Graduate Program
Biological Sciences
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Semester of Degree Completion
2014
Thesis Director
Scott J. Meiners
Thesis Committee Member
Robert E. Colombo
Thesis Committee Member
Gordon C. Tucker
Abstract
Although white oak (Quercus alba) dominated much of the mid-west and eastern US hardwood forests prior to European settlement, changes in disturbance frequencies and habitat fragmentation, coupled with other biotic pressures, are allowing sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marshall) to displace oak in the upland forest understory. Since our understanding of how disturbance mechanisms influence oak regeneration is not fully clear, there is lack of consensus on how to employ management practices. We collected seedling microhabitat data from 5 upland oak forest sites in central Illinois, each differing in age class and/or silvicultural treatment to determine: 1) Whether species of tree seedlings are selectively recruiting into specific microhabitats, 2) Whether silvicultural treatment results in changes in microhabitat at the stand scale, and 3) Whether silvicultural treatments alter seedling-environment relationships. Despite different management histories, oak and maple seedling densities were not significantly different among sites. Results of a MANOVA showed significant relationship between understory oak and maple distributions with slope position (
Recommended Citation
Frey, Peter J., "Comparison of Oak and Sugar Maple Distribution and Regeneration in Central Illinois Upland Oak Forests" (2014). Masters Theses. 1192.
https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses/1192
