Articles containing the keyword 'forest floor'.

We investigated the impact of natural enemies on the cocoon mortality of the common pine sawfly (Diprion pini L.) during a six-year period in eastern Finland. The enemies were classified into parasitoids (insect families Chalcidoidea, Ichneumonidae, and Tachinidae), and predators (birds, small mammals, and insect families Elateridae and Carabidae). The appearance of D. pini was estimated as the intensity of annual defoliation. The impact of stand characteristics on the performance of parasitoids and predators was also investigated. Influence of the natural enemy complex on cocoon mortality of D. pini was nearly stable, but defoliation intensity slowly declined towards the end of the study period. Annual cocoon mortality by natural enemies varied between 66% and 80%. Our results verified that the most significant mortality factors were ichneumonid parasitoids and small mammals. Random Forest classification indicated that stand characteristics, such as basal area, and coverage of lichen (Lichenes) and lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) affected the performance of parasites and predators. We suggest that a combination of optimal stand characteristics, abiotic environmental factors and mild to moderate control by natural enemies acted as drivers, which drove the pine sawfly population to extended gradation. For future forest health management, detailed information on abiotic and biotic regulating factors, along with long-term monitoring campaigns for conifer sawflies are needed to adapt Fennoscandian forests to altered climatic and silvicultural conditions.

• Blomqvist, University of Helsinki, Department of Forest Sciences, P.O. Box 27 (Latokartanonkaari 7), FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2328-8839 E-mail: minna.blomqvist@helsinki.fi
• Lyytikäinen-Saarenmaa, University of Helsinki, Department of Forest Sciences, P.O. Box 27 (Latokartanonkaari 7), FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: – E-mail: paivi.lyytikainen-saarenmaa@helsinki.fi
• Kantola, Knowledge Engineering Laboratory, Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-2475, USA ORCID ID: – E-mail: tuula.kantola@helsinki.fi
• Kosunen, University of Helsinki, Department of Forest Sciences, P.O. Box 27 (Latokartanonkaari 7), FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: – E-mail: maiju.kosunen@helsinki.fi
• Talvitie, University of Helsinki, Department of Forest Sciences, P.O. Box 27 (Latokartanonkaari 7), FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: – E-mail: mervi.talvitie@dnainternet.net
• Holopainen, University of Helsinki, Department of Forest Sciences, P.O. Box 27 (Latokartanonkaari 7), FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: – E-mail: markus.holopainen@helsinki.fi

• Liu, Department of Forest Ecology, P.O. Box 27, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: – E-mail: cliu@silvia.helsinki.fi
• Westman, Department of Forest Ecology, P.O. Box 27, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: – E-mail: –
• Ilvesniemi, Department of Forest Ecology, P.O. Box 27, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland ORCID ID: – E-mail: –

• Nalder, University of Alberta, Department of Renewable Resources, 442 Earth Sciences Building, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2E3 ORCID ID: – E-mail: inalder@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca
• Wein, University of Alberta, Department of Renewable Resources, 442 Earth Sciences Building, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2E3 ORCID ID: – E-mail: –

Carbon sequestration rates in forest soil can be estimated using the concept of calculable stable remains in decomposing litter. In a case study of Swedish forest land we estimated C-sequestration rates for the two dominant tree species in the forest floor on top of the mineral soil. Carbon sequestration rates were upscaled to the forested land of Sweden with 23 x 10⁶ ha with Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (Karst.) L.). Two different theoretical approaches, based on limit-value for litter decomposition and N-balance for vegetation and SOM gave rates of the same magnitude. For the upscaling, using these methods, 17 000 grids of 5 x 5 km were used.

The ‘limit-value approach’ gave a sequestration of 4.8   10⁶ tons of C, annually sequestered in the forest floor, with an average of 180 kg C ha^–1 yr^–1 and a range from 40 to 410 kg C ha^–1 yr^–1. The ‘N-balance approach’ gave an average value of c. 96 kg ha^–1 yr^–1 and a range from –60 to 360 kg ha^–1 yr^–1. A method based on direct measurements of changes in humus depth over 40 years, combined with C analyses gave an average rate that was not very different from the calculated rates, viz. c. 180 kg ha^–1 yr^–1 and a range from –20 to 730 kg ha^–1 yr^–1. These values agree with forest floor C sequestration rate based on e.g. sampling of chronsequences but differ from CO₂ balance measurements.

The three approaches showed different patterns over the country and regions with high and low carbon sequestration rates that were not always directly related to climate.

• Berg, Dept. of Forest Ecology, University of Helsinki, Finland (present address: Dipartimento Biologia Strutturale e Funzionale, Complesso Universitario, Monte S. Angelo, Napoli, Italy ORCID ID: – E-mail: bjorn.berg@helsinki.fi
• Gundersen, Forest & Landscape Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Denmark ORCID ID: – E-mail: –
• Akselsson, Swedish Environmental Research Institute, IVL, Gothenburg, Sweden ORCID ID: – E-mail: –
• Johansson, Department of Forest Soils, SLU, Uppsala, Sweden ORCID ID: – E-mail: –
• Nilsson, Department of Forest Soils, SLU, Uppsala, Sweden ORCID ID: – E-mail: –
• Vesterdal, Forest & Landscape Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Denmark ORCID ID: – E-mail: –