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Frequently Asked Questions

The following are Frequently Asked Questions regarding the Updated Silvics of North America Project (USNAP). This will be updated as the project progresses, so if you do not see your particular question addressed here, you may find it incorporated at a later date.

To provide a comprehensive revision to the Silvics of North America that will: 

  1. Make the SNA the keystone reference for North American silviculture
  2. Reflect the most current silviculture science
  3. Modernize the document to current standards of technological engagement
  4. Allow for updating.

The Updated Silvics of North America Project is officially led and managed by the USDA Forest Service, the Canadian Forest Service (Le Service canadien des forêts), the National Forestry Commission of Mexico (Comisión Nacional Forestal; CONAFOR).

The USNAP is guided by the project's Executive Committee. Serving underneath the Executive Committee is the Core Committee, which represents the primary working group responsible for template development and peer review. Additionally, the USNAP is facilitated by the Project Support Committee.

The USNAP is currently accepting lead author applications. Once a chapter is assigned, the author team will have one year to complete and submit the chapter.

Individuals can formally apply for a specific species chapter using the authorship application process on the project's main web page. All chapter requests will go through the same evaluation process. Once selected, lead authors will have the authority to choose their co-authors.

Individuals can formally apply for a specific species chapter using the authorship application process on the project's main web page. All chapter requests will go through the same evaluation process. Once selected, lead authors will have the authority to choose their co-authors.

The Silvics of North America will focus on including the most important species within the North American continent. Initially, 300+ species will be targeted, but as a living document it will continually receive additions.

Typically, variations of a species will remain under a single chapter. The virtual nature of the document will allow for extending a chapter to include variant specific information. Species Group Co-Leads will provide guidance for particular cases in question.

No, these maps will be developed by the project's Distribution and Environmental Associations Team as a resource for lead authors. All developed maps will be provided to authors in a centralized shared drive. It will be the chapter author's responsibility as the subject expert to evaluate the range maps.

In the updated SNA chapters, distribution maps are not provided for some rare, invasive, and shrubby species because these were not officially inventoried, or the inventories were so sparse as to make them unsuitable for modeling. We have therefore deliberately excluded them to avoid misinterpretation of the mapped products. We encourage authors and other users to use other reliable sources of information for these species.

The entire revised Silvics of North America will be available in English, Spanish, and French. Spanish and French translations are in progress and will be available soon.

There are 2 main routes to become involved in the project. The primary way is to apply for a lead author position. To apply, please follow the instructions on the project website. Secondarily, you can indicate your interest to join as a member of our Core Committee Teams (e.g., Wildland Fire, Genetics) to assist in the peer review process. Currently these roles are all volunteer based, but any involved participant will receive proper credit in the updated SNA. If you would like to join the Core Committee, please indicate your interest here.

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