Treesearch

The so-called "ghost moth", also known as the puriri moth, occurs only in native forests of North Island of New Zealand. The species has a most unique life history. The eggs hatch in forest floor litter, transform to caterpillars that then select native understory hardwood trees to crawl up the trunks and burrow into the cambium, creating large cavities they seal up with a membrane. They inhabit the tree cavity for several years, transforming into pupal stages, and eventually emerging as a winged adult. The free-flying adults live for only a few days, to mate and for the females to...

Climate change is substantially impacting earth’s biodiversity, with a massive number of affected species that are difficult to study comprehensively. An “indicator species” approach that generalizes species-specific climate change impacts to broader groups (e.g., ecological groups) could theoretically help overcome this challenge and streamline climate-smart conservation planning. We assessed this approach’s viability using four specialist amphibians (Ascaphus montanus, Dicamptodon copei, Plethodon idahoensis, and Plethodon vandykei), for which we expected convergent forecasted trajectorie...

Conservation easements have become a prevalent method for conserving forestland in the United States in the face of housing and other development. In this study, we used data from the National Woodland Owner Survey conducted by the USDA Forest Service in 2017–2018 to examine patterns and determinants of conservation easement adoption on individual forestland parcels. A total of 9349 landowners are included in the analysis, covering all 50 states. We used a spatial binary probit model to consider potential spatial dependence in conservation decisions among adjacent landowners. Our results...

Douglas-fir is the primary timber species in the Pacific Northwest. Successful reforestation after wildfire or harvest requires planting Douglas-fir seedlings that will thrive in that location. Different populations of the same species have slightly different growth habits. Selecting the right seed source for a site is critical to success. The Pacific Northwest’s unprecedented heat dome in 2021 created June temperatures that were 35 to 45 °F higher than average. Connie Harrington and Rich Cronn, scientists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research...

Evidence appears to be building that direct exposure to natural landscapes characterized by significant green cover, such as forests, can help to reduce chronic health conditions such as obesity, stress, hypertension, chronic cardiovascular conditions, depression, anxiety, cancer, and diabetes. One way to encourage greater exposure to nature may be through the use of nature prescriptions, whereby clinicians formally recommend (or prescribe) time in nature to their patients. Based on self-reported data, we describe the implementation and lessons learned from a pilot field experiment...

Climate change is creating an urgent need to implement adaptation strategies in forest ecosystems. Assisted migration (AM) of species or genotypes adapted to future climate is one promising strategy, but operational implementation is challenging and likely varies across ownerships. We conducted an online survey (n = 174) of federal, state, Tribal and private industrial forest managers in Washington, Oregon, and California to understand individual and organizational practices around climate adaptation, perceived barriers to AM, and differences between private industry and public agencies....

We conducted a census of all facilities in California that purchase roundwood as well as facilities that purchase residuals from roundwood users. We also collected data from facilities in surrounding states that purchase roundwood from California. We asked facilities about their mill characteristics, employment, inputs, outputs, residual production and disposition, and sales values. In total, we identified 72 facilities in California, accounting for more than 1.6 billion board feet (BBF) Scribner of timber harvest, nearly 2.4 BBF Scribner of lumber and 2.1 million bone-dry units of mill...

California forest land managers seek current information about tree utilization and the volume of merchantable bole wood residue produced by commercial timber harvesting. To address this need, University of Montana, Bureau of Business and Economic Research analysts investigated timber harvest utilization at active logging sites in California from 2018 through 2022. This research characterized current tree utilization, logging operations, and woody biomass left onsite after harvest. Study results were used to compute state-level utilization factors, which indicated that in California, for...

In 2016, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis program collected forest and tree measurements from 149 plots in Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). Of these, 78 were remeasured plots first established in 2005, and 71 were new plots that were established to meet the Micronesia Challenge, a regional conservation initiative. We recorded 131 tree species and 280 dominant vascular plant species, including 18 invasive plant species. Invasive plant species were present in half of FSM forest area, and the...

In 2018, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis program collected forest and tree measurements from 71 plots on 13 atolls and one island (Mejit) of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). Of these, 44 were remeasured plots first established in 2008, and 27 were newly established plots including 17 plots established in cooperation with the Micronesia Challenge program. We recorded a total of 20 tree species and 53 dominant vascular plant species, including three invasive plant species. We inventoried four forest communities (lowland rainforest,...