Integrating Forest Restoration Treatments with Mexican Spotted Ows Habitat Needs

Integrating Forest Restoration Treatments with Mexican Spotted Ows Habitat Needs
Author: Michele A. James
Publisher:
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2005
Genre: Endangered species
ISBN:

Management of the federally threatened Mexican spotted owl (MSO; Strix occidentalis lucida) has been a major concern, both technical and political, for forest managers in the southwestern United States. So has the need to reduce the risk of stand-replacing wildfire in the regions ponderosa pine forests.Managers have generally shied away from linking these two concerns, fearing that the consultation required under the federal Endangered Species Act makes forest restoration treatments in or adjacent to MSO habitat too cumbersome. Yet carefully planned and implemented restoration treatments either around or in MSO habitat are crucial to the species future survival, and can be accomplished. They can be designed to maximize benefits to forest health while minimizing negative impacts toand in some cases actively benefitingthe MSO and/or its habitat. There will never be 100 percent agreement between reducing fire risk and maintaining or enhancing MSO habitat needs, but the goal of this public...

Proceedings, International Conference on Transfer of Forest Science Knowledge and Technology

Proceedings, International Conference on Transfer of Forest Science Knowledge and Technology
Author: Cynthia Louise Miner
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
Total Pages: 268
Release: 2009
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1437913571

Compiles papers presented by extensionists, natural resource specialists, tech. transfer specialists, and others at a conf. that examined tech. transfer theories, methods, and case studies. Topics included: adult educ., extension, diffusion of innovations, social marketing, tech. transfer, etc. Descriptions of methods and case studies included combined digital media, engagement of users and commun. specialists in research, integrated forestry applications, Internet-based systems, science writing, training, video conf., Web-based ency., etc. Innovations transferred were best mgmt. practices for water quality, reforestation practices, land mgmt. system, portable timber bridges, reduced impact logging, silvicultural practices, urban forestry, etc. Illustrations.

Bat Habitat and Forest Restoration Treatments

Bat Habitat and Forest Restoration Treatments
Author: Anne Minard
Publisher:
Total Pages: 8
Release: 2007
Genre: Bats
ISBN:

Northern Arizona is home to at least 20 species of batsor two-thirds of the bat species found in the state (Cockburn 1960, Hinman and Snow 2003). Only a couple of these species live exclusively in ponderosa pine forests while the rest inhabit a variety of ecosystem types from desert scrub to pinyon-juniper to ponderosa pine-Gambel oak and mixed conifer (Arizona Game and Fish Department 1996, Hinman and Snow 2003). Bats are an important part of the forest ecology of northern Arizona because they prey on insects such as midges, moths, beetles, flies, mosquitoes, termites, and ants. They typically roost in the cavities of live trees and snags, under loose tree bark, in tree stumps and logs, in rock crevices, or in caves. As the new era of ecologically restoring forest ecosystems in the Southwest moves from experiments to full implementation, the question arises:What effects will restoration treatments have on forest wildlife, including often forgotten or poorly understood animal groups, such as bats? Thinning, for instance, might remove snags where bats roost, and burning could inadvertently destroy or alter such roosting sites.While its true that fire will create new snags, given the present forest conditions, they will be younger, smaller-diameter snags that are more susceptible to fire, and not the 27-inch-plus-diameter snags bats most often use. In this working paper, we look at research and studies that provide some recommendations about ways to maintain bat habitat while restoring forest tree health and vitality.

Integrated Restoration of Forested Ecosystems to Achieve Multiresource Benefits

Integrated Restoration of Forested Ecosystems to Achieve Multiresource Benefits
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 320
Release: 2008
Genre: Forest management
ISBN:

"A primary mission of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service is multiple resource management, and one of the emerging themes is forest restoration. The National Silviculture Workshop, a biennial event co-sponsored by the Forest Service, was held May 7-10, 2007, in Ketchikan, Alaska, with the theme of "Integrated Restoration of Forested Ecosystems to Achieve Multiresource Benefits." This proceedings presents a compilation of state-of-the-art silvicultural research and forestry management papers that demonstrates integrated restoration to yield multiple resource benefits. These papers highlight national perspectives on ecosystem services, forest restoration and climate change, and regional perspectives on forest restoration and silvicultural practices to achieve multiple resource benefits from researchers and forest practitioners working in a broad array of forest types in the United States."

Understory Seeding in Southwestern Forests Following Wildfire and Ecological Restoration Treatments

Understory Seeding in Southwestern Forests Following Wildfire and Ecological Restoration Treatments
Author: Judy Springer
Publisher:
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2007
Genre: Rangeland
ISBN:

Shrubs, grasses, sedges, and forbs form the understory of ponderosa pine and pinyon-juniper ecosystems. They cover the natural openings in these two ecosystems - openings that were much more extensive historically than they are today. While restoration treatments in these ecosystems typically focus on trees, it is also important to restore the natural diversity and productivity of the understory plant community because a healthy understory provides wildlife habitat and fuel for low-intensity fires that maintain forest structure. Restoring a healthy understory may require little or a great deal of effort, depending upon the site conditions and site history. Many sites still support some native understory species, either living or in the seedbank, in which case thinning of overstory trees and conducting some prescribed fires is often enough to promote the growth of a healthy understory. In situations where the treated area is adjacent to a weed-free area with a highly diverse understory, it may be possible to simply let nature reseed the treated site. Still other sites lack native understory species and their seeds, in which case it may be necessary to reintroduce those species as either seeds or seedlings. In this working paper, we cover this last situation - one where active seeding is needed.

Controlling Cheatgrass in Ponderosa Pine and Pinyon-juniper Restoration Areas

Controlling Cheatgrass in Ponderosa Pine and Pinyon-juniper Restoration Areas
Author: Michele A. James
Publisher:
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2007
Genre: Cheatgrass brome
ISBN:

Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) is widespread throughout western North America and is a significant concern for land managers conducting restoration treatments in southwestern ponderosa pine and pinyon-juniper forests. It is common on a few restoration treatment areas in northern Arizona, on severely burned mature/old growth pinyon-juniper sites at Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado (Floyd et al. 2006), throughout wildfire areas in Zion National Park in southern Utah (U.S. National Park Service 2007), and on areas consumed by wildfire in northern Arizona (Sieg et al. 2003). There is concern that cheatgrass populations may expand further with an increase in the scale and frequency of restoration treatments in southwestern ponderosa pine and pinyon-juniper ecosystems.

Restoring Spatial Pattern to Southwestern Ponderosa Pine Forests

Restoring Spatial Pattern to Southwestern Ponderosa Pine Forests
Author: Dave Egan
Publisher:
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2008
Genre: Forest restoration
ISBN:

Until recently, forest managers have largely ignored the value of maintaining dynamic spatial patterns in forested ecosystems. In the America Southwest, where the norm in overstocked forests that are extremely susceptible to catastrophic fires and/or insect infestations and disease, restoring a spatial pattern of openings and tree groups would help alleviate these threats and move the forests within their historic range of variability. This ERI working paper focuses on restoring a dynamic spatial pattern to ponderosa pine forests in the American Southwest. It also addresses basic questions that land managers and others have about how to restore active spatial patterns across the forested Southwest.

Effects of Forest Thinning Treatments on Fire Behavior

Effects of Forest Thinning Treatments on Fire Behavior
Author: Kimberly Lowe
Publisher:
Total Pages: 8
Release: 2006
Genre: Forest fires
ISBN:

One of the goals of restoration in southwestern ponderosa pine ecosystems is to reduce the risk of unnaturally severe wildfires. Many factors influence fire behavior including drought, topography, insect infestation, and weather but fuels are the only factor that people can realistically manage. This publication summarizes what is known about restoration treatment effects on fire behavior in ponderosa pine forests, and suggests treatment options that can alter future fire behavior.