Treesearch

Passage of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act (P.L. 93-378) (RPA), as amended by the National Forest Management Act (P.L. 94-588), requires the U.S.D.A., Forest Service (FS) to develop and conduct periodic national assessments of renewable natural resources on forests and rangelands. Such assessments report the current and expected status of natural resources, and propose alternative opportunities with associated ecological, economic, and social impacts (Hoekstra et al. 1979). The appraisals of wildlife resources require the ability to forecast consequences of...

Scientific and historical literature was searched for documented accounts of early fires in the '"interior West" - Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, and eastern Oregon. One hundred and forty-five accounts of fires by 44 observers were found. The majority of accounts described fires in progress. A smaller proportion referred to burned areas that were encountered; a few simply described regional fire occurrence based on the journalists' observations. Indians were identified as the primary ignition source over wide areas at lower and middle elevations. Some journalists noted that fire...

Provides guidelines for integrating practices for managing mountain pine beetle populations with silvicultural practices for enhancing multiple resource values of lodgepole pine forests. Summarizes published and unpublished technical information and recent research on the ecology of pest and host and presents visual and classification criteria for recognizing susceptibility status of lodgepole pine stands according to habitat types and successional roles of lodgepole pine. Reviews appropriate silvicultural systems and practices for commercial and noncommercial forest land designations and...

Aspen stands sprayed with herbicides had higher numbers of aspen suckers than adjacent unsprayed stands. Understory production was higher due to more grass production in the sprayed stands. While the composition of forb species was lower, the number of grass species was higher on sprayed stands than on unsprayed stands. Vegetative cover was greater on the sprayed plots, but organic matter was deeper on the unsprayed plots. These results agree with expectations of broadleaf herbicide treatments.

These proceedings include 105 papers and 12 poster presentations. Primary topics include: physical characteristics, hydrology, and ecology of riparian ecosystems; riparian resources; recreation, agriculture, wildlife, livestock use, fisheries, and amphibians and reptiles; multiple-use planning and management; legal and institutional needs; and riparian ecosystems in dryland zones of the world. A model Riparian Habitat Protection Statute is appended.

Variation among habitat associations of 31 riparian bird species in southeastern Wyoming was analyzed using a weighted-means ordination. Three principal components explained 86.7% of the variation among habitat associations of bird species. The components showed high positive loadings for variables associated with canopy, shrub size, and vegetation height.

Budworms (Choristoneura spp.) have repeatedly defoliated millions of hectares of conifers throughout North America. The seriousness of the problem is underscored by research findings in eastern Canada and the northern U.S. Rocky Mountains that the extent, severity, and frequency of bud worm outbreaks have increased in the 20th century, primarily as a result of human-induced changes in forest structure and composition (Blais 1983, Carlson and others 1983, Fellin and others 1983).

A compilation of 11 papers in which authorities discuss the impacts of fire on wildlife habitat and wildlife populations. Presentations cover bobwhite quail, nongame birds, white-tailed deer, bighorn and Stone's sheep; and the response to burning of curlleaf cercocarpus, aspen, evergreen ceanothus, and antelope bitterbrush.

The Fool Creek watershed at the Fraser Experimental Forest, Colorado was harvested using a pattern of alternating clearcut and forested strips in 1956. Today, with almost 30 years of postharvest record, subtle impacts on the hydrology of the watershed can be detected that were not significant in the past. In addition to the depositional increases in the snowpack in the openings, average peak water equivalent over the entire watershed has been increased (9%). Long-term, postharvest, climatic records now available show a strong correlation between estimated increases in flow and winter and...

This report provides an overview of the research done on the Fraser Experimental Forest. It replaces GTR's no. 40 and 40A by Robert R. Alexander and Ross K. Watkins in 1977. Included are descriptions of physical features and resources, highlights of past and current research, and the publications derived from that research.