Lichen communities as climate indicators in the U.S. Pacific States /
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Government Document Book |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Portland, OR :
United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station,
2017.
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| Series: | General technical report PNW ;
GTR 952. |
| Subjects: |
| Abstract: | Epiphytic lichens are bioindicators of climate, air quality, and other forest conditions and may reveal how forests will respond to global changes in the U.S. Pacific States of Alaska, Washington, Oregon, and California. We explored climate indication with lichen communities surveyed by using both the USDA Forest Service Inventory and Analysis (FIA) and Alaska Region (R10) methods. Across the Pacific States, lichen indicator species and ordination "climate scores" reflected associations between lichen community composition and climate. Indicator species are appealing targets for monitoring, while climate scores at sites resurveyed in the future can indicate climate change effects. Comparing the FIA and R10 survey methods in coastal Alaska showed that plot size affected lichen-species capture but not climate scores, whereas mixing data from both methods did not improve climate scores. Remeasurements from 1989 to 2014 in south-central and southeast Alaska revealed the importance of systematically random plot designs to detect climate responses in lichen communities. We provide an appendix of lichen species with climate indicator values. Lichen indicator species and community climate scores are promising tools for meeting regional forest management objectives. |
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| Item Description: | Cover title. "June 2017." "2017 - 776-470 / 00615 Region Number 10."--Page 44. Print format not distributed to depository libraries. |
| Physical Description: | 44 pages : color illustrations, color maps ; 28 cm. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (pages 31-34). |