We compared the relative abundance of terrestrial salamanders before and after application of seven regeneration treatments in a low-elevation, southern Appalachian hardwood forest in southwest Virginia. Treatments included understory removal, group selection, two shelterwoods, leave-tree, clearcut, and a control. Salamander relative abundance was signi®cantly lower after harvest on the group selection (p0.005), shelterwoods (p0.007 and p0.015), leave-tree (p0.001), and clearcut treatments (p0.001). There was no signi®cant difference in relative abundance during the same period on the control (p0.788) or understory removal (p0.862) treatments. #

Several studies have demonstrated the negative effects of clearcutting on terrestrial plethodontid salamander populations. However, none has experimentally compared clearcutting with multiple alternative timber-harvest methods. Using a randomized, replicated design, we compared the short-term effects (1-4 years after harvest) of clearcutting to effects of leavetree, group selection, and two shelterwood cuts on terrestrial salamanders in the southern Appalachian Mountains of Virginia and West Virginia (U.S.A.). Treatment plots were 2 ha each. We also compared salamander age class (percent juvenile), fecundity (percentage of females carrying eggs and average number of eggs per gravid female), size of gravid females, and species composition and diversity between treatments with canopy removal ( cut ) and those without canopy removal ( uncut). All treatments with canopy removal had significantly fewer salamanders than the control treatment, but salamander abundances on alternative treatments with canopy removal did not differ significantly from salamander abundances on the clearcuts. There were no significant differences between cut and uncut treatments in the proportion of females that were gravid or in the average number of eggs in gravid females; however, gravid Plethodon cinereus females weighed more on the cut treatments and gravid Desmognathus ochrophaeus females weighed more on uncut treatments. There were no significant differences between cut and uncut treatments in the proportion of the sample that was juvenile, except in the largest species tested, P. glutinosus , which had a significantly higher proportion of juveniles in the uncut treatments. We conclude that initial declines in terrestrial plethodontid abundance caused by timber harvesting may be minimized across the landscape by concentrating high-intensity timber harvesting ( clearcutting ) in small areas ( a few hectares in size ). Efectos Iniciales de la Tala Rasa y de Prácticas Silvícolas Alternativas sobre la Abundancia de Salamandras TerrestresResumen: Varios estudios han demostrado los impactos negativos de la tala rasa sobre poblaciones de salamandras pletodóntidas terrestres. Sin embargo, ninguno ha comparado experimentalmente la tala rasa con múltiples métodos alternativos de cosecha de madera. Utilizando un diseño aleatorio, replicado, comparamos los efectos a corto plazo (1-4 años postcosecha) de la tala rasa con los efectos de prácticas silvícolas alternativas sobre salamandras terrestres en el sur de las montañas Apalaches en Virginia y Virginia del Oeste (E.U.A.). Las parcelas de tratamiento eran de 2 ha cada una. También comparamos la clase de edad de salamandras (porcentaje de juveniles), fecundidad (porcentaje de hembras con huevos y promedio de huevos por hembra grávida), tamaño de hembras grávidas y composición de especies y diversidad entre tratamientos con remoción de dosel (corte) y sin remoción de dosel (sin corte). Todos los tratamientos con remoción de dosel tuvieron un número significativamente menor de salamandras que el con...