Treesearch

Because resource selection is of paramount importance to ecology and management of any species, we compared 6 statistical methods of analyzing resource selection data, given the known biological requirements of radiomarked Merriam’s wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo merriami) hens with poults in the Black Hills of South Dakota. A single variable, habitat, was used for the comparisons. Hen turkeys with poults are ideal for these comparisons because poults have narrow dietary protein requirements, and habitats that meet these requirements are well documented. We also tested the effects on the...

The theory and practice that embodies "learning organizations" can be applied to developing and implementing effective natural resource policy and management. A learning organization is a group of people who are continually enhancing their capacity to create the results they want. At the heart of learning organizations is systems thinking. This paper applies the language of systems thinking to our contemporary fire story. The paradigm shift from fire suppression to prescription is a classic systems archetype known as "shifting the burden." The causal loop diagram that makes up this...

In the aftermath of the deaths of 14 firefighters during the South Canyon Fire in July 1994, fire scientists assessed what occurred and suggested guidelines that may help firefighters avert such a tragedy in the future. This report describes the fuel, weather, and topographical factors that caused the transition from a relatively slow-spreading, low-intensity surface fire to a high-intensity, fast-spreading fire burning through the entire fuel complex, surface to crown. The analysis includes a detailed chronology of fire and firefighter movements, changes in the environmental factors...

To develop a simple road sediment delivery tool, the WEPP program modeled sedimentation from forest roads for more than 50,000 combinations of distance between cross drains, road gradient, soil texture, distance from stream, steepness of the buffer between the road and the stream, and climate. The sediment yield prediction from each of these runs was stored in a data file. Two computer interfaces were developed to access the results either from a Windows operating system or over the Internet. Methods are presented to apply these results to road planning and environmental analysis.

Miller Creek, on the Flathead National Forest in northwest Montana, is a demonstration forest, showing up to 30 years of forest change after clearcutting and a wide range of fire treatments in 1967 and 1968. Differences in tree regeneration and vegetation development are explained for units that were clearcut and prescribed burned, clearcut and burned by wildfire, clearcut and unburned, and uncut and burned by wildfire. This guide discusses these changes, and visitors can see them as they walk the trails within the Miller Creek Demonstration Forest.Supplements and Posters

Eighty-four percent of the upland bird species in present-day bird counts along the Missouri River were included in bird species lists 150 years ago. Eighty-three percent of upland bird species in the Slim Buttes area also occurred 80 to 120 years ago. Historical photographs show native woodlands were part of the presettlement landscape. Expansion of the ranges of blue jays, common grackles, and eastern phoebes in western South Dakota can be attributed to tree plantings, cultivation, and urbanization rather than expanded native woodlands.

Lichen communities were included in the Forest Health Monitoring program because they help to answer several key assessment questions. These questions concern the contamination of natural resources, biodiversity, forest health, and sustainability of timber production. Field crews collected data on epiphytic macrolichens from throughout forested areas of Colorado from 1992-1996. Repeated sampling of these permanent plots will allow us to document changes in the condition of lichen communities over time. Additional plots were taken in urban and industrial areas, for a total of 185 plots...

The paired comparison (PC) method is used to investigate reliability, transitivity, and decision time for binary choices among goods and sums of money. The PC method reveals inconsistent choices and yields individual preference order over the set of items being compared. The data reported support the transitivity assumption and demonstrate high reliability for individual preference order. The paper also discusses using the PC method to obtain conservative median and mean estimates of willingness to accept compensation for public and private goods. The PC method may prove useful for valuing...

Continuing human activities threaten the highly prized aquatic resources of the interior Columbia basin. Precipitous declines in native species, particularly Pacific salmon, and a large influx of introduced species have radically altered the composition and distribution of native fishes. Fortunately, areas of relatively high aquatic integrity remain, much of it on federally administered lands. These areas can provide a starting point for protecting and restoring aquatic resources throughout the basin if decisive action is taken.

We monitored dispersal movements of 19 radiotagged juvenile Mexican Spotted Owls (Strix occidentalis Zucida) in northern Arizona during 1994 and 1995. All juveniles initiated dispersal movements in September or October during both years, with most dispersing during September. Initial dispersal movements were rapid and abrupt, but lacked a significant directional pattern. Distance from the nest to the last observed location and the most distant location reached ranged from 0.6-72.1 and 2.1-73.5 km for individual owls, respectively. These distances represent minimum estimates of dispersal...