Tree communities of different aged logged areas in an Afrotropical rainforest

The study assessed the patterns in tree communities in logged and primary forests in Kibale National Park, Uganda, representing 9- to 19-year-old clear-cuts of former conifer plantations, 42- to 43-year-old logged forests and primary forests. Species density and diversity were lower and dominance higher in the 9- to 19-year-old forests compared to the 42- to 43-year-old forests or primary forests.Predicting the recovery processes in tree communities after logging is critical when developing conservation strategies. We assessed the patterns in tree communities in logged and primary forests in Kibale National Park, Uganda, representing 9- to 19-year-old clear-cuts of former conifer plantations, 42- to 43-year-old logged forests and primary forests. Species density and diversity were lower and dominance higher in the 9- to 19-year-old forests compared to the 42- to 43-year-old forests or primary forests. The tree species density, diversity and dominance of 42- to 43-year-old forests did not differ significantly from primary forests. However, they had a lower stem density, and higher cover of Acanthus pubescens, a shrub known to arrest the succession in Kibale. The tree community compositions of 9- to 19-year-old, 42- to 43-year-old and primary forests differed from each other. A large group of tree species (21) were primary forest indicators, that is, they were either missing or relatively rare in logged forests. The results of this study show that even after four decades of natural recovery, logged Afrotropical forests can still be distinguished from primary forests in their tree community compositions, emphasizing the slow community recovery and the important role of primary forests when preserving the tree communities in tropical rainforests

The effects of geographic origin and genotype on fungal diversity of silver birch (Betula pendula)

Abstract Soil microbes, especially root symbiotic fungi, often have drastic effects on the successful growth and establishment of plants. While plant intraspecific genetic variation is known to affect many ecosystem processes and functions, the effect it has on root fungal communities has received less attention. To determine the effect plant origin and genotype have on root fungal communities, we used high-throughput amplicon sequencing of ITS-regions to detect fungi from the roots of 64 clonally propagated silver birch (Betula pendula) trees representing four different geographical origins and 16 genotypes, all grown together in a common garden. We found that fungal alpha and beta-diversity but not community composition differ by silver birch genotype. Some birch genotypes are potentially more plastic in terms of their fungal interactions, which could make them more robust against environmental changes and provide a competitive advantage especially in disturbed habitats