Coarse Woody Debris in Riparian Corridors of Central Pennsylvania: How Abundance, Characteristics, and Dynamics Vary with Anthropogenic Disturbance
Open Access
- Author:
- Gould, Timothy Walker
- Graduate Program:
- Ecology
- Degree:
- Master of Science
- Document Type:
- Master Thesis
- Date of Defense:
- November 17, 2017
- Committee Members:
- Robert P Brooks, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Alan H Taylor, Committee Member
Michael Quinn Nassry, Committee Member - Keywords:
- ecology
coarse woody debris
riparian
disturbance
habitat quality - Abstract:
- The wetlands and riparian corridors of North America’s Mid-Atlantic Region (MAR) have been under constant and continuing pressure from anthropogenic settlement since before the arrival of the first Europeans on the continent. Disturbances related to human development have impeded the functioning of these ecosystems and reduced the quantity and quality of services they provide to society. An understanding of the detrimental effects of landscape alteration has grown within the past few decades, and in this relatively short period of time, a wealth of research has been compiled on how to reverse these effects through restoration. Floodplains, often heavily settled and modified, have been of particular interest as they provide valuable services such as flood attenuation, soil enrichment, and water storage. Within the context of floodplains, limited attention has been paid to coarse woody debris (CWD) and its role in the ecosystem. Historically, coarse woody debris has been removed from channels and riparian corridors by people for a number of reasons. It is now understood to be a crucial element of ecosystem architecture, and efforts are being made to characterize how CWD dynamics within the landscape affect functioning and service provisioning. Although a body of work on this subject has been produced in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S., there are still many questions that remain to be answered. This research utilizes data collected during rapid field assessments of habitat quality, in conjunction with intensive surveys of debris, to determine how anthropogenic disturbance influences debris abundances and characteristics in floodplain systems. This study was completed in the central Pennsylvania portion of the MAR, an area that, though heavily forested, has received little attention in debris studies. Results demonstrate that the greatest quantities of debris are associated with sites experiencing the least amount of anthropogenic disturbance, and that the debris found at these sites shows greater diversity in size than debris found elsewhere. A moderately-robust mathematical relationship was also established between debris counts and riparian forest basal areas, indicating that this measurement of habitat quality may be the best predictor of debris concentration. These findings have important implications for both ecological integrity and ecosystem service provisioning, and will hopefully enable land managers in the Mid-Atlantic Region to make informed choices regarding debris installations on their properties.