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Decline of Callitris intratropica R. T. Baker & H. G. Smith in the Northern Territory: Implications for pre- and post-European colonization fire regimes
Citation
Bowman, DMJS and Panton, WJ, Decline of Callitris intratropica R. T. Baker & H. G. Smith in the Northern Territory: Implications for pre- and post-European colonization fire regimes, Journal of Biogeography, 20, (4) pp. 373-381. ISSN 0305-0270 (1993) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
The definitive published version is available online at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/
DOI: doi:10.2307/2845586
Abstract
Callitris intratropica R. T. Baker & H. G. Smith occurs in a range of environments throughout the lower latitudes of the Northern Territory. A geographic survey of the demographic structure of stands revealed a continuum ranging for populations which have a majority of dead individuals, a lack of regeneration and fire-scarred living adults, to stands with few dead or damaged individuals and a heaqvy stocking of juveniles. A TWINSPAN classification divided this continuum into four groups. There were no significant differences between the cover of rocks, grass or shrubs between the four groups of stands, nor was there a significant association with substrate type. Damaged stands were most common and occurred throughout the species' range, while the healthier stands were more typical on coastal sites with >30% tree canopy cover. Stands with dense regeneration were significantly associated with an area actively protected from fire by a forestry operation. A helicopter survey on parts of the remote and currently uninhabited Arnhem Land Plateau revealed a significantly greater count of dead stems than counts of living C. intratropica trees. Detailed studies at one site on the Arnhem Land Plateau showed that there is currently a high mortality of tagged stems, and that the abundant C. intratropica stags died since the 1940s. It is argued that the widespreadt crash of C. intratropica populations is a response to a change in fire regime associated with the coming of Europeans.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Research Division: | Agricultural, Veterinary and Food Sciences |
| Research Group: | Forestry sciences |
| Research Field: | Forestry sciences not elsewhere classified |
| Objective Division: | Environmental Management |
| Objective Group: | Terrestrial systems and management |
| Objective Field: | Terrestrial biodiversity |
| UTAS Author: | Bowman, DMJS (Professor David Bowman) |
| ID Code: | 69140 |
| Year Published: | 1993 |
| Web of Science® Times Cited: | 138 |
| Deposited By: | Plant Science |
| Deposited On: | 2011-04-19 |
| Last Modified: | 2011-07-27 |
| Downloads: | 3 View Download Statistics |
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