Monitoring the implementation of variable retention silviculture in wet eucalypt forest: A key element of successful adaptive management

Baker, Susan C.; Grove, Simon; Wardlaw, Tim; McElwee, David J.; Neyland, Mark G.; Scott, Robyn E.; Read, Stephen

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2017.03.013

Cited by 10 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…These findings support the use of sustainable forest management techniques that increase the retention of mature forest conditions (e.g. variable retention), as these conditions are likely to encourage the return of mature forest communities (Baker et al., , ; Seidl, Rammer, & Spies, ). Previous studies have demonstrated that the retention of mature forest elements within harvested forest (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 59%

Distance, environmental and substrate factors impacting recovery of bryophyte communities after harvesting

Baker

Jordan

Fountain‐Jones

et al. 2017

Applied Vegetation Science

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Aims: Bryophyte re-colonization after disturbance is largely governed by environmental conditions within disturbed forests. In particular, distance to a forest edge is an important predictor of bryophyte community re-colonization, through either direct constraints, such as dispersal limitation, or indirectly by altering environmental conditions. This study examines a range of factors -environmental, distance to an edge, substrate specific environment or local-level environment -to determine which are important in the re-colonization of bryophyte communities after forest harvesting. As bryophyte communities vary with the particular substrate inhabited, responses were examined across four substrates (rock, exposed roots, ground and CWD). Location: Tasmanian southern forests, Australia.Methods: Bryophyte composition was examined on four substrates (ground, coarse wood debris, exposed roots, rocks) within three ages (~7, ~27 and ~45 years postdisturbance) of harvested wet eucalypt forest. Re-colonization success of bryophyte communities was determined by comparing communities in regeneration forest to mature forest communities using axis scores from one-dimensional constrained ordination.The importance of various environmental conditions for re-colonization success was then modelled. Finally, path analysis was used to determine whether the impact of distance to a forest edge was meditated through its effects on key environmental variables. Results:Multiple environmental factors impacted re-colonization of mature bryophyte communities. Local-level conditions such as microclimate (temperature, humidity and VPD) and LAI were the most important in determining re-colonization across substrates. Path analysis showed that distance to a forest edge had a significant impact on re-colonization success, but only a relatively small part of this was mediated through its impact on environmental factors. Conclusions:Bryophyte re-colonization is driven by a combination of microclimate conditions and factors related to distance from a forest edge (most likely dispersal distance). While some substrate-specific factors impact bryophyte re-colonization success, the consistent impact of local environmental factors across substrates suggests that harvesting management strategies that develop more 'mature' microclimate conditions and increase proximity to nearby mature forest patches will be beneficial Nomenclature: Online catalogue of Australian mosses (AusMoss) for mosses; Checklist of Australian Liverworts and Hornworts (http://www.anbg.gov.au) | 65

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 59%

Distance, environmental and substrate factors impacting recovery of bryophyte communities after harvesting

Baker

Jordan

Fountain‐Jones

et al. 2017

Applied Vegetation Science

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“…The tree height used was the mean dominant height of the aggregates and surrounding forest calculated from photo-interpreted stand types (Stone 1998). Retention and influence calculations provide only a snapshot of the coupe at a moment in time, and do not account for any windthrow or burning damage that may have occurred within the aggregates after harvesting, although monitoring in early ARN coupes revealed that these were generally within acceptable limits (Scott et al 2012b;Baker et al 2017).…”

Section: Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Sustainable Timber Tasmania's main goals for variable retention silviculture are ecological and were developed specifically for wet eucalypt forests: aggregated retention coupes aim to better emulate ecological processes at the scale of the harvested coupe by retaining late-successional species and structures for the long term and by maintaining forest influence to facilitate re-establishment of organisms back into the harvested areas (Baker and Read 2011;Scott and Baker 2018). The concept of forest influence is used to distinguish Tasmanian aggregated retention coupes from clearfells, with the requirement that the majority of the harvested area in an aggregated retention coupe must fall within one tree height of forest that is retained for the long term (Mitchell and Beese 2002;Baker et al 2013bBaker et al , 2017Scott and Baker 2018) (Fig. 1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1a). Edge aggregates provide greater connectivity with the surrounding forest (Baker et al 2017) and have proven to be less susceptible than islands to damage from the regeneration burn and windthrow (Scott et al 2012b(Scott et al , 2015. When island aggregates are retained, they are generally large (> 1 ha is recommended) to ensure they will withstand the regeneration burn (Scott and Baker 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The results of this early research were used to inform the development of ARN silviculture through a process of adaptive management (Baker et al 2017). Changes in firebreaking methods helped to reduce the level of soil disturbance and site preparation costs in ARN coupes (Scott et al 2012b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Variable retention in Tasmania, Australia: trends over 16 years of monitoring and adaptive management

Scott¹,

Neyland

Baker

2019

Ecol Process

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Background: Variable retention harvesting using aggregated retention (ARN) has been applied in some Tasmanian wet eucalypt forests for > 15 years. Implementation of ARN in Tasmania differs from most other regions, as forest influence (or the proximity of harvested areas to long-term retention) is primarily used to distinguish ARN from clearfelling rather than retention level, and broadcast burning is used as a regeneration treatment, resulting in a preference for edge aggregates instead of isolated retained islands. Clear emphasis on site-level retention of biological legacies and forest influence to facilitate re-establishment of mature forest species ensures that ARN coupes achieve the ecological objectives associated with retention forestry.Results: Spatial and survey data collected from operational ARN coupes illustrates the development of this silvicultural practice over time and allows comparisons with conventional clearfelling. Over 90% of ARN coupes have met the forest influence target of > 50%. The number of ARN coupes harvested per year has varied, but mean retention levels (29%) and the mean area harvested per coupe (24 ha) have remained the same. Forest influence in ARN coupes has decreased over time, as have perimeter-to-area ratios, largely due to a decrease in the number of island aggregates. Although these measures of complexity have decreased, ARN coupes still have much greater forest influence, retention, and perimeter-to-area ratios when compared to conventional clearfell, burn and sow (CBS) coupes. The observed decrease in boundary complexity should facilitate regeneration burning in ARN coupes, although no increase in the proportion of burnt seedbed was observed. The proportion of burnt seedbed is strongly correlated with eucalypt seedling stocking and density in ARN coupes, and these attributes were all significantly lower in recent ARN coupes compared to clearfells. These differences appear to be due to achieving better burns in recent CBS coupes, rather than poorer ones in ARN coupes.Conclusions: Although the area that can feasibly be harvested by ARN is limited by the requirement for regeneration burning, ARN provides clear biodiversity benefits and satisfactory silvicultural outcomes and is now firmly embedded as a viable alternative to clearfelling in Tasmanian wet eucalypt forests.

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Managing for ecological resilience of pinyon–juniper ecosystems during an era of woodland contraction

Redmond

Urza

2023

Ecosphere

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Dryland woodland ecosystems worldwide have experienced widespread drought‐ and heat‐related tree mortality events coupled with extreme wildfire behavior. In contrast to other forest types where the emphasis has been on the silvicultural enhancement of ecosystem resilience and restoration of structural heterogeneity, limited frameworks are available for management to improve drought resilience in semiarid woodlands. This challenge is especially acute in pinyon–juniper woodlands, a dominant vegetation type across western North America that has experienced extensive tree die‐off over the past several decades while simultaneously undergoing expansion in portions of its range. In this paper, we describe the critical and urgent need to manage for future drought resilience in these highly vulnerable ecosystems and synthesize the current state of knowledge on how to enhance woodland resilience to drought coupled with high temperatures and associated disturbances. We present a landscape prioritization framework for guiding management goals and practices that requires prioritization of efforts based on the need for action and the probability of a positive outcome. Four guiding factors include historical woodland structure and drivers of long‐term landscape change, current vegetation structure and composition, future climate suitability, and habitat and resource value. In summarizing the strength of evidence supporting our recommendations, we identify critical knowledge gaps and highlight the importance of adaptive management strategies that reflect current uncertainties. This will ultimately allow for improved management of diverse semiarid woodland ecosystems that are undergoing substantial changes due to past and present land use, biological invasions, and climate change.

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Monitoring the implementation of variable retention silviculture in wet eucalypt forest: A key element of successful adaptive management

Cited by 10 publications

References 58 publications

Distance, environmental and substrate factors impacting recovery of bryophyte communities after harvesting

Distance, environmental and substrate factors impacting recovery of bryophyte communities after harvesting

Variable retention in Tasmania, Australia: trends over 16 years of monitoring and adaptive management

Managing for ecological resilience of pinyon–juniper ecosystems during an era of woodland contraction

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