Post-fire bamboo thickets can block Nothofagus regeneration and slow eventual succession
Evidence
Fire clearly favors Nothofagus spp. at the expense of most of the associated tree species. In the lower montane zone (300-600 m), extensive secondary stands of N. obliqua and N. alpina have developed following the intensive period of logging and burning of 50-20 years ago; both species stump-sprout vigorously after cutting or burning. Although N. dombeyi does not regenerate vegetatively, it is often established in abundance following fire in the upper montane zone. However, where the Chusquea bamboos are initially abundant in the understory, following burning or logging, dense bamboo thickets may develop, totally impeding Nothofagus regenera tion and severely inhibiting the regeneration of the shade-tolerant trees; sparse, slowgrowing seedlings of the shade-tolerant species, such as Laurelia philippiana and Aextoxicon punctatum, may occur beneath the bamboo canopy. — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 318
Categorization
- XREF: A strong example of disturbance filtering which regeneration strategy dominates — reads as a parallel to invasive-understory suppression of trees (e.g. rhododendron understories) already raised in chapter 5 of this same volume. — connects to: Synchronous bamboo die-off acts as its own periodic disturbance releasing tree regeneration — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 318; The bamboo Chusquea culeou preempts canopy gaps and blocks Nothofagus regeneration. — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 353; Flat terrain and surviving seed trees allow quick conifer regrowth after fire — Vinson Brown, Reading the Woods: Seeing More in…, 414
Broader Connections
- The bamboo Chusquea culeou preempts canopy gaps and blocks Nothofagus regeneration.
#corroborates(0.95) — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 353 - Flat terrain and surviving seed trees allow quick conifer regrowth after fire
#qualifies(0.72) — Vinson Brown, Reading the Woods, 414