Landscape-scale disturbance and boreal forest birds: Can large single-pass harvest approximate fires?

Wilgenburg, Steven L. Van; Hobson, Keith A.

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2008.04.017

Cited by 25 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Species such as Ovenbird and Swainson's Thrush, which are associated with older forest age classes, would therefore benefit from forest harvesting guidelines that favor the maintenance of stands on the landscape that are allowed to grow beyond traditional harvest rotation ages (Hobson and Bayne 2000a,b,c, Cumming and Diamond 2002, Bayne et al 2010. Conversely, similar to previous work (Van Wilgenburg and Hobson 2008, Kardynal et al 2009, 2011, we also showed that the abundance of Mourning Warbler and White-throated Sparrow increased where disturbance had occurred. Given the diverse habitat needs of boreal forest birds, using historic natural disturbance regimes (also called "emulation of natural disturbance"; Stockdale et al 2016) to determine target forest age-class distributions may therefore improve upon historic even-aged forest management and benefit a broader range of species.…”

Section: Relevance To Boreal Bird Conservationsupporting

confidence: 83%

“…1), which are largely undeveloped, but the landscape surrounding those parks is a mosaic of upland forests in which commercial forestry operations are the principal land use, and lowland forests, which comprise primarily bogs and fens. Fire has historically been the dominant stand-replacing disturbance within the region, along with clearcut forest harvesting practices since the mid-1980s, primarily within the mid-boreal upland and to a lesser extent the Churchill River upland (Acton et al 1998, Van Wilgenburg andHobson 2008).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Temporal changes in avian abundance in aspen-dominated boreal mixedwood forests of central Saskatchewan, Canada

Wilgenburg¹,

Hobson²,

Kardynal³

et al. 2018

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ABSTRACT. The boreal forest provides important breeding habitat for many migratory songbirds; however, changes in disturbance regimes have led to concern for populations breeding there. Monitoring data to track changes in boreal forest bird populations are scarce. Therefore, we repeated surveys at historic research sites in aspen-dominated boreal mixedwood forest in central Saskatchewan, Canada, to test for changes in abundance in different forest age classes. We used GIS analyses and habitat data to test whether observed changes in abundance were correlated with within-stand changes in habitat over approximately 20 years. Eight of the ten species examined showed evidence for change in abundance. Trends from our study showed little correlation with regional trends from the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) and generally displayed greater magnitude and precision. Species associated with closedcanopy forests declined more rapidly than suggested by BBS surveys, whereas species associated with disturbance generally had opposite trends to the BBS. Decreased abundance of species such as Swainson's Thrush (Catharus ustulatus) and Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata) correlated with loss of forest cover from fire or harvesting. Conversely, changes in the abundance of species associated with early successional forest and canopy gaps were primarily correlated with within-stand disturbances (e.g., Magnolia Warbler [Setophaga magnolia]) and changes in the proportion of the stands composed of conifers (e.g., White-throated Sparrow [Zonotrichia albicollis]). We suggest repeating historic surveys and comparing trends with other monitoring programs to provide a weight-of-evidence approach to assess overall support for changes in species' status for regions where data are sparse. Our results are consistent with previous studies that predict that changes in the forest age-class distribution could alter boreal forest bird abundance and community composition. Long-term conservation plans should integrate projected land-use and climate effects on boreal forest bird populations.Variations temporelles de l'abondance aviaire en forêt mixte boréale dominée par le peuplier dans le centre de la Saskatchewan, Canada RÉSUMÉ. La forêt boréale compte d'importants milieux de nidification pour de nombreux passereaux migrateurs. Toutefois, en raison des changements advenus dans les régimes de perturbation, les populations qui y nichent soulèvent des préoccupations. Les suivis mis sur place pour détecter les variations de populations d'oiseaux forestiers boréaux sont rares. Nous avons donc refait des relevés à des sites de recherche historiques en forêt mixte boréale dominée par le peuplier dans le centre de la Saskatchewan, Canada, afin de tester si l'abondance avait changé selon les différentes classes d'âge des forêts. Au moyen d'analyses SIG et de données d'habitat, nous avons testé si les variations observées dans l'abondance étaient corrélées avec les changements d'habitat à l'échelle des peuplements sur une période d'environ ...

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Section: Relevance To Boreal Bird Conservationsupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal changes in avian abundance in aspen-dominated boreal mixedwood forests of central Saskatchewan, Canada

Wilgenburg¹,

Hobson²,

Kardynal³

et al. 2018

ACE

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“…Identified gaps include the need for improved emulation of natural fire-disturbance intervals (Cyr et al 2009), incomplete long-term spatial and temporal data on anthropogenic forest change (Venier et al 2014), and the absence of studies into the processes leading to observed differences in harvested vs. firedisturbed forests (Wyshynski and Nudds 2009; though see Whitaker et al 2008 for a measure of disturbance-specific demographic parameters, and Bélisle et al 2007 for a test of evolutionary mechanisms). Predictions that timber harvesting may reduce biodiversity (e.g., Welsh and Venier 1996, Askins 2000, Drever et al 2006, Van Wilgenburg and Hobson 2008 are in contrast with recent evidence for the relative success of harvest management approaches in maintaining biodiversity (e.g., Lemelin et al 2007, Wychynski and Nudds 2009, Börger and Nudds 2014. This disparity supports the need for continued empirical evaluation of how well harvesting mirrors natural forest processes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…Quantifying both community-and species-level differences in boreal birds between postharvest and postfire forests can be valuable for assessing the effectiveness of natural disturbance emulation (e.g., Rempel 2007, Van Wilgenburg andHobson 2008). Several studies suggest that some bird species found in naturally disturbed forest stands are significantly less abundant in postharvest stands of similar types and ages, especially in the earliest successional stages but also several decades after harvest (e.g., Schulte and Niemi 1998, Hannon 1999, Imbeau et al 1999, Simon et al 2002.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How well does forestry in Ontario’s boreal forest emulate natural disturbances from the perspective of birds?

Zimmerling¹,

Francis²,

Roy³

et al. 2017

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ABSTRACT. Emulating natural disturbance has become a paradigm for biodiversity retention in forest management. This study evaluates the extent to which harvest management practices have created stands that emulate natural fire disturbance from the perspective of bird communities in Ontario, Canada. We compared the relative abundance of forest landbirds at the stand level in mature forest (> 80 years old) with that in early-regenerating (0-20 years) and midregenerating (21-80 years) forests originating from fire or timber harvest across the boreal forest of Ontario using over 7000 point counts. Our results indicate that forest harvest management practices in Ontario have created stands that only partially emulate natural fire disturbances in terms of the bird community composition. Total bird abundance and species richness were significantly lower postharvest than postfire in midregenerating forests, although they did not differ in early-regenerating stands. Species-level comparisons revealed several differences between postharvest and postfire stands, as well as among age classes. Although no species was completely missing from any stand type, 8% of species in early-and 34% in midregenerating stands were detected significantly less often in postharvest than postfire forests. Some other species were found significantly more often in postharvest stands, while the majority of species detected (84% and 71% in early-and midregenerating stands, respectively) showed no significant difference between disturbance types. Collectively, these results suggest that widespread replacement of fire with logging as the dominant disturbance type will shift the relative abundance of species within Ontario's boreal forest bird community. Quantifying the population-level implications of these shifts requires extrapolating these stand level effects to the landscape level, while considering the actual or anticipated abundance and distribution of forest age classes across the province under different forest management regimes.La foresterie en forêt boréale ontarienne réussit-elle à reproduire les perturbations naturelles telles que perçues par les oiseaux?RÉSUMÉ. La reproduction des perturbations naturelles est devenue un paradigme pour la rétention de la biodiversité en aménagement forestier. La présente étude cherchait à évaluer à quel point les pratiques d'aménagement forestier ont généré des peuplements qui reproduisent les perturbations naturelles provenant de feux pour les communautés aviaires en Ontario, Canada. Nous avons comparé l'abondance relative des oiseaux terrestres forestiers à l'échelle du peuplement dans les forêts mûres (> 80 ans) avec celle observée dans de jeunes forêts en régénération (0-20 ans) ou des forêts d'âge moyen en régénération (21-80 ans) issus de feux ou de récolte forestière dans la forêt boréale de l'Ontario, au moyen de plus de 7000 points d'écoute. Nos résultats indiquent que les pratiques d'aménagement forestier en Ontario ont généré des peuplements qui reproduisent seulement partiellement les pertu...

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“…A dominant source of anthropogenic disturbance in Canada's forests is harvesting for pulp, paper, and timber production. How birds respond to forestry activities has generally focused on numerical and demographic changes caused by the effects that forestry has on the composition Bayne 2000, Cavard et al 2011), structure (Schieck and Hobson 2000), and spatial pattern of forests (Rempel et al 2007, Van Wilgenburg and Hobson 2008, Villard et al 2012) at varying times since harvest Schieck 1999, Schieck andSong 2006). These legacy effects are an important conservation issue for many bird species Song 2006, Cumming et al 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Estimate of Nest Loss in Canada Due to Industrial Forestry Operations

Hobson¹,

Wilson²,

Wilgenburg³

et al. 2013

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ABSTRACT. Annual loss of nests by industrial (nonwoodlot) forest harvesting in Canada was estimated using two avian pointcount data sources: (1) the Boreal Avian Monitoring Project (BAM) dataset for provinces operating in this biome and (2) available data summarized for the major (nonboreal) forest regions of British Columbia. Accounting for uncertainty in the proportion of harvest occurring during the breeding season and in avian nesting densities, our estimate ranges from 616 thousand to 2.09 million nests. Estimates of the impact on numbers of individuals recruited into the adult breeding population were made based on the application of survivorship estimates at various stages of the life cycle. Future improvements to this estimate are expected as better and more extensive avian breeding pair density estimates become available and as provincial forestry statistics become more refined, spatially and temporally. The effect of incidental take due to forestry is not uniform and is disproportionately centered in the southern boreal. Those species whose ranges occur primarily in these regions are most at risk for industrial forestry in general and for incidental take in particular. Refinements to the nest loss estimate for industrial forestry in Canada will be achieved primarily through the provision of more accurate estimates of the area of forest harvested annually during the breeding season stratified by forest type and Bird Conservation Region (BCR). A better understanding of survivorship among life-history stages for forest birds would also allow for better modeling of the effect of nest loss on adult recruitment. Finally, models are needed to project legacy effects of forest harvesting on avian populations that take into account forest succession and accompanying cumulative effects of landscape change.RÉSUMÉ. La perte annuelle de nids attribuable à la récolte forestière industrielle (excluant les petits boisés privés) au Canada a été estimée à l'aide de deux sources de dénombrements par points d'écoute : 1) les données du Projet de modélisation de l'avifaune boréale pour les provinces possédant ce biome; et 2) les données compilées dans les principales régions forestières (autres que boréales) de la Colombie-Britannique. En tenant compte de l'incertitude liée à la proportion de la récolte forestière qui s'effectue durant la saison de nidification et aux densités d'oiseaux nicheurs, notre estimation se situe entre 616 milliers et 2,09 millions de nids. Les estimations de l'effet des coupes sur le nombre d'individus recrutés dans la population d'adultes nicheurs ont été fondées sur des estimations de la survie à divers stades du cycle vital. Cette estimation du nombre de nids détruits est appelée à s'améliorer à mesure que de meilleures estimations des densités de couples nicheurs seront disponibles et que les statistiques forestières par province seront révisées, tant spatialement que temporellement. L'effet de la prise accessoire attribuable aux activités forestières n'est pas uniforme et est disproportionnel...

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Landscape-scale disturbance and boreal forest birds: Can large single-pass harvest approximate fires?

Cited by 25 publications

References 40 publications

Temporal changes in avian abundance in aspen-dominated boreal mixedwood forests of central Saskatchewan, Canada

Temporal changes in avian abundance in aspen-dominated boreal mixedwood forests of central Saskatchewan, Canada

How well does forestry in Ontario’s boreal forest emulate natural disturbances from the perspective of birds?

An Estimate of Nest Loss in Canada Due to Industrial Forestry Operations

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Landscape-scale disturbance and boreal forest birds: Can large single-pass harvest approximate fires?

Cited by 25 publications

References 40 publications

Temporal changes in avian abundance in aspen-dominated boreal mixedwood forests of central Saskatchewan, Canada

Temporal changes in avian abundance in aspen-dominated boreal mixedwood forests of central Saskatchewan, Canada

How well does forestry in Ontario&#8217;s boreal forest emulate natural disturbances from the perspective of birds?

An Estimate of Nest Loss in Canada Due to Industrial Forestry Operations

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How well does forestry in Ontario’s boreal forest emulate natural disturbances from the perspective of birds?