Ecophysiological controls of conifer distributions
Conference
·
OSTI ID:62351
The boreal forest covers the most extensive worldwide area of conifer-dominated vegetation, with a total global area of about 12 million km{sup 2}. This large area is very species poor; in North America there are only nine widespread and dominant species of trees, of which six are conifers-Picea mariana, Picea glauca, Abies balsamea, Larix laricina, Pinus contorta, and Pinus banksiana. The remaining three angiosperms are Betula papyrifera, Populus tremuloides, and Populus balsamifera. In Fennoscandia and the former Soviet Union, 14 species dominate the boreal forest, 10 of which are conifers-Abies sibirica, Larix gmelinii, Larix sibirica, Larix sukaczewii, Picea abies, Picea ajanensis, Picea obovata, Pinus pumila, Pinus sibifica, and Pinus sylvestris. The dominant angiosperm trees are Betula pendula, Betula pubescens, Chosenia arbutifolia, and Populus tremula. Such species paucity detracts from realizing the remarkable capacity of these species to endure the harshest forest climates of the world. Both the short-term geological history and the current climate are major causes of the species paucity in the boreal forest. In general, the boreal forest has been present in its current distribution only since the Holocene era. In most cases, the dominant species of the boreal forest completed their postglacial expansion to their current distributions only over the past 2000 years. So the ecology of the forest is very young, in comparison with forests in warmer climates. It might be expected that over subsequent millennia, with no climatic change, there could be a slow influx of new species to the boreal zone; however, the extreme climatic, edaphic, and disturbance characteristics of the area are likely to set insurmountable limits on this influx of diversity.
- Research Organization:
- Wyoming Univ., Laramie, WY (United States). Dept. of Botany
- OSTI ID:
- 62351
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/ER/61253--1-Vol.1; CONF-9109550--Vol.1
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Woody-biomass production in Michigan: species, genotype, and cultural investigations
Mapped plant macrofossil and pollen records of late Quaternary vegetation change in eastern North America
Ecological aspects of air pollution emissions from an iron ore sintering plant in Ontario
Thesis/Dissertation
·
Sat Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1983
·
OSTI ID:5720400
Mapped plant macrofossil and pollen records of late Quaternary vegetation change in eastern North America
Journal Article
·
Thu Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1995
· Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America
·
OSTI ID:95816
Ecological aspects of air pollution emissions from an iron ore sintering plant in Ontario
Journal Article
·
Tue Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1974
· Bull. Ecol. Soc. Am.; (United States)
·
OSTI ID:5417824