The century-long shadow of fire exclusion: Historical data reveal early and lasting effects of fire regime change on contemporary forest composition
/This study explores the effects of historical logging on tree regeneration and successive effects on stand development under a history of fire exclusion. The authors leveraged a silvicultural experiment from the 1920s in the Sierra Nevada mixed-conifer forest of the Stanislaus-Tuolumne Experimental Forest to test if silvicultural objectives of increasing pine stocking rates were met. Combining historical (pre- and post-logging in 1928-1929) and contemporary tree regeneration data along with overstory and microsite conditions, they assessed the impact of logging on pine decline.
Brodie, EG, EE Knapp, AM Latimer, HD Safford, M Vossmer, SM Bisbing. 2023. "The century-long shadow of fire exclusion: Historical data reveal early and lasting effects of fire regime change on contemporary forest composition." Forest Ecology and Management. 539: 121011. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2023.121011.