The effects of conifer plantation management and forest fragmentation on plant species diversity in Japan were reviewed. While most studies have demonstrated that the practice of thinning in coniferous plantations can enhance species diversity of naturally regenerated trees, such as broad-leaved trees, some have shown that thinning reduces plant species diversity through the direct physical disturbance to forests. In addition, plant species diversity in plantations has also been shown to be dependent on the distance from seed sources. Extensive forest fragmentation due to land use changes has occurred, particularly in forests near urban and suburban areas. Although the number of species per unit area in abandoned coppice forests is not clearly related to the extent of forest fragmentation, most species attributes (such as rare species) are negatively influenced by forest fragmentation. Some of the forests owned by shrines and temples in urban areas are similar to island forests and are relatively well protected from human disturbance. To more clearly understand and evaluate changes in biodiversity through forest management, elucidating the interactions between management and plant species diversity, species composition, and the ecological traits of various species is therefore necessary. 1. Introduction Forest management typically has a marked affect on plant species diversity, which is an important ecological indicator (e.g., [1]). Understanding the effects of forest management practices on plant species diversity is important for achieving ecologically sustainable forest management [2]. Most of the forests that cover Japan’s surface are managed; these include plantations, coppices, and selection or selectively cut forests [3]. The plant species diversity of these managed forests is thus important for maintaining, conserving, and restoring biodiversity in Japan. Globally, forest management policy has changed in response to changes in public awareness of the multiple functions of forests [4]. In Japan, studies of plant species diversity in the managed forests of the country have increased markedly since 2000 [5, 6]. Species diversity is an important index in community ecology (e.g., [7]). Although species richness and diversity are useful indicators of the effects of forest management practices, species diversity per se is also important in biodiversity. For example, forest stands with relatively higher species richness or diversity are not always much better for biodiversity, as undesirable species (e.g., invasive or exotic species), which frequently
References
[1]
D. B. Lindenmayer, J. F. Franklin, and J. Fischer, “General management principles and a checklist of strategies to guide forest biodiversity conservation,” Biological Conservation, vol. 131, no. 3, pp. 433–445, 2006.
[2]
M. K. Dobbertin and M. P. Nobis, “Exploring research issues in selected forest journals 1979–2008,” Annals of Forest Science, vol. 67, no. 8, 7 pages, 2010.
[3]
T. Nagaike, T. Kamitani, and T. Nakashizuka, “Effects of different forest management systems on plant species diversity in a Fagus crenata forested landscape of central Japan,” Canadian Journal of Forest Research, vol. 35, no. 12, pp. 2832–2840, 2005.
[4]
B. H. N. Razafindrabe, H. Bin, S. Inoue, T. Ezaki, and R. Sau, “The role of forest stand density in controlling soil erosion: implications to sediment-related disasters in Japan,” Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, vol. 160, no. 1–4, pp. 337–354, 2010.
[5]
T. Nagaike, “A review of ecological studies on plant species diversity in plantation ecosystems,” Journal of the Japanese Forestry Society, vol. 82, no. 4, pp. 407–416, 2000 (Japanese).
[6]
T. Nagaike, “A review of ecological studies on the effects of forest management on plant species diversity,” Japanese Journal of Ecology, vol. 52, pp. 35–54, 2002 (Japanese).
[7]
J. A. Myers and K. E. Harms, “Seed arrival, ecological filters, and plant species richness: a meta-analysis,” Ecology Letters, vol. 12, no. 11, pp. 1250–1260, 2009.
[8]
T. Igarashi and Y. Kiyono, “The potential of hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa [Sieb. et Zucc.] Endlicher) plantation forests for the restoration of the original plant community in Japan,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 255, no. 1, pp. 183–192, 2008.
[9]
S. B. Jeffries, T. R. Wentworth, and H. L. Allen, “Long-term effects of establishment practices on plant communities across successive rotations in a loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) plantation,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 260, no. 9, pp. 1548–1556, 2010.
[10]
D. B. Lindenmayer and R. J. Hobbs, “Fauna conservation in Australian plantation forests—a review,” Biological Conservation, vol. 119, no. 2, pp. 151–168, 2004.
[11]
T. Nagaike, A. Hayashi, and M. Kubo, “Is it necessary to change the number of samples for different forest types when evaluating plant species richness? A case study in a forested landscape in central Japan,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 169–175, 2010.
[12]
V. M. Proen？a, H. M. Pereira, J. Guilherme, and L. Vicente, “Plant and bird diversity in natural forests and in native and exotic plantations in NW Portugal,” Acta Oecologica, vol. 36, no. 2, pp. 219–226, 2010.
[13]
E. Weiher, A. van der Werf, K. Thompson, M. Roderick, E. Garnier, and O. Eriksson, “Challenging theophrastus: a common core list of plant traits for functional ecology,” Journal of Vegetation Science, vol. 10, no. 5, pp. 609–620, 1999.
[14]
H. Poorbabaei and G. Poorrahmati, “Plant species diversity in loblolly pine (Pinus teada L.) and sugi (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) plantations in the Western Guilan, Iran,” International Journal of Biodiversity and Conservation, vol. 1, pp. 38–44, 2009.
[15]
L. L. Bremer and K. A. Farley, “Does plantation forestry restore biodiversity or create green deserts? A synthesis of the effects of land-use transitions on plant species richness,” Biodiversity and Conservation, vol. 19, no. 14, pp. 3893–3915, 2010.
[16]
A. Felton, E. Knight, J. Wood, C. Zammit, and D. Lindenmayer, “A meta-analysis of fauna and flora species richness and abundance in plantations and pasture lands,” Biological Conservation, vol. 143, no. 3, pp. 545–554, 2010.
[17]
J. Bauhus, P. ven der Meer, and M. Kanninen, Ecosystem Goods and Services from Plantation Forests, Earthscan, 2010.
[18]
M. J. Broncano, M. Vilà, and M. Boada, “Evidence of Pseudotsuga menziesii naturalization in montane Mediterranean forests,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 211, no. 3, pp. 257–263, 2005.
[19]
F. Essl, D. Moser, S. Dullinger, T. Mang, and P. E. Hulme, “Selection for commercial forestry determines global patterns of alien conifer invasions,” Diversity and Distributions, vol. 16, no. 6, pp. 911–921, 2010.
[20]
R. D. Nyland, Silviculture, McGrow Hill, 1996.
[21]
S. Heinrichs and W. Schmidt, “Short-term effects of selection and clear cutting on the shrub and herb layer vegetation during the conversion of even-aged Norway spruce stands into mixed stands,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 258, no. 5, pp. 667–678, 2009.
[22]
Y. Kubota, K. Katsuda, and K. Kikuzawa, “Secondary succession and effects of clear-logging on diversity in the subtropical forests on Okinawa Island, southern Japan,” Biodiversity and Conservation, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 879–901, 2005.
[23]
K. Nagashima, S. Yoshida, and T. Hosaka, “Patterns and factors in early-stage vegetation recovery at abandoned plantation clearcut sites in Oita, Japan: possible indicators for evaluating vegetation status,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 135–146, 2009.
[24]
T. Nagaike, T. Yoshida, H. Miguchi, T. Nakashizuka, and T. Kamitani, “Rehabilitation for species enrichment in abandoned coppice forests in Japan,” in Restoration of Boreal and Temperate Forests, J. A. Stanturf and P. Madsen, Eds., pp. 371–381, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fla, USA, 2005b.
[25]
K. Sakuta, S. Taniguchi, A. Inoue, and N. Mizoue, “Effects of strip-cutting on stand floor micro climate and tree-species diversity in a Japanese cypress plantation,” Journal of the Japanese Forestry Society, vol. 91, no. 2, pp. 86–93, 2009 (Japanese).
[26]
S. Ito, S. Ishigami, N. Mizoue, and G. P. Buckley, “Maintaining plant species composition and diversity of understory vegetation under strip-clearcutting forestry in conifer plantations in Kyushu, southern Japan,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 231, no. 1–3, pp. 234–241, 2006.
[27]
H. Yamagawa, S. Ito, K. Sakuta, N. Mizoue, and T. Nakao, “Effects of small-scale clearcutting management on species diversity and vertical structure of understory vegetation of a conifer plantation comprising uneven-aged stands, in Kyushu, Southern Japan,” Journal of the Japanese Forestry Society, vol. 91, no. 4, pp. 277–284, 2009.
[28]
S. Miura, S. Yoshinaga, and T. Yamada, “Protective effect of floor cover against soil erosion on steep slopes forested with Chamaecyparis obtusa (hinoki) and other species,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 27–35, 2003.
[29]
H. Kon, I. Watanabe, and M. Yasaka, “Effect of thinning on the natural regeneration of broad-leaved trees in Abies sachalinensis plantations,” Journal of the Japanese Forestry Society, vol. 89, no. 6, pp. 395–400, 2007 (Japanese).
[30]
N. Hanada, M. Shibuya, H. Saito, and K. Takahashi, “Regeneration process of broadleaved trees in planted Larix kaempferi forests,” Journal of the Japanese Forestry Society, vol. 88, no. 1, pp. 1–7, 2006 (Japanese).
[31]
H. T. Ishii, M. A. Maleque, and S. Taniguchi, “Line thinning promotes stand growth and understory diversity in Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) plantations,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 73–78, 2008.
[32]
A. Hirata, T. Sakai, K. Takahashi et al., “Effects of management, environment and landscape conditions on establishment of hardwood seedlings and saplings in central Japanese coniferous plantations,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 262, no. 7, pp. 1280–1288, 2011.
[33]
M. Nagai and T. Yoshida, “Variation in understory structure and plant species diversity influenced by silvicultural treatments among 21- to 26-year-old Picea glehnii plantations,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 1–10, 2006.
[34]
Y. Son, Y. Y. Lee, Y. C. Jun, and Z.-S. Kim, “Light availability and understory vegetation four years after thinning in a Larix leptolepis plantation of central Korea,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 133–139, 2004.
[35]
A. Cooper, T. McCann, and D. Ridge, “Vegetation development in second rotation Irish conifer plantations,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 255, no. 3-4, pp. 962–972, 2008.
[36]
T. Hino and T. Hiura, “Effects of disturbance history and environmental factors on the diversity and productivity of understory vegetation in a cool-temperate forest in Japan,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 257, no. 3, pp. 843–857, 2009.
[37]
T. Masaki, S. Mori, T. Kajimoto et al., “Long-term growth analyses of Japanese cedar trees in a plantation: neighborhood competition and persistence of initial growth deviations,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 217–225, 2006.
[38]
T. Nishizono, K. Tanaka, K. Hosoda, Y. Awaya, and Y. Oishi, “Effects of thinning and site productivity on culmination of stand growth: results from long-term monitoring experiments in Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) forests in northeastern Japan,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 13, no. 5, pp. 264–274, 2008.
[39]
G. Kerr, “The use of silvicultural systems to enhance the biological diversity of plantation forests in Britain,” Forestry, vol. 72, no. 3, pp. 191–205, 1999.
[40]
R. T. Busing and S. L. Garman, “Promoting old-growth characteristics and long-term wood production in Douglas-fir forests,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 160, no. 1–3, pp. 161–175, 2002.
[41]
W. Suzuki, T. Suzaki, T. Okumura, and S. Ikeda, “Aging-induced development patterns of Chamaecyparis obtusa plantations,” Journal of the Japanese Forestry Society, vol. 87, no. 1, pp. 27–35, 2005 (Japanese).
[42]
R. Ferris, A. J. Peace, J. W. Humphrey, and A. C. Broome, “Relationships between vegetation, site type and stand structure in coniferous plantations in Britain,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 136, no. 1–3, pp. 35–51, 2000.
[43]
S. Ito, M. Nakagawa, G. P. Buckley, and K. Nogami, “Species richness in sugi (Cryptomeria japonica D. DON) plantations in southeastern Kyushu, Japan: the effects of stand type and age on understory trees and shrubs,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 49–57, 2003.
[44]
M. R. Roberts, “Effects of forest plantation management on herbaceous-layer composition and diversity,” Canadian Journal of Botany, vol. 80, no. 4, pp. 378–389, 2002.
[45]
B. V. Ramovs and M. R. Roberts, “Response of plant functional groups within plantations and naturally regenerated forests in southern New Brunswick, Canada,” Canadian Journal of Forest Research, vol. 35, no. 6, pp. 1261–1276, 2005.
[46]
T. Nagaike, “Snag abundance and species composition in a managed forest landscape in central japan composed of Larix kaempferi plantations and secondary broadleaf forests,” Silva Fennica, vol. 43, no. 5, pp. 755–766, 2009.
[47]
R. Ferris and J. W. Humphrey, “A review of potential biodiversity indicators for application in British forests,” Forestry, vol. 72, no. 4, pp. 313–328, 1999.
[48]
T. Nagaike, A. Hayashi, and M. Kubo, “Diversity of naturally regenerating tree species in the overstorey layer of Larix kaempferi plantations and abandoned broadleaf coppice stands in central Japan,” Forestry, vol. 83, no. 3, pp. 285–291, 2010.
[49]
T. Nagaike, A. Hayashi, M. Abe, and N. Arai, “Differences in plant species diversity in Larix kaempferi plantations of different ages in central Japan,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 183, no. 1–3, pp. 177–193, 2003.
[50]
T. Nagaike, A. Hayashi, M. Kubo, M. Abe, and N. Arai, “Plant species diversity in a managed forest landscape composed of Larix kaempferi plantations and abandoned coppice forests in Central Japan,” Forest Science, vol. 52, no. 3, pp. 324–332, 2006.
[51]
K. Takahashi and T. Kamitani, “Effect of dispersal capacity on forest plant migration at a landscape scale,” Journal of Ecology, vol. 92, no. 5, pp. 778–785, 2004.
[52]
Z. Dzwonko, “Effect of proximity to ancient deciduous woodland on restoration of the field layer vegetation in a pine plantation,” Ecography, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 198–204, 2001.
[53]
M. Wulf and T. Heinken, “Colonization of recent coniferous versus deciduous forest stands by vascular plants at the local scale,” Applied Vegetation Science, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 307–316, 2008.
[54]
R. S. Gonzales and T. Nakashizuka, “Broad-leaf species composition in Cryptomeria japonica plantations with respect to distance from natural forest,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 259, no. 10, pp. 2133–2140, 2010.
[55]
E. Utsugi, H. Kanno, N. Ueno et al., “Hardwood recruitment into conifer plantations in Japan: effects of thinning and distance from neighboring hardwood forests,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 237, no. 1–3, pp. 15–28, 2006.
[56]
K. Seiwa, M. Ando, A. Imaji, M. Tomita, and K. Kanou, “Spatio-temporal variation of environmental signals inducing seed germination in temperate conifer plantations and natural hardwood forests in northern Japan,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 257, no. 1, pp. 361–369, 2009.
[57]
A. Sakai, T. Sakai, S. Kuramoto, and S. Sato, “Soil seed banks in a mature Hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa Endl.) plantation and initial process of secondary succession after clearcutting in southwestern Japan,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 15, no. 5, pp. 316–327, 2010.
[58]
H. Zhu, Z. F. Xu, H. Wang, and B. G. Li, “Tropical rain forest fragmentation and its ecological and species diversity changes in southern Yunnan,” Biodiversity and Conservation, vol. 13, no. 7, pp. 1355–1372, 2004.
[59]
A. Helm, I. Hanski, and M. P？rtel, “Slow response of plant species richness to habitat loss and fragmentation,” Ecology Letters, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 72–77, 2006.
[60]
M. Vellend, K. Verheyen, H. Jacquemyn et al., “Extinction debt of forest plants persists for more than a century following habitat fragmentation,” Ecology, vol. 87, no. 3, pp. 542–548, 2006.
[61]
S. Iida and T. Nakashizuka, “Forest fragmentation and its effect on species diversity in sub-urban coppice forests in Japan,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 73, no. 1–3, pp. 197–210, 1995.
[62]
K. Fukamachi, S. Iida, and T. Nakashizuka, “Landscape patterns and plant species diversity of forest reserves in the Kanto region, Japan,” Vegetatio, vol. 124, no. 1, pp. 107–114, 1996.
[63]
H. Ishida, T. Hattori, and Y. Takeda, “Comparison of species composition and richness among primeval, natural, and secondary lucidophyllous forests on Tsushima Island, Japan,” Vegetation Science, vol. 22, pp. 1–14, 2005a (Japanese).
[64]
H. Ishida, T. Hattori, Y. Hashimoto, et al., “Comparison of species composition and richness among primeval, natural, and secondary lucidophyllous forests in southeastern Kyushu, Japan,” Vegetation Science, vol. 22, pp. 71–86, 2005b (Japanese).
[65]
S. Fujii, Y. Kubota, and T. Enoki, “Long-term ecological impacts of clear-fell logging on tree species diversity in a subtropical forest, southern Japan,” Journal of Forest Research, vol. 15, no. 5, pp. 289–298, 2010.
[66]
H. Ishida, T. Hattori, Y. Takeda, and S. Kodate, “Relationship between species richness or species composition and area of fragmented lucidophyllous forests in southeastern Hyogo Prefecture,” Japanese Journal of Ecology, vol. 48, no. 1, pp. 1–16, 1998 (Japanese).
[67]
H. Tamura and K. Shimano, “Various plants habitats of shrines in the Matsumoto basin, Nagano, central Japan,” Landscape Ecology and Management, vol. 14, pp. 53–66, 2009 (Japanese).
[68]
K. Murakami, F. Uwakubo, N. Izumoto, and Y. Morimoto, “An adaptation of the focal species approach for conserving the woody plant species diversity in fragmented shrine forests in urban or suburban landscapes,” Landscape Ecology and Management, vol. 14, pp. 41–51, 2009 (Japanese).
[69]
K. Takeuchi, R. D. Brown, I. Washitani, A. Tsunekawa, and M. Yokohari, Satoyama: The Traditional Rural Landscape of Japan, Springer, Tokyo, Japan, 2003.
[70]
T. Matsumura, T. Hattori, Y. Hashimoto, and K. Ban, “Relationship between cover of evergreen species and species richness or species composition of coppice forest in Hokusetsu area, Hyogo, western Japan,” Vegetation Science, vol. 24, pp. 41–52, 2007 (Japanese).
[71]
T. Nakashizuka, “Regeneration of beech (Fagus crenata) after the simultaneous death of undergrowing dwarf bamboo (Sasa kurilensis),” Ecological Research, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 21–35, 1988.
[72]
H. Tomimatsu, H. Yamagishi, I. Tanaka, M. Sato, R. Kondo, and Y. Konno, “Consequences of forest fragmentation in an understory plant community: extensive range expansion of native dwarf bamboo,” Plant Species Biology, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 3–12, 2011.
[73]
K. Shimada, T. Katsuki, K. Iwamoto, and O. Saito, “Managemnt effects on the community structure and species richness of secondary Quercus serrate-Q. acutissima woodland in the southwest Tama area, Tokyo, Japan,” Vegetation Science, vol. 25, pp. 1–12, 2008 (Japanese).
[74]
S. Nakagawa, “Approaches to Satoyama conservation,” in Satoyama: The Traditional Rural Landscape of Japan, K. Takauchi, et al., Ed., Springer, Tokyo, Japan, 2003.
[75]
A. Felton, M. Lindbladh, J. Brunet, and ？. Fritz, “Replacing coniferous monocultures with mixed-species production stands: an assessment of the potential benefits for forest biodiversity in northern Europe,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 260, no. 6, pp. 939–947, 2010.
[76]
M. Scherer-Lorenzen, C. K？rner, and E. D. Schulze, Forest Diversity and Function, Springer, 2005.
[77]
C. Healy, N. J. Gotelli, and C. Potvin, “Partitioning the effects of biodiversity and environmental heterogeneity for productivity and mortality in a tropical tree plantation,” Journal of Ecology, vol. 96, no. 5, pp. 903–913, 2008.
[78]
R. Jobidon, G. Cyr, and N. Thiffault, “Plant species diversity and composition along an experimental gradient of northern hardwood abundance in Picea mariana plantations,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 198, no. 1–3, pp. 209–221, 2004.
[79]
W. Koerner, J. L. Dupouey, E. Dambrine, and M. Beno？t, “Influence of past land use on the vegetation and soils of present day forest in the Vosges mountains, France,” Journal of Ecology, vol. 85, no. 3, pp. 351–358, 1997.
[80]
H. Taki, T. Inoue, H. Tanaka et al., “Responses of community structure, diversity, and abundance of understory plants and insect assemblages to thinning in plantations,” Forest Ecology and Management, vol. 259, no. 3, pp. 607–613, 2010.
