Forest encroachment has been documented across North America, from British Columbia to New Mexico, and is a growing concern due to loss of essential grassland habitat. Climate change, fire suppression, changes in grazing regimes, and differences in microclimate between topographic gradients are the main factors associated with forest encroachment into grasslands. Small-scale factors, such as competition and facilitation also play an important role in forest-grassland dynamics. I examined forest-grassland dynamics in southwest Yukon through dendroecological techniques and repeat image analysis. Dendroecological techniques were used to identify periods of tree encroachment, changes in age structure, pulses of tree establishment and possible [...]
