Limited conifer regeneration following wildfires in dry ponderosa pine forests of the Colorado Front Range

作者：Rother Monica T^*; Veblen Thomas T

来源：Ecosphere, 2016, 7(12): e01594.

DOI：10.1002/ecs2.1594/full

• climate change
• Colorado Front Range
• conifer regeneration
• Douglas-fir
• ecotone
• fire severity
• Pinus ponderosa
• ponderosa pine
• Pseudotsuga menziesii
• resilience
• tree establishment
• wildfire

In recent years, increased wildfire activity and climate change have raised concern among scientists and land managers regarding current and future vegetation patterns in post-burn landscapes. We surveyed conifer regeneration 8-15 years after fire in six burn areas in the lower montane zone of the Colorado Front Range. We sampled across a broad range of elevations, aspects, and fire severities and found that densities of ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) are generally low, although areas of abundant regeneration do occur. Conifer regeneration was most limited in xeric settings, including more southerly aspects and elevations closer to lower treeline. Additionally, fewer juvenile conifers occurred at greater distances from mature, live trees indicating that seed source as well as topoclimatic setting limits post-fire tree regeneration. Projecting the extent of future forest cover is uncertain due to the possibility of future pulses of tree establishment and unknown depletion rates of existing seedling populations. However, current patterns of post-fire seedling establishment suggest that vegetation composition and structure may differ notably from historic patterns and that lower density stands and even non-forested communities may persist in some areas of these burns long after fire, especially in xeric settings or where no nearby seed source remains.

• 出版日期2016-12