Evaluation of potential for forest regeneration focusing on spatial distribution of trees after large disturbance by tsunami

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25830153
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Conservation of biological resources
• Research Institution: Tokyo University of Information Sciences
• Principal Investigator: Tomita Mizuki 東京情報大学, 総合情報学部, 准教授 (00397093)
• Research Collaborator: KANNO Hiroshi ; ZHAO Yi
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 海岸林 / 屋敷林 / 断片化 / 群集 / 大規模攪乱 / 更新

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 2011 resulted in unprecedented damage in the Sendai coastal region. In this research, land-cover classification maps derived from SPOT HRG-2 images before and after the disaster (October 2010 and November 2011) were combined with research on spatial distribution and tree species composition of remnant forest patches in an inundated area. The purpose was to clarify the extent of the damage to coastal forests and recovery process. The classifications showed that almost 90 percent of the coastal forest was destroyed. Almost all the large sized remnant patches originated from the coastal forests dominated by Pinus thunbergii and P. densiflora. Tree compositions in the canopy layer differed among patches. In some patches, seedlings of species other than those in the canopy layer were observed. These results indicate that differences in history, size and distance between the patches affect tree compositions after the tsunami.

Free Research Field

景観生態学，森林生態学