 |
| DISTURBANCE ECOLOGY |
| Disturbances in forest and woodland ecosystems may be integral to maintaining the vegetation type or may precipitate changes in the vegetation, but they are inevitable. Disturbances in forests and woodlands include fire, insect outbreaks, floods, avalanches, and wildfire grazing, as well as human land use, logging, livestock grazing, fire supression and climate change. More... |
|
 |
| INVASIVES |
| In many of our Nation's wildlands, invasive nonnative plants contribute to the endangerment of native species and lead to other severe ecological and financial consequences. Projected trends of increasing human populations and associated development and globalization wild contribute to increases in the already high rates of introductions of nonnative plant species. Changes in climate are likely to alter species distributions, favoring the expansion of some nonnative species and contributing to the imperilment of additional native species. More... |
|
 |
| SOILS |
| Soils are complex elements of forest and woodland ecosystems, linking topography and geology with vegetation. The study of soil ecology includes soil organisms, nutrient cycling, productivity, soil development, fire effects on soils, hydrology and erosion. More... |
|
Erigeron mancus on Hoosier Ridge. |
| PLANT BIOGEOGRAPHY |
| Plants are distributed along gradients of environmental conditions that may change over time with changing climate. Communities of species tend to assemble under certain suites of conditions and may disassemble when those conditions change. The science of biogeography addresses the important issues of biodiversity, succession, the role of exotic and invasive species in ecosystem, climate-induced migrations and extinctions, and the presence and movement of ecotones between ecosystems. More... |
|
| |
| APPLIED ECOLOGY |
| Humans live intimately with forests and woodlands and derive many benefits from them. Wood, forage and water are among the products of human manipulation of forest and woodland ecological processes through the practice of silviculture. Humans can influence the structure and function of forest and woodlands through prescribed fire, ecological restoration activities, forest management, and fuels reduction. More... |
|
 |
| HISTORICAL ECOLOGY |
| Understanding the past is integral to managing forests of the future. Reconstructing forests, climates and disturbances of the past through a variety of methods help us understand how ecosystems came to be the way they are, and what they might become in the future. Using methods such as dendrochronology, palynology, archaeology and historical studies and accounts, scientists can reconstruct elements of ecosystems such as patterns of fire, past climates, land use history, and historical species distributions and relate them to past, present and future conditions. |
|
 |
| FOREST PATHOLOGY |
| Plants and animals in forest and woodlands are subject to many diseases and parsites which affect their distribution, dominance and susceptibility to other disturbances. Some are native and co-evolved with species such as mistletoes and some root pathogens, while others are recent introductions that are changing ecosystems rapidly, such as white pine blister rust. Changing climate may alter the effects of these pathogens. More... |
|
| |
|
| |
|
