Ecosystem and Vegetation Response to Hemlock Logging in Southern New England 1999-2005

This study compares the magnitude and trajectory of vegetation and ecosystem function dynamics associated with the direct impact of hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsuga; HWA) infestation versus the indirect consequences of HWA-induced damage in the form of salvage and pre-emptive logging of hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carriere) forests. The study was conducted within an area extending from southern Connecticut up to and including the Connecticut River lowlands west to the Berkshire Plateauin central Massachusetts, USA. Overstory and understory vegetation and ecosystem function parameters such as decomposition and nitrogen cycling were examined in logged and unlogged portions of 10 hemlock stands varying in HWA damage intensity.本研究对比了铁杉球蚜（hemlock woolly adelgid, Adelges tsuga; 简称HWA）侵染的直接影响，与HWA造成损伤后通过对加拿大铁杉（Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carriere）林实施打捞式采伐与预防性采伐所引发的间接后果，二者对应的植被与生态系统功能动态的强度及变化轨迹。本研究的实施区域位于美国境内，范围南起康涅狄格州南部，向北延伸并涵盖康涅狄格河低地，向西直达马萨诸塞州中部的伯克希尔高原。本研究针对10个受HWA损伤程度各异的铁杉林分，分别在其采伐区域与未采伐区域中，对乔木层、林下植被以及分解作用、氮循环等生态系统功能参数开展了调查与测定。