Forest Ecology and Management最新文献

{"title":"The climate-fire nexus: Understanding post-fire vegetation recovery","authors":"Fernando Pérez-Cabello,&nbsp;Roberto Serrano-Notivoli,&nbsp;Raquel Montorio,&nbsp;Cristian Iranzo","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123568","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123568","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In Mediterranean ecosystems, high-frequency hydroclimatic variability, along with shifts in the fire regime, are key drivers of forest degradation. In this context, understanding post-fire vegetation recovery is crucial for both ecological research and forest management standpoint. Satellite-based remote sensing, particularly through orbital platforms, provides a robust framework for tracking post-fire vegetation dynamics. We assessed recovery patterns across 30 fire-affected areas in Aragón (northeastern Spain) by analyzing temporal trends in the Leaf Area Index (LAI), a widely used proxy for canopy structure, primary productivity, and vegetation health. Using Generalized Linear Mixed Models (GLMMs), we modeled LAI trajectories as a function of fire severity, dominant plant regenerative traits, and post-fire climatic conditions (drought or wet periods), including fire location as a random effect to account for spatial heterogeneity among burn sites. The models showed strong predictive capacity (R² ≈ 0.80), and the inclusion of random effects substantially improved model fit, underscoring the importance of site-specific factors in shaping recovery dynamics. Fire severity and post-fire moisture availability—particularly during the first years—were the most influential drivers of LAI regeneration. The regeneration mechanism of dominant vegetation also contributed to early post-fire recovery, although its influence diminished over time. From a forest management perspective, these findings can inform the design of post-fire recovery strategies based on different post-fire moisture and severity conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123568"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146075260","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Burn severity across forest types and burning conditions for forest treatments on the southern rockies Front Range","authors":"Sarah L. Hettema ,&nbsp;Camille Stevens-Rumann ,&nbsp;Hannah Van Dusen ,&nbsp;Mike A. Battaglia ,&nbsp;Anthony G. Vorster ,&nbsp;Jens Stevens","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123529","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123529","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As extreme wildfire events become more frequent, understanding how forest treatments interact with wildfire is increasingly critical. However, assessing wildfire-treatment outcomes is challenging due to interactions among treatments, weather, topography, and fuels. We investigated wildfires from southern Wyoming to northern New Mexico to evaluate under what conditions treatments reduce the ecological impacts of fire, as measured by remotely sensed burn severity. We determined (1) factors influencing the relationship between treatments and burn severity, (2) how burn severity differed across forest and treatment types, and (3) how extreme burning conditions influenced outcomes. Treatment effects varied by forest types, with generally lower burn severity outcomes in lower elevation, frequent fire forest types compared to spruce - fir and lodgepole pine (higher elevation, infrequent fire) forests. Areas that previously burned at low to moderate severity or with prescribed fire had the lowest burn severity outcomes across forest types and even during extreme burning conditions. In contrast, treatments without fire (tree removal and/or surface fuels reduction) had mixed effects across forest types and had equivalent burn severity to untreated areas in infrequent fire forests during extreme burning conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123529"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145986699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Admixture-driven genetic diversity supports adaptive potential in Scots pine: Implications for climate-resilient forest management","authors":"Martyna Lasek ,&nbsp;Bartosz Łabiszak ,&nbsp;Witold M. Wachowiak","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123531","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123531","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Climate change poses a significant threat to the sustainability of European forests, emphasizing the urgent need for informed selection of reproductive material and the conservation of genetic resources in key tree species. Scots pine (<em>Pinus sylvestris</em> L.), one of Europe's most widespread and economically important conifers, exhibits broad phenotypic and ecological variation, making it a priority for adaptive forest management. In this study, we investigated the genetic variation of 56 populations comprising Poland’s best-performing registered seed stands (PL_RSS), ecologically distinct mountain populations (PLM), and reference populations from Northern, Southern, and Western Europe. A total of 1269 individuals were genotyped using mitochondrial DNA markers and over 37,000 genome-wide SNPs to infer demographic history, migration, and potential signatures of historical gene flow. Our analyses revealed high genetic diversity and weak population structure within PL_RSS, consistent with a history of admixture among divergent European lineages, as supported by TreeMix, F-statistics, and spatial migration modelling (FEEMS). In contrast, PLM populations were strongly differentiated, carried unique <em>mt</em>DNA haplotypes, and exhibited signs of long-term isolation, suggesting a glacial refugial origin. These findings provide the first genomic-scale evidence that historical admixture has enhanced the genetic diversity and potential adaptive capacity of Polish Scots pine seed stands. The admixed and genetically rich PL_RSS populations represent valuable resources for breeding programs, including assisted migration and resilience testing under drought and biotic stress conditions. At the same time, the genetically distinct PLM populations warrant conservation priority due to their unique evolutionary legacy. Together, our results advocate a dual forest management strategy combining the use of high-diversity, well-connected seed sources for adaptive forestry with targeted conservation of isolated mountain populations. This approach is essential for preserving genetic diversity, supporting climate-resilient forestry, and maintaining the long-term productivity of Scots pine forests in a rapidly changing environment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123531"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146036177","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Can a fundamental change in forest management improve the forest carbon balance of mixed oak forests in Central Europe?","authors":"Beatrice Thumb von Neuburg ,&nbsp;Christian Eder ,&nbsp;Mohsen Zarebanakouki ,&nbsp;Isabelle Pfeiffer ,&nbsp;Wolfgang Falk ,&nbsp;Dominik Thom","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123557","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123557","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The potential of altering forest management strategies to support the European Union’s (EU) climate-mitigation goals has been widely debated. However, evidence is particularly scarce for direct comparisons between alternative management strategies under comparable site conditions, making it challenging to design robust forest management recommendations. In this study, we investigated mixed oak forests in a dry region of Bavaria, Germany, (i) to evaluate how fundamentally different management strategies effect the <em>in situ</em> carbon balance and (ii) to identify possible drivers of carbon storage and sequestration. We assessed total ecosystem carbon storage and aboveground carbon sequestration in 93 plots (31 stands), comparing High Forests (HF), Coppice-with-Standards (CWS) and an unmanaged Nature Reserve (NR). Using a model averaging approach for multiple linear regressions, we assessed the drivers of carbon storage and sequestration. Total carbon storage differed only marginally and was not statistically significant (p &gt; 0.05) among the three management strategies with, on average, 173.8 t C ha⁻¹ in HF, 191.4 t C ha⁻¹ in CWS, and 192.1 t C ha⁻¹ in NR. Aboveground carbon sequestration was, on average, highest in CWS (3.51 t C ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹) compared to HF (2.40 t C ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹) and NR (2.16 t C ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹), yet these differences were also not statistically significant. Indicators of structural diversity, including maximum tree height, and variation in diameter at breast height, were significantly positively associated with carbon storage. We did not identify any statistically significant variables explaining carbon sequestration. Our results indicate that a fundamental shift in management from HF to CWS or ceasing management entirely (NR) is unlikely to yield large mid-term carbon benefits in mixed oak forests. We conclude that even a fundamental change in the management of mixed oak forests is unlikely to substantially contribute to achieving national and EU climate targets.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123557"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146075262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of prescribed fire on Quercus rubra regeneration near its northern range limit","authors":"Khanh Ton ,&nbsp;Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur ,&nbsp;Natalie L. Cleavitt ,&nbsp;Abigail Powell ,&nbsp;Heidi Asbjornsen","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123565","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123565","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Northern red oak (<em>Quercus rubra</em>) is predicted to expand northward in the northeastern United States with climate change and could increase functional diversity of northern forests. However, red oak regeneration currently faces many challenges including herbivory, pathogens, and consequences of forest mesophication such as light insufficiency and competition with more mesic species. Prescribed burns may address some of these challenges to oak recruitment and establishment. In the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire, we studied pairs of stands harvested within the past decade, with one stand in each pair receiving a prescribed burn of low-moderate intensity. We surveyed and measured naturally regenerated oak seedlings along transects over two years. Seedling density in burned stands was three times the density in paired unburned controls. Seedlings in burned stands had larger root collar diameters, greater extension growth, and more leaves, likely due to greater light availability in burned stands. Additionally, in a mesocosm experiment, seedlings grown in burned soil developed faster and had thicker root collars by the end of the first season than those grown in unburned soil, suggesting additional soil-mediated benefits. Our study demonstrates positive effects of burning for red oak regeneration via both aboveground and belowground mechanisms and affirms prescribed fire as a potentially beneficial silvicultural management tool for northern red oak at and near its northern range limit. However, in stands where advance regeneration of oak is lacking, a single prescribed burn may not be sufficient to regenerate mature oaks without additional silvicultural intervention.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123565"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146075279","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Testing the validity of a chronosequence: Breeding bird diversity and abundance in regenerating oak-hardwood shelterwoods","authors":"Marsh Hlavka,&nbsp;Marlyse Duguid,&nbsp;Mark Ashton","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123536","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123536","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The characteristic shrubland of regenerating temperate mixed hardwood forests provide habitat for many early successional specialist species. The irregular shelterwood is a silvicultural method for regenerating a forest that promotes young complex shrubland landscapes for a period of 15–25 years. In this study, we surveyed bird diversity across an irregular shelterwood chronosequence of a southern New England oak-mixed hardwood forest. We measured the variation in diversity across a chronosequence comprising 31 stands and 30 years of growth as of 2022, with particular focus on nesting guilds. Secondly, we conducted a longitudinal analysis of bird diversity in each stand over a period of 16 years to assess the reliability of the shelterwood chronosequence as a within-year proxy for long-term study. Similar to many prior studies, we found that overall diversity and bird abundance decrease as the regenerating shelterwood ages. Over a 30-year period after harvest, Shannon diversity decreased by over 10 %, species richness decreased by over 20 %, and relative abundance decreased by 50 %. Shrub-nesting birds are particularly sensitive to the loss of young regenerating and shrubland habitat and decrease sharply in abundance as a forest ages, from 51 % of the population to 12 % after 30 years. Ground-nesting birds increase in abundance with young regenerating forests and tree-nesting birds are unaffected by stand age, from 8 % to 40 % over 30 years. However, most importantly, we show these trends occurred both longitudinally and within a single year, indicating that the use of a chronosequence is an effective method of measuring trends in bird abundance and diversity over a period of forest regeneration. This is the first study demonstrating the validity of this method for estimating breeding birds in temperate forests and allows for a more widespread application of its use, particularly where long-term monitoring has not been done.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123536"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145986698","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biochar-induced enhancement of soil available phosphorus shows pronounced temporal dynamics in subtropical Chinese fir plantations","authors":"Jiangfeng Wang ,&nbsp;Fangyin Pan ,&nbsp;Kate Heal ,&nbsp;Chuifan Zhou","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123563","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123563","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Available phosphorus (AP) is a critical limiting factor for productivity and nutrient cycling in subtropical Chinese fir (<em>Cunninghamia lanceolata</em>) plantations. However, plantation soils are typically acidic and phosphorus deficient, resulting in persistently low AP levels. Biochar, owing to its distinct physicochemical properties, is considered effective in improving soil conditions and nutrient availability. However, how soil AP responds to biochar over time remains poorly understood, particularly whether early increases can be sustained or instead diminish and reverse over time. In this study, a field experiment was conducted in a subtropical 3-year-old Chinese fir plantation in Fujian Province, China. The experiment was established on an acidic red soil (Ultisol) with a sandy loam texture. Corn straw biochar produced at 400–500 °C under oxygen-limited slow pyrolysis was applied once at four rates (0, 0.5, 1, and 2 kg plant⁻¹) to replicated plots. Soil samples from each plot were collected at 6, 12, and 18 months after biochar application and analyzed for soil AP, phosphorus fractions, pH, Fe/Al oxides, and microbial communities. Biochar application significantly increased soil AP concentrations at 6–12 months, with AP increasing by 18–56 % at 6 months and 10–47 % at 12 months relative to the control and showing a clear dose-dependent pattern. However, by 18 months, soil AP in all biochar treatments had declined markedly and decreased by 72–76 % relative to the control, indicating that the initial AP enhancement was not sustained and reversed over time. Machine learning and structural equation modeling applied to identify drivers of AP showed that early increases in AP were driven by elevated soil pH and weakened Fe/Al fixation, whereas later declines were associated with Ca-P precipitation and sustained Fe/Al-P stabilization. Consistent with this shift, Ca-bound P increased by 22–36 %, while Fe-P and Al-P decreased by 17–60 % at 18 months relative to the control. Biochar also reshaped soil bacterial communities and P-cycling functional groups, with Proteobacteria-dominated phosphate-solubilizing assemblages and certain Actinobacteriota showing treatment- and time-dependent shifts that were linked to changes in soil AP dynamics. Overall, biochar effectively alleviates soil phosphorus limitation in subtropical Chinese fir plantations in the short term, but its effect is strongly time dependent and may diminish and reverse over time. Our results highlight soil pH elevation and Ca-P precipitation as the dominant biochar-associated drivers of AP dynamics. Since a single high-dose biochar application, although highly effective in the short term, tends to accelerate fixation processes in the long term, plantation management should consider low-dose repeated biochar applications or integration with organic amendments to prolong the effect and sustain nutrient supply and ecosystem functioning.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123563"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146075258","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Integration of Google’s Alpha Earth Foundations into biomass estimation combined with GEDI spaceborne lidar and field inventory data","authors":"Adrian Pascual ,&nbsp;Juan Guerra-Hernández","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123550","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123550","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The temporal harmonization of Earth Observation datasets into numerical embeddings at the global scale and at high resolution over time is ground-breaking. Using Google’s Alpha Earth Foundations (AEF) product over Spain we estimate and predict biomass comparing the performance of two reference datasets: estimates from GEDI at the footprint level and enhanced-geolocated field inventory plots. These measurements, biomass estimates from GEDI and AEF reference year matched in time for out study area - the largest region in Spain. Biomass estimates for AEF showed moderate-low errors (mean % RMSE in calibrations = 0.31) when using inventory plots although. For the GEDI-based calibration strategy, errors were larger (0.38) but for some sub-jurisdictions the performance was nearly identical. We found a ∼20 % error increase in the interval validation in both cases. The embeddings that most contributed to explain biomass were common in the two alternatives, showing consistency across the experiment and reference results for upcoming studies. Our biomass predictions were further validated using independent estimates from canopy height information – airborne lidar and imputed waveforms. Calibrating AEF with inventory plots matched the accuracy of biomass predicted from on-orbit GEDI biomass models and precise lidar-simulated canopy structure used as predictor. Our results showed that AEF trained with field plots can be a promising solution to maximize NFI datasets for large-scale biomass mapping at yearly periodicities. Where biases in GEDI biomass models are low - or where field plot data is not available - biomass estimates from GEDI are can train AEF with sufficiency and over time - increasing the limited temporal range that NFI measurements offer – expanding the ability of GEDI data users to generate carbon biomass to support forest management and conservation among other many GEDI data applications.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123550"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146075263","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Estimated effects of climate and imidacloprid use on the abundances of woodland salamanders","authors":"John C. Maerz ,&nbsp;Jade A. Samples ,&nbsp;Danielle R. Bradke ,&nbsp;Cheyana Bassham ,&nbsp;James A. Martin ,&nbsp;Jeffrey Hepinstall-Cymerman ,&nbsp;Anthony F. Lagalante ,&nbsp;Elizabeth McCarty","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123553","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123553","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;When considering the use of pesticides, forest managers need to make decisions about potential trade-offs between conserving target species and negatively affecting non-target species. To aid those decisions, estimates of non-target effects should contextualize effect sizes relative to other drivers of variation in non-target species abundance or fitness. Hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) has decimated eastern and Carolina hemlock populations in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Imidacloprid, a neonicotinoid insecticide, is currently used to suppress HWA populations and conserve hemlock trees and the habitats they create. Recent concerns have emerged about possible non-target impacts of imidacloprid use on amphibians including salamander populations in managed hemlock forests. Robust estimates of the impacts of imidacloprid application on salamander populations are needed to inform decisions on hemlock conservation in sensitive areas. We conducted repeated depletion samples among 15 replicate plots at each of 15 imidacloprid-treated and 9 untreated reference sites across north Georgia, western North Carolina, and eastern Tennessee. We used a hierarchical N-mixture model in a Bayesian framework to estimate any potential association between imidacloprid application and the terrestrial abundances of two direct-developing plethodontid salamander groups (&lt;em&gt;Plethodon&lt;/em&gt; spp. and &lt;em&gt;Desmognathus&lt;/em&gt; aeneus/&lt;em&gt;D. wrighti&lt;/em&gt;) and a stream-breeding plethodontid salamander guild. We also estimated the relationship between hydroclimate and plethodontid salamander abundance because climate is a known driver of plethodontid salamander ecology and provides a comparative scale for any potential effect of imidacloprid use on salamander abundance. Mean &lt;em&gt;Plethodon&lt;/em&gt;, &lt;em&gt;D. aeneus&lt;/em&gt;/&lt;em&gt;D. wrighti&lt;/em&gt;, and stream-breeding plethodontid abundances among all sites varied by factors of 20, 15, and 2 respectively. Mean daily vapor pressure deficit from 2011 to 2020, a measure of hydroclimate, was negatively associated with abundance of all three salamander groups. For &lt;em&gt;Plethodon&lt;/em&gt; and &lt;em&gt;D. aeneus&lt;/em&gt;/&lt;em&gt;D. wrighti&lt;/em&gt; we found no evidence of an association between salamander abundance and imidacloprid dose within a 15 m radius of a plot; however, we did find evidence for a small, positive association between &lt;em&gt;Plethodon&lt;/em&gt; abundance and imidacloprid dose within a plot. For stream-breeding species, we also found evidence for a positive association between salamander abundance and imidacloprid dose within a plot, but also a negative association between salamander abundance and imidacloprid dose within a 15 m radius. The estimated negative relationship between imidacloprid use and stream salamander abundance was comparable to the effect of climate on natural variation. Our results suggest any measurable effect of hemlock management with imidacloprid on the abundance of fully terrestrial plethodontid salamanders is trivially small co","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123553"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146036231","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Root intersection densities in Japanese forests: Insights from a nationwide soil profile survey","authors":"Jumpei Toriyama ,&nbsp;Yoshimi Sakai ,&nbsp;Masahiro Inagaki ,&nbsp;Kyotaro Noguchi ,&nbsp;Akihiro Imaya","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123535","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123535","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Tree roots underpin key ecosystem functions, including carbon, water, and nutrient cycling, yet national-scale information on their spatial distribution remains limited. Here, we present the first nationwide assessment of root intersection density (RID; the number of roots intersecting a unit area of soil profile) across Japanese forests, based on 3236 soil horizons from 829 soil profiles collected in the National Forest Soil Carbon Inventory. RIDs of fine (≤ 2 mm), medium-sized (2–20 mm), and coarse (≥ 20 mm) roots were analyzed across managed and natural forests using ordinal and binary logistic regression models. Fine and medium-sized roots were detected in 73 % and 57 % of soil horizons, respectively, whereas coarse roots were rare (9 %). Based on non-zero observations, maximum rooting depths averaged 64.7 ± 25.0 cm for fine roots, 49.0 ± 27.6 cm for medium-sized roots, and 33.2 ± 27.0 cm for coarse roots, and these depths were further reduced when zero observations were included. Mean annual air temperature showed a consistent positive effect on root occurrence across root-size classes, whereas soil depth primarily constrained root density. Gravel content, slope, precipitation, and forest management produced root-size–specific responses, and the effects of temperature and soil depth on medium-sized roots were weaker in managed forests than in natural forests. These results support revising rooting-depth parameterizations in forest carbon cycle models, particularly for drought assessments, while caution is required when applying RID-derived depths of medium and coarse roots to mechanical models. Overall, this study provides a foundational national-scale RID dataset for improving assessments of root distribution and ecosystem functioning.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":"606 ","pages":"Article 123535"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2026-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146036233","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}