Linking Post-fire Tree Density to Carbon Storage in High-Latitude Cajander Larch (Larix cajanderi) Forests of Far Northeastern Siberia

With climate warming and drying, fire activity is increasing in Cajander larch ( Larix cajanderi Mayr.) forests underlain by continuous permafrost in northeastern Siberia, and initial post-fire tree demographic processes could unfold to determine long-term forest carbon (C) dynamics through impacts on tree density. Here, we evaluated above- and belowground C pools across 25 even-aged larch stands of varying tree densities that established following a wildfire in ~ 1940 near Cherskiy, Russia. Total C pools increased with increased larch tree density, from ~ 9,000 g C m −2 in low-density stands to ~ 11,000 g C m −2 in high and very high-density stands, with increases most pronounced at tree densities