Authors
Samuel P Reed, Alejandro A Royo, Alexander T Fotis, Kathleen S Knight, Charles E Flower, Peter S Curtis
Publication date
2022/3
Journal
Journal of Applied Ecology
Volume
59
Issue
3
Pages
812-821
Description
- Ungulates place immense consumptive pressure on forest vegetation globally, leaving legacies of reduced biodiversity and simplified vegetative structure. However, what remains unresolved is whether browse‐induced changes occurring early in succession ultimately manifest themselves in the developed forest canopy. Understanding the development and persistence of these legacies is critical as canopy structure is an important determinant of forest ecosystem functions such as carbon sequestration and wildlife habitat.
- We measured how white‐tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus browse during stand initiation affected canopy structure, tree species richness, diversity, stem density, and basal area on Pennsylvania's Allegheny Plateau using a portable canopy LiDAR system. We capitalized on an historic deer enclosure experiment where forests were subjected to four deer densities (4, 8, 15, and 25 deer/km2 …
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SP Reed, AA Royo, AT Fotis, KS Knight, CE Flower… - Journal of Applied Ecology, 2022