Forest Sciences Commons^™

Overstory Tree Mortality In The Ponderosa Pine And Spruce-Fir Ecosystems, Following A Drought In Northern New Mexico, Brian P. Oswald, Sean Dugan, Randy Balice, Daniel Unger

Faculty Publications

Drought-caused tree dieback is an issue around the world as climates change and many areas become dryer and hotter. A drought from 1998-2004 resulted in a significant tree dieback event in many of the wooded areas in portions of the Jemez Mountains and the adjacent Pajarito Plateau in northern New Mexico. The objectives of this study were to evaluate and quantify the differences in tree mortality before and after a recent drought in the ponderosa pine and spruce-fir ecosystems, and to assess the effect of mechanical thinning on ponderosa pine mortality. Significant increases in mortality were observed in the unthinned …