earticle

영어

Spatial point-patterns analyses were conducted to provide insight into the ecological process behind competition and mortality in two lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud. var. latifolia Engelm.) stands, one in the Lower Foothills, and the other in the Upper Foothills natural subregions in the boreal forest of Alberta, Canada. Spatial statistical tests were applied to live and dead trees and included Clark-Evans nearest neighbor statistic (R), nearest neighbor distribution function (G(r)), and a variant of Ripley’s K function (L(r)). In both lodgepole pine plots, the results indicated that there was significant regularity in the spatial point-pattern of the surviving trees which indicates that competition has been a key driver of mortality and forest dynamics in these plots. Dead trees generally showed a clumping pattern in higher density patches. There were also significant bivariate relationships between live and dead trees, but the relationships differed by natural subregion. In the Lower Foothills plot there was significant attraction between live and dead tees which suggests mainly one-sided competition for light. In contrast, in the Upper Foothills plot, there was significant repulsion between live and dead trees which suggests two-sided competition for soil nutrients and soil moisture.