Treesearch

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program provides this resource update yearly as an overview of forest resources in Rhode Island. These estimates are derived from field data collected across a systematic network of fixed-radius forest monitoring plots located on both public and private land. New updates are provided annually as a subset of plots within the State are remeasured. Each year, field crews visit and measure a subset of all FIA plots across the entire State (the size of the subset varies by State and year). Combining...

Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) populations are declining in many portions of the species’ native range due to multiple factors that might influence functional connectivity and population genetic structure. We used 13 microsatellite markers to examine patterns of genetic structure in the Wood Turtle across its native range in Eastern and Midwestern North America. For n = 45 collections with 15 or more individuals (total N = 1,258), multiple clustering approaches revealed two major genetic groups corresponding to the midwestern and eastern collections. Interestingly, a sample from lower...

This article uses a knowledge exchange (KE)-based approach to evaluation to explore the reported experiences of artists, scientists, and land managers participating in the NaturePLACE Program (formerly Urban Field Station [UFS] Arts), focusing on the period 2016–2024. The primary aim of the program is to build understanding of and engagement with urban social-ecological systems through the arts. The approach to this evaluation draws on a range of literature on research in the arts, as well as research and KE impact evaluation from the environmental research domain. The evaluation reported...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program provides this resource update yearly as an overview of forest resources in New Jersey. These estimates are derived from field data collected across a systematic network of fixed-radius forest monitoring plots located on both public and private land. New updates are provided annually as a subset of plots within the State are remeasured. Each year, field crews visit and measure a subset of all FIA plots across the entire State (the size of the subset varies by State and year). Combining all...

Background: The reintroduction of fire, with the goal of reducing fuels and restoring forest resilience, is a critical management practice in dry conifer forests of the western United States. In dry forest landscapes, invasion by non-native annual grasses could complicate restoration goals if fire exacerbates invasion and associated impacts, particularly in areas with low tree cover and in adjacent open areas. Although annual grasses are becoming increasingly pervasive across the West, little is known about how species differ in their response to burning, especially in historically...

Forest ecosystems provide essential services such as timber, water regulation, biodiversity, and recreation, yet they are increasingly influenced by the interplay between climate and socioeconomic forces. This study synthesizes findings from the 2020 Resources Planning Act (RPA) Assessment to evaluate how these factors affect historical trends and future projections of U.S. forest conditions and services. Results show that total forest area is projected to decline slightly by 2070, mainly due to conversion to developed land, with the greatest losses occurring in the South. While socioeconom...

Restoration of dry forest landscapes of the Pacific Northwest often involves the removal of some closed-canopy forest that has expanded due to fire exclusion, but this can conflict with species conservation when species require closed-canopy forest as part of their habitat. Fire refugia—areas within fire perimeters that burn less severely or frequently—might provide a solution to this conflict. We used a species-specific approach to understanding fire refugia for northern spotted owls to model the post-fire persistence of nesting and roosting (NR) forest in the frequent fire landscapes of...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program provides this resource update yearly as an overview of forest resources in New Hampshire. These estimates are derived from field data collected across a systematic network of fixed-radius forest monitoring plots located on both public and private land. New updates are provided annually as a subset of plots within the State are remeasured. Each year, field crews visit and measure a subset of all FIA plots across the entire State (the size of the subset varies by State and year). Combining...

As wildfires in the western US grow in both size and intensity, forest policymakers and managers seek effective ways to mitigate and adapt to increasing wildfire risk. In some regions, such as the western Pacific Northwest, where wildfires historically burned infrequently, climate change and housing development appear to be altering wildfire regimes while bringing greater numbers of people living in greater proximity to potentially more fire-prone forests. Developing effective strategies for family forest owners to adapt to the wildfire regimes of the future will depend on designing...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program provides this resource update yearly as an overview of forest resources in Pennsylvania. These estimates are derived from field data collected across a systematic network of fixed-radius forest monitoring plots located on both public and private land. New updates are provided annually as a subset of plots within the State are remeasured. Each year, field crews visit and measure a subset of all FIA plots across the entire State (the size of the subset varies by State and year). Combining...