Songbird response to group selection harvests and clearcuts in a New Hampshire northern hardwood forest

Abstract

Clearcutting creates habitat for many species of early successional songbirds; however, little information is available on bird use of small forest openings created by group selection harvests. Group selection harvests are increasing on the White Mountain National Forest due to negative public response to clearcutting. The objective of this study was to determine if avian species richness and composition differ between clearcut and group selection openings, and between mature stands and the uncut portions of group selection stands. Point count surveys were conducted during the 1992 and 1993 breeding seasons within six study blocks in the White Mountain National Forest, NH. Each block consisted of a clearcut stand, a group selection stand and a mature stand. Species richness per stand was signi®cantly higher in clearcut openings (p 0.010) than in group selection openings. Forested areas surrounding group selection openings were similar to mature stands in species richness (p 0.848) and composition. Our data suggest that, relative to avian use, the group selection system does not provide habitat similar to that created by clearcutting in extensive northern hardwood stands. The group selection system appears to retain much of the mature forest bird community while providing for a limited number of early successional bird species. Gradual replacement of clearcutting with group selection harvests could result in reduced avian diversity across large forested tracts. #

Avian Assemblages Differ between Old-Growth and Mature White Pine Forests of Ontario, Canada: A Role for Supercanopy Trees?

“…In New Hampshire, numbers of Brown Creepers were reduced in partial cuts (Costello et al 2000, King et al 2001). In the northern Appalachian Plateau in Pennsylvania, USA, Brown Creepers were more than twice as abundant in old-growth hemlock-hardwood than in younger forests (Haney andSchaadt 1996, Haney 1999).…”

Do the size and landscape context of forest openings influence the abundance and breeding success of shrubland songbirds in southern New England?

“…We avoided group selection cuts (which are <0.6 ha) 144 because previous studies showed that these primarily support mature-forest and canopy-145 gap specialists rather than shrubland species, and thus are different from larger openings 146 (Costello et al, 2000). Adjacent study sites were separated from one another by at least 147 10 m of forest.…”

Effects of clearcutting, patch cutting, and low-density shelterwoods on breeding birds and tree regeneration in New Hampshire northern hardwoods

“…Studies conducted in much smaller forest openings created by single tree and group selection up to 2 acres generally agree that these areas are not sufficient to satisfy the requirements of the diverse array of early successional shrubland birds (Annand and Thompson 1997, Costello et al 2000, Moorman and Guynn 2001, Robinson and Robinson 1999. In the northeast, some shrubland birds have territory sizes of up to 3 acres, so openings need to be at least this large if the objective is to provide for the range of species within this habitat group (Chandler et.…”