ON SOME ASPECTS OF THE MANAGEMENT OF A STOCHASTICALLY DEVELOPING FOREST

In this paper I focus on some important biological aspects of the forest management problem. I model a stochastically developing forest as a multidimensional, continuous-time Markov chain. Next, I pose three questions concerning the long-run characteristics of a stationary forest, the stochastic process followed by dying species, and the age of an arbitrary species in the forest. I then (a) characterize a stationary forest probabilistically, (b) describe the stochastic process governing the demise of species in this forest, and (c) provide a method for determining the age of an arbitrary species in the forest. Finally, I discuss the forest management implications of the issues raised in this paper. Note: Published in Ecological Modelling 89(1-3, 1996):67-72.