Stand management: a threat or opportunity for birds in British woodland?

Abstract

Recent studies have suggested that the neglect of stand management is having a detrimental effect on the habitat of a number of woodland birds in Britain. The remedy, to reinstate active management, appears to run counter to a number of other conservation recommendations such as re-wilding and naturalizing of stands. We attempt to unpick this apparent conflict by considering the resource needs of British woodland birds relative to those of birds elsewhere in Europe, and whether these needs differ between those with declining and those with increasing populations. We also consider how these requirements relate to stand management and stand dynamics and consider options for future management. We found that whilst stand stage per se did not discriminate between the declining and increasing species pools, correspondence analysis suggested that there were differences between the groups in their preferred habitat features. Declining woodland birds in Britain appear to be most closely associated with the presence of deciduous trees in the stand, an open canopy, and ecotonal structures. Species present in the near continent, but not in Britain, were associated with deciduous snags, large trees, canopy layer and holes. Species increasing in Britain were located between these groups on an axis of woodland maturity, and most strongly associated with habitat features of canopy layer and holes. Stand management can help provide the structures apparently preferred by many of the declining species and, if targeted, can deliver them at a more rapid rate than development of similar features through natural stand dynamics. However, there are often multiple pathways to particular structures and a single recommendation of active management is likely to be insufficient to secure the necessary features in most situations. In addition, habitat features important in Europe as a whole may not be the most critical at a local or regional scale. The varying requirements of the different species pools suggest that greater recognition of this would be appropriate in developing conservation strategies in different regions, and greater clarity is desirable over conservation objectives and habitat structures for particular woodlands.

Are bird density, species richness and community structure similar between native woodlands and non-native plantations in an area with a generalist bird fauna?

“…Canopy cover is negatively associated with understorey vegetation in plantation forests (Smith et al 2008), which suggests that measures to reduce canopy cover and allow more light penetration could benefit bird diversity through the promotion of heterogeneous vegetation layers (Ding et al 2008) which, in turn, provide nesting and foraging opportunities for a wide range of bird species (Quine et al 2007). Mature coniferous plantations may have low structural diversity in the field and shrub layers (Ferris et al 2000) and so may represent a lower quality habitat for birds than unmanaged, structurally heterogeneous native woodlands.…”

Plantation forests and biodiversity: oxymoron or opportunity?

“…Several rare species are now found within these plantations of exotic tree species (Humphrey et al 2003). Much eVort is being expended on diversifying the structure (across landscapes but also within stands), to provide some of the missing structural elements that are required by native biodiversity (Humphrey 2005;Quine et al 2007). Substantial parts of the plantation area of the UK are FSC certiWed (Bills 2001).…”

“…The amount and quality of available habitats can be inXuenced by a variety of stand management practices (Decocq et al 2005;Quine et al 2007). If possible, intensive site preparation should be avoided if the previous land cover has conservation value as it may destroy herbaceous vegetation and coarse woody debris which provide resources for many native forest species (Hartley 2002;Lindenmayer and Franklin 2002;Carnus et al 2006).…”

Species-specific responses of woodland birds to stand-level habitat characteristics: The dual importance of forest structure and floristics

“…Wiens, 1989a;Cushman and McGarigal, 2004). Consequently, the forest stand is an appropriate scale on which to examine habitat relationships of most territorial birds in managed temperate forests; the stand is also the level at which management decisions are usually taken (Quine et al, 2007).…”

“…Habitat suitability for forest birds and many other organisms is influenced by decisions taken about management practices (Quine et al, 2007) or the creation of new habitat patches (Ferris-Kaan, 1995). Species respond to habitat characteristics at different spatial scales (Wiens, 1989a;Orians and Wittenberger, 1991;Kristan, 2006).…”