Vegetation forest island edges: A preliminary report

Abstract

As the original native forest has been dissected by roads and replaced by farms or towns, the amount of forest edge relative to the area of forest interior has greatly increased. Today forest edge communities are widespread in many man-modified landscapes. However, the role the edge community plays in the regional landscape, and the extent of and variation in the edge community are relatively undefined. The purpose of this study is to determine the nature of forest edge communities. The specific objectives of the study are to: (1) quantitatively survey and assess the forest edge community; (2) determine how forest edge vegetation differs from that of the forest interior; (3) determine if the directional aspect affects the edge vegetation and (4) present guidelines and suggestions for the management of forest habitat islands, particularly as they relate to the edge community.