Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia
Abstract Background Forest distribution in the forest-steppe of Mongolia depends on relief, permafrost, and climate, and is highly sensitive to climate change and anthropogenic disturbance. Forest fires and logging decreased the forest area in the forest-steppe of Mongolia. The intention of this stu...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:468694de4ae546d884f1078e469c8ed6 2023-05-15T17:57:37+02:00 Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia Michael Klinge Choimaa Dulamsuren Florian Schneider Stefan Erasmi Uudus Bayarsaikhan Daniela Sauer Markus Hauck 2021-08-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 https://doaj.org/article/468694de4ae546d884f1078e469c8ed6 EN eng SpringerOpen https://doi.org/10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 https://doaj.org/toc/2197-5620 doi:10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 2197-5620 https://doaj.org/article/468694de4ae546d884f1078e469c8ed6 Forest Ecosystems, Vol 8, Iss 1, Pp 1-20 (2021) Biomass Fire Forest-steppe Geoecological factors Mongolia Permafrost Ecology QH540-549.5 article 2021 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 2022-12-31T06:03:20Z Abstract Background Forest distribution in the forest-steppe of Mongolia depends on relief, permafrost, and climate, and is highly sensitive to climate change and anthropogenic disturbance. Forest fires and logging decreased the forest area in the forest-steppe of Mongolia. The intention of this study was to identify the geoecological parameters that control forest distribution and living-tree biomass in this semi-arid environment. Based on these parameters, we aimed to delineate the area that forest might potentially occupy and to analyse the spatial patterns of actual and potential tree biomass. Methods We used a combination of various geographic methods in conjunction with statistical analyses to identify the key parameters controlling forest distribution. In several field campaigns, we mapped tree biomass and ecological parameters in a study area within the Tarvagatai Nuruu National Park (central Mongolia). Forest areas, topographic parameters and vegetation indices were obtained from remote sensing data. Significant correlations between forest distribution and living-tree biomass on one hand, and topographic parameters, climate data, and environmental conditions on the other hand, were used to delineate the area of potential forest distribution and to estimate total living-tree biomass for this area. Results Presence of forest on slopes was controlled by the factors elevation, aspect, slope, mean annual precipitation, and mean growing-season temperature. Combining these factors allowed for estimation of potential forest area but was less suitable for tree-biomass delineation. No significant differences in mean living-tree biomass existed between sites exposed to different local conditions with respect to forest fire, exploitation, and soil properties. Tree biomass was reduced at forest edges (defined as 30 m wide belt), in small fragmented and in large forest stands. Tree biomass in the study area was 20 × 109 g (1,086 km2 forest area), whereas the potential tree biomass would reach up to 65 × 109 g (> ... Article in Journal/Newspaper permafrost Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Forest Ecosystems 8 1 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Biomass Fire Forest-steppe Geoecological factors Mongolia Permafrost Ecology QH540-549.5 |
spellingShingle |
Biomass Fire Forest-steppe Geoecological factors Mongolia Permafrost Ecology QH540-549.5 Michael Klinge Choimaa Dulamsuren Florian Schneider Stefan Erasmi Uudus Bayarsaikhan Daniela Sauer Markus Hauck Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia |
topic_facet |
Biomass Fire Forest-steppe Geoecological factors Mongolia Permafrost Ecology QH540-549.5 |
description |
Abstract Background Forest distribution in the forest-steppe of Mongolia depends on relief, permafrost, and climate, and is highly sensitive to climate change and anthropogenic disturbance. Forest fires and logging decreased the forest area in the forest-steppe of Mongolia. The intention of this study was to identify the geoecological parameters that control forest distribution and living-tree biomass in this semi-arid environment. Based on these parameters, we aimed to delineate the area that forest might potentially occupy and to analyse the spatial patterns of actual and potential tree biomass. Methods We used a combination of various geographic methods in conjunction with statistical analyses to identify the key parameters controlling forest distribution. In several field campaigns, we mapped tree biomass and ecological parameters in a study area within the Tarvagatai Nuruu National Park (central Mongolia). Forest areas, topographic parameters and vegetation indices were obtained from remote sensing data. Significant correlations between forest distribution and living-tree biomass on one hand, and topographic parameters, climate data, and environmental conditions on the other hand, were used to delineate the area of potential forest distribution and to estimate total living-tree biomass for this area. Results Presence of forest on slopes was controlled by the factors elevation, aspect, slope, mean annual precipitation, and mean growing-season temperature. Combining these factors allowed for estimation of potential forest area but was less suitable for tree-biomass delineation. No significant differences in mean living-tree biomass existed between sites exposed to different local conditions with respect to forest fire, exploitation, and soil properties. Tree biomass was reduced at forest edges (defined as 30 m wide belt), in small fragmented and in large forest stands. Tree biomass in the study area was 20 × 109 g (1,086 km2 forest area), whereas the potential tree biomass would reach up to 65 × 109 g (> ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Michael Klinge Choimaa Dulamsuren Florian Schneider Stefan Erasmi Uudus Bayarsaikhan Daniela Sauer Markus Hauck |
author_facet |
Michael Klinge Choimaa Dulamsuren Florian Schneider Stefan Erasmi Uudus Bayarsaikhan Daniela Sauer Markus Hauck |
author_sort |
Michael Klinge |
title |
Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia |
title_short |
Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia |
title_full |
Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia |
title_fullStr |
Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia |
title_full_unstemmed |
Geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of Central Mongolia |
title_sort |
geoecological parameters indicate discrepancies between potential and actual forest area in the forest-steppe of central mongolia |
publisher |
SpringerOpen |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 https://doaj.org/article/468694de4ae546d884f1078e469c8ed6 |
genre |
permafrost |
genre_facet |
permafrost |
op_source |
Forest Ecosystems, Vol 8, Iss 1, Pp 1-20 (2021) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 https://doaj.org/toc/2197-5620 doi:10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 2197-5620 https://doaj.org/article/468694de4ae546d884f1078e469c8ed6 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40663-021-00333-9 |
container_title |
Forest Ecosystems |
container_volume |
8 |
container_issue |
1 |
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1766166096207937536 |