Treesearch

Behavioral responses of Drunella coloradensis nymphs were examined in outdoor experimental stream channels after pH reductions of 7 and 2 pH units below ambient. The severity of pH decline below the ambient of 7.8 influenced the behavior patterns displayed by nymphs. At pH 7.01 (an intermediate pH decline) nymphs sat less frequently and burrowed more than controls. Burrowing behavior frequency returned to control levels and drifting and crawling behaviors increased relative to controls at pH 6.02, Ventilatory behaviors increased with pH decline, but were independent of the severity of...

A simulation model [Salmonid Spawning Analysis Model (SSAM)I was developed as a management tool to evaluate the relative impacts of stream sediment load and water temperature on salmonid egg survival. The model is usefi.il for estimating acceptable sediment loads to spawning habitat that may result from upland development, such as logging and agriculture. Software in common use in the USA were adapted for use in gravel bedded rivers and linked to simulate water temperature (the USFWS Instream Water Temperature, SNTEMP model) and water and sediment routing (the USAE Scour and Deposition in...

Vegetation greenness can be monitored at 1-km resolution for the conterminous United States through data obtained from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer on the NOAA-11 weather satellites. The data are used to calculate biweekly composites of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. The resulting composite images are updated weekly and made available to land managers who then calculate and display two measures of percentage vegetation greenness. The images provide a useful method of monitoring the condition of vegetation for fire or range management or other land management...

A new variable-form segmented stem profile model is developed for lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) trees from the northern Rocky Mountains of the United States. I improved estimates of stem diameter by predicting two of the model coefficients with linear equations using a measure of tree form, defined as a ratio of dbh and total height. Additional improvements were obtained by fitting this model to individual national forest data sets. Other tree and environmental variables tested but found of little use in improving stem profile estimates were crown ratio, habitat series, elevation, slope...

Methods for solving some recurring problems of maintaining a permanent plot data base for growth and yield reseuch are described. These methods include documenting data from diverse sampling designs, changing sampling designs, changing field procedures, and coordinating activities in the plots with the land management agency. Managing a permanent plot data base (including plot recruitment, maintenance, and replacement) over a long time frame for northern Rocky Mountain ecosystems has been the impetus for developing these methodologies. We have assembled a permanent plot data base by...

Fires in the open environment produce a diversity of combustion products. Special techniques are needed to characterize the emissions ranging from microcombustion-evolved gas analysis to airborne monitoring of the full-scale phenomenon. This chapter discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each, the use of data in models for full-scale fires, and provides a discussion of the measurement needs for more fully understanding the release of emissions on a global/temporal scale.

Ninety-five seedling populations of southwestern ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa var. scopulorum) along with single populations of Pinus engelmannii and Pinus arizonica were compared in four environmentally disparate common gardens. Differentiation among ponderosa pine populations was detected for a diverse assortment of variables that included patterns of shoot elongation, measures of growth potential, winter and spring freezing damage, and leaf characteristics. Multiple regression models accounted for as much as 85% of the variance among populations and described complex clines that were...

This report lists 441 vascular plant taxa in 228 genera and 63 families encountered on the 9,300-ha Fraser Experimental Forest in central Colorado. Synonyms appearing in previous publications and other works pertaining to the Fraser Experimental Forest, as well as appropriate Colorado floras and less-technical field guides, are included. Plant communities and habitats are discussed, and a list of 54 lichens is also presented. A glossary of related terms is included.

We identify wetlands, riparian woodlands and shrublands, green ash woodlands, aspen forests, pinyon-juniper woodlands, and pure and mixed forests of ponderosa pine as important wildlife habitats in the US. Forest Service's Rocky Mountain Region. The relationships of vertebrate species to each of these types are discussed relative to habitat requirements and species conservation. The importance of late-successional lodgepole pine, Douglas-fir, and spruce-fir forests is discussed in the context of regional landscapes and the maintenance of biological diversity.

The USDA Forest Service is undergoing a major change in focus in response to public interests, growing concern for sustaining natural resources, and new knowledge about wildlife, fisheries, forests and grasslands, and how they interact at the ecosystem level. This shift in direction affects how Forest Service lands are managed, what research is conducted, how resource values are prioritized and how Forest Service employees are trained to meet future management needs. In meeting public concerns over time, Forest Service stewardship has evolved from an emphasis on (1) regulation of uses...