Regeneration and Survival of Woody Species in a Naturally-Created Forest Opening

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Abstract
Woody seedlings and saplings inhabiting the most recently exposed 1/3 of a 375 m2 clearing in a mature piedmont forest were censused and marked prior to the 4th growing season. Eighteen species were encountered with 6 spp. [Pinus taeda, Prunus serotina, Liriodendron tulipifera, Liquidambar styraciflua, Cornus florida, Carya spp.] accounting for 91% of the individuals present. A subsequent inventory 2 yr later revealed 19 spp. accounting for 88% of the individuals present and allowed determination of total survival and survival by species, colonization/regeneration of particular species and shifts in relative density of the prominent species. Seedling and sapling densities encountered at the outset (4.4 individuals/m2) and at the study''s end (3.4 individuals/m2) were high compared to the values previously reported by other workers, probably as a result of the high energy availability in the clearing. Shifts in the prominent species'' relative densities over the timespan are noted, reasons for the shifts are mentioned and likely directions of future compositional changes or successional patterns are discussed.