Variation of deadwood density by decay class in pure and mixed Oriental spruce stands in Northeastern Black Sea

This study focuses on the identification and comparisons of the distribution of deadwood volumes in pure and mixed Oriental spruce stands in both the managed and protected areas of Savsat region according to decay and deadwood classes. Within the scope of the study, a total of 476 sample plots including the variability of age class, site class, canopy and stand type were taken from the area. In each sample plot, the number and size (diameter and height) of deadwood trees such as standing deadwood trees, stumps, downed deadwood trees as well as their detailed characteristics (deadwood tree classes and decay classes) were measured. The estimated average volume of the total deadwood and its ratio to the standing growing stock was 10.1 m 3 /ha and 2.5% in the Veliköy Forest Management Unit (FMU) and 22.5 m 3 /ha and 4.2% in the national park. The deadwood volumes in decay classes, from high to low, were calculated as 3.56, 2.26, 2.03, 1.85 and 0.41 m 3 /ha in Decay Class 2 (DC2), Decay Class 3 (DC3), Decay Class 5 (DC5), Decay Class 4 (DC4) and Decay Class 1 (DC1) decay classes for Veliköy FMU; and 9.81, 6.13, 3.46, 2.59 and 0.47 m 3 /ha in DC3, DC2, DC4, DC5 and DC1 decay classes for the Karagöl-Sahara National Park, respectively. The decay classes in which the deadwood volumes in the standing deadwood, downed deadwood and stump classes are the highest are DC2 (69%), DC4 (30%) and DC5 (33%) in the managed forests, respectively. In the protected forest, the decay classes in which the deadwood volumes in the standing deadwood, downed deadwood and stump classes are the highest are DC3 (52%), DC3 (47%) and DC5 (31%), respectively. The distribution of deadwood volume by deadwood and decay classes provides an indication of the temporal variation in tree mortality and can be used to estimate the optimal deadwood volume ratio in biodiversity integrated forest management planning.