Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network: Victorian Central Highlands Long Term Monitoring Vegetation and Logging Data, 2011–2012

We conducted a study comparing the recovery of vascular plants in the Mountain ash forests of Victoria’s Central Highlands after various disturbances. Prior to disturbance, all sites had a dominant overstorey of Mountain Ash that had regenerated from the 1939 wildfire. Our sites covered four disturbance treatment types – two severities of wildfire (low and high severity) and two types of logging treatment (clearfell and salvage logging). Comparisons were made between the treated sites with undisturbed forest which were unlogged and unburnt since 1939. The data were collected from long term monitoring sites in 2011 following the large 2009 Black Saturday wildfire. All vascular plant species were recorded along a 100 metre transect that extended centrally down the middle of each 1.0 hectare (100 x 100 metre) study sites. Plant species presence was recorded within 5 metres either side of the transect, and in three 10 x 10 metres plots situated 10–20 metres, 50–60 metres and 90–100 metres along the central transect. Clearfelled sites were logged in 2009 as well as cut unburnt forest. Slashed areas were subsequently burnt in a regeneration burn, typically 6 months post-harvest. Salvage logging also involved clearfelling, undertaken within 12 months of the 2009 Black Saturday bushfire. Forest that was salvage logged was burned at high severity. The study concluded there were important differences in response to fire and logging. Species richness declined across the ‘disturbance gradient’ from low severity burned, high severity burned, clearfell logged to salvage logged forest, and the frequency of certain functional groups (sprouting species, ferns and midstorey trees) declined across the gradient of disturbance. This is part of a much larger dataset that began in 1983 when the Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network research plots commenced. A synopsis of related data packages which have been collected as part of the Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network’s full program is provided at http://www.ltern.org.au/index.php/ltern-plot-networks/victorian-tall-eucalypt-forest These data were published as a component of the paper Blair et al., in press. Disturbance gradient shows logging affects plant functional groups more than fire. Ecological Applications. DOI:10.1002/eap.1369本研究针对维多利亚州中央高地的山桉（Mountain ash）林内不同干扰后维管植物（vascular plant）的恢复情况开展对比分析。干扰发生前，所有样地的上层林冠均为1939年野火后自然更新的山桉。本研究的样地涵盖4类干扰处理类型：2个野火火烧强度（fire severity）梯度（低强度火烧与高强度火烧），以及2种采伐处理方式——皆伐（clearfell）与清理采伐（salvage logging）。本研究以1939年以来未受采伐与火烧干扰的原始林作为对照，与各处理样地进行对比。 本研究数据采集于2011年，基于2009年“黑色星期六（Black Saturday）”大规模野火后的长期监测样地。在每个1.0公顷（100×100米）样地的中央设置100米样线，沿样线记录所有维管植物物种；调查范围涵盖样线两侧各5米区域，并在中央样线的10–20米、50–60米及90–100米位置处设置3个10×10米的辅助样方，完成植物物种出现情况的记录。皆伐样地于2009年针对未受火烧的林分实施采伐，采伐区域通常在收获后6个月开展更新火烧。清理采伐同样采用皆伐方式，作业实施于2009年“黑色星期六”野火发生后的12个月内，经清理采伐的林分均遭受了高强度火烧。 本研究得出结论：不同干扰类型下的植被响应存在显著差异。沿“干扰梯度”（从低强度火烧林、高强度火烧林、皆伐林至清理采伐林），物种丰富度逐渐降低；部分功能群（functional group，包括萌枝物种、蕨类植物以及中层乔木）的出现频率也随干扰梯度升高而下降。 本数据集隶属于1983年启动的维多利亚高大桉树林样地网络（Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network）长期研究项目。该网络完整研究计划下收集的相关数据集概要可通过以下链接获取：http://www.ltern.org.au/index.php/ltern-plot-networks/victorian-tall-eucalypt-forest 本数据集作为Blair等人接收待刊（in press）论文的组成部分公开：《干扰梯度表明采伐对植物功能群的影响强于火烧》，刊载于《Ecological Applications》，DOI:10.1002/eap.1369。