Repeatability of Invasion of Eastern White Pine on Dry Sites in Northern Lower Michigan

Abstract

-Age-specific densities of eastern white pine (Pinus strobus) were determined in a series of forest stands in northern Lower Michigan, originating 73, 48, 36, 30 and 4 yr prior to the present study, following prescribed logging and burning. These data were used to reconstruct the invasion patterns of eastern white pine and to make inferences about the repeatability of community change following disturbance. Initial invasion of white pine was more rapid in stands of recent origin (1 and 4 yr after the disturbance for the 36and 30-yr-old stands, respectively, vs. 15 and 25 yr after the disturbance for the 48and 73-yrold stands, respectively). In contrast, white pine population growth reached an asymptote more quickly in stands of recent origin compared to older stands. There was little recruitment of white pines in any of the stands since the early 1970s. Thus, we rejected the hypothesis that community change proceeds similarly in all stands, independent of their time of origin. Our results suggest that the substantial stochastic component in colonization and subsequent increase of populations of potentially dominant forest trees during secondary succession may be affected by different autogenic and allogenic factors.