Sugar maple invasion of an old-growth oak-hickory forest in southwestern Illinois

Analysis of presettlement land survey records in an area surrounding a present 7.2 ha old-growth oak-hickory forest, Weaver's Woods, in southwestern Illinois showed dominance by Quercus alba and Q. velutina. Weaver Woods developed into a Q. velutina, Q. rubra, Carya ovata forest by 1956, and in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American midland naturalist 1992-01, Vol.127 (1), p.125-138
Main Authors: Shotola, S.J. (Southern Illinois University, Carbondale), Weaver, G.T, Robertson, P.A, Ashby, W.C
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ACER SACCHARUM
Biodiversity & Conservation
BOTANICAL COMPOSITION
COMPOSICION BOTANICA
COMPOSITION BOTANIQUE
ECOLOGIA FORESTAL
ECOLOGICAL SUCCESSION
ECOLOGIE FORESTIERE
Ecology
Environmental Sciences & Ecology
Forest canopy
FOREST ECOLOGY
Forest management
Forest regeneration
Forest restoration
Forestry
Forests
HIGHLAND
HILL LAND
ILLINOIS
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Old growth forests
PLANT SUCCESSION
QUERCUS
REGION D'ALTITUDE
Science & Technology
SUCCESSION ECOLOGIQUE
SUCESION ECOLOGICA
Timber
Trees
Vegetation
ZONA DE MONTANA
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Summary:Analysis of presettlement land survey records in an area surrounding a present 7.2 ha old-growth oak-hickory forest, Weaver's Woods, in southwestern Illinois showed dominance by Quercus alba and Q. velutina. Weaver Woods developed into a Q. velutina, Q. rubra, Carya ovata forest by 1956, and into an Acer saccharum, C. ovata, Quercus spp. forest with a basal area of 32.7 m$^2\cdotha^{-1}$by 1983. Woody stem inventories were based on trees >30.5 cm dbh in 1956, and on all woody plants >6.6 cm dbh in 1967 and 1983 along with the sampling of understory and herbaceous vegetation. Stand density has fluctuated and in 1983 was 459 trees·ha-1. Size-class distribution of all species combined has not changed. Size-class distributions of individual species show a changing composition and structure of the forest. Size-class distributions of the oaks and hickories best fit a normal or Gaussian curve, with little or no recent regeneration. Acer saccharum was the dominant species in the forest in 1983 and had a negative exponential size-class structure reflecting abundant regeneration. Asimina triloba was the dominant species in the understory in 1983, heavily shading much of the forest floor. If current trends continue, Acer saccharum will dominate the canopy and oaks and hickories will decrease to remain as scattered large individuals. The size-class distributions of Weaver's Woods over the past 27 yr, plus future trends and old-growth status related to presettlement forests in the area, are discussed.
ISSN:0003-0031
1938-4238
DOI:10.2307/2426328