Species composition and structure of regenerated and remnant forest patches within an urban landscape

Regenerated and remnant forest patches were inventoried in Syracuse, New York, USA to determine differences in structure, species composition, human disturbances, and landscape context. Patches had similar mean stem diameter, total stem density, and total basal areas, but differed with respect to diameter distribution, disturbance regime, landscape context, and occurrence of introduced species. In regenerated patches, 23 introduced species were inventoried and they accounted for 48% of relative density. In remnant patches, only seven introduced species were inventoried and they accounted for 17% of the relative density. Cluster analyses identified two community types for remnant patches—sugar maple and black oak—and three for regenerated patches—sugar maple, Norway maple, and boxelder. For remnant patches, Rhamnus cathartica dominated the small diameter class in the black oak cluster, and Acer saccharum dominated the small diameter class in the sugar maple cluster. For regenerated patches, introduced species—A. platanoides and R. cathartica—dominated the small diameter class in the Norway cluster, and a mixture of native and introduced species—A. negundo, R. cathartica, A. saccharum, and Rhus typhina—dominated the small diameter classes in the sugar maple and boxelder clusters. Functionally, land covers containing remnant and regenerated patches, such as vacant lots and greenspaces, had the highest net rate of carbon sequestration (848.7 mt/ha/yr).