Features of the Structure of Blueberry Spruce Forests of Bolshoy Solovetsky Island

Blueberry spruce forests on Bolshoy Solovetsky Island exhibit unique structural characteristics, including an average age of 155 years with some trees reaching up to 250 years. Despite the absence of clear-cuttings since the 1930s, these forests show diverse age structures—absolutely uneven-age, stepwise unevenage, and cyclically uneven-age—with significant gaps between tree generations or cyclical peaks in certain periods. Spruce trees grow well in diameter but have stunted height growth, resulting in highly tapering trunks with an average maximum height of 20 meters and a relative height of 67% compared to mainland spruce forests. The study used forest management data and sample plots, measuring 325 trees' diameters, heights, and age structures, revealing that blueberry spruce forests are the most typical and widespread on the island with a consistent species composition.

Sobolev, A. N., Feklistov, P. A., Bolotov, I. N., Makarov, S. S., Tyukavina, O. N., & Brueva, Z. A. (2024). Features of the Structure of Blueberry Spruce Forests of Bolshoy Solovetsky Island. Lesnoy Zhurnal (Forestry Journal), (6), 121–132. https://doi.org/10.37482/0536-1036-2024-6-121-132