Natural Resources
Conservation Service
Scenario model
Current ecosystem state
Select a state
Management practices/drivers
Select a transition or restoration pathway
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Transition T1A
Stand replacing disturbance
More details -
Transition T1B
Clearing; agricultural production
More details -
Restoration pathway R2A
Natural restoration
More details -
Transition T2A
Clearing; agriculture production
More details -
No transition or restoration pathway between the selected states has been described
Target ecosystem state
Select a state
Description
Reference state is a forest community dominated by mixed conifers, principally balsam fir (Abies balsamea) and white spruce (Picea glauca) and scattered individuals of northern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis), eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), or white pine (Pinus strobus), often with admixture of several deciduous species, typically red maple (Acer rubrum), paper birch (Betula papyrifera), or trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides ). Depending on history of disturbance, two community phases can be distinguished largely by differences in dominance of tree species and community age structure.
Dominant plant species
balsam fir (Abies balsamea), tree
red maple (Acer rubrum), tree
white spruce (Picea glauca), tree
beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta), shrub
honeysuckle (Lonicera), shrub
Canada mayflower (Maianthemum canadense), grass
starflower (Trientalis borealis), grass
Submodel
Description
Pure, or mixed, aspen – paper birch community replaces the reference state community 1. If seed source is present, red maple readily becomes member of this community.
Dominant plant species
quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides), tree
red maple (Acer rubrum), tree
paper birch (Betula papyrifera), tree
beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta), shrub
Canada mayflower (Maianthemum canadense), grass
starflower (Trientalis borealis), grass
Submodel
Mechanism
Stand replacing disturbance that may include blow-down or ice storm, but must include fire to eliminate slash and competing vegetation and expose mineral soil to allow aspen and/or paper birch to colonize the site by seed. Alternatively, if the disrupted reference state community included aspen trees, the species may become re-established by vegetative means, which typically is more successful than colonization by seed.
Mechanism
Removal of forest cover and tilling for agricultural crop production
Mechanism
Deciduous forest community is slowly invaded by conifers
Model keys
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Ecological sites
Major Land Resource Areas
The Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool is an information system framework developed by the USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and New Mexico State University.
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