Forest Ecology & Silviculture Flashcards
7 cards from real SAF practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Forest Ecology & Silviculture flashcards as text
Which silvicultural system is most appropriate for shade-tolerant species like sugar maple and American beech that regenerate best under a continuous forest canopy?
Answer: Selection system
The selection system maintains a continuous canopy cover, creating the shaded understory conditions that shade-tolerant species require for successful regeneration.
What is the term for the process by which pioneer species modify the environment to make it more suitable for later successional species?
Answer: Facilitation
Facilitation describes how early successional species alter soil, light, and moisture conditions in ways that allow later successional species to establish and eventually replace them.
A forester observes that a recently harvested stand has regenerated primarily with aspen via vegetative sprouting from root systems. This regeneration mechanism is called:
Answer: Root suckering
Root suckering occurs when new shoots arise from the lateral root system, which is the primary regeneration mechanism for trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides).
In even-aged silviculture, the preparatory cut in a shelterwood system is designed primarily to:
Answer: Improve the vigor and seed production of retained trees
The preparatory cut thins the stand to improve crown development, vigor, and seed production of the trees that will be retained to provide seed and shelter during subsequent cuts.
Which of the following best describes the concept of 'forest floor' in ecosystem ecology?
Answer: The accumulation of organic matter including litter, duff, and humus on the soil surface
The forest floor consists of organic layers (O horizon) including fresh litter (Oi), fermenting material (Oe), and well-decomposed humus (Oa) lying atop the mineral soil.
Beech bark disease results from a complex interaction between which two organisms?
Answer: Nectria fungus and beech scale insect
Beech bark disease is caused by the beech scale insect (Cryptococcus fagisuga) creating wounds that allow infection by Neonectria fungi, ultimately killing American beech trees.
In forest mensuration related to silviculture, 'site index' is defined as the average height of dominant and codominant trees at what reference age?
Answer: 50 years
Site index is conventionally defined as the average height of dominant and codominant trees at a base (index) age of 50 years, though some species use a base age of 25 or 100 years.