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Deciduous Woodlands - Coggle Diagram

- - - - increased risk of drought
        
        more frequent droughts would put a lot of stress on deciduous woodland trees as they are not adapted to survive drought conditions year after year
        
        beech trees are particularly vulnerable to drought stress. stressed trees are less able to fight disease and pest attach
      - increased risk of fire
        
        high temps and drought make forest fires more likely
        
        deciduous woodland is not adapted to forest fires
        
        other ecosystems are adapted to fire and plant species from these ecosystems could start to replace some deciduous woodland plants
      - milder winters
        
        plants and animals in the deciduous woodland are adapted to cold winters
        
        key processes such as seed germination are triggered by cold temps, w/o this trigger the processes become disconnected
        
        new tree species that are not adapted to cold winters are able to out-compete native deciduous trees if winters become milder
        
        pests and diseases that do not survive cold winters can spread if winters become milder
      - loss of biodiversity
        
        deciduous woodland species may be able to migrate to the cooler north of the UK
        
        however, the rate of change may be too rapid for many species to succeed in doing so
        
        already vulnerable species in the south of the UK would likely become extinct, reducing biodiversity
  - - - economic - timer extraction and agricultural change
        
        recent deforestation of deciduous woodland occurred in the 20th century when it was cut down and replaced by coniferous forest - 38% of ancient woodland lost
        
        coniferous plantations were mainly non-native species
        
        plantations monocultures (only 1 species)
        
        denser evergreen canopy means no light for undergrowth - not very biodiverse
        
        coniferous trees produce softwood which grows faster than the hardwood of deciduous trees. timber could be extracted sooner from coniferous plantations, generating money more quickly. non-native conifers are faster growing than native conifers and planting trees as a monoculture made it easier to grow and manage plantations
        
        most of the land in the UK that is suitable for suitable for farming was cleared of woodland centuries ago. however, farming continues to have negative impacts of deciduous woodland. because woodland mostly exists in small blocks rather than big forests, woodland is usually surrounded by farmland. the edges of the woodland are affected by the pesticides and herbicides used and woodland species are damaged by these
      - social - urbanisation and population growth
        
        UK's population has increased significantly over the last 50 years
        
        increased number of people are linked to the blearing of deciduous woodland for new housing (urbanisation) and new road construction
        
        the UK needs to build more houses each year to keep up with demand. developers would like to end greenbelt restrictions which protects a lot of deciduous woodland near to cities and towns to meet this demand. as urbanisation continues to happed, more houses will be built on woodlands and the pressure to build on protected woodland will increase
        
        the number of vehicles in the UK increases every year and there is great pressure to end congestion by widening carriageways, providing relief roads and bypasses and to provide more service stations for road users. deciduous woodland is often lost when these are built
  - - - tourism is worth £500m to the New Forest national park and surrounding region each year, but the 15 million people who visit the forest annually also pose sustainability problems for the Forest's ecosystems
        
        visitors can do damage by trampling delicate plants; causing erosion by walking, cycling, horse-riding and car parking on verges; starting fires with barbeques; scaring wildlife and farm animals with their dogs and dropping litter
        
        the New Forest is used by people with rights to pasture ponies, pigs and other livestock in the Park - these livestock roam freely and are a popular tourist attraction. however, sometimes animals are run over by visitors driving too fast. the ponies can also be dangerous to approach if they have young foals
        
        timber is extracted from the New Forest, both softwood from conifer plantations and hardwood from deciduous trees. some forestry operations are not compatible with visitors using the woodland for recreation and access ahs to be controlled
        
        half the woodland in the New Forest is privately owned and about 40% of that is not managed. it becomes very overgrown, with rotting timber on the forest floor and is not so attractive to visitors
      - sustainable woodland management
        forestry in the New Forest is very carefully organised so that deforestation does not occur and conservation of the deciduous woodland ecosystems is promoted. the New Forest produces 50,000 tonnes of timber each year
        
        when conifers in conservation areas are cut down for timber, they are replaced by native-species deciduous trees. deciduous trees are always replaced by more deciduous species. this means the percentage of deciduous trees is increasing in the New Forest
        
        pesticides and herbicides are used sparingly to avoid damaging the ecosystem
        
        the foresters cut down timber, plant new trees and cull deer in winter, when there are the fewest visitors. work in deciduous woodland between April and August is minimised so nesting birds are not disturbed
        
        half the forestry in the New Forest is managed by the Forestry Commission. this organisation runs courses on sustainable woodland management for private woodland owners and supports volunteers in conservation work
      - sustainable use of the New Forest
        the national promotes sustainable use of the new forest by encouraging visitors not to damage the Park and by organising tourism to benefit local people
        
        different systems are used to control where visitors go: there are a lot of car parks in the New Forest so that people do not park on roadside verges; special cycle routes and paths have been set up through the Park which guide visitors away from vulnerable areas; barriers are used to stop access to areas, for example for forestry work
        
        hotels and campsites in the New Forest are encouraged to join in sustainable transport schemes, such as the New Forest tour - an open-topped bus - and electric vehicle and bike hire. electric vehicle charge points are provided through the National Park
        
        a visitor leaflet called '5 ways to love the Forest' explains why visitors should drive slowly through the Forest or leave the car behind, about Green Leaf business and about the Forest Marque
        
        Green Leaf businesses are local businesses that have signed up to a scheme to use local products where possible, to encourage walking and cycling, to set aside 10% of their grounds for local wildlife and generally to support sustainable use of the Forest
        
        the Forest Marque certifies that local wood products are made from sustainable Forest timber
        
        conservation schemes are funded by the National Park authority and other sources. local landowners can get grants to help improve biodiversity in their woodlands through planting native species and using traditional techniques such as coppicing to manage tree growth in the way the New Forest has been managed for many centuries
- - - - biotic
        
        deciduous woodland is a productive ecosystem with a large biomass because there is plenty of precipitation and heat in the summer (but smaller than TRF where there are optimum conditions all year round)
        
        soil and biomass stores are of similar size as the annual leaf fall adds lots of nutrients to the soil. while temperatures are too low in winter for soil bacteria to function and for decomposition to occur, in spring decomposition becomes rapid as temperatures rise. this makes deciduous woodland soils very fertile
        
        humans manage many deciduous woodlands, which has a big impact on these ecosystems. people have rights to keep livestock in the forest, and this has a significant impact e.g. horses in the new forest graze selectively, eating tall grasses but leaving flowers behind and in autumn they eat bracken, which is toxic to other species - the herb layer is less dense, allowing more species to grow. e.g. pigs in the new forest eat acorns and nuts from trees and when they search for food in the ground thy mix up the leaf litter, aiding decomposition
      - abiotic
        
        woodland soils are not as deep as TRF soils as they have not existed for so long and the processes of soil formation are slower
        
        the deep roots of the trees helps to break up the bedrock and the weathering of this rock adds nutrients to the soil
        
        less leaching (than TRF) and happens gradually as rainfall is not as high or continuous
        
        leaf litter and ground layer of plants and tree roots helps prevent much surface runoff
  - - - 40-60 degrees N/S equator
        
        temperate maritime - mild, wet - mild winters, warm summers
        
        tree species that dominate this ecosystems are deciduous and shed their each year for several months to cope with reductions in light and lower temperatures
        
        woodland has a canopy layer 20-30m above ground, a sub-canopy layer of saplings and bushes, a herb layer of plants such as bluebells, brambles and ivy and a ground layer of mosses and leaf litter
        
        in spring, species in the herb layer flower early before the trees of the canopy come into leaf and their broad leaves block out much of the available light through the summer
        
        deciduous woodland trees have deep root systems so they can access groundwater and nutrients
        
        deciduous woodland soil has a well-developed humus layer at the tops, where there is a lot of biological activity in the spring and summer that breaks down leaf litter from the previous autumn.