This study estimates a range of opportunity costs associated with three land
management alternatives for a site in the Oregon Coast Range. A 35,000 acre site was
selected which includes a mix of federal and private land ownership and provides
significant biological resources. The first alternative examines a plan for...
Western hemlock forests in the coastal areas of Oregon are some of the most productive and diverse forests in the world. This rich diversity represents both a challenge and an opportunity for woodland owners interested in managing western hemlock on their property.
History is an invaluable source of information to understand and evaluate management influences on contemporary ecosystems and landscapes. The first two chapters (Chapters 2 and 3) explored the concept of historical range of variability (HRV) in landscape structure and stand structure using a stochastic fire simulation model to simulate presettlement...
This study focuses on the tradeoffs that exist for managing forested landscapes for biodiversity and timber production. Tradeoff evaluation is important to natural resource managers so they can understand the benefits and costs of alternative management prescriptions. The study examines three watersheds in the Oregon Coast Range and 166 terrestrial...
Growing concerns over maintaining animal and plant biodiversity have led to significant changes in forest management policies in the Pacific Northwest. Silvicultural alternatives to clear cutting are being suggested to promote development, retention, or creation of late-successional features such as large trees, multilayered canopies, snags and logs. As alternative management...
This publication is aimed at watershed councils, government agencies, and specialists (foresters, wildlife and fisheries biologists) interested in riparian area silviculture or watershed restoration. It contains information on the ecology of riparian forests and a checklist of recommended practices and common mistakes made in restoring conifers to hardwood-dominated riparian forests....
Modified selection thinning has been utilized by some non-industrial foresters in Douglas-fir forests of Western Oregon and Washington for at least 35 years. This silvicultural strategy has not been tested, but has often been associated with reduced volume production and other undesirable effects. It continues to be used on many...
Many herbivores of the Pacific Northwest rely on forest understory shrub leaves for a source of nitrogen, energy, and moisture. I measured nitrogen, protein-binding capacity, and condensed tannin concentration as indicators of available nitrogen; cell wall constituents and lignin as indicators of available energy; and moisture concentration in young and...
Three data sets were examined to determine the costs with and without
constrained forest management practices. Two adjacent sites in the Coast Range of
Oregon were studied. One of the units was broadcast burned while the adjacent site was
left unburned. The stands were projected for growth and yield in...
Thinning of young Douglas-fir forests has the potential to enhance structural diversity and improve habitat for wildlife. I examined the effects of thinning and thinning intensity on abundance and demographic characteristics of forest-floor small mammals in the Coast Range of Oregon 5 and 6 years after thinning had occurred. Thinning...
Western forests have become increasingly fragmented landscapes dominated by young stands. Given that western Oregon forests largely consist of headwater systems, there is a need to better understand how headwater forest taxa and their habitats are impacted by forest management practices. Several amphibian species associated with forested headwater systems have...
Forest managers of public lands in western Oregon and Washington have become increasingly interested in creating additional conifer cohorts in young, even-aged, second-growth Douglas-fir stands. The purpose of our research was to assess the establishment, survival, and growth of naturally-regenerated and underplanted conifers 10-13 years after overstory thinning and understory...
Published September 1983. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Published May 1993. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Future scenarios of global climate change rely on large-scale climate envelope models that do not account for local climatic conditions to which organisms most closely respond. Shifts in species distributions and phenology driven by climate change are well-documented, yet we lack a strong understanding of how climate change will influence...
This compendium contains listings of ongoing and recently completed research and administrative studies conducted in the Oregon Coast Range in the areas of fisheries, forestry, soils/hydrology, and wildlife. To assemble this compendium, requests for information were sent to about 145 individuals from various agencies, companies, and universities. Individuals and agencies...
Forage availability, diets, distribution, and productivity were
compared for Roosevelt elk, Cervus elaphus roosevelti, using improved
(i.e. seeded, fertilized, and grazed) and untreated areas of the Oregon
Coast Range. Seasonal forage availability was substantially different
on 1-year-old improved and untreated clearcuts, but the differences
diminished by clearcut age 4 and...
Fire and other catastrophic disturbance events in the Douglas-fir forests of the Oregon Coast Range have been significant in determining the distribution of stand age classes and, hence, habitat. Except for the past half century, knowledge of fire in the region has largely been local and anecdotal. The Douglas-fir forests...
Forest harvesting practices can expose mineral soils, decrease infiltration capacities of soils, disturb the stream bank and channel, and increase erosion and fine sediment supply to stream channels. To reduce nonpoint source sediment pollution associated with forest management activities and to maintain the high water quality typically provided from forests,...
Fire history and fire regime were interpreted from tree ring analysis of 4320 stumps at 178 sites in a 25 by 55 km area in the central Oregon Coast Range. A total of 27 fire episodes were identified in a 516 year period, with sizes estimated at 18 to 544...
Streamside buffer strips provide numerous benefits to stream ecosystems. The buffer strips create shade, provide shelter for wildlife, act as barriers to logging debris during and after timber harvest, and serve as a continued source of large woody debris. Quantifying woody inputs resulting from windthrow provides managers with estimates for...
The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of clearcut logging on stormflow by analysis of characteristic parameters of individual storm hydrographs. Parameters considered included height-of-rise, peak discharge, volume and time-to-peak. The hydrologic data were derived from experimental watersheds of the Alsea Study located in the Oregon Coast...
In western Oregon, hardwood trees occupy 20% of the
timberland but account for less than 1% of the timber
harvest. Information about how to manage them effectively
is limited.
The objective of this study was to examine: 1)
effect of thinning on tree growth, plant moisture stress,
and crown cover...
Analysis of the long-term spatial pattern and dynamics of hardwood patches in the Coast Range of Oregon provides numerous ecological insights. Natural and anthropogenic disturbances have contributed to the development of a patchy mosaic of vegetation types in the area. Some hardwood patches in the Coast Range may be the...
Riparian areas that can be used as reference sites on which to base goals of vegetation restoration have not been documented in the Oregon Coast Range. I examined the composition and distribution of unmanaged riparian overstories in the central Oregon Coast Range along nine streams which have experienced minimal disturbance...
Riparian zone vegetation can influence terrestrial and aquatic food webs through variations in the amounts, timing, and nutritional content of leaf and other litter inputs. Differences in vegetation composition and density, as well as riparian topography, may modulate the strength and quality of these inputs. Changes in inputs to small...
The work upon which this publication is based was supported by funds provided by the United States Department of the Interior, Office of Water Research and Technology, as authorized under the Water Resources Research Act of 1964 and by the United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest...
Calcium (Ca) is an essential macronutrient that is increasingly recognized as a biogeochemical factor that influences ecosystem structure and function. Progress in understanding the sustainability of ecosystem Ca supply has been hampered by a lack of information on the various forms and pools of Ca in forest ecosystems. In particular,...
Nutrient losses of the biologically responsive anions, nitrate and bicarbonate together with the major cations, were monitored on 14 small watersheds in Oregon's Coast Range and evaluated in relation to management-induced disturbance. Mixed forests of Douglas-fir and red alder had dominated these high-nitrogen sites prior to treatment. A paired-watershed experimental...
Ecosystem nitrogen (N) supply strongly influences the availability and cycling of other essential nutrients in temperate forests, especially calcium (Ca). Short-term additions of N that exceed ecosystem demands often increase dissolved nitrate fluxes and decrease soil pH, which can stimulate soil Ca loss. However, the long-term effects of high N...
Understanding the tradeoff between water use and productivity is critical for modeling growth of intensively managed Douglas-fir forests in the Pacific Northwest. Evapotranspiration is closely linked to carbon dioxide intake during the process of photosynthesis. However, summer drought characterizing the growing season in this region imposes a limit on carbon...
Molybdenum is an essential component of biogeochemical cycling, most notably as a component of the nitrogenase enzyme used in biological nitrogen (N) fixation. While the important role of phosphorus (P) in limiting N fixation in ecosystems has been well documented, occurrence and prevalence of molybdenum (Mo) limitation is largely unknown....
Forest roads alter hillslope hydrologic processes by intercepting, concentrating, and rerouting storm runoff. Current road drainage guidelines are based on minimizing erosion and do not take into account the impact of forest roads on hillslope hydrology. This work monitors ditch flow and rainfall for 10 road segments over the course...
Understanding the impact of low volume road networks on forested watersheds is important for future forest management and watershed restoration. This study characterized the hydrology of five segments of forest road in the Oregon Coast Range. Rainfall, infiltration, road surface runoff, and intercepted subsurface flow were measured at each road...
Tree species directly and indirectly affect soil nutrient cycles. I sought to characterize soils and foliage associated with four common canopy tree species (Douglas-fir, western hemlock, western redcedar, and bigleaf maple) in mixed-species old-growth forests of the Oregon Coast Range and to determine whether and how soils differ among the...
Natural Douglas-fir stand development is the result of
many types of disturbance, both natural and management
induced. The magnitude and timing of these disturbances
have profound effects on the structure and composition of
both the overstory and understory plant communities. Vine
maple responds to disturbance by basal sprouting, layering,
producing...
Forest stands were studied to determine if old-growth
forest structure could be mimicked in younger stands via
overstory manipulation. Cover and species composition of
understory plants were systematically sampled in sixteen
thinned second-growth stands and sixteen adjacent unthinned
second-growth Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirabel)
Franco.) stands. The stands were thinned...
Experimental prescriptions compare agroforestry systems designed to increase financial returns from high-elevation stands in the southern Oregon Cascade Range. The prescriptions emphasize alternative approaches for joint production of North American matsutake mushrooms (also known as North American pine mushrooms; Tricholoma magnivelare) and high-quality timber. Other agroforestry byproducts from the system...
This study was conducted to describe variation of riparian vegetation in an Oregon Coast Range system according to geomorphic characteristics and in relation to streamflow. Specific objectives of this study were to: I) examine if the vegetation composition and structure of the riparian forest varied among channel-reach morphologies, 2) examine...
I studied abundance patterns and habitat use of eight cavitynesting bird species in the Coast Ranges of Western Oregon during the
spring and summer of 1985 and 1986. Three age classes of unmanaged Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) stands were selected for study:
young (40-80 yrs), mature (80-200 yrs), and old-growth (>200...
I compared species composition and relative abundance of'small
mammals and herpetofauna between riparian and upslope habitats among 5
forest types. Riparian- and upslope- associated species were identified
based on capture frequency. Small mammal species richness was similar
between stream and upslope habitats and among the 5 forest types. There
were...
Three studies were conducted to characterize and present early-seral
competition between Douglas-fir seedlings and the surrounding vegetation
communities during Pacific Northwest forest establishment. The first experiment
served as the foundation for this dissertation and was designed to quantify tradeoffs
associated with delaying forest establishment activities by introducing a fallow year...
The objective of my study was to examine differences in riparian tree and shrub composition associated with adult aquatic emergence and implications for terrestrial spiders in these sites. Seasonal abundance and biomass of adult emergent aquatic insects, riparian arthropod abundances and spider densities were compared between conifer- and hardwood-dominated sites...
In the Coast Range of western Oregon, some natural resource managers are converting red alder-dominated riparian areas to conifers to increase the future source of in-stream large wood for salmonid habitat. However, studies in Alaska have shown red alder-dominated riparian areas support greater invertebrate biomass compared to conifer-dominated areas. In...
Land management policies are ideas about nature projected onto the landscape. Culminations of social, economic, and scientific influences, these policies create standards affecting the function of ecological systems. In the case of riparian lands in the Oregon Coast Range, policy requirements vary considerably across federal, state, and private land ownerships....
Understanding how N availability influences base cation stores is critical for long-term ecosystem sustainability. Indices of nitrogen (N) availability and the distribution of nutrients in plant biomass, soil, and soil water were examined across ten young, unpolluted Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) stands in the Oregon Coast Range spanning a three-fold soil...
Stream temperature, as an important component of stream ecosystems, can be affected by forest harvesting through removal of riparian shade and changes in hydrology. Riparian Management Areas
(RMAs), as implemented through the current Oregon Forest Practice Rules, are designed, in part, to maintain stream temperature following forest harvesting. However, effectiveness...
I examined factors regulating decomposition rates of red alder (Alnus rubra)) and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) leaf litter in Coast Range riparian areas in western Oregon. Overall, this study was designed to examine the influence that leaf litter quality characteristics and decomposition site treatment have on decomposition rates, to provide a...
Ten species of bats occur in the Oregon Coast Range and are hypothesized to be
associated with late-successional forests. The development of characteristics of late-successional
forests in young forest stands can be accelerated through silvicultural
practices such as thinning I examined the effects of thinning on the use of forests...
Debris flows in the Pacific Northwest play a major role in routing wood and sediment stored on hillslopes and in first- through third-order channels to higher order channels and valley floors. Forest practices on steep, unstable slopes and removal of riparian trees along low-order streams can affect the frequency, magnitude,...
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have become an essential tool for evaluation and monitoring the biophysical data of natural landscapes. This study addresses the potential for using GIS in the social assessment of human landscapes that are associated with geographic regions of interest. Using the communities surrounding Oregon's federally designated Central...
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between land management practices of Indian communities prior to contact with Europeans and the nature or character of subsequent catastrophic forest fires in the Oregon Coast Range. The research focus is spatial and temporal patterns of Indian burning across the...
This annotated bibliography was compiled to provide a comprehensive list of sources on the ecological factors that affect forest regeneration. Abstracts from 494 publications are indexed by author, species, and subject, and are arranged into 4 major sections. Topics include the effects of biotic factors, abiotic factors, and stand and...
Current riparian management objectives in the Pacific Northwest promote both retention of existing conifers and conversion of hardwood-dominated areas to conifers. Although understanding of relationships between riparian vegetation and salmonid prey availability is growing, temporal variation in these relationships is poorly understood. Seasonal fluxes in availability of aquatic and terrestrial...
The purpose of this study was to assess how growth of young to mature Douglas-fir
(Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) and western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sar.)
in mixed stands was influenced by the presence of residual trees. Fourteen paired plots with
and without residual trees were examined in a retrospective...
Three studies were conducted to evaluate different grazing systems on mixed conifer rangelands in eastern Oregon, and photo points and aerial photography was used to determine effects of 25 years of cattle grazing on stream channel changes and vegetation responses. The first study was designed to determine if grazing treatment...
Forest soils contain a substantial portion of global terrestrial carbon stores. Forest management can influence the soil carbon pool and how soil organic matter functions. The long-term productivity of forests is an ongoing goal where land managers utilize biomass and timber. A site-specific understanding of intensively managed forests can ensure...
The effects of forest cutting on forested systems and the biotic components of those systems has been at the forefront of scientific research. The inventory and monitoring of biodiversity is one technique used for measuring the effects of forest management. Because bioinventory studies are expensive, indicator species are often sought...
An experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of forest fuels reduction on the diet quality, botanical composition, relative preference, and foraging efficiency of beef cattle grazing at different stocking rates. A split plot factorial design was used, with the whole plots (3 ha) being fuel reduced or no treatment...
Four studies were conducted on late-summer diet quality and quantity of cattle (Bos taurus), mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus hemionus), and elk (Cervus elaphus) in response to prior grazing by cattle and elk on mixed-conifer rangelands and on related research techniques. In our first study we assessed a photographic technique to...
Published June 1998. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Published June 1995. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Published June 1993. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Preliminary analysis of data from this study in the mountains southwest of the Anaconda Copper Smelter, an industrial source of SO2 and heavy metal particulate, reflects a complex pattern of pollutant impact. The differential effect of smelter emissions on plant life in the study area is best explained by the...
Some of the most pressing conservation concerns involve declining populations of species with low fecundity and highly specialized foraging and reproductive requirements. Yet, we often lack a functional understanding of how individuals of those species interact with their environment, specifically how their movement is affected by human-induced changes. In order...
Although short-tailed weasels (Mustela erminea) are important predators of small mammals, little is known about their space use, habitat selection, or vulnerability to predation in North America. To evaluate the effects of forest management and social structure on home range size and habitat selection of short-tailed weasels, I conducted a...
Northern Spotted Owls (Strix occidentalis caurina) inhabit productive forests that historically supported frequent, large, variable-severity fires in the Klamath province of southwestern Oregon occur in complex. The potential for high-severity wildfire remains high throughout this region, so remaining spotted owl habitat is at risk. An adaptive management approach to fire...