Technical Guide to Forest Wildlife Habitat Management in New England

by Degraaf, Richard M.; Yamasaki, Mariko; Leak, William B.; Lester, Anna M.

• ISBN13: 9781584655879
• ISBN10: 1584655879
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-01-31
• Publisher: Univ Pr of New England

Summary

Centuries of human use and natural processes have shaped forest habitats and their wildlife populations in New England. Conditions are never static. Forest and nonforest habitats for a shifting mosaic of New England fauna were once continuously provided by wind, fire, blowdowns, forest regrowth, and other disturbances. This is no longer the case: development of historically open habitats, fire control, and the decline of agriculture have transformed the landscape. Wildlife associated with forests and woodlots--fisher and pileated woodpecker, for example--have become common. Species associated with old fields, brushlands, and young forests--field sparrows, eastern towhees, and New England cottontails, among many others--have declined precipitously as their habitats have been developed or have reverted to forest. Today in much of the region, forests are mature and largely unmanaged, and most are privately owned. This volume is the essential compilation of forest management practices now crucial for creating a range of forest habitat conditions to maintain or enhance forest wildlife diversity in New England. Inspired by the ground-breaking earlier works of these four distinguished biologists, foresters, and their colleagues, Forest Wildlife Habitat Management in New England presents silvicultural options for aspen-birch, northern hardwoods, swamp hardwoods, spruce-fir, hemlock, and oak-pine forests, and a wealth of information on both upland and wetland nonforested habitats. Implementing the prescribed practices will create forest conditions that will enhance wildlife diversity by providing habitats for amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. In conjunction with the authors' companion books, New England Wildlife and Landowner's Guide to Wildlife Habitat, this comprehensive new professional guide will encourage and facilitate cooperative active land management by landowners and professionals united in their mission to preserve New England's precious wildlife heritage. This indispensable volume is written for professional foresters, wildlife biologists, and other natural resource managers.

Author Biography

RICHARD M. DEGRAAF is chief research wildlife biologist and leader of the wildlife habitat research unit, Northeastern Research Station, Amherst, Massachusetts. He has conducted research on breeding birds, small mammals, and amphibians in major forest cover types in New England and on wildlife habitat associations in the White Mountains for the past thirty years. MARIKO YAMASAKI is research wildlife biologist with the northern hardwood research unit, Northeastern Research Station, Durham, New Hampshire. Her background includes work as a wildlife biologist in the National Forest System and research on timber-wildlife habitat relationships in New England for more than twenty-five years. WILLIAM B. LEAK is research silviculturist with the northern hardwood research unit, Northeastern Research Station, Durham, New Hampshire, and has studied the effects of site and silvicultural treatment on forest development in northern New England over the last five decades. ANNA M. LESTER is a wildlife biologist with the wildlife habitat research unit, Northeastern Research Station, Amherst, Massachusetts. She has extensive experience with habitat models and using visualization software and growth projection models to create virtual managed landscapes under various silvicultural systems.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xv
Introduction	p. 1
Historical Perspective	p. 1
Forest Disturbance	p. 6
Forest Fragmentation	p. 8
Invasive Plants	p. 9
Forest Regions	p. 10
Spruce-Fir Forest Region	p. 10
Northern Hardwoods-Spruce Forest Region	p. 12
Northern Hardwoods Forest Region	p. 12
Transition Hardwoods-White Pine Forest Region	p. 13
Central Hardwoods-Hemlock-White Pine Forest Region	p. 13
Pitch Pine-Oak Forest Region	p. 13
Understanding Wildlife Habitats	p. 14
Wildlife Habitat	p. 14
Food	p. 15
Water	p. 15
Cover	p. 15
Spatial Relationships	p. 16
Critically Needed Habitats	p. 19
Habitat Structure	p. 21
Horizontal Diversity	p. 22
Vertical Diversity	p. 22
Area	p. 23
Other Factors Affecting Wildlife Distribution	p. 27
Community Organization and Structure	p. 28
Management Objectives	p. 30
Inventory and Prescription	p. 32
Assessment of Habitat Management Opportunities	p. 32
Inventory	p. 34
Prescription Key	p. 39
	p. 39
	p. 40
	p. 41
	p. 42
Prescription Key Recommendations	p. 43
Working with Private Landowners	p. 44
Habitat Relationships	p. 47
Habitat-Breadth Combinations	p. 47
Size-Class Combinations	p. 52
Structural Habitat Features	p. 57
High Exposed Perches	p. 60
Low Exposed Perches	p. 62
Open Overstory Canopy Conditions	p. 62
Partial Overstory Canopy Conditions	p. 64
Closed Overstory Canopy Conditions	p. 66
Overstory Inclusions	p. 68
Tree Boles	p. 69
Midstory Layer	p. 71
Shrub Layer	p. 72
Wetland Shrub Layer	p. 73
Minimal to Partial Ground Cover	p. 74
Dense Ground Cover	p. 75
Wetland Ground Cover and Temporary Pools	p. 76
Waterside Logs	p. 78
Rocky Forest Floor	p. 78
Dead and Down Material	p. 79
Forest Litter and Moss	p. 79
Subterranean Habitats	p. 80
Seeps	p. 81
Gravel Pits and Bare Ground	p. 81
Woods Roads	p. 81
Slashpiles	p. 82
Hard Mast	p. 83
Soft Mast or Fruit	p. 83
Special Requirements	p. 84
Silvicultural Methods	p. 85
Aspen-Birch Types	p. 90
Dry-Site Aspen-Birch	p. 93
Wet-site Aspen-Birch	p. 93
Mesic Aspen-Birch	p. 93
Succession	p. 95
Silvicultural Treatments	p. 96
Northern Hardwoods Types	p. 97
Sugar Maple/Ash	p. 98
Beech/Birch/Maple	p. 98
Beech/Red Maple	p. 99
Succession	p. 99
Silvicultural Treatments	p. 100
Swamp Hardwoods Type	p. 104
Succession	p. 104
Silvicultural Treatments	p. 107
Spruce-Fir Types	p. 108
Primary Sites	p. 108
Secondary Sites	p. 111
Succession	p. 112
Silvicultural Treatments	p. 112
Eastern Hemlock Type	p. 115
Primary Sites	p. 115
Secondary Sites	p. 115
Succession	p. 117
Silvicultural Treatments	p. 118
Oak-Pine Types	p. 119
Oak-Pine	p. 119
Pitch Pine	p. 121
Mixed Oak-Hardwood	p. 121
Old-Field Pine	p. 121
Succession	p. 125
Silvicultural Treatments	p. 125
Nonforested Habitats	p. 129
Upland Nonforested Habitats	p. 131
Cultivated Fields	p. 132
Grassy Openings	p. 133
Forb Openings	p. 133
Shrub Openings	p. 135
Pasture	p. 135
Savanna	p. 135
Orchards	p. 135
Krummholz and Alpine Zones	p. 137
Wetland Nonforested Habitats	p. 138
Sedge Meadows	p. 139
Shallow Marshes	p. 139
Deep Marshes	p. 140
Shrub Swamps	p. 140
Bogs	p. 140
Ponds	p. 141
Deepwater Habitats	p. 143
Lakes	p. 143
Streams	p. 143
Rivers	p. 143
Other Nonforested Habitat Types	p. 145
Stable Banks	p. 146
Ledge/Cliff	p. 146
Cave, Mine	p. 146
Structures	p. 146
Derelict Buildings, Debris	p. 148
Summary	p. 149
Appendixes	p. 153
Using Appendixes A B C and D	p. 154
Species Occurrence and Utilization, by Forested Habitat	p. 167
Species Occurrence and Utilization, by Nonforested Habitat	p. 197
Species Occurrence and Utilization, by Size Class, Home Range Area, and Habitat Breadth	p. 233
Species Occurrence and Utilization, by Habitat Breadth for Structural Habitat Features Typically Provided through Forest Vegetation Management	p. 253
References	p. 293
Index	p. 301
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