A cross-scale analysis of environmental gradients and forest pattern in the giant sequoia - mixed conifer forest of the Sierra Nevada

In this study I test hypotheses concerning the change of environment - vegetation relationships with scale in the giant sequoia mixed-conifer forest of the Sierra Nevada. I specifically examine changes in the relationship between topographic gradients and tree pattern from regional landscapes to forest micro-sites. I directly test for the presence or absence of hierarchical structure in the relationship of forest pattern to topographic gradients in the study region. In order to examine specific changes with spatial scale, I disaggregate complex topographic and edaphic gradients into separate components and explicitly control for the effects of spatial autocorrelation between variables.