Ohia rain forest study: ecological investigations of the ohia dieback problem in Hawaii

Reports were scanned in black and white at a resolution of 600 dots per inch and were converted to text using Adobe Paper Capture Plug-in.This final report summarizes the more important results of a two year study of the ohia (Metrosideros collina subsp. polymorpha) rain forest, extending from within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park north across the east flank of Mauna Kea, Island Hawaii. The study focus was on the ohia dieback which occurs in many areas of this terrain. A 1:48,000 vegetation map was produced, which is included in selected copies of this report. In addition, an independent habitat classification was developed from physical soil and moisture regime differences occurring in the area. Over 35 ohia forest stands were sampled in detail for their ohia population structures and 39 releves were analyzed for their floristic content. Five different forms of dieback were recognized. Two of these, called the Dryland and Wetland Diebacks appear to be the more rapid and dramatic forms. Their causes are not from disease or insect attack, but are presumed to be from climatic triggers, acting through the soil. These diebacks are clearly associated with ohia-stand rejuvenation. A third form of dieback, here called Bog-formation Dieback, appears to be a slower form of stand dieback related to permanent site changes. An Ohia-displacement Dieback occurs in the Olaa Tract area, where tree ferns seem to gradually take over the habitats. Here the dieback cause appears to be overmaturity. Individual tree dieback, the fifth form of dieback, is found as an isolated, but common phenomenon in many non-dieback stands examined. All diebacks appear to have natural causes, which are suggested in detail. A new theory is presented, which proposes that there are a number of dynamic phases, including the dieback, which provide for the perpetuation of the shade-intolerant, dominant tree species (ohia) in this rainforest ecosystem.National Park Service Contract No. CX 8000 6 000

Bayesian classification of vegetation types with Gaussian mixture density fitting to indicator values.

Question: Is it possible to mathematically classify relevés into vegetation types on the basis of their average indicator values, including the uncertainty of the classification? Location: The Netherlands. Method: A large relevé database was used to develop a method for predicting vegetation types based on indicator values. First, each relevé was classified into a phytosociological association on the basis of its species composition. Additionally, mean indicator values for moisture, nutrients and acidity were computed for each relevé. Thus, the position of each classified relevé was obtained in a three-dimensional space of indicator values. Fitting the data to so called Gaussian Mixture Models yielded densities of associations as a function of indicator values. Finally, these density functions were used to predict the Bayesian occurrence probabilities of associations for known indicator values. Validation of predictions was performed by using a randomly chosen half of the database for the calibration of densities and the other half for the validation of predicted associations. Results and Conclusions: With indicator values, most relevés were classified correctly into vegetation types at the association level. This was shown using confusion matrices that relate (1) the number of relevés classified into associations based on species composition to (2) those based on indicator values. Misclassified relevés belonged to ecologically similar associations. The method seems very suitable for predictive vegetation models

When Is a Principal Charged With an Agent’s Knowledge?

Question: Detecting species presence in vegetation and making visual assessment of abundances involve a certain amount of skill, and therefore subjectivity. We evaluated the magnitude of the error in data, and its consequences for evaluating temporal trends. Location: Swedish forest vegetation. Methods: Vegetation data were collected independently by two observers in 342 permanent 100-m2 plots in mature boreal forests. Each plot was visited by one observer from a group of 36 and one of two quality assessment observers. The cover class of 29 taxa was recorded, and presence/absence for an additional 50. Results: Overall, one third of each occurrence was missed by one of the two observers, but with large differences among species. There were more missed occurrences at low abundances. Species occurring at low abundance when present tended to be frequently overlooked. Variance component analyses indicated that cover data on 5 of 17 species had a significant observer bias. Observer-explained variance was < 10% in 15 of 17 species. Conclusion: The substantial number of missed occurrences suggests poor power in detecting changes based on presence/absence data. The magnitude of observer bias in cover estimates was relatively small, compared with random error, and therefore potentially analytically tractable. Data in this monitoring system could be improved by a more structured working model during field work.Original publication: Milberg, P., Bergstedt, J., Fridman, J., Odell, G & Westerberg, L., Systematic and random variation in vegetation monitoring data, 2008, Journal of Vegetation Science, (19), 633-644. http://dx.doi.org/10.3170/2008-8-18423. Copyright: Opulus Press, http://www.opuluspress.se/index.ph

Avaliação fitossociológica da comunidade infestante em áreas de transição para o café orgânico.

Objetivou-se com este trabalho verificar os efeitos dos insumos orgânicos e convencionais na dinâmica de plantas daninhas da lavoura durante o primeiro e o segundo ano de transição agroecológica. Para isso, montou-se um experimento em um cafezal de seis anos, onde iniciou-se a transição para o sistema de cultivo orgânico. A espécie mais importante no primeiro ano da transição, na maioria das áreas avaliadas, foi Ageratum conyzoides; no segundo ano ocorreu considerável mudança na relação de dominância entre as espécies, destacando-se Leunurus sibiricus na maior parte das áreas estudadas. Ocorreu também aumento do número de espécies presentes na maioria das áreas de um ano para o outro. No segundo ano de transição observou-se decréscimo na diversidade de espécies em relação ao primeiro ano. Dessa forma, pode-se concluir que nos dois anos de avaliação verificaram-se mudanças no número, na diversidade e na relação de importância entre as espécies de um ano para o outro