Population structure and succession in temperate forests of southwestern Japan

✍ Scribed by Nakagoshi, Nobukazu ;Wada, Shuji

• Publisher: Springer-Verlag
• Year: 1990
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 770 KB
• Volume: 87
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1573-5052
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00045657

✦ Synopsis

In the temperate forests of southwestern Japan, the population density of woody plants in the community increases in the early stage of secondary succession, reaches a peak in the old oak-chestnut forest, and decreases towards the climax beech forest. The species richness and diversity of woody plants also show a trend similar to that of the population density. The canopy-tree population decreases in the course of the succession while the basal area increases, showing a self-thinning process. The species richness, diversity and population density of herbaceous plants are much influenced by the dominance of the bamboo, Sasa palmata. The life-history traits of trees, lower trees and shrubs are discussed in relation to their shoot system, reproductive pattern and successional processes.