Original scientific paper
Study of Forest Road Effect on Tree Community and Stand Structure in Three Italian and Iranian Temperate Forests
Rodolfo Picchio
orcid.org/0000-0002-9375-7795
; University of Tuscia Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences (DAFNE) Via S. Camillo de Lellis 01100 Viterbo ITALY
Farzam Tavankar
; Islamic Azad University Khalkhal Branch Department of Forestry Khalkhal IRAN
Rachele Venanzi
; University of Tuscia Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences (DAFNE) Via S. Camillo de Lellis 01100 Viterbo ITALY
Angela Lo Monaco
; University of Tuscia Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences (DAFNE) Via S. Camillo de Lellis 01100 Viterbo ITALY
Mehrdad Nikooy
; University of Guilan Faculty of Natural Resources Department of Forestry Somesara IRAN
Abstract
Roads are built in forests for two main reasons, but always in function of management of forest ecosystems, and these reasons are to provide access to the forest area for transportation mobility and wood extraction. This creates a relatively even network in the forest. This topic has received much attention in recent years due to its function and effect on forested rural landscapes and the related environment. Forest road network is important for various types of functional use, such as the interface between forested lands and roads. The aim of this study is to assess the effects of road existence and use on the occurrence of tree dieback and on the composition of the tree community in three forest areas (two in Italy and one in Iran). The effort to determine the dynamics of the effects caused by road use was done by examining the changes in stand structure and abundance of species. As demonstrated by the results, the edges (20 m) of the forest road network are a fine mosaic composed of different trees (qualitative and quantitative), coupled with the moderate presence of dead trees. In the three areas, from the road edges to the interior forest, a similar taxonomic composition of forest community was found. The first main difference was related to the abundance of less shadow tolerant species along the road. The second main difference was related to the tree biodiversity indices that are higher along the road. The main similarities are in the structure of live and dead trees.
Keywords
forest road; logging; tree species diversity; SIV; tree dieback intensity index
Hrčak ID:
193552
URI
Publication date:
26.1.2018.
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