Treesearch

In 1994 the Northwest Forest Plan identified several hundred relatively rare plant and animal species as "Survey and Manage" based in part on their presumed association with late-succesional/old-growth forests. Other such species were given protection from grazing. However, broad-scale surveys for few of these species existed at that time. In 1999-2000 we evaluated the relationship of nine terresrial mollusks to U. S. Forest Service reserves in four National Forests in northern California. The nine mollusks were well distributed among reserved and non-reserved lands and showed no associatio...

We present a new method of summarizing Peter Pyle's (1997) ageing and sexing guide into a tabular format that has proven to be extremely useful for both novice and experienced banders. This format allows quick and accurate assessment by a bander to distinguish species, age, and sex criteria. Rapid and accurate processing are essential to the health of birds captured and this effort assists in achieving this goal. We give examples of the "Tabular Pyle" for the Hermit Thrush and the Yellow Warbler, as well as a comparison of all Catharus thrushes.

As oldgrowth forest becomes more fragmented in the Pacific Northwest (U.S.A.), species dependent on large patches of oldgrowth forest may be at greater risk of extinction. The Marbled Murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus), a seabird whose populations are declining in North America, nests in such old-growth forests or forests with large remnant trees. Using logistic regression models on landscapes in southern Oregon, we addressed (1) whether old-growth forestfiagmentation was associated with use of an area by murrelets and (2) whether proximity to certain marine features was associated with...

On a 2-hectare site at the Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center near Marysville, California, 1,440 blue oaks (Quercus douglasii) were planted during 1990-91 in an attempt to re-vegetate an oak woodland that had been almost totally cleared for cattle grazing during the mid-1960s. This initial planting of acorns, 4-month old seedlings, and 1-year-old bare-root plants was aggressively depleted by mainly grasshoppers (Melanoplus devastator) and rodents (Microtus californicus). After 2 years we replanted areas that had experienced total mortality with treeshelter-protected acorns and...

The vast majority of California’s oak woodlands are privately owned, and, therefore, highly susceptible to changes in land use and ownership as well as land fragmentation. This is particularly true in the Central Sierra Nevada, where significant changes in land use have occurred during the past 40 years. Perhaps no location illustrates this trend better than the Central Sierra Nevada, an area that has experienced a dramatic shift in land use away from traditional rural land uses such as timber harvesting, livestock grazing, and irrigated agriculture toward rural residential developments...

Over 330 species of birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians depend on oak woodlands in California at some stage in their life cycle. California oak woodlands may rank among the top three habitat types in North America for bird richness. Oak woodlands are able to sustain such abundant wildlife primarily because they produce acorns, a high quality and frequently copious food supply. Oaks also provide important shelter in the form of cavities for nesting. Moreover, oak woodlands are among the most highly prized of California’s landscapes, for both aesthetic reasons and utilitarian needs such...

The Sudden Oak Death (SOD) epidemic in California is alarming for those living with, and adjacent to, the complex of oak and tanoak woodland that exist in patches along the coast. Monitoring SOD occurrence and spread is an on-going necessity. Remote sensing methods have proved to be successful in mapping and monitoring forest health and distribution when a sufficiently small ground resolution is used. In this project, digital high-resolution (1-m) ADAR imagery was analyzed for an area including and surrounding China Camp State Park in Marin County, California in the spring of 2000 and...

Chemical applications may provide one means of control for Phytophthora ramorum, the cause of Sudden Oak Death (SOD). Such controls have been effective with other Phytophthora species in landscape and orchard situations. We have initiated laboratory and field studies to test the efficacy of a number of products previously reported to control Phytophthora. "In vitro" tests have determined that many of the standard chemical controls (e.g., metalaxyl, copper sulfate, phosphoric acid) are effective against P. ramorum. Field and green house studies include experiments to treat trees and...

In southwestern California, Quercus agrifolia distribution closely matches regions of granitic regolith. High annual evapotranspiration demand and inherent shallow soil conditions lead to a dependence on a deep rooting system and an ability to access water from deep within the regolith. Most of the plant available water in weathered granitic rock is held within micropores, which are generally too small for roots to access. It is not clear how water held in the rock matrix reaches the roots, which are confined to the fractures. Hyphae are narrow and able to explore a greater substrate...

The golden hillsides with scattered oaks, known throughout California, are decreasing each day. Some oak woodlands are being developed into residential and commercial communities while other woodlands are being converted into intensive agriculture, such as wine grape production. This continued decrease in oak woodlands has led some lawmakers to create preservation ordinances and policies to protect the remaining oaks. In areas where there are no woodlands protection policies, are residents likely to pay for the oak woodland preservation?