This book focuses on the recent decline of red spruce and the role of acid rain and associated air pollutants in this decline. The purpose of the book is to summarize a large body of recent research on this important environmental issue. The book is divided into three sections: section one summarizes the features of spruce-fir forests in the eastern U.S. and examines the ecology of the forests, their soils, and the atmospheric conditions experienced by these forests. Section two looks at experimental results from many air pollution studies and evaluates mechanisms of air pollution effects on red spruce trees. Section three synthesizes the current state of knowledge regarding the widespread red spruce decline in forests of the eastern United States.

Ecology and decline of red spruce in the eastern United States.

Forest responses to climate change will depend on demographic impacts in the context of competition. Current models used to predict species responses, termed climate envelope models (CEMs), are controversial, because (i) calibration and prediction are based on correlations in space (CIS) between species abundance and climate, rather than responses to climate change over time (COT), and (ii) they omit competition. To determine the relative importance of COT, CIS, and competition for light, we applied a longitudinal analysis of 27 000 individual trees over 6–18 years subjected to experimental and natural variation in risk factors. Sensitivities and climate and resource tracking identify which species are vulnerable to these risk factors and in what ways. Results show that responses to COT differ from those predicted based on CIS. The most important impact is the effect of spring temperature on fecundity, rather than any input variable on growth or survival. Of secondary importance is growing season moisture. Species in the genera Pinus, Ulmus, Magnolia, and Fagus are particularly vulnerable to climate variation. However, the effect of competition on growth and mortality risk exceeds the effects of climate variation in space or time for most species. Because sensitivities to COT and competition are larger than CIS, current models miss the most important effects. By directly comparing sensitivity to climate in time and space, together with competition, the approach identifies which species are sensitive to climate change and why, including the heretofore overlooked impact on fecundity.

Climate change vulnerability of forest biodiversity: climate and competition tracking of demographic rates

Long-term growth patterns of red spruce (Picea rubens Sarg.) were analyzed from increment cores collected from over 1000 trees at 48 sites in the eastern United States. Principal objectives were the evaluation of the distribution, timing, and uniqueness of observed patterns of decreasing radial growth during the past 25 years and the examination of stand competition and climate as factors contributing to observed changes. Our analyses focused on historical records of spruce mortality and approximately 200 years of radial growth data to search for historical precedents for current trends. In this work we have used time series analysis to detect the temporal frequency of significant negative or positive shifts in radial growth rates, an analysis of relationships between a stand competition index and observed changes in growth and mortality, and modeling of past growth-climate relationships to determine whether recent growth changes could be predicted based on climate. Collectively, these analyses indicate that the observed growth decreases of surviving red spruce trees at northeastern sites with high mortality have been anomalous during the past 20 to 25 years with respect to both historical annual growth patterns and past relationships to climate or stand development at these sites. In general, reductions in radial increment that have also been noted at southern high elevation sites but not at low elevations occurred 5 to 10 years later than at northern sites and represent less substantive departures from growth trends predicted by linear climate models. These results suggest that regional and not local stresses have triggered the observed decline in radial growth of red spruce at these sites. While climatic change may have contributed to observed changes, the degree of radial growth suppression observed is greater than would be expected based on past growth-climate relationships. This unique relationship of growth to climate suggests the influences of either recent, unique combinations of climatic stresses or the possibly interactive intervention of other regional-scale stresses, such as atmospheric pollution.

An analysis of climate and competition as contributors to decline of red spruce in high elevation Appalachian forests of the Eastern United states.

Department of Agriculture in the War

This paper describes relationships between tree growth indices based on ring width measurements at 1.4 m aboveground and indices derived from whole-stem analysis for red spruce (Picearubens Sarg.) ...

Relationships between breast-height and whole-stem growth indices for red spruce on Whiteface Mountain, New York.

Growth-trend declines of spruce and fir in Mid-appalachian subalpine forests

Iowa's Oldest Oaks

A survey of red spruce growth trends at several sites in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) was undertaken to determine the relationship of the magnitude and timing of changes in annual radial increment to elevation, aspect, tree age, mortality, and competitive status. The growth changes observed suggest responses to changes in climate (principally temperature) or atmospheric pollution acting individually or, more likely, in combination. Major emphasis on these potential causes is warranted in future studies. 56 refs., 8 figs., 11 tabs.

A survey of radial growth trends in spruce in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park as influenced by topography, age, and stand development

Two hundred year variation of southern red spruce radial growth as estimated by spectral analysis: Comment

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