifest through timber harvesting and land-use changes (agriculture or urban development).
• Natural disturbances contribute to ecosystem renewal and species diversity
• Human disturbances lead to habitat loss and fragmentation - understanding the distinction is critical for effective conservation.

Forest Succession

• Forest succession is a predictable process involving progressive replacement of biological communities over time.
• Pioneer stage: Hardy species colonize an area.
• Seral stages: Represent intermediate recovery phases.
• Climax community: Relatively stable and self-perpetuating.
• Multiple factors influence successional changes: plant-driven competition and facilitation, animal and disease influences, abiotic factors (fire, wind, climate), and human activities (harvesting and management).
• British Columbia's coastal environments are a key succession example
• They progress from herb shrubs to deciduous trees and finally to conifers; plants' shade tolerance is crucial.

Forest Ecosystem Nutrient and Water Cycles

• Forest ecosystems maintain complex nutrient and water cycling through interconnected processes.
• Inputs originate from precipitation, atmospheric deposition, parent material weathering, and nitrogen fixation.
• Nutrients and water move through the ecosystem via decomposition, root uptake, nutrient translocation, and litterfall.
• Outputs occur through leaching, surface runoff, gaseous losses, and biomass removal.
• Continuous nutrient and water cycling is essential for forest ecosystem health and productivity.

Biodiversity in Resilient Forest Ecosystems

• Forest ecosystems feature biodiversity at three hierarchical levels, promoting ecosystem resilience.
• Genetic diversity is variation in genes within a species enables adaptation to changing conditions.
• Species diversity, or alpha diversity, refers to a variety of species present within a specific habitat; richness and abundance.
• Ecosystem diversity, or beta diversity, represents variation between ecosystems that creates landscape-level heterogeneity for overall stability and functionality.

Values of Forest Ecosystems and Conservation Areas

• Biodiversity offers intrinsic and utilitarian value to forest ecosystems.
• Intrinsic is the inherent worth independent of human gain; ethical and cultural significance.
• Utilitarian offers tangible benefits through goods (food, medicine, materials), ecosystem services (pollination, water purification), and informational benefits (research and education).
• Conservation areas and parks play a vital role through landscape ecology. which protects biodiversity, maintains ecosystem services, and preserves natural processes examining ecosystem interactions at watershed scales, habitat patches, wildlife corridors, and the influences of spatial patterns.

Influences of Landscape Ecology and Forest Management

• Landscape ecology has transformed forest management; understanding how spatial patterns affect processes.
• Examines landscape arrangement and distribution, landscape component interactions, and spatial patterns' influence on flora and fauna.
• Driven by 2 key factors:
• Balancing forest management needs.
• Enabling managers to account for ecological processes across larger scales.
• Recognizes spatial and temporal relationships between interconnected systems and heterogeneity, allowing informed decisions that consider both immediate and long-term impacts of management practices.

Understanding Ecosystem Connectivity

• Landscape ecology plays a role in understanding connectivity, investigating movement of energy, materials, and species across landscapes.
• Examines the effect of barriers and helps develop conservation strategies, like wildlife corridors; a key application is in the design of wildlife corridors and the identification of priority areas .
• Researchers use advanced mapping and monitoring to understand landscape patterns, create predictive models, study impacts of human activities, develop land management practices, and protecting essential habitats.

Modern Forestry Practices and Balance

• Modern forestry integrates environmental and societal needs beyond timber harvesting including sustainable management of forest ecosystems.
• At its core, modern consists of:
• Ecosystem management covers trees, vegetation, wildlife, biodiversity, soil, water, and environmental interactions.
• Economic benefits- sustainable timber production, forest products, recreational opportunities, and essential ecosystem services.
• Acknowledging the importance of recreational access, and cultural preservation and balanced approach to ensure continuing economic benefits, and maintaining key ecological functions.

Forest Influences on Health of Fish

• Forests maintain fish populations through temperature regulation (shade from canopies that keeps cool water), improved water quality in areas of salmon egg development and survival
• Forests create important habitat features, like fallen trees creating pools, hiding spots, and shelter from predators through woody debris; management practices should include riparian zones and selective cutting.
• Water quality monitoring and fish population surveys are vital for assessing the effectiveness of management practices

Economic & Ecological Values of Forest

• Forest ecosystems worth almost 5 trillion USD annually.
• In 2009, China's forests valued at 1.5 trillion USD based on six services: carbon sequestration, water conservation, soil protection, biodiversity preservation, and air purification.
• Ecological benefits outweigh commercial timber value; traditional valuation needs to be considered; sustainable practices should prioritize ecosystem services.

Climate Regulation & Water Resource

• Forests play a vital role through multiple mechanisms.
• Forests participate carbon sequestration, temperature regulation, and precipitation patterns while stabilizing micro climates.
• Serves as a natural filtration system for water supplies.
• Enables water-dependent activities such as recreation. For example, forest canopies control water temperature improving climate stability leading to the resilience of environmental systems. Forests play a role in climate change mitigation, radiation balance, temperature regulation and precipitation patterns. Impact of deforestation reduces potential reducing carbon storage.

Forest's Influences on Climate Mitigation

• Forests can impact global factors such as carbon regulation through sequestration and releasing through respiration and decomposition.
• Forest management practices include reforestation efforts, which can impact carbon regulation by potentially doubling levels by 2060.
• Deforestation releases previously stored carbon which can have extensive impacts beyond the region contributing to dynamics.

Forests Supporting Healthy Ecosystems

• Forests play a vital role through a number of interconnected mechanisms.
• Forests regulate flow patterns.
• Forests act as a natural filter for water and nutrients.
• Forests provide habitat for aquatic life through fallen bodies that give morphology, regulate energy outputs, and support species survival.

Effects of Deforestation

• Deforestation effects are exemplified in the Yangtze River case study, which led to government to issuing a logging ban in 1999.
• Soil erosion is a critical concern in forest ecosystems.
• Gully erosion creates concentrated water flow and sheet erosion results in thin layers removal.

Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE)

• The Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) demonstrates interaction of vegetation, slope, precipitation, and erodibility that helps prevent a variety of issues.
• Vegetation management is the primary controllable solution.
• Soil protection helps with China and Japan's erosion.

Forest's Interconnected Functions

• Forests play a role in carbon cycling, helping with temperature and precipitation patterns - water resources serve protection providing to hydroelectric power generation.
• Supporting natural resources and human communities.

Forest Biodiversity's Contribution

• In order to maintain diverse species a number of attributes are necessary.
• Support biodiversity maintaining ecological processes.
• However, deforestation threatens that decreasing habitat and ecological instability.

Distinguishing Tree Types

• Hardwood and softwood trees are distinguished primarily by their structural characteristics. Structural characteristics: Broad leaves, complex structure, and distinctive pores.
• Examples of trees include oak, maple, and birch.
• Though the hardness in names is not relevant wood is determined by cellular classification and hardness

Annual Cut

• The Allowable Annual Cut (AAC) is a government-regulated harvest quota that helps with forest management for the benefit of the environment.

Strategic Solutions for Forest

British Columbia has strategically supported forests to reduce dependency:

• Prioritization of non-forestries.
• Enhancing of timber through manufacturing.
• Alternative forest uses: Botanical ingredients, tourism, and recreation.

Beetle Outbreaks Affect AAC

• The Mountain Pine Beetle (MPB) outbreak in British Columbia has had devastating effects.
• Evidenced by 200 million + meters leading a 50% decline in harvest levels in affected areas and influencing accountability calculation. Climate change causes the loss of harvestability timber for sector recovery.

Shaping of Distribution in Forests

• Global environmental factors shape the distribution including earth's land surface to affect forest distribution and health including temperature water levels biodiversity.
• British stands are covered by the forests of wooded lands and in 42% of total land with support for suitable environments.

Determining Forest and Habitats.

• Forest types are determined both geographically and the conditions to shape.
• This occurs both altitudinally and latitudinally.
• Species can adapt to the conditions of varying environment factors that affect the distributions within the ecosystems.

Tropical Rainforests - Diverse

• In tropical climates stratification creates microhabitats supporting wide varieties of flora and species based the amount of light they absorb and specialized niches.

Temperate Forests - Relationships

• Temperate forests show relationships impacting characteristics in their soil structures.
• Supporting components are from common spices adding components.

Boreal - Forest Fires

• Boreal forests are combination of fires and other environmental factors.
• This creates fire ignition.

Forest Species

• Canada's forests are divided into temperate regions.
• 57% of forest coverage and hardwood diversity - Aspen and Birch.

Strategies for Sustainability

• The immediate steps for forestry: action from the illegal activities such as the Forest Capital Index (FCI)

BC Ecosystem - Types

• Pioneer: Disturbances Aspen, requiring high sunlight.
• Climax: Shade, Western Red, long living.

BC categories

BC can be categorized into 2 categories of softwood and hardwood differing in characteristics such as Douglas Fir cones etc.

Douglas Fir

• Douglas has distinctive features such as a high adaptably, preference for drier sites.
• Represents significant Economic Importance, representing the state's timber sources.

Cedar

Shows leaf structures on the grey textured portions of the tree, and its moisture related structures.

Hemlock species

• Western hemlock are related species that occupy British regions in the west.
• Mountain hemlock has species needing elevation.
• They require the same growing process.

Pine adaptation

• Lodegpole pines have adaptation towards distribution in forests which helps with abundance and the trees need to have a well drained soil in order to fully thrive.

Defining Characteristics

• Ponderosa has long needles with a high volume of thick bark and drought resistance.
• White Spruce is characterized by the bark patterns that create a more habitable climate in British Columbia, with ability to withstand conditions in northern regions.
• Trembling Aspen is characterized by its adaptability with diverse conditions in varied environments .
• Birch presents in a unique form that requires unique environmental areas to produce efficiently throughout the province providing disturbed locations for survival along side water.

Black Cottonwood - Conditions

• Black cottonwood is best suited for the area and it requires consistent moisture.
• Kelowna requires limited tree cover for its survival that is affected by its elevation and composition.

Mountains

• Mountains have several zones to showcase British composition in the forestry system, moving to zones of the Engelmen.

• Island biomes display the importance of being adaptive in the varying conditions of coast and inland locations and mountain conditions.

Northern Interior Zones

SBPS zones have cold climate with variation. The BWBS require short seasons.

Hemlock ICH

Interior Cedar Hemlock zones requires diverse compositions for the support of productive climates.

Silvics and Silviculture

• Silvics study tree species in ecology while silviculture applies the wisdom obtained representing establishment and composing a relationship with decisions needed for the industry and ensuring a sustainable environment.

Stand Tending

• The stand tends to require two main approaches that both need certain requirements the two are thinning and the approach of removing certain species some examples are improving conditions fertilizing to improve health standards with economic value.

Cutting

• The Even Aged Approach focuses on creating uniform stands when at appropriate growing levels, as opposed to select species.

Whole Tree Harvesting (WTH)

• Whole-Tree Harvesting and Stem-Only Harvesting represent two distinct approaches to harvest that differ significantly WTH transport minimal waste. The impacts can affect the nutrients in the habitat, and the overall well being of the forest.

Slash Burning

• Slash burning manages the risk of the site but can create poor air conditions.
• Requires stand level planning and management.

The Clear Cut

• The Clear-cut is a way of cutting through all of the areas in the forest to offer improved operations with concerns to natural regeneration and environments needing careful planning for success. Clear-cutting can affect the environment biodiversity.

Seed Tree System

• The seed system follows a strategic approach to seed retention and harvests the right variety of sources to improve balanced management.

Methods

The shelter wood systems have some of the features to improve harvesting from multi-cuts. .

Harvest Methods

The Harvest selection system has been implemented to monitor various stages, improve the preservation and make the tree's well being the focus

Coppice Advantage

• Coppice is reliant on seed growth improving the costs efficiency and improving the processes needed moving forward.

Objectives

The objectives should be measured in retention systems improving function while maintaining healthy forest.

Retention-Ecosystems

• Aggregation retention improves the wildlife movement between environmental factors while the dispersal improves the forest health for generations.

Forest Disturbance Requirements

Management focuses on the balance while improving and taking consideration measures to protect certain aspects to better the community and well being.

Species Composition

• The disturbance in species happens typically with non uniform patterns which affect ecological disturbances. The most important piece is to improve the management and what that means for the current state of the forest. Each type has their own system in mind with specific levels for particular factors such as maintenance which is improved through varying conditions for particular conditions that affect the environment. Habitat availability can influence how it can affect the biotic system - vegetation with processes that occur more naturally. In turn this can affect more processes in the ecosystem.

Watershed Effects

• Watershed will have particular pathways for improving the quality.

Watershed Stability

• Ecosystem stability is required while developing sustainable practices for long term goals.

Coastal Forestry - BC

• BC Coastal differs in rain fall and need tailored sustainable management strategies

Fragile

• The threat affects how the isolation decreases movement according to literature improving global regeneration. Three of these in fragmentation involves direct habitat and compromising environments.

BC cutting operations improved diversity in a way wildfires did not adding to rapid nutrient levels with cutting processes.

Retention

The green retention improves processes such as nitrogen availability and can also manage a wide array of issues such as weather.

Harvesting