Habitats of Special Concern
Burned Conifer Forest
The idea –
One of the most ecologically sensitive vegetation types in the Northern Rockies (and elsewhere throughout the West) is burned conifer forest. Because one’s general impression is that such forests (especially severely burned forests) have been “destroyed” by fire, it takes real data and a considerable amount of time before one can begin to appreciate that these forest conditions harbor biological diversity unique to such conditions.
Methods –
Since the fires of 1988, we have conducted point-count surveys in more than 4,000 locations within more than 50 different burned forests, which makes this the largest bird survey database of its kind in the world.
Results –
When combined with data from our landbird monitoring program (another 10,000 points), it becomes abundantly clear that many species are relatively abundant in burned forests, and that some are nearly restricted to burned forest conditions! The near restriction of Black-backed Woodpeckers and several other species to burned forests (to more severely burned forests in particular), is striking, as is the relative rarity of the same species in salvage logged burned forests. The management implications are obvious and profound…if agencies don’t maintain these special conditions on the landscape, then they are not managing adequately for fire-dependent species.
We are happy to provide field demonstrations that will:
- expose participants to basic fire ecology and the complex interrelationships involved;
- demonstrate how different pre- and post-fire timber harvesting activities can be accomplished while minimizing the negative effects on the most fire-dependent species;
- and promote a greater understanding for the need to include the full range of fire severities in the management of northern Rockies ecosystems.
You can use our newly developed geospatial web interface to view the locations of all survey points associated with this program, to query any point to obtain information associated with that point, and to obtain information on the relationship between fire severity and probability of occurrence for a variety of bird species.
Annual Reports for this project–
click here for publications related to this project.
Portraits in Black Video–
A series of images from severely burned forest help illustrate the value of such forests to those who might not believe such value exists. Thanks to Marc Cohn for permission to use his music as background for the beauty herein. Click here to see "Portraits in Black".
Funders–
Joint Fire Science Program, USDA Forest Service Northern Region, USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station, National Geographic, Glacier National Park, Plum Creek Timber Co.