Growing societal demand for forest products is pressuring managers to increase productivity from a finite land area, and it is expected that increased supply will come mostly from expansion of intensively managed stands. The USDA Forest Service and numerous collaborators created the Long-Term Soil Productivity (LTSP) network of research sites...
Structure-forming invertebrates belong to a polyphyletic group of primarily sessile and sedentary megafauna that can significantly enhance the complexity of physical habitats. A number of these organisms, including cold-water corals and sponges, are known to be slow growing and vulnerable to physical disturbance. In addition, as filter feeders, these invertebrates...
An evaluation to establish baseline data on forest insect and disease activity near a magnesium plant under construction in northeastern Washington was initiated in 1974. The plant will emit significant amounts of sulfur dioxide. Data indicates that several fungal and insect species are at low populations. Needle retention appears normal...
Epidemic populations of the western spruce budworm persist in the Northern Region. Aerial surveys made in August 1976 showed a decline in the acreage of aerially visible defoliation. In northern Idaho, the defoliated area dropped from 831,487 acres in 1975 to 655,711 acres in 1976, down 21 percent. Surveys in...
Ground surveys on the Hungry Horse District indicate a potential for mountain pine beetle infestation in lodgepole pine. Based on elevation-latitude, mean d.b.h. and phloem thickness, and age, stands were given a susceptibility classification of high risk. An infestation in Glacier National Park may provide the beetle source. Management alternatives...
Aerial and ground surveys to detect and evaluate forest insect and disease conditions in North Dakota were made during June 1977 by personnel from the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Insect and Disease Management staff and the Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. A forest tent caterpillar outbreak in the...
The purpose of insect and disease damage surveys is to estimate losses caused by various pests, so that the land manager can prescribe appropriate management action. Systematic ground data collection systems provide to the land manager loss data that can be used for cost benefit analysis, management plans, environmental impact...