Energy and Biomass Relationships in Alder (Alnus) Ecosystems Developing on the Tanana River Floodplain near Fairbanks, Alaska
Van Cleve K. 1973. Energy and Biomass Relationships in Alder (Alnus) Ecosystems Developing on the Tanana River Floodplain near Fairbanks, Alaska. Arctic and Alpine Research. 5(3):253-260
The distribution of energy in selected component parts of three river bottom alder ecosystems was determined in this study. For alder, the dominant plant species in each ecosystem, the caloric content of foliage was greater than branches was greater than boles. Maximum energy content in the living plant component was found in 20-year-old alder male cones (6,272 cal g-1); maximum foliage energy content was found in understory white spruce foliage (5,340 cal g-1. Minimum energy content in the living plant component was found in Equisetum (3,696 cal g-1. From 78 to 87% of the total energy is found in living portions of the stands. Caloric content of various stand components appears to follow worldwide trends noted in the literature for energy content of plant parts in relation to latitude. Based on gross mean annual productivity of the stands, the mean annual incorporation of available on appears to be similar to values reported for temperate latitude forests.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Van Cleve, Keith
- Units
- DENA , WRST , YUCH
- Keywords
- Alder, Boreal Forest, Ecology (Terrestrial), Subarctic, Taiga, Vegetation