Abstract
The size structure transition matrices ofPicea jezoensis, Picea glehnii andAbies sachalinensis of a sub-boreal forest in Hokkaido, northern Japan were constructed based on the demography of each species (Picea jezoensis andPicea glehnii were dealt with together asPicea) during a 4-year period. Two types of matrices, density-independent and density-dependent population dynamics models, were investigated for evaluating the ‘waiting pattern’ betweenPicea spp. andA. sachalinensis. For the density-dependent model, it was assumed that the demographic traits of understory trees, the recruitment rate, the understory mortality rate and the transition probability from the understory to canopy stages, were regulated by the one-sided competitive effect of canopy trees. The observed size structure ofPicea was almost consistent with the stationary size structure obtained in both the density-independent and the density-dependent models, whereas the observed size structure ofA. sachalinensis was not realized in the two models. The effects of both the transition probability from the understory to canopy stages and the recruitment rate on the dynamics of canopy trees were investigated. ForPicea, two parameters—recruitment rate (e i ) and transition probability from the understory to canopy stages-exponentially affected the dynamics of canopy trees. In contrast, forAbies sachalinensis, the two parameters affected linearly the dynamics of canopy trees. In conclusion, the population dynamics ofPicea andA. sachalinensis was determined by the parameters of the recruitment rate and the transition probability from the understory to canopy stages, relating to waiting patterns of understory trees for future gap formation. InPicea, the demographic parameters of understory trees intensively regulated the dynamics of canopy trees if compared withA. sachalinensis, suggesting that the performance of understory trees plays a key role in the population dynamics ofPicea. This reflects the growth pattern of understory trees in the regeneration of the two species.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alvarez-Buylla E. R. (1994) Density depence and patch dynamics in tropical rain forest: matrix models and applications to a tree species.American Naturalist 143: 155–191.
Canham C. D. (1989) Different responses to gaps among shade-tolerant tree species.Ecology 70: 548–550.
Caswell H. (1989)Matrix Population Model: Construction, Analysis and Interpretation. Sinauer Ass., Massachusetts.
Clark D. A. &Clark D. B. (1992) Life history diversity of canopy and emergent trees in a neotropical rain forest.Ecological Monographs 62: 315–344.
Condit R., Hubbell, S. P. &Foster R. B. (1994) Density dependence in two understory tree species in a neotropical forest.Ecology 75: 671–680.
Eriksson O. (1991) Population structure and dynamics of the clonal dwarf-shrubLinnaea borealis.Journal of Vegetation Science 3: 61–68.
Eriksson O. (1994) Stochastic population dynamics of clonal plants: numerical experiments with ramer and genet models.Ecological Research 9: 257–268.
Grubb P. J. (1977) The maintenance of species richness in plant communities: the importance of the regeneration niche.Biological Review 52: 107–145.
Halpern C. B. &Franklin J. F. (1990) Physiognomic development ofPseudotsuga forests in relation to initial structure and disturbance intensity.Journal of Vegetation Science 1: 475–482.
Hattori M. (1950) An investigation on the primeval forest in the northern mountain regions, Hokkaido.Bulletin of Hokkaido Forest Experiment Station 19: 1–194 (in Japanese with English Summary).
Kohyama T. (1984) Regeneration and coexistence of twoAbies species dominating subalpine forests in central Japan.Oecologia 62: 156–161.
Kohyama T. (1991) Simulating stationary size distribution of trees in rain forest.Annals of Botany 68: 173–180.
Kohyama T. (1992a) Size-structured multi-species model of rain forest trees.Functional Ecology 6: 206–212.
Kohyama T. (1992b) Density-size dynamics of trees simulated by a one-sided competition multi-species model of rain forest stand.Annals of Botany 70: 451–460.
Kohyama T. (1994) Size-structure-based models of forest dynamics to interpret population- and community level mechanisms.Journal of Plant Research 107: 107–116.
Kubota Y. (1995) Effects of disturbance and size structure on the regeneration process in a sub-boreal coniferous forest, northern Japan.Ecological Research 10: 135–142.
Kubota Y. (1996) Logging strategy of primary forest based on the regeneration process in a subboreal coniferous forest, northern Japan.Journal of the Japanese Forest Society 78: 79–83.
Kubota Y. &Hara T. (1995) Canopy tree competition and species coexistence in a subboreal coniferous forest, northern Japan.Annals of Botany 76: 503–512.
Kubota Y. & Hara T. (1966) Sapling allometry and competition ofPicea jezoensis andAbies sachalinensis in a subboreal coniferous forest, northern Japan.Annals of Botany (in press).
Kubota Y. &Konna Y. (1992) Development process ofPicea andAbies saplings on fallen logs.Transactions of the Meeting in Hokkaido Branch of the Japanese Forestry Society.40: 83–85.
Kubota Y. &Konno Y. &Hiura T. (1994) Stand structure and regeneration strategy of a coniferous forest in Taisetsuzan National Park, Japan.Ecological Research 9: 333–341.
Lang G. E. &Knight D. H. (1983) Tree growth, mortality, recruitment and canopy gap formation during a 10-year period in a tropical moist forest.Ecology 64: 1075–1080.
Lefkovitch L. P. (1965) The study of population growth in organisms grouped by stages.Biometrics 21: 1–18.
Nakashizuka T. (1991) Population dynamics of coniferous and broad-leaved trees in a Japanese temperate mixed forest.Journal of Vegetation Science 2: 413–418.
Pinero D., Martinez-Ramos M. &Sarukhan J. (1984) A population model ofAstrocaryum mexicanum and a sensitivity analysis of its finite rate of increase.Journal of Ecology 72: 977–991.
Platt W. J., Evans G. W. &Rathbun S. L. (1988) The population dynamics of a long-lived conifer (Pinus palustris).American Naturalist 131: 491–525.
Saito S., Kawabe M. &Kubota Y. (1992) On the forest vegetation of Mt. Higashi-Nupukaushinupuri, Tokachi, Hokkaido. (3) On a stand ofPicea glehnii Masters on the block stream.Bulletin of the Higashi Taisetsu Museum of Natural History 14: 15–28.
Sakai S. (1995) Evolutionarily stable growth of a sapling which waits for future gap formation under closed canopy.Evolutionary Ecology 9: 444–452.
Shea K. L. (1985) Demographic aspects of coexistence in Engelman spruce and subalpine fir.American Journal of Botany 72: 1823–1833.
Spites T. A. &Franklin J. F. (1989) Gap characteristics and vegetation response in coniferous forests of the Pacific northwest.Ecology 70: 543–545.
Stewart G. H. &Rose A. B. (1990) The significance of life history strategies in the developmental history of mixed beech (Nothofagus) forests, New Zealand.Vegetatio 87: 101–114.
Usher M. B. (1966) A matrix approach to the management of renewable resources, with special reference to selection forests.Journal of Applied Ecology 3: 355–367.
VanSickle. (1977) Analysis of a distributed-parameter population model based on physiological age.Journal of Theoretical Biology 64: 571–586.
Veblen T. T. (1986) Treefalls and the coexistence of conifers in subalpine forests of the central Rockies.Ecology 67: 644–649.
Welden C. W., Hewett S. W., Hubbell S. P. &Foster R. B. (1991) Sapling survival, growth and recruitment relationship to canopy height in a neotropical forest.Ecology 72: 35–50.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
About this article
Cite this article
Kubota, Y. Demographic traits of understory trees and population dynamics of aPicea-Abies forest in Taisetsuzan National Park, northern Japan. Ecol. Res. 12, 1–9 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02523604
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02523604