Forest bird response to partial cutting in lodgepole pine forests on caribou winter range in west-central British Columbia

Abstract

Breeding birds were surveyed 1 year pre-harvest (1995) and 4 years post-harvest (1996–2001) to measure the response to partial cutting in old lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl.) forests on the Chilcotin Plateau of British Columbia. The irregular group shelterwood and group selection systems recommended to manage northern caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou Gmelin) habitat did not negatively affect the breeding bird community. In some years within the post-harvest period, dark-eyed juncos (Junco hyemalis L.), red crossbills (Loxia curvirostra L.), yellow-rumped warblers (Dendroica coronata L.), and gray jays (Perisoreus canadensis L.) showed significant (α = 0.05) increases in use of the partial-cutting treatments compared with the no-harvest treatment. No species decreased significantly in any of the partial-cutting treatments. The increased observations of mostly common species resulted in significantly (α = 0.05) higher species richness, and increased frequency of observations for the bird community in some years in the partial cuts. Partial cutting of caribou habitat will maintain bird communities typical of mature to older lodgepole pine forests.

Response of corvid nest predators to thinning: implications for balancing short- and long-term goals for restoration of forest habitat

“…Our analysis provided evidence that, as expected, presence of avian nest predators can increase in response to thinning in young (< 50-yr-old) Douglas-fir stands. The increase in activity of both Steller's and Canada Jays immediately after heavy thinning is consistent with previous findings of positive response of both species to forest management practices that create edge and contribute to landscape patchiness (Waterhouse andArmleder 2007, Walker et al 2020). Thinning caused structural changes such as reduced canopy cover within the stands, and edges along stand perimeters and around canopy gaps within the LG treatment, with which jays and other corvid nest predators have been positively associated (Andren 1992, Ibarzabal and Desrochers 2004, Marzluff et al 2004, Garrison et al 2005.…”

Mountain Pine Beetle: From Lessons Learned to Community-based Solutions Conference Proceedings

“…The purpose of the Itcha-Ilgachuz Research Project is to develop and test silvicultural systems that maintain caribou habitat, including terrestrial and arboreal forage lichens, while extracting timber. To develop a viable silvicultural system, we are researching lichen response (Miège et al 2001a(Miège et al , 2001b, planted (Waterhouse et al 2001;Daintith et al 2005) and natural regeneration (Steen et al 2007), breeding birds (Waterhouse and Armleder 2007), microclimate (Sagar et al 2005), long-term site productivity (Wei et al 2000), treefall (Waterhouse and Armleder 2004), and growth and yield.…”

How can leaf-litter from different species growing in short rotation coppice contribute to the soil nutrient pool?

“…Certainly, these lichens perform important ecosystem services in old forests where they grow in abundance (Rhoades 1987;Esseen et al, 1996Esseen et al, ,2016. At boreal and north temperate latitudes, for example, they contribute to forest hydrology (Pypker et al, 2017) and nutrient cycling (Campbell et al, 2010), while at the same time providing habitat for invertebrates (Pettersson 1996;Gunnarsson et al, 2004), nesting material for birds (Brodo et al, 2001), and winter nourishment for small mammals including flying squirrels and red-backed voles (Maser et al, 1978;Hayward and Rosentreter 1994;Rosentreter et al, 2008;Dubay et al, 2008) and for ungulates including black-tailed and mule deer (Cowan 1945;Rochelle 1980;Hodgman and Bowyer 1985;Waterhouse et al, 1991) and, especially in mountainous western Canada, caribou .…”