Effective distance of volatile cues for plant-plant communication in beech.

In response to volatiles emitted from a plant infested by herbivorous arthropods, neighboring undamaged conspecific plants become better defended against herbivores; this is referred to as plant‒plant communication. Although plant‒plant communication occurs in a wide range of plant species, most studies have focused on herbaceous plants. Here, we investigated plant‒plant communication in beech trees in two experimental plantations in 2018 and one plantation in 2019.

Contribution of conspecific negative density dependence to species diversity is increasing towards low environmental limitation in Japanese forests.

Species coexistence is a result of biotic interactions, environmental and historical conditions. The Janzen-Connell hypothesis assumes that conspecific negative density dependence (CNDD) is one of the local processes maintaining high species diversity by decreasing population growth rates at high densities. However, the contribution of CNDD to species richness variation across environmental gradients remains unclear.

Identification of management units in threatened populations of Arnica mallotopus Makino (Asteraceae) using novel EST-SSR markers.

Arnica mallotopus is a perennial herb endemic to the snowy regions of Japan. At the southern edge of its distribution, in Kyoto Prefecture, overgrazing by sika deer and decreased snowfall have resulted in the rapid decline of A. mallotopus populations.

Seasonal and annual fluctuations of deer populations estimated by a Bayesian state-space model.

Deer overabundance is a contributing factor in the degradation of plant communities and ecosystems worldwide. The management and conservation of the deer-affected ecosystems requires us to urgently grasp deer population trends and to identify the factors that affect them. In this study, we developed a Bayesian state-space model to estimate the population dynamics of sika deer (Cervus nippon) in a cool-temperate forest in Japan, where wolves (Canis lupus hodophilax) are extinct.

A New Model for Size-Dependent Tree Growth in Forests.

Tree growth, especially diameter growth of tree stems, is an important issue for understanding the productivity and dynamics of forest stands. Metabolic scaling theory predicted that the 2/3 power of stem diameter at a certain time is a linear function of the 2/3 power of the initial diameter and that the diameter growth rate scales to the 1/3 power of the initial diameter. We tested these predictions of the metabolic scaling theory for 11 Japanese secondary forests at various growth stages.

Efficacy of generic allometric equations for estimating biomass: a test in Japanese natural forests.

Accurate estimation of tree and forest biomass is key to evaluating forest ecosystem functions and the global carbon cycle. Allometric equations that estimate tree biomass from a set of predictors, such as stem diameter and tree height, are commonly used. Most allometric equations are site specific, usually developed from a small number of trees harvested in a small area, and are either species specific or ignore interspecific differences in allometry.

Regional-scale directional changes in abundance of tree species along a temperature gradient in Japan.

Climate changes are assumed to shift the ranges of tree species and forest biomes. Such range shifts result from changes in abundances of tree species or functional types. Owing to global warming, the abundance of a tree species or functional type is expected to increase near the colder edge of its range and decrease near the warmer edge.

Role of axis reversal from the short-shoot to long-shoot habit for crown maintenance in slow-growing Betula maximowicziana trees.

Premise Of The Study: Branch growth and its spatial arrangement determine crown architecture, leaf display, and, thus, the productivity of trees. Branch axes elongate by the sequential production of shoots with differing morphology and function, such as short shoots and long shoots. This study investigated ontogenetic changes in axis growth in Betula maximowicziana and quantified the role of axis reversal between the short-shoot and long-shoot habits, particularly reversal from the short-shoot to the long-shoot habit.

Annual and spatial variation in shoot demography associated with masting in Betula grossa: comparison between mature trees and saplings.

Backgrounds And Aims: Shoot demography affects the growth of the tree crown and the number of leaves on a tree. Masting may cause inter-annual and spatial variation in shoot demography of mature trees, which may in turn affect the resource budget of the tree. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of masting on the temporal and spatial variations in shoot demography of mature Betula grossa.

Comparison of the physiology, morphology, and leaf demography of tropical saplings with different crown shapes.

Branch architecture, leaf photosynthetic traits, and leaf demography were investigated in saplings of two woody species, Homolanthus caloneurus and Macaranga rostulata, co-occurring in the understory of a tropical mountain forest. M. rostulata saplings have cylindrical crowns, whereas H.