Journal Article
Mortality of developing floodplain forests subjected to a drying climate and water extraction
GILLIS J. HORNER; PATRICK J. BAKER; RALPH MAC NALLY; SHAUN C. CUNNINGHAM; JAMES R. THOMSON; FIONA HAMILTON
Global Change Biology · Vol. 15, Issue 9 · pp. 2176-2186 · 2009
Abstract
River regulation and water extraction have altered the hydrology of rivers resulting in substantial changes to forest structure and the dieback of floodplain forests globally. Forest mortality, due to water extraction, is likely to be exacerbated by climate change‐induced droughts. In 1965, a plantation trial was established within a natural floodplain forest to examine the effect of planting density on timber production. We used data from this trial to investigate the effect of initial stand density on the structure and dynamics of Eucalyptus camaldulensis (Dehnh.) forests. Highest density stands (8000 trees ha −1 ) were dominated by many slender trees, mostly