Treesearch

The COWFISH model, developed and applied in selected Montana streams, was tested on 14 streams in Idaho, Nevada, and Utah, where it proved to have little value for predicting numbers of trout in watersheds grazed by livestock. The model holds promise for estimating the health of stream channels and riparian complexes.

Includes 35 papers and six poster synopses presenting state-of-the-art knowledge on the nature and problems of integrating soils information and expertise into management of inland western forest resources. Papers emphasize regional information, but include data from world literature and previously unpublished material from regional experts.

The Kalman filter is a multivariate generalization of the composite estimator which recursively combines a current direct estimate with a past estimate that is updated for expected change over time with a prediction model. The Kalman filter can estimate proportions of different cover types for sub-continental regions each year. A random sample of high-resolution satellite scenes at time t=0 is classified into detailed categories to estimate proportion of cover types in the population, and its sample covariance matrix. Coarse-resolution weather satellite data at time t=0 are also classified...

The Kalman filter is a generalization of the composite estimator. The univariate composite estimate combines 2 prior estimates of population parameter with a weighted average where the scalar weight is inversely proportional to the variances. The composite estimator is a minimum variance estimator that requires no distributional assumptions other than estimates of the first 2 moments. The Kalman filter recursively combines 2 estimates: a past estimate that is updated for expected change over time, and a current, direct estimate.

Global and regional assessaents require timely information on landscape level status (e.g., areal extent of different ecosystems) and processes (e.g., changes in land use and land cover). To measure and understand these processes at the regional level, and model their impacts, remote sensing is often necessary. However, processing massive volumes of remotely sensing data can be infeasible if high resolution data are required for very large regions. Remote sensing of sample plots, rather than a census of the entire area, can solve certain problems. Statistical aspects of remote sensing for...

This comprehensive guidebook provides keys, illustrations, and descriptions that aid identification of the 1,600+ species and varieties of vascular plants growing in west-central Montana. The area covered encompasses Ravalli County and southern Missoula County, and it includes the Bitterroot National Forest and portions of the Lolo National Forest. This guidebook uses a minimum of technical terminology and is intended for use by the public as well as by scientists, foresters, and educators. It may also serve as a model for compilation of similar information in other regions.

Describes methods for approximating behavior and size of a wind-driven crown fire in mountainous terrain. Covers estimation of average rate of spread, energy release from tree crowns and surface fuel, fireline intensity, flame length, and unit area power of the fire and ambient wind. Plume-dominated fires, which may produce unexpectedly fast spread rates even with low ambient windspeeds, are covered and supplemental methods suggested for estimating their occurrence. The spread information can be used to estimate and map fire area and perimeter.

This publication describes how to use version 2 of the Regeneration Establishment Model, a computer-based simulator that is part of the Prognosis Model for Stand Development. Conifer regeneration is predicted following harvest and site preparation for forests in western Montana, central Idaho, and northern Idaho. The influence of western spruce budworm (Choristoneura occidentalis) defoliation on regeneration success is also represented by the model. Model characteristics, prescription options, program control, and regeneration summaries are explained.PLEASE NOTE: Replaces Gen. Tech. Rep....

The Parallel Processing Extension (PPE) of the Prognosis Model was designed to analyze responses of numerous stands to coordinated management and pest impacts that operate at the landscape level of forests. Vegetation-related resource supply analysis can be readily performed for a thousand or more sample stands for projections 400 years into the future. Capabilities for representing spatially-dependent interactions between stands, representing contagious agents, and simulating management alternatives using decision trees are included. Nontimber resources are explicitly represented by...

A provenance test of 49 seed sources of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) from eastern Europe, Russia, and Siberia was established in two plantations in north-central North Dakota. After 22 years, trees from seed sources within the region bounded by 20° to 57° east longitude and 50° to 58° north latitude were taller, and larger in diameter, and had denser crown and greener winter foliage. Total height at age 5 and age 10 was highly correlated with total height at age 22, indicating that selection at an early age (5-10 years) may be possible in Scots pine breeding programs.