Forest Ecology and Management最新文献

{"title":"Plant species modulate wildfire effects on soil phosphorus fractions in alpine forest of Eastern Tibetan Plateau","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122338","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122338","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Global wildfires occurring with ever escalating frequency and intensity profoundly disrupt soil phosphorus (P) cycling in forest ecosystems. The impact of plant species on post-fire soil P transformation, particularly in alpine forests, remains largely unexplored. This study addressed this gap by investigating both bulk soils (BS) and root-zone soils (RS) across three plant species (shrub: <em>Sophora davidii</em> and <em>Quercus aquifolioides</em>, tree: <em>Pinus densata</em>) in the alpine forest of the eastern Tibetan Plateau, three years after a wildfire event. We examined variations in soil P fractions under varying wildfire intensities using the modified Hedley sequential extraction method. Compared to unburned soils, the burned soils exhibited significantly reduced organic P (P_o) but increased inorganic P (P_i) concentrations in BS. However, both P_i and P_o concentrations decreased in the burned RS, particularly for <em>S. davidii</em> and <em>P. densata</em>, indicating the effects of biological P utilization. The increased specific phosphatase activity and the ratio of carbon to P_o suggested increased P limitation in the post-fire environment. Notably, the N₂-fixer <em>S. davidii</em> primarily reduced labile P fractions through direct plant P uptake, while conifer tree species <em>P. densata</em> tended to deplete all extractable P fractions, probably through diverse P utilization strategies. Conversely, <em>Q. aquifolioides</em> did not significantly alter soil P fractions, likely due to its fire-resistant properties. These species-dependent impacts on post-fire P fractions were further corroborated by their distinct influences on soil and microbial traits. Our findings underscore the critical roles of functional-specific plant species in post-fire soil P dynamics in alpine forests, with conifer trees exhibiting the best P mining and utilization capacity.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142532558","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 physiological and morphology processes co-regulate the growth of Chinese-fir saplings in response to warming and precipitation reduction in the sub-tropical regions","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122336","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122336","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Subtropical China is projected to experience elevated temperature greater than the mean global temperature increase and is accompanied by reduced precipitation. The plasticity of roots to changing environment strongly influences ecosystem feedbacks to climate change. However, knowledge gaps on the individual and combined effects of warming and precipitation reduction on root systems hinder our ability to accurately predict the growth and adaptability of forests under future climate change. To examine the effects of warming (W) and precipitation reduction (P) on roots physiology and morphology of Chinese-fir saplings, we used a randomized complete block design with factorial soil warming (ambient, ambient + 5℃) and precipitation reduction (ambient, ambient-50 %) treatments. A full excavation method was adopted to obtain roots, then we measured the root physiology (osmoregulatory substances, oxidant substances, protective enzymes, endogenous hormones), morphology (specific root length, SRL; surface root area, SRA; root tissue density, RTD). The content of carbon and nitrogen, isotopes (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N); soil temperature, soil moisture and sapling growth were also measured. We found that compared with the control, W decreased the abscisic acid (IAA) content; P increased the contents of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and proline (Pro), and decreased the contents of IAA and cytokinin (CTK); warming plus precipitation reduction (WP) increased the Pro content, and decreased the contents of IAA and CTK. In addition, the effects of W and P on root morphology varied with soil depth and root diameter class. W, P, and WP all increased fine root SRL and SRA in deep soil. Warming and precipitation reduction could affect physiological traits (e.g. non-enzymatic substances and antioxidant enzymes) and subsequently morphological traits via influencing soil environment and root tissue chemistry. Collectively, the results indicated that Chinese-fir saplings responded to warming and precipitation reduction by comprehensive regulation of the non-enzymatic substances (e.g., osmotic substances and endogenous hormones) of fine roots and changing root morphological characteristics in deep soil.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142533112","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":"A comparison of the early growth and survival of lesser-known tree species for climate change adaptation in Britain","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122340","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122340","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Globally, climate change is altering both seasonal climates and the occurrence of extreme climate events, resulting in a drive to ensure our forests are resilient to these changes and the challenges they will bring. In Great Britain (GB), there has been a reliance on a limited number of species grown in monospecific plantations and concerns over the resilience of these forests is leading to a growing recognition of the need to diversify tree species composition. However, evidence of the relative growth rate and survival of alternative tree species and provenances during the critical establishment phase (typically within five or six years of planting) is often limited, hampering consideration of the wider adoption of many potentially suitable species. To address this knowledge gap, we compared tree height and survival data six years after planting from 34 provenances across 18 tree species at five experimental sites established across GB in 2012 in monospecific plots. For coniferous species, we found that <em>Larix decidua</em>, <em>Larix</em> x <em>marschlinsii</em> and <em>Pinus radiata</em> (on drier sites) were consistently amongst the tallest species, but survival could be variable. <em>Pseudotsuga menziesii</em> and <em>Pinus pinaster</em> also showed good early growth, matching the growth rate of <em>Picea sitchensis</em> (the most widely planted conifer in GB) when co-occurring and often exhibited good survival. In contrast <em>Picea orientalis</em> was slow to establish and amongst the smallest species at all five sites after six years, with <em>Cedrus atlantica</em> also performing poorly where planted. Surprisingly, we found very few differences in both mean tree height and survival between most provenances of the same species across all experimental sites, though more obvious differences may emerge as these trees mature. Only a small number of broadleaf species were available for analysis at age six in this study, but as expected <em>Betula pendula</em> generally performed well, while <em>Acer macrophyllum</em> often had very high mortality. While there are concerns around the susceptibility of pine species to <em>Dothistroma septosporum</em> and the future use of larch species in GB forestry is currently limited by the disease <em>Phytophthora ramorum</em>, our results highlight the potential for these species to establish well and exhibit good initial growth and survival on drier sites, with the same true of <em>P. menziesii</em> on moister sites. Future work should aim to understand whether further differences between species and provenances emerge with age and explore the potential of these emerging species as components of mixed-species stands to increase GB forest resilience to climate change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142532551","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Tree crowns broken off by windstorms are an unstable life raft for Collembola","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122333","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122333","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>There are a number of ways to clear the aftermath of a windthrow disturbance of forest stands, the most common practice being to remove all broken trees and broken-off crowns lying on the ground. This practice leads to complete exposure of the soil, which deprives soil invertebrates (including Collembola) of the protection of trees that affords them a chance of surviving. Accordingly, following a windthrow disturbance of pine stands in 2017, a three-year study of collembolan assemblages was undertaken in stands spared from salvage logging. We aimed to test the effect of three different levels of disturbance (severely, moderately and least disturbed stands with a canopy cover of 0–20 %, 20–60 % and 60–90 %, respectively) on the survival of Collembola assemblages and to determine its association with changes in the soil environment and in the LAI index. Additionally, in the severely and moderately disturbed stands, Collembola were sampled between crowns of fallen trees and under the crowns. There were no significant differences in density, species richness and proportions of individuals of belowground “soil” and aboveground “epedaphic” species between the Collembolan assemblages that were associated with the degree of windthrow disturbance and time since disturbance. The study confirmed the presence of a significantly higher number of species and proportion of “epedaphic” species, and a lower proportion of “soil” species in the assemblages sampled under fallen tree crowns than between crowns. Analysis of principal response curves (PRC) yielded unexpected results as it indicated that these differences were significant only in the first year post-disturbance, thus suggesting a very short-lasting protective effect of tree crowns on Collembola, RDA analysis with preselected factors from environmental variables of interest (LAI of standing and fallen tree crowns, soil respiration, soil temperature and humidity, soil pH and soil nitrogen and carbon content) indicated the LAI index as significant for the Collembolan assemblages in the first yearpost-disturbance, soil moisture in the second year, and soil temperature in the third year. This sequence of significant indices over a three year period is compatible with the fallen crowns becoming more and more thinned as a result of needles falling off (from shade to full exposure to sunlight). We nevertheless postulate that at least some trees or their crowns lying on the ground should be left in place during clearance of windthrow-affected tree stands to facilitate restoration of the soil biota.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142533111","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":"Multi-decadal aspen dynamics show recruitment bottleneck across complex mountain community","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122326","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122326","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Changes in forest structure and shifts in tree species composition have occurred globally due to climate change and altered disturbance regimes. With climate trending toward warmer and drier conditions, these altered forest communities may reorganize in diverse and unpredictable ways. This is especially true in mountain environments where a range of vegetation types and abiotic conditions coexist. In this study, we used long-term permanent plot data from a site spanning broad environmental gradients to assess regeneration and mortality patterns in populations of aspen (<em>Populus tremuloides</em>). The study site, located on the San Francisco Peaks, Arizona, USA, is near the hot, dry edge of the species’ range and has experienced compounding pressure from extreme drought, chronic ungulate browsing, and wildfire in the past two decades. Over a 20-year study period, spanning one of the most prolonged drought periods in at least 1200 years, aspen overstory mortality averaged 42 % and was most common in smaller, younger trees and at lower elevations. Aspen regeneration density increased 13 % and was found in a greater proportion of study sites. However, we observed a noticeable lack of stems in the tallest regeneration size class (&gt;200 cm) and the smaller tree size class (2.5–15 cm in diameter), potentially indicating a demographic bottleneck whereby few trees are recruiting into the overstory. Likewise, prolific aspen suckering occurred after a 2001 wildfire, although regeneration density eventually decreased to pre-fire levels, with &lt;1 % of individuals reaching heights &gt;200 cm. Aspen regeneration densities showed the greatest increases in cool, wet sites and beneath open forest canopies. Disturbances function as catalysts for aspen regeneration, but persistence of aspen stands depends on recruitment of stems into overstory size classes, a process that is limited, particularly on lower and more exposed sites.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142532542","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Environmental flows and microsite attributes influence floodplain eucalypt recruitment","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122330","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122330","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Globally, river regulation and water extraction for anthropogenic use have altered the hydrology and ecology of riverine and floodplain ecosystems. Managed environmental flows are increasingly being implemented to restore the condition of many riverine and floodplain ecosystems. In the Murray-Darling River Basin, south-eastern Australia, appropriate flooding regimes are key to maintaining populations of the dominant floodplain forests and woodland trees, River Red Gum (<em>Eucalyptus camaldulensis</em>) and Black Box (<em>E. largiflorens</em>). We investigated the effects of three environmental flow events and microsite attributes (bare ground, canopy and understorey vegetation) on eucalypt recruitment over a five-year period across a semi-arid floodplain gradient (lake bed, lower and higher floodplain). Eucalypt recruitment increased after the environmental flows. The probability of recruitment declined with increasing elevation along the floodplain gradient, with the highest occurrence on the lake bed and lower floodplain where River Red Gum dominates. Recruitment on the higher floodplain, where Black Box is dominant, was low, suggesting that factors other than flooding (e.g. poor tree health) may limit regeneration. Recruitment also increased with increasing cover of bare ground and understorey vegetation. Saplings (&gt;1 m) were more likely to occur on the lower floodplain, where understorey vegetation cover approached 50 %, suggesting that the germination and survival niches of eucalypts may differ. That is, bare ground is necessary for germination, while understorey vegetation may provide protection to seedlings from desiccation and browsing. The combined flood events likely benefited the survival of pre-established seedlings by limiting the effects of summer desiccation and increasing soil moisture availability. There may be a trade-off between managing environmental flows for seed germination versus seedling survival. Future environmental flows that target the higher floodplain are likely to contribute to improvements in tree health, reproductive output and subsequent recruitment opportunities in this floodplain ecosystem. This study shows that environmental flows likely contribute to the maintenance of sustainable eucalypt floodplain forests and woodlands through the facilitation of recruitment and seedling persistence.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142532544","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":"Nature vs. nurture: Drivers of site productivity in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) forests in the southeastern US","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122334","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122334","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Forest productivity is one of the most important aspects of forest management, landscape planning, and climate change assessment. However, although there are multiple elements known to affect productivity, most of them rely on the “nature” of the edaphic, climatic, and geographic conditions, and only some specific aspects can be modified through forest management or “nurture”. Through evaluation of site resource availability and an understanding of the main drivers of productivity, management can present solutions to overcome site resource limitations to productivity. Therefore, understanding the implications of a specific management regime requires understanding what drives productivity across large spatial extents and among different management regimes. In this study, we used data from over 1 million hectares of industrial forestland, covering over 6000 different soils and several management regimes of <em>Pinus taeda</em> L. plantations, as well as plot-based data from the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program, facilitating a comparison of planted and natural <em>Pinus taeda</em> stands. Combined with US Geological Survey LiDAR data, we computed site index and generated wall-to-wall productivity maps for planted <em>Pinus taeda</em> stands in the southeastern US, as well as point-based site index estimates for the FIA dataset. We modeled site index using a random forest algorithm considering edaphic, geologic, and physiographic province information based on the Forest Productivity Cooperative “SPOT” system, and also included climate and management history data. Our model predicted site index with an R² of 0.701 and RMSE of 1.41 m on the industrial data and R² of 0.417 and RMSE of 1.84 m for the FIA data. We found that year of establishment of the forest, physiographic province, and geology, were the most important drivers of site index. The soil classification modifier indicating root restrictions were the most important soil-specific variable. Additionally, we found an average increase in site index of 3.05 m since the 1950s for all FIA data, and an average increase of 4.73 m for all industrial data since the 1970s. For the latest period analyzed (2000–2012), average site index in planted FIA plots was 1.2 m higher than naturally regenerated FIA plots, and site index in all industrial forestland had a site index almost 3 m greater than planted FIA plots. Overall, we believe this work sets the foundation for better understanding of forest productivity and highlights the importance of intensive silviculture to improve productivity, and as an additional tool to achieve the economic, environmental, and social objectives.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142446158","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"What influences planted tree seedling survival in burned Colorado montane forests?","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122321","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122321","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Across the western United States, large, severe wildfires in montane forests are creating treeless patches that can fail to reforest naturally due to a lack of seed sources and a warming climate. Nursery-grown tree seedlings are commonly planted by land managers into these areas to promote forest recovery and resilience, but uncertainty exists about what influences their survival across the landscape. We obtained survival monitoring data that had been collected one growing season after planting for 5656 tree seedlings, which were distributed across nine montane wildfires and four National Forests in Colorado, USA. We used these data to examine how seedling survival varied across a range of factors, including long-term average climatic conditions, post-planting weather conditions, and locations and species of seed lot collection. We found that survival after one growing season averaged 80 % across all plots but ranged from 0 % to 100 %. Survival was greater at cooler, wetter sites and at sites planted in warmer, wetter years. Survival was also greater for ponderosa pine than for Douglas-fir, and when the locally collected seed lot used to produce the seedlings came from a site that was lower in elevation than the planting site. Our results suggest that the location and timing of tree planting, and the plant materials used, play critical roles in planting success in Colorado montane wildfires, and should help land managers optimize post-fire planted seedling survival under both current and future climatic conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142446146","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":"Identifying the stand properties that support both high biodiversity and carbon storage in German forests","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122328","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122328","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Forest ecosystems face threats related to human-driven degradation, climate change, and biodiversity loss. Addressing these challenges requires management strategies that combine biodiversity conservation with climate change mitigation. Here, we aimed to identify manageable local-scale forest properties that promote biodiversity at multiple trophic levels while also promoting carbon storage and sequestration. We combined data on the diversity of nine taxonomic groups (plants, birds, moths, molluscs, soil fungi, active soil bacteria, cercozoan and endomyxan soil protists, oomycotan soil protists, and nematodes), with above- and belowground carbon storage in 150 temperate forest plots in three regions of Germany. These were dominated by European beech, Scots pine, Norway spruce, and sessile and pedunculate oak. We then investigated the relationships between multiple forest structure and management variables, and multiple biodiversity and carbon storage and sequestration measures. Soil carbon did not respond to deadwood input or any other variable, except in spruce-dominated forests where a higher proportion of other tree species had positive effects on soil carbon storage. Carbon storage in trees was lower in pine- and spruce-dominated stands than in beech stands where it increased with mean tree diameter. Carbon sequestration (i.e. stand uptake) in trees decreased with mean tree diameter. Mean tree diameter was positively related to the biodiversity of multiple taxa, especially taxonomic richness of forest specialist birds; as well as red-listed birds in pine stands. Beech-dominated stands harboured a higher taxonomic richness of many investigated taxa compared to stands dominated by conifers (especially pine). One exception to this was the richness of plant species and forest specialist plants, which were highest in spruce plantations. Deadwood input had limited effects on biodiversity with few exceptions such as bacteria diversity, probably because many deadwood dwelling organisms were not measured in this study. By showing that forests of larger trees with a high proportion of broadleaved trees can promote both biodiversity and carbon storage, our results could help inform sustainable local-scale forest management in Central Europe. These findings can form the basis of further larger-scale studies investigating such relations at larger spatial scales to inform landscape-level recommendations for sustainable multifunctional forest management.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142532543","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ash dieback: A single-species catastrophe or a cascade of ecological effects in the ground flora?","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122322","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.foreco.2024.122322","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Climate change and human activities have accelerated the spread of non-native species, including forest pests and pathogens, significantly contributing to global biodiversity loss. Pathogens pose a significant threat to forest ecosystems due to a lack of coevolution with native hosts, resulting in ineffective defence mechanisms and severe consequences for the affected tree species. Ash dieback, caused by the fungus <em>Hymenoscyphus fraxineus</em>, is a relatively new invasive forest pathogen threatening ash (<em>Fraxinus excelsior</em>) with mortality rates in northern Europe reaching up to 80 %. The loss of ash due to dieback has severe ecological implications, potentially leading to an extinction cascade as ash provides crucial habitats and resources for many organisms. Despite this, the consequences of ash dieback on associated communities are largely unknown. To address this, we analysed changes in species richness, vegetation structure, and composition in 82 permanent vegetation plots across 23 Norwegian woodlands. We compared data collected before and 10–14 years after the emergence of ash dieback. In these woodlands, ash significantly declined in cover, leading to changes in tree species composition and facilitating the establishment of other woody tree species like hazel (<em>Corylus avellana</em>) and the invasive species sycamore (<em>Acer pseudoplatanus</em>). Despite these changes in the tree species composition, no significant alterations were observed in the understory plant community, indicating a degree of ecosystem resilience or a lagging community response. At this point, and with our focus on the vascular plants, we do not find support for cascading effects due to ash dieback. However, our findings demonstrate that one invasive species is facilitating the expansion of another, raising concerns about potential ecological imbalance and cascading effects in the future.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12350,"journal":{"name":"Forest Ecology and Management","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142532481","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}