Plastic tree crowns contribute to small-scale heterogeneity in virgin beech forests—An individual-based modeling approach

Markus Engel, Michael Körner and Uta Berger

Ecological Modelling, 2018, vol. 376, issue C, 28-39

Abstract: Old-growth beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forests in Europe show a structural heterogeneity, which distinguish from managed ones. Recent investigations revealed that facilitative belowground interactions might counteract aboveground competition for light. However, the exact interaction of these mechanisms is unclear. We developed the BEEchPlasticity (BEEP) model to investigate whether the mere focus on the aboveground competition for canopy space with subsequent modeling of the light transmittance through the forest canopy suffices to reproduce the observed structural attributes. The BEEP model is individual-based, and explicitly describes the plasticity of tree crowns in a three-dimensional space through a geometric approach. This conceptual design allows tracing neighborhood effects to the forest stand level.

Keywords: Old-growth forests; Beech; Fagus sylvatica L.; Crown plasticity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:376:y:2018:i:c:p:28-39

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2018.03.001

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