To investigate the relationship between herbivory and floristic complexity, we measured losses to herbivores in four 0.1to 4-yr-old tropical ecosystems: (1) unman? ipulated successional vegetation, (2) successional vegetation with higher plant diversity than the unmanipulated succession, (3) an ecosystem of investigator-controlled species composition, designed to imitate the physiognomy and spe...

C.H. Greenberg et al. (eds.), Sustaining Young Forest Communities, Managing Forest Ecosystems 21, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-1620-9_14, © US Government 2011 Abstract Tree harvests that create early successional habitats have direct and indirect impacts on water resources in forests of the Central Hardwood Region. Streamflow increases substantially immediately after timber harvest, but increases dec...

The effects of different combinations of multiple, variable-intensity silvicultural treatments on fire and habitat management objectives were evaluated for a ±6,000 ha forest reserve using simulation models and optimization techniques. Our methods help identify areas within the reserve where opportunities exist to minimize conflict between the dual landscape objectives. Results suggest that mos...

Human-associated bacteria dominate the built environment (BE). Following decontamination of floors, toilet seats, and soap dispensers in four public restrooms, in situ bacterial communities were characterized hourly, daily, and weekly to determine their successional ecology. The viability of cultivable bacteria, following the removal of dispersal agents (humans), was also assessed hourly. A lat...

Red spruce−Fraser fir forests are geographically limited to high elevations in the Appalachian Mountains (USA) and are considered to be endangered in the USA. We investigated the successional status and radial growth patterns in the heavily disturbed red spruce Picea rubens Sarg. and Fraser fir Abies fraseri (Pursh) Poir. forest of Roan Mountain, Tennessee and North Carolina. This study elucida...

The response of bacterial communities to environmental change may affect local to global nutrient cycles. However the dynamics of these communities following disturbance are poorly understood, given that they are often evaluated over macro-ecological time scales and end-point measurements. In order to understand the successional trajectory of soil bacterial communities following disturbances an...

The ephemeral nature of deep-sea hydrothermal vents is expected to favor species with good colonization abilities, high dispersal rates, and rapid individual growth rates. Studies of gene flow in vent-endemic species provide glimpses into modes and patterns of dispersal. For some species, gene flow occurs without geographical bias (i.e., island model); their dispersal capabilities probably exce...

We evaluated the seed dispersal of Bursera longipes by birds along a successional gradient of tropical dry forest (TDF) in southwestern Mexico. B. longipes is an endemic tree to the TDF in the Balsas basin. The relative abundance of frugivorous birds, their frequency of visits to B. longipes and the number of removed fruits were recorded at three study sites with different stages of forest succ...

Montane heathlands are among the most threatened semi-natural ecosystems across Central Europe. Nevertheless, empirical studies on effects of rejuvenation and restoration montane have been scarce thus far. The aim our study was to analyse long-term heathland carabid beetle assemblages. Our took place in Rothaar Mountains, one important strongholds We considered four different successional stage...