Title: Utilizing inventory information to calibrate a landscape simulation model

Author: Shifley, Steven R.; Thompson, Frank R., III; Larsen, David R.; Mladenoff, David J.; Gustafson, Eric J.

Year: 2000

Publication: In: Hansen, Mark; Burk, Tom, eds. Integrated tools for natural resources inventories in the 21st century. Gen. Tech. Rep. NC-212. St. Paul, MN: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Forest Experiment Station: 549-561.

Abstract: LANDIS is a spatially explicit model that uses mapped landscape conditions as a starting point and projects the patterns in forest vegetation that will result from alternative harvest practices, alternative fire regimes, and wind events. LANDIS was originally developed for Lake States forests, but it is capable of handling the input, output, bookkeeping, and mapping that occur during landscape simulations for virtually any forest region. We recently calibrated LANDIS for the forest conditions in the Missouri Ozarks, and we based that calibration on a combination of traditional forest inventory data, silvics information, and expert opinion. To ensure realistic model performance, we used inventory data to test species dynamics of the model and establish initial landscape conditions. Landscape simulation examples from the Missouri Ozarks illustrate the methodology by comparing results from even-aged management, uneven-aged management, and no-harvest scenarios.