In the present study, the aboveground biomass of the understorey vegetation of boreal coniferous forests was modelled according to the percentage cover. A total of 224 observations from 22 stands in upland forests and 195 observations from 14 different studies in peatland forests were utilized for the present analyses. The relationships between biomass and percentage cover can be used in ecosys...

There is widespread concern that fire exclusion has led to an unprecedented threat of uncharacteristically severe fires in ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex. Laws) and mixed-conifer forests of western North America. These extensive montane forests are considered to be adapted to a low/moderate-severity fire regime that maintained stands of relatively old trees. However, there is increas...

Current research efforts to understand the relative invasibility of different plant communities have mostly ignored tropical forests. Only a few studies have treated invasive species in tropical forests, and recent worldwide analyses have not provided clear predictions concerning the relative invasibility of tropical forests. In this review, the extent to which exotic species have invaded tropi...

Animal-plant interactions are important for the recovery of diversity and processes in secondary forests, which increasingly dominate the tropical landscape. We used a combination of observational and experimental approaches to study the interactions of ants with diaspores across a successional gradient of forests in Southern Brazil, from August 2007 to April 2008. In addition to diaspore remov...

In 1966 Eugene P. Odum delivered a speech before the Ecological Society of America that transformed the way ecologists looked at succession. His comparison of mature and successional systems lead ecologists to place secondary forests in an inferior position relative to mature ones to the point that today, prominent tropical biologists argue for and against the conservation value of secondary fo...

UNLABELLED BACKGROUND Unmanaged or old-growth forests are of paramount importance for carbon sequestration and thus for the mitigation of climate change among further implications, e.g. biodiversity aspects. Still, the importance of those forests for climate change mitigation compared to managed forests is under controversial debate. We evaluate the adequacy of referring to CO2 flux measurem...

Currently, forests cover about one-third of the world’s land area, just under 4 billion hectares (ha) (FAO, 2006a). It is estimated that 70% of the world’s forests are natural (self-generating), 20% semi-natural (regeneration with some degree of human intervention), 10% anthropogenic (established or significantly transformed by humans) (MA, 2005). 75% of the world’s forests are located in two b...

Indonesia is home to some of the most magnificent tropical forests in the world. In extent, they rank third behind Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), and their biological richness is unique. The major forest types of Indonesia range from evergreen lowland dipterocarp forests in Sumatra and Kalimantan to seasonal monsoon forests and savanna grasslands in Nusa Tenggara ...

Extensive economic investigations have shown a variety of benefits derived from urban forests, but study on demand for urban forests remains limited. This study investigates the impact of selected potential factors on the demand for urban forests at the city level. An empirical economic model is used to examine and estimate the demand for urban forests in all cities with population over 100,000...

Within the eastern deciduous forest region, forest composition varies, with some areas dominated by a mix of oaks (Quercus spp.) and other areas dominated by a mix of sugar maple (Acer saccharum) and other tree species. Prescribed fire is being used on an experimental basis to assess its effectiveness in restoring and maintaining oak-dominated forests. Maple-dominated forests are susceptible to...