Comparison of managed and pre-settlement landscape dynamics in forests of the Pacific Northwest, USA

Wallin, David O.; Swanson, Frederick J.; Marks, Barbara; Cissel, John H.; Kertis, Jane

doi:10.1016/s0378-1127(96)03765-6

Cited by 81 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…First, the periodicity of timber harvesting is often shorter than that of natural disturbance. A consequence of the short rotation time of forestry is that forest characteristics and structures typical for biologically old forests do not have enough time to develop (Wallin et al, 1996). Second, the spatial con®guration of natural disturbance and logging are different.…”

Section: Management In Relation To Natural Disturbancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Currently, the rotation time does not correspond well to the time of major natural disturbances (Haila and Kouki, 1994;Wallin et al, 1996). As a result, especially mesic±moist and wet stands have been harvested before they have reached a high enough age for structures necessary for the sensitive old-growth species to appear.…”

Section: Population Recovery and Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the stand and landscape levels forest ®re has been replaced by logging as the main disturbance initiating secondary succession. Furthermore, the spatio-temporal dynamics created by forestry, such as arrangement and size of patches of mature forest, differ from that in the ®re-originated landscape Syrja Ènen et al, 1994;Edenius and Elmberg, 1996;Wallin et al, 1996). With this gloomy background the goal of new, ecologically sound forestry should be to prevent further losses and, if possible, to restore populations of declining species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Management in relation to disturbance in the boreal forest

Niemelä

1999

Forest Ecology and Management

160

121

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Disturbances and the consequent habitat heterogeneity are natural features of the boreal forest. Natural disturbances occurring at the level of populations, communities and ecosystems (meters to kilometers and years to hundreds of years), that is, at thè meso-scale' may provide useful guidelines for forest management. This approach is based on the assumption that species are adapted to the disturbance regime of the forest-type that they occupy. However, natural disturbance and human-caused disturbance, such as clear-cutting, may differ substantially in their ecological effects. Potential differences occur on several scales. On the stand scale, removal or destruction of important habitat structures, such as coarse woody debris, during traditional clear-cutting may affect species. On the landscape scale, fragmentation may cause local extinctions and hamper the recolonization of maturing sites by old-growth specialists. The effect of these differences on boreal biota needs to be assessed. On the stand scale, the degree of recovery (resilience) of populations and communities after human-caused disturbance versus natural disturbance, that is, the succession process, could be a useful criterion when developing new forestry methods. On the landscape scale, it is important to maintain enough patches of suitable habitat for the old-growth species in order to prevent local extinctions and to promote recolonizations. Natural landscapes could be used as a reference here. In conclusion, although possibilities of matching forestry with maintenance of taiga biota through development of harvesting methods that mimic natural disturbance seem reasonably good, there is an urgent need to establish criteria for the assessment of the success or failure of such methods. The resilience of forest ecosystems as re¯ected in population changes of surrogate taxa after disturbance could be used to guide management. #

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Section: Management In Relation To Natural Disturbancementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Population Recovery and Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Management in relation to disturbance in the boreal forest

Niemelä

1999

Forest Ecology and Management

160

121

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“…Second, a further challenge requires that the time period used to characterize the forest of reference be determined. Although the time period generally focuses on pre-settlement forest conditions (Wallin et al 1996, Hessburg et al 2005, no consensus has emerged to date regarding what period should be used. Third, given that the effects of global change are expected to alter forest ecosystems, a debate is growing regarding the usefulness of emulating past conditions as guiding principles for establishing and maintaining future forests (Klenk et al 2009).…”

Section: Background Informationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forest ecosystem management in North America: From theory to practice

Patry

Kneeshaw

Wyatt³

et al. 2013

The Forestry Chronicle

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Forest ecosystem management (EM) in North America has evolved from a theoretical concept to operational practice over the last two decades, but its implementation varies greatly among regions. This paper attempts to evaluate (1) if and how emulation of natural disturbances (END) is being used as a conceptual bases for implementing EM, and more particularly, what strategies are used to define the natural forest of reference, and (2) what temporal and spatial scale strategies are being considered for seven important retention elements (downed woody debris, snags, green trees, corridors, riparian buffers, large patches and old forest)? To conduct this evaluation, five guides from four geographically well-distributed regions in North America are compared. Although END is the central conceptual foundation underlying four of the five guides, a natural forest of reference is not always clearly identified and none of the guides consider future impacts due to global change. The major weakness common to all five guides is the lack of consideration of long-term forest dynamics, particularly the lack of clear strategies for retention elements at a temporal scale longer than a single rotation. Generally, the spatial scales chosen for retention elements are not well-justified ecologically and targets for each retention element are not identified at different spatial scales. We stress that strong efforts have been made to develop forest management that incorporates some elements of natural variability and which considers societal needs, but further improvements are required. We conclude by presenting some suggestions to improve the approach. For example, creating more realistic guidelines in integrating current and future forest dynamics with pre-settlement information and planning rotation lengths that are inspired by the dominant natural disturbance.Keywords: forest ecosystem management, implementation, North America, retention strategies and emulation of natural disturbances, spatiotemporal scales résumé L'aménagement écosystémique des forêts en Amérique du Nord est passé d'un concept théorique à une application opéra-tionnelle au cours des deux dernières décennies. Par contre, sa mise en oeuvre varie grandement selon les régions. Cet article tente d' évaluer d'une part (2) si l' émulation des perturbations naturelles (END) a été utilisée comme un concept de base pour la mise en oeuvre de l'aménagement écosystémique, et si oui, quelles stratégies ont été utilisées pour définir la forêt de référence et (2) quelles échelles temporelles et spatiales ont été considérées dans les stratégies concernant sept éléments de rétention (bois mort au sol, chicots, arbres vivants, corridors, bandes riveraines, larges îlots et vieilles forêts)? Pour ce faire, cinq guides en aménagement écosystémique issues de quatre régions géographiquement bien distribuées ont été comparés. Bien qu'END soit central dans quatre guides sur cinq, la forêt de référence n' est pas toujours clairement définie. De plus, aucun des guides ne considère les ...

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“…In such circumstances, where current conditions bear little relationship with past natural variability or desired future condition, Landres et al (1999) acknowledge that the natural variability approach may not be immediately applicable. Instead, restoration may be the best course of action, followed in time by less-intensive management under a natural variability approach (Wallin et al 1996). In this study, a hybrid approach has been adopted, where predictions of possible natural variability are used to guide the prospects (and choices) for restoration.…”

Section: Validity Of Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

An approach to predicting the potential forest composition and disturbance regime for a highly modified landscape: a pilot study of Strathdon in the Scottish Highlands

Quine¹,

Humphrey²,

Purdy³

et al. 2002

Silva Fenn.

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Ray, D.2002. An approach to predicting the potential forest composition and disturbance regime for a highly modifi ed landscape: a pilot study of Strathdon in the Scottish Highlands. Silva Fennica 36(1): 233-247.The existing native forests of Scotland are fragmented and highly modifi ed and none are 'natural'. There is considerable interest in expanding the area of this oceanic boreal forest and restoring forest habitat networks to benefi t biodiversity. However, unlike regions with substantial remaining natural forest, it is diffi cult to provide reference values for forest composition and structure using methods related to historical variability. An alternative approach is to combine models that predict woodland type from knowledge of site conditions, and disturbance regime from knowledge of the disturbance agents (particularly abiotic agents).The applicability of this approach was examined as part of a public participatory planning exercise in a highly managed landscape in Eastern Scotland. Models of site suitability (Ecological Site Classifi cation) and wind disturbance (ForestGALES) were combined to determine potential woodland composition and structure, and derive options for native woodland expansion. The land use of the upper Strathdon catchment is currently dominated by agriculture and planted forests of non-native species, and only small fragments of semi-natural woodland remain (< 0.5% of the land area). Model results indicated that a very substantial proportion of the land area could support woodland (> 90%) but of a restricted range of native woodland types, with Scots pine communities predominant. Structural types likely to be present included wind-induced krummholz (treeline) forest, forest with frequent stand replacement by wind, and also a large area where gap phase (or some other disturbance) would predominate. The merits of the approach are discussed, together with the diffi culties of validation, and the implications for the management of existing forests.

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Comparison of managed and pre-settlement landscape dynamics in forests of the Pacific Northwest, USA

Cited by 81 publications

References 42 publications

Management in relation to disturbance in the boreal forest

Management in relation to disturbance in the boreal forest

Forest ecosystem management in North America: From theory to practice

An approach to predicting the potential forest composition and disturbance regime for a highly modified landscape: a pilot study of Strathdon in the Scottish Highlands

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