The ecologists have found significant differences from their latest study from the earlier study of Sierra Nevada reforestation. The latest study uses a new approach to the historical analysis of the forest, and it shows that Sierra Nevara forest was more dense trees than previously studied.
Ecologists at the UC Berkeley finds a substantial flaw in the previous study of Sierra Nevada reforestation. In its official release, UC Berkeley stated the previous study, which was used to challenge the plan of the U.S. Forest Service to restore the Sierra Nevara forest to its dense tree population.
In their study, ecologists use a different method from the previous study conducted in the early twentieth centuries to analyze tree density in the Sierra Nevada forest. The study has been published in the Ecological Applications Journal of the Ecological Society of America.
The scientists compare the five methods of tree density estimation in the forest. The first three methods are the distance-based plotless density estimators methodologies, while the other two are the area estimations. The methods have been used to analyze tree density in Sierra Nevada forest in California, US, and Baja California Norte in Mexico. The combination of these methods will give a more accurate result in tree density in the Sierra Nevada forest in a true density.
Based on their study, ecologists find that the tree density in the Sierra Nevada forest is higher than previously calculated. The study's lead author is the Ph.D. student of forest ecology at UC Berkeley, Carrie Levine. Co-authored the study are two Berkeley professors, John Battles Scott Stephens and one research scientist at the Berkeley, Brandon Collins.
“We have a mapped plot where every tree is measured, so we know the true density,” Levine said, explaining the true density of Sierra Nevada forest. "This allows us to manage for forests that are resilient to the changes we’re expecting in the future."
The result of this study is a very important data for restoration of Sierra Nevada forest. As the region of Sierra Nevada and its forest gives a high benefit to California.
