PARENT SESSION
Poster Session # 11: Disturbance Ecology.
Tuesday, August 5 Presentation from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM. SITCC Exhibit Hall B.
Age and growth of pitch pines ( Pinus rigida) in the context of frequent disturbance.
Natali, Susan*,1, Landis, Matt2, Gurevitch, Jessica1, Fox, Gordon 3, 1 SUNY, Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY, US2 Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT, US3 University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, US
ABSTRACT- Fire is an integral factor in the maintenance of pine barren stands along the Atlantic coastal plains. Pitch pine (Pinus rigida) is the characteristic and dominant species in the pine barrens of Long Island, NY, which cover approximately 100,000 acres in south-central/southeastern Long Island. Historically, pine barren stands on Long Island burned very frequently with severe enough fires to result in partial or full stand regeneration about every10-30 years. Since the enormous population increase on Long Island following WW II and the rise of suburbanization, fire frequency has greatly decreased due to fire-suppression and increased fragmentation of the pine barrens. In this study we used a dendrochronological analysis to determine age distribution, mortality, recruitment, and growth of P. rigida in 15 sites of varying burn histories in the Long Island Pine Barrens. A greater understanding of the forces shaping pitch pine populations promises to offer insight into the dynamics of disturbance-prone populations and communities.
Key words: disturbance, population dynamics, Pinus rigida, fire