Rodent population and community responses to experimental, large scale, long-term coarse woody debris manipulations

2021 ◽  
Vol 496 ◽  
pp. 119427
Author(s):  
Angela L. Larsen-Gray ◽  
Susan C. Loeb ◽  
Matina C. Kalcounis-Rueppell
2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 1128-1138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evan M. Gora ◽  
Emma J. Sayer ◽  
Benjamin L. Turner ◽  
Edmund V. J. Tanner

2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 1502-1506 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asko Lõhmus ◽  
Piret Lõhmus

During the 20th century, large agricultural areas in Eastern Europe became forested after their abandonment. To explore the value of these new forests for biota, we assessed volumes of coarse woody debris (CWD) on random transects in mid-aged (40–75 years old) stands. In mixed and deciduous forests that were not forested in the 1930s, downed tree (log) volumes were about two times lower than in cutover sites. The effect on snag volume depended on site type and was generally nonsignificant. Large-diameter CWD showed similar proportions in the long-term and new forest areas, but large, well-decayed trunks tended to be less frequent in the latter. No reduction of dead wood volume was found in new pine stands, 98% of which had previously been classified as mires (bogs). Hence the origin of mid-aged successional forests had affected their CWD supply (particularly logs) to some extent, but the general scarcity of CWD all over the forest land indicated much larger (at least five-fold) losses due to timber harvesting. We conclude that naturally reforested areas should not be automatically excluded from reserve establishment or other CWD-related conservation programmes.


2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin C. Whytock ◽  
Elisa Fuentes-Montemayor ◽  
Kevin Watts ◽  
Patanjaly Barbosa De Andrade ◽  
Rory T. Whytock ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (9) ◽  
pp. 925-935 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingrid Farnell ◽  
Ché Elkin ◽  
Erica Lilles ◽  
Anne-Marie Roberts ◽  
Michelle Venter

Coarse woody debris (CWD) in the form of logs, downed wood, stumps and large tree limbs is an important structural habitat feature for many small mammal species, including the American marten (Martes americana). At a long-term experimental trial in northern temperate hemlock-cedar forests of British Columbia, Canada, we analysed the impact of varying amounts of overstory basal area retention: 0% (clearcut), 40%, 70%, and 100% (unharvested) on CWD volume, decay class, and inputs from windthrow over 27 years. We used CWD attributes (diameter, length, decay class, and height above the ground) known to be favourable for martens to create an index for assessing the impact of harvesting intensity on CWD habitat features. Stands with 70% retention had CWD attributes that resulted in CWD habitat features similar to unharvested stands. Clearcuts contained pieces that were smaller, more decayed, and closer to the ground, which contributed to a habitat that was less valuable, compared with stands that had higher retention. Over the 27-year period, windthrown trees were the majority of CWD inputs, and volume change was positively related to percent retention. Our results highlight that forest management influences CWD size and input dynamics over multiple decades, and the need for consideration of these impacts when undertaking long-term multiple-use forestry planning.


1994 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 125-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael K. Young ◽  
David Haire ◽  
Michael A. Bozek

Abstract Millions of railroad ties were floated (driven) down streams in southeastern Wyoming between 1868 and 1940. We identified 61 tie-driven streams in or near the Medicine Bow National Forest. We hypothesized that tie drives, and the stream clearing associated with driving, altered channel morphology and riparian vegetation. When comparing stream reaches of similar width and gradient, we found that tie-driven stream reaches contained less coarse woody debris and had significantly lower densities of large riparian trees than did unaffected reaches. Tie-driven reaches had lower channel complexity, a greater proportion of riffles, and fewer plunge and dammed pools than did unaffected reaches. We found significant relations among characteristics of the riparian trees, coarse woody debris, and stream channel structure. Recovery of the affected reaches may be contingent on the long-term increase in large trees in the riparian zone. West. J. Appl. For. 9(4):125-130.


1995 ◽  
Vol 3 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 230-261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phillip G. deMaynadier ◽  
Malcolm L. Hunter Jr.

Questions about the compatibility of forest harvesting practices and conservation of biological diversity are largely driven by concerns that habitat quality for many species may be degraded in intensively managed forest landscapes. We review the literature on relationships between common forest harvesting practices and the distribution and abundance of amphibians, a group that has attracted considerable attention in recent years because of their potential ecological importance in forest ecosystems and because of reports of widespread population declines. Clear-cut harvesting generally has negative short-term impacts on local amphibian populations, especially salamanders. An analysis of the results of 18 studies that examined the effects of clear-cutting on amphibians yielded a 3.5-fold median difference in abundance of amphibians on controls over clear-cuts. However, research on the influence of forest age suggests that the long-term effects of forest harvesting on amphibians are variable, and for many species these effects can be mitigated if regeneration practices leave adequate microhabitat structure intact. In contrast, long-term effects can be significant in forest plantations, which are often associated with intensive site preparations and stand management practices that modify levels of coarse woody debris and other microhabitats. Other forest practices reviewed for their effect on amphibians include prescribed fire, logging roads, and streamside harvesting. We discuss problems commonly encountered in the experimental design and measurement of forest amphibian populations, including a notable lack of pretreatment data, and outline several aspects of amphibian–forestry relationships in need of further research. Management recommendations relevant to conserving upland and riparian zone amphibian habitat during forest harvesting are offered.Key words: amphibians, clear-cutting, coarse woody debris, forest management, logging roads, plantations, prescribed fire, riparian, succession.


2009 ◽  
Vol 39 (9) ◽  
pp. 1709-1721 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark C. Vanderwel ◽  
Jay R. Malcolm ◽  
Sandy M. Smith

There are pronounced differences in the processes that act to determine the type and amount of standing and downed coarse woody debris present under partial harvesting versus other noncatastrophic disturbances. To evaluate long-term differences in snag and downed woody debris (DWD) dynamics, we developed a simulation model to project snag density and DWD volume by size and decay class in white pine ( Pinus strobus L.) and red pine ( Pinus resinosa Ait.) dominated stands under (i) a high-retention shelterwood system, (ii) periodic surface fire, and (iii) fire suppression. Snag densities under a high-retention shelterwood system were consistently lower than those in the fire-suppression and surface-fire scenarios, even if no large snags were felled at the time of harvest. Regular inputs from harvest residues were important in maintaining the total volume of DWD, but this material tended to be concentrated in a narrow range of decay classes at any given time. Preserving existing DWD at harvest was less influential than the level of inputs from harvest residues. Active measures for snag creation and staggering of harvest stages among adjacent stands may help minimize differences in the overall supply and temporal variation of coarse woody debris between managed and both naturally disturbed and old-growth stands.


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