redicting functional role and occurrence of Whitebark Pine (Pinus albicaulis) at alpine treelines : model accuracy and variable importance

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)

RESLER, L.M.

Dept. of Geography, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Etats-Unis

SHAO, Y.

Dept. of Geography, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Etats-Unis

TOMBACK, D.F.

Dept. of Integrative Biology, Univ. of Colorado, Denver, Etats-Unis

MALANSON, G.P.

Dept. of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences, Univ. of Iowa, Iowa City, Etats-Unis

Description :
This article examines the utility of four predictive models to understand how the functional role of whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis), a keystone species, in the Rocky Mountains varies spatially with biophysical conditions. Results show that for the combined model, growing season temperature and slope curvature were the most important predictive variables for association and relative position, as revealed by overall agreement among the four models. Prediction accuracy and variable importance varied at the study area level, though, indicating that different conclusions could be drawn from each model, if examined independently.

Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Annals of the Association of American Geographers, issn : 0004-5608, 2014, vol. 104, n°. 4, p. 703-722, nombre de pages : 20

Date :
2014

Editeur :
Pays édition : Etats-Unis, Washington, DC, Association of American Geographers

Langue :
Anglais