Forest resources of the Bitterroot National Forest /

"May 2000."

Record of decision : Tongass National Forest land and resource management plan, Alaska.

"FS ; 639"

A forest in focus : what the Boise National Forest is doing to accomplish the Forest Service Natural Resource Agenda.

"April 2000."

Forest resources of the ponderosa pine region of Washington and Oregon /

Investigation conducted by the Pacific Northwest forest and range experiment station. cf. p. ii.

Representativeness assessment of research natural areas on national forest system lands in Idaho /

"March 2000."

A study of forest plantations for timber production on the island of Hawaii,

"In cooperation with Dept. of Agriculture and Conservation, State of Hawaii."

Forest diseases in California : problems and the research program of the Pacific Southwest Station /

"August 1961."

Direct seeding to restore rainforest species: Microsite effects on the early establishment and growth of rainforest tree seedlings on degraded land in the wet tropics of Australia

Reforestation in tropical areas is usually attempted by planting seedlings but, direct seeding (the artificial addition or sowing of seed) may be an alternative way of accelerating forest recovery and successional processes. This study investigated the effects of various sowing treatments (designed to create different microsite conditions for seed germination) and seed sizes on the early establishment and growth of directly sown rainforest tree species in a variety of experimental plots at three sites in the wet tropical region of north-cast Queensland, Australia. The different sowing treatments were found to have significant effects on seedling establishment. Broadcast sowing treatments were ineffective and resulted in very poor seedling establishment and high seed wastage. Higher establishment rates occurred when seeds were buried. Seed size was found to be an important factor affecting establishment in relation to micro-site condition. In general, larger seeded species had higher establishment rates at all three sites than species of small and intermediate seed size, but only in sowing treatments where seeds were buried. Overall these results suggest that direct sowing of seed can be used as a too] to accelerate recolonisation of certain rainforest tree species on degraded tropical lands, but initial success will be dependent on the choice of sowing method and its suitability for the seed types selected. The results also indicate that the recruitment of naturally dispersed tree species at degraded sites is likely to be severely limited by the availability of suitable microsites for seed germination. Consequently the natural recovery of degraded sites via seed rain can be expected to be slow and unpredictable, particularly in areas where soil compaction has occurred. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The importance of forest area and configuration relative to local habitat factors for conserving forest mammals: A case study of koalas in Queensland, Australia

The loss and fragmentation of forest habitats by human land use are recognised as important factors influencing the decline of forest-dependent fauna. Mammal species that are dependent upon forest habitats are particularly sensitive to habitat loss and fragmentation because they have highly specific habitat requirements, and in many cases have limited ability to move through and utilise the land use matrix. We addressed this problem using a case study of the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) surveyed in a fragmented rural-urban landscape in southeast Queensland, Australia. We applied a logistic modelling and hierarchical partitioning analysis to determine the importance of forest area and its configuration relative to site (local) and patch-level habitat variables. After taking into account spatial auto-correlation and the year of survey, we found koala occurrence increased with the area of all forest habitats, habitat patch size and the proportion of primary Eucalyptus tree species; and decreased with mean nearest neighbour distance between forest patches, the density of forest patches, and the density of sealed roads. The difference between the effect of habitat area and configuration was not as strong as theory predicts, with the configuration of remnant forest becoming increasingly important as the area of forest habitat declines. We conclude that the area of forest, its configuration across the landscape, as well as the land use matrix, are important determinants of koala occurrence, and that habitat configuration should not be overlooked in the conservation of forest-dependent mammals, such as the koala. We highlight the implications of these findings for koala conservation. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Towards the formation of a sustainable South Florida: An analysis of conflict resolution and consensus building in the South Florida Everglades Ecosystem Restoration Initiative

This dissertation examines the sociological process of conflict resolution and consensus building in South Florida Everglades Ecosystem Restoration through what I define as a Network Management Coordinative Interstitial Group (NetMIG). The process of conflict resolution can be summarized as the participation of interested and affected parties (stakeholders) in a forum of negotiation. I study the case of the Governor's Commission for a Sustainable South Florida (GCSSF) that was established to reduce social conflict. Such conflict originated from environmental disputes about the Everglades and was manifested in the form of gridlock among regulatory (government) agencies, Indian tribes, as well as agricultural, environmental conservationist and urban development interests. The purpose of the participatory forum is to reduce conflicts of interest and to achieve consensus, with the ultimate goal of restoration of the original Everglades ecosystem, while cultivating the economic and cultural bases of the communities in the area. Further, the forum aim to formulate consensus through envisioning a common sustainable community by providing means to achieve a balance between human and natural systems. ^ Data were gathered using participant observation and document analysis techniques to conduct a theoretically based analysis of the role of the Network Management Coordinative Interstitial Group (NetMIG). I use conflict resolution theory, environmental conflict theory, stakeholder analysis, systems theory, differentiation and social change theory, and strategic management and planning theory. ^ The purpose of this study is to substantiate the role of the Governor's Commission for a Sustainable South Florida (GCSSF) as a consortium of organizations in an effort to resolve conflict rather than an ethnographic study of this organization. Environmental restoration of the Everglades is a vehicle for recognizing the significance of a Network Management Coordinative Interstitial Group (NetMIG), namely the Governor's Commission for a Sustainable South Florida (GCSSF), as a structural mechanism for stakeholder participation in the process of social conflict resolution through the creation of new cultural paradigms for a sustainable community. ^

Projected Reorganization of Florida Bay Seagrass Communities in Response to the Increased Freshwater Inflow of Everglades Restoration

Historic changes in water-use management in the Florida Everglades have caused the quantity of freshwater inflow to Florida Bay to decline by approximately 60% while altering its timing and spatial distribution. Two consequences have been (1) increased salinity throughout the bay, including occurrences of hypersalinity, coupled with a decrease in salinity variability, and (2) change in benthic habitat structure. Restoration goals have been proposed to return the salinity climates (salinity and its variability) of Florida Bay to more estuarine conditions through changes in upstream water management, thereby returning seagrass species cover to a more historic state. To assess the potential for meeting those goals, we used two modeling approaches and long-term monitoring data. First, we applied the hydrological mass balance model FATHOM to predict salinity climate changes in sub-basins throughout the bay in response to a broad range of freshwater inflow from the Everglades. Second, because seagrass species exhibit different sensitivities to salinity climates, we used the FATHOM-modeled salinity climates as input to a statistical discriminant function model that associates eight seagrass community types with water quality variables including salinity, salinity variability, total organic carbon, total phosphorus, nitrate, and ammonium, as well as sediment depth and light reaching the benthos. Salinity climates in the western sub-basins bordering the Gulf of Mexico were insensitive to even the largest (5-fold) modeled increases in freshwater inflow. However, the north, northeastern, and eastern sub-basins were highly sensitive to freshwater inflow and responded to comparatively small increases with decreased salinity and increased salinity variability. The discriminant function model predicted increased occurrences ofHalodule wrightii communities and decreased occurrences of Thalassia testudinum communities in response to the more estuarine salinity climates. The shift in community composition represents a return to the historically observed state and suggests that restoration goals for Florida Bay can be achieved through restoration of freshwater inflow from the Everglades.

Spatial patterns of fish communities along two estuarine gradients in southern Florida

In tropical and subtropical estuaries, gradients of primary productivity and salinity are generally invoked to explain patterns in community structure and standing crops of fishes. We documented spatial and temporal patterns in fish community structure and standing crops along salinity and nutrient gradients in two subtropical drainages of Everglades National Park, USA. The Shark River drains into the Gulf of Mexico and experiences diurnal tides carrying relatively nutrient enriched waters, while Taylor River is more hydrologically isolated by the oligohaline Florida Bay and experiences no discernable lunar tides. We hypothesized that the more nutrient enriched system would support higher standing crops of fishes in its mangrove zone. We collected 50 species of fish from January 2000 to April 2004 at six sampling sites spanning fresh to brackish salinities in both the Shark and Taylor River drainages. Contrary to expectations, we observed lower standing crops and density of fishes in the more nutrient rich tidal mangrove forest of the Shark River than in the less nutrient rich mangrove habitats bordering the Taylor River. Tidal mangrove habitats in the Shark River were dominated by salt-tolerant fish and displayed lower species richness than mangrove communities in the Taylor River, which included more freshwater taxa and yielded relatively higher richness. These differences were maintained even after controlling for salinity at the time of sampling. Small-scale topographic relief differs between these two systems, possibly created by tidal action in the Shark River. We propose that this difference in topography limits movement of fishes from upstream marshes into the fringing mangrove forest in the Shark River system, but not the Taylor River system. Understanding the influence of habitat structure, including connectivity, on aquatic communities is important to anticipate effects of construction and operational alternatives associated with restoration of the Everglades ecosystem.

Smoke on the water: the interplay of fire and water flow on Everglades restoration

Recent research makes clear that much of the Everglade’s flora and fauna have evolved to tolerate or require frequent fires. Nevertheless, restoration of the Everglades has thus far been conceptualized as primarily a water reallocation project. These two forces are directly linked by the influence of water flows on fire fuel moisture content, and are indirectly linked through a series of complex feedback loops. This interaction is made more complex by the alteration and compartmentalization of current water flows and fire regimes, the lack of communication between water and fire management agencies, and the already imperiled state of many local species. It is unlikely, therefore, that restoring water flows will automatically restore the appropriate fire regimes, leaving the prospect of successful restoration in some doubt. The decline of the Cape Sable seaside sparrow, and its potential for recovery, illustrates the complexity of the situation.

Ecosystem structure, nutrient dynamics, and hydrologic relationships in tree islands of the southern Everglades, Florida, USA

Tree islands are an important structural component of many graminoid-dominated wetlands because they increase ecological complexity in the landscape. Tree island area has been drastically reduced with hydrologic modifications within the Everglades ecosystem, yet still little is known about the ecosystem ecology of Everglades tree islands. As part of an ongoing study to investigate the effects of hydrologic restoration on short hydroperiod marshes of the southern Everglades, we report an ecosystem characterization of seasonally flooded tree islands relative to locations described by variation in freshwater flow (i.e. locally enhanced freshwater flow by levee removal). We quantified: (1) forest structure, litterfall production, nutrient utilization, soil dynamics, and hydrologic properties of six tree islands and (2) soil and surface water physico-chemical properties of adjacent marshes. Tree islands efficiently utilized both phosphorus and nitrogen, but indices of nutrient-use efficiency indicated stronger P than N limitation. Tree islands were distinct in structure and biogeochemical properties from the surrounding marsh, maintaining higher organically bound P and N, but lower inorganic N. Annual variation resulting in increased hydroperiod and lower wet season water levels not only increased nitrogen use by tree species and decreased N:P values of the dominant plant species (Chrysobalanus icaco), but also increased soil pH and decreased soil temperature. When compared with other forested wetlands, these Everglades tree islands were among the most nutrient efficient, likely a function of nutrient immobilization in soils and the calcium carbonate bedrock. Tree islands of our study area are defined by: (1) unique biogeochemical properties when compared with adjacent short hydroperiod marshes and other forested wetlands and (2) an intricate relationship with marsh hydrology. As such, they may play an important and disproportionate role in nutrient and carbon cycling in Everglades wetlands. With the loss of tree islands that has occurred with the degradation of the Everglades system, these landscape processes may have been altered. With this baseline dataset, we have established a long-term ecosystem-scale experiment to follow the ecosystem trajectory of seasonally flooded tree islands in response to hydrologic restoration of the southern Everglades.

Density-Dependent Effects of Coral Reef Restoration on Herbivory and Community Interactions

Coral reefs are among the most productive ecosystems in the world. Yet, with their recent declines due to disease, climate change, and overfishing, restoration of these habitats is one of the main concerns for ecologists, resource managers, and government organizations. Coral reef restoration aims to promote key ecosystem processes to shift these habitats to their historical state of high coral cover, but few studies have focused on effective ways to promote resilience. In addition, little is known about the impact of restoration on the fish communities. The aim of this study is to understand how the community of herbivorous fishes is affected by the density of coral outplants inside a special protection area located in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Grazing rates, number of visits and time spent foraging were compared using video footage of sites previously devoid of corals, and six months after coral restorations had occurred. Coral transplantations did not appear to attract herbivores nor increase grazing rates of fishes. Instead Sparisoma and Acanthurus fishes appear to respond to changes in the environment by modifying their grazing behavior. However, there was an observed increase in visits by Acanthurus species after transplantation for all the sites sampled within the reef. These fishes seemed to prefer low coral cover sites for grazing. This study highlights the importance of examining coral restorations impacts at the community level. Understanding how restoration influences herbivores and other guilds of reef fishes will allow individuals to not only determine if these habitats are returning to their “original” state, but provide more information on the ways these systems cope with changes in the environment.