Treesearch

Road projects are like trains—slow to get rolling, averse to getting off track, and hard to slow down. As a result, the best opportunities to incorporate wildlife accommodations into a project are in the early stages of project development, where deadlines are more flexible and the larger issues of road corridor impacts on regional landscapes are usually considered. However, people concerned about the impacts of road projects are often frustrated trying to learn exactly what is being proposed, and how they can have their concerns addressed. Project managers are under pressure to deliver...

Fire is a natural disturbance that is nearly ubiquitous in terrestrial ecosystems. The capacity to burn exists virtually wherever vegetation grows. In some forested landscapes, fi re is a principal driver of rapid ecosystem change, resetting succession ( McKenzie et al. 1996a ) and changing wildlife habitat (Cushman et al. 2011 ), hydrology ( Feikema et al. 2013 ), element cycles ( Smithwick 2011 ), and even landforms (Pierce et al. 2004 ). In boreal forests, for example, recurring wildfi res are the main cause of compositional and spatial patterns ( Wein and MacLean 1983 ), where a fi...

There are more than 35,000 cerambycid species in the world (Švácha and Lawrence 2014), with over 1000 species, representing over 300 genera, in North America. Adult cerambycids vary greatly in size, from as short as 1.5 mm in length (Decarthria stephensi) to as long as 167 mm (Titanus giganteus) (Haack 2016). Nearly all cerambycids feed on plant tissue as both adults and larvae, but cerambycids in the genus Elytroleptus are one exception whereby they mimic and subsequently prey on adult lycid beetles (Eisner et al. 2008).

Chitosan is a hydrophilic and biodegradable polysaccharide with antimicrobial properties. It has low toxicity to non-target organisms and is considered an environmentally friendly preservative. In this study, the efficacy of chitosan polymer (> 50 kDa) as a wood preservative was evaluated against the subterranean termites Reticulitermes flavipes (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae). The treatability and leachability of chitosan from wood was also studied. Visual ratings and mass losses were used to assess the degree of termite damage to the wood blocks, while percent termite mortality after two...

Context The dual threats of habitat fragmentation and climate change have led to a proliferation of approaches for connectivity conservation planning. Corridor analyses have traditionally taken a focal species approach, but the landscape ‘‘naturalness’’ approach of modeling connectivity among areas of low human modification has gained popularity as a less analytically intensive alternative. Objectives We compared focal species and naturalness- based corridor networks to ask whether they identify similar areas, whether a naturalness-based approach is in fact more analytically efficient, and...

Roads and traffic are typically more of a threat to the conservation of birds rather than a safety issue for motorists. Some bird species have biological features and life history traits that make them particularly vulnerable to habitat loss from roads and mortality due to wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC). Road planning that proactively considers the biological needs of birds will help avoid project delays and extra costs for mitigation, as well as achieve positive outcomes for birds. Several strategies effectively avoid or mitigate the negative effects of roads on birds.

Dam removal is an increasingly practised river restoration technique, and ecological responses vary with watershed, dam and reservoir properties, and removal strategies. Moderate-sized dams, like Hemlock Dam (7.9m tall and 56m wide), are large enough that removal effects could be significant, but small enough that mitigation may be possible through a modified dam removal strategy. The removal of Hemlock Dam in Washington State, USA, was designed to limit channel erosion and improve fish passage and habitat by excavating stored fine sediment and reconstructing a channel in the former 6-ha...

A non-native invasive sawfly, the amber-marked birch leaf miner Profenusa thomsoni (Konow), was first detected in south-central Alaska in 1996 and is now widely distributed throughout urban and wild birch trees in Alaska. Impacts have been considered primarily aesthetic because leaf miners cause leaves of birch trees (Betula spp.) to senesce prematurely, but the leaf miners likely also reduce birch vigour and thereby increase susceptibility to diseases and other insects. We tested the ability of commercially available biological control agents to control P. thomsoni. The entomopathogenic...