Factors affecting connectivity and sediment yields following wildfire and post‐fire salvage logging in California's Sierra Nevada

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Will H. Olsen ◽  
Joseph W. Wagenbrenner ◽  
Peter R. Robichaud
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
Sediment Yields

scholarly journals Factors affecting presence and relative abundance of the Endangered volcano rabbit Romerolagus diazi, a habitat specialist

Oryx ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Felipe Osuna ◽  
Roger Guevara ◽  
Enrique Martínez-Meyer ◽  
Raúl Alcalá ◽  
Alejandro Espinosa de los Monteros
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Relative Abundance ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Cattle Grazing ◽  
Patch Occupancy ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Rock Cover ◽  
Volcanic Fields ◽  
Mountain Grasslands ◽  
Insight Into

Abstract Habitat specialists are particularly vulnerable to extinction when habitat conditions are altered. Information on the habitat use of such species is thus important because it provides insight into factors that influence distribution and abundance, which is crucial for conservation. Here, we aimed to identify factors that influence the patterns of presence and abundance of the Endangered volcano rabbit Romerolagus diazi, a rare leporid with a patchy distribution. Through exhaustive sampling of its range in the Sierra Chichinautzin and Sierra Nevada volcanic fields, Mexico, and using generalized linear models, we found that the probability of patch occupancy was higher where bunchgrass cover exceeded 75%, rock cover exceeded 5%, no cattle grazing was observed and human settlements were at least 7 km away. Patches with greater relative abundance were those with similar characteristics, but located at elevations > 3,600 m, and with rock cover < 15%. Cattle grazing was identified as a major threat to local populations of the volcano rabbit, particularly in the Sierra Chichinautzin. Because of the significance of bunchgrasses for this species, the protection of the mountain grasslands is required in both volcanic fields.

Post-fire survival and flushing in three Sierra Nevada conifers with high initial crown scorch

2009 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 857 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chad T. Hanson ◽  
Malcolm P. North
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Fire Severity ◽  
Conifer Species ◽  
Mature Trees ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
Abies Magnifica ◽  
Crown Scorch ◽  
Tree Survival ◽  
Large Trees

With growing debate over the impacts of post-fire salvage logging in conifer forests of the western USA, managers need accurate assessments of tree survival when significant proportions of the crown have been scorched. The accuracy of fire severity measurements will be affected if trees that initially appear to be fire-killed prove to be viable after longer observation. Our goal was to quantify the extent to which three common Sierra Nevada conifer species may ‘flush’ (produce new foliage in the year following a fire from scorched portions of the crown) and survive after fire, and to identify tree or burn characteristics associated with survival. We found that, among ponderosa pines (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex. Laws) and Jeffrey pines (Pinus jeffreyi Grev. & Balf) with 100% initial crown scorch (no green foliage following the fire), the majority of mature trees flushed, and survived. Red fir (Abies magnifica A. Murr.) with high crown scorch (mean = 90%) also flushed, and most large trees survived. Our results indicate that, if flushing is not taken into account, fire severity assessments will tend to overestimate mortality and post-fire salvage could remove many large trees that appear dead but are not.

scholarly journals Effects of Post-Fire Deadwood Management on Soil Macroarthropod Communities

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1046 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos R. Molinas-González ◽  
Jorge Castro ◽  
Adela González-Megías ◽  
Alexandro B. Leverkus
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Dead Wood ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Higher Plant ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
Management Interventions ◽  
Biological Legacies ◽  
Experimental Treatments

Dead wood comprises a vast amount of biological legacies that set the scene for ecological regeneration after wildfires, yet its removal is the most frequent management strategy worldwide. Soil-dwelling organisms are conspicuous, and they provide essential ecosystem functions, but their possible affection by different post-fire management strategies has so far been neglected. We analyzed the abundance, richness, and composition of belowground macroarthropod communities under two contrasting dead-wood management regimes after a large wildfire in the Sierra Nevada Natural and National Park (Southeast Spain). Two plots at different elevation were established, each containing three replicates of two experimental treatments: partial cut, where trees were cut and their branches lopped off and left over the ground, and salvage logging, where all the trees were cut, logs were piled, branches were mechanically masticated, and slash was spread on the ground. Ten years after the application of the treatments, soil cores were extracted from two types of microhabitat created by these treatments: bare-soil (in both treatments) and under-logs (in the partial cut treatment only). Soil macroarthropod assemblages were dominated by Hemiptera and Hymenoptera (mostly ants) and were more abundant and richer in the lowest plot. The differences between dead-wood treatments were most evident at the scale of management interventions: abundance and richness were lowest after salvage logging, even under similar microhabitats (bare-soil). However, there were no significant differences between microhabitat types on abundance and richness within the partial cut treatment. Higher abundance and richness in the partial cut treatment likely resulted from higher resource availability and higher plant diversity after natural regeneration. Our results suggest that belowground macroarthropod communities are sensitive to the manipulation of dead-wood legacies and that management through salvage logging could reduce soil macroarthropod recuperation compared to other treatments with less intense management even a decade after application.

scholarly journals Responses of two Sericoda Kirby, 1837 (Coleoptera: Carabidae) species to forest harvesting, wildfire, and burn severity

2006 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matti Koivula ◽  
Tyler Cobb ◽  
Andrea Déchêne ◽  
Joshua Jacobs ◽  
John Spence
Keyword(s):  
Forest Fires ◽  
Fire Severity ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Natural Disturbances ◽  
Pitfall Trapping ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
The Third ◽  
Species Ecology

Forest fires are among the most important natural disturbances in the boreal region, but fire-initiated succession is increasingly often interrupted by salvage logging, i.e., post-fire removal of burned trees. Unfortunately, very little is known about the ecological effects of this practice. To address this knowledge gap and to examine other factors affecting the abundance of two fire-associated carabid species (Sericoda quadripuntata and S. bembidioides) we conducted three field studies based on pitfall trapping in recent burns in Alberta, Canada. The results suggest that the abundance of both species drastically decreased from the first to the third post-fire year and that fire severity was positively associated with abundance of both species. The combined effects of wildfire and forest harvesting were associated with higher catches of S. quadripunctata, but lower catches of S. bembidioides. We discuss these findings in the contexts of salvage logging and species ecology.

scholarly journals Megafire effects on spotted owls: elucidation of a growing threat and a response to Hanson et al. (2018)

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 ◽  
pp. 31-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gavin M. Jones ◽  
R. J. Gutiérrez ◽  
H. Anu Kramer ◽  
Douglas J. Tempel ◽  
William J. Berigan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Forest Ecosystems ◽  
Full Range ◽  
Dry Forest ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
High Severity ◽  
Spotted Owls ◽  
Study Population ◽  
Territory Occupancy

The extent to which wildfire adversely affects spotted owls (Strix occidentalis) is a key consideration for ecosystem restoration efforts in seasonally dry forests of the western United States. Recently, Jones et al. (2016) demonstrated that the 2014 King Fire (a “megafire”) adversely affected a population of individually-marked California spotted owls (S. o. occidentalis) monitored as part of a long-term demographic study in the Sierra Nevada, California, USA because territory occupancy declined substantially at territories burned at high-severity and GPS-tagged spotted owls avoided large patches of high-severity fire. Hanson et al. (2018) attempted to reassess changes in territory occupancy of the Jones et al. (2016) study population and claimed that occupancy declined as a result of post-fire salvage logging not fire per se and suggested that the avoidance of GPS-marked owls from areas that burned at high-severity was due to post-fire logging rather than a response to high-severity fire. Here, we demonstrate that Hanson et al. (2018) used erroneous data, inadequate statistical analyses and faulty inferences to reach their conclusion that the King Fire did not affect spotted owls and, more broadly, that large, high-severity fires do not pose risks to spotted owls in western North American dry forest ecosystems. We also provide further evidence indicating that the King Fire exerted a clear and significant negative effect on our marked study population of spotted owls. Collectively, the additional evidence presented here and in Jones et al. (2016) suggests that large, high-severity fires can pose a threat to spotted owls and that restoration of natural low- to mixed-severity frequent fire regimes would likely benefit both old-forest species and dry forest ecosystems in this era of climate change. Meeting these dual objectives of species conservation and forest restoration will be complex but it is made more challenging by faulty science that does not acknowledge the full range of wildfire effects on spotted owls.

scholarly journals Megafire effects on spotted owls: elucidation of a growing threat and a response to Hanson et al. (2018)

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 ◽  
pp. 21-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gavin Jones ◽  
Ralph Gutierrez ◽  
Douglas Tempel ◽  
William Berigan ◽  
Sheila Whitmore ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Forest Ecosystems ◽  
Full Range ◽  
Dry Forest ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
High Severity ◽  
Spotted Owls ◽  
Study Population ◽  
Territory Occupancy

The extent to which wildfire adversely affects spotted owls (Strixoccidentalis) is a key consideration for ecosystem restoration efforts in seasonally dry forests of the western United States. Recently, Jones et al. (2016) demonstrated that the 2014 King Fire (a “megafire”) adversely affected a population of individually-marked California spotted owls (S.o.occidentalis) monitored as part of a long-term demographic study in the Sierra Nevada, California, USA because territory occupancy declined substantially at territories burned at high-severity and GPS-tagged spotted owls avoided large patches of high-severity fire. Hanson et al. (2018) attempted to reassess changes in territory occupancy of the Jones et al. (2016) study population and claimed that occupancy declined as a result of post-fire salvage logging not fire per se and suggested that the avoidance of GPS-marked owls from areas that burned at high-severity was due to post-fire logging rather than a response to high-severity fire. Here, we demonstrate that Hanson et al. (2018) used erroneous data, inadequate statistical analyses and faulty inferences to reach their conclusion that the King Fire did not affect spotted owls and, more broadly, that large, high-severity fires do not pose risks to spotted owls in western North American dry forest ecosystems. We also provide further evidence indicating that the King Fire exerted a clear and significant negative effect on our marked study population of spotted owls. Collectively, the additional evidence presented here and in Jones et al. (2016) suggests that large, high-severity fires can pose a threat to spotted owls and that restoration of natural low- to mixed-severity frequent fire regimes would likely benefit both old-forest species and dry forest ecosystems in this era of climate change. Meeting these dual objectives of species conservation and forest restoration will be complex but it is made more challenging by faulty science that does not acknowledge the full range of wildfire effects on spotted owls.

Predictive habitat suitability models for nesting woodpeckers following wildfire in the Sierra Nevada and Southern Cascades of California

The Condor ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brent R Campos ◽  
Quresh S Latif ◽  
Ryan D Burnett ◽  
Victoria A Saab
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Habitat Suitability ◽  
Nest Site ◽  
Predictive Performance ◽  
Remotely Sensed ◽  
Nest Site Selection ◽  
Burn Severity ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
Habitat Suitability Models ◽  
Nest Sites

Abstract Woodpeckers are often focal species for informing management of recently burned forests. Snags generated by wildfire provide key nesting and foraging resources for woodpeckers, and nest cavities excavated by woodpeckers are subsequently used by many other species. Habitat suitability models applicable in newly burned forest are important management tools for identifying areas likely to be used by nesting woodpeckers. Here we present and test predictive models for mapping woodpecker nest-site habitat across wildfire locations that can be used to inform post-fire planning and salvage logging decisions. From 2009 to 2016, we monitored 313 nest sites of 4 species—Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus), Hairy Woodpecker (Dryobates villosus), White-headed Woodpecker (D. albolarvatus), and Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)—from 3 wildfires in the Northern Sierra Nevada and Southern Cascades 1–5 yr after fire. Using these data, we developed habitat suitability index models that compared nest vs. non-nest sites for each species using (1) exclusively remotely sensed covariates, and (2) combinations of remotely sensed and field-collected covariates. We emphasized predictive performance across wildfire locations when selecting models to retain generalizable habitat relationships useful for informing management in newly burned locations. We identified models for all 4 species with strong predictive performance across wildfire locations despite notable variation in conditions among locations, suggesting broad applicability to guide post-fire management in the Sierra Nevada region. Top models for nest-site selection underscored the importance of high burn severity at the local scale, lower burn severity at the 1-km scale, mid-sized nest-tree diameters, and nest trees with broken tops. Models restricted to remotely sensed covariates exhibited similar predictive performance as combination models and are valuable for mapping habitat across entire wildfire locations to help delineate project areas or habitat reserves. Combination models are especially relevant for design of silvicultural prescriptions.

scholarly journals Whitebark Pine Recruitment in Sierra Nevada Driven by Range Position and Disturbance History

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 455
Author(s):  
Michèle R. Slaton ◽  
Martin MacKenzie ◽  
Tanya Kohler ◽  
Carlos M. Ramirez
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Whitebark Pine ◽  
Disturbance History ◽  
Seedling Density ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Range Edge ◽  
Biogeographic Region

Effective restoration of whitebark pine populations will require a solid understanding of factors affecting seedling recruitment success, which may vary by site and biogeographic region. We examined the relationship between whitebark pine seedling recruitment, disturbance history, and range position in three independent studies in the southern Sierra Nevada, California (CA), USA. In 66 plots broadly distributed across watersheds, we found that whitebark pine seedling density and proportion were greatest at upper elevations, and where canopy cover of whitebark pine was higher (density ranged 0–383 seedlings/ha; x ¯ = 4, σX = 1). Seedling density and proportion were also greater in plots that had recently experienced loss of canopy cover from insects, avalanche, windthrow, or other disturbance effects. In a second study conducted in popular recreational areas, including campgrounds and trailheads, the response of whitebark pine recruitment to disturbance was strongly dependent on the relative position of stands within the range, or proximity to other forest types. Both studies indicated that low to moderate levels of disturbance enhanced whitebark pine recruitment, especially at its range edge, a finding consistent with the early seral status of whitebark observed in previous studies conducted elsewhere in North America. In our third study, a case study at the June Mt. Ski Area, we demonstrate the potential for a downward shift in the whitebark-lodgepole pine ecotone as a result of insect-caused disturbance.

scholarly journals Postfire Burnt-Wood Management Affects Plant Damage by Ungulate Herbivores

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Castro
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Habitat Complexity ◽  
Woody Plant ◽  
Woody Debris ◽  
Physical Barrier ◽  
Burnt Area ◽  
Salvage Logging ◽  
Burnt Wood ◽  
Experimental Plots

I analyze the effect of post-fire burnt wood management on herbivore attack on a woody plant species (Ulex parviflorus). Two experimental plots of ca. 20 hectares were established at two elevations in a burnt area in a Mediterranean mountain (Sierra Nevada, Spain). Three replicates of three treatments differing in post-fire burnt wood management were established per plot: “no intervention” (NI, all trees remained standing), “partial cut plus lopping” (PCL, felling the trees, cutting the main branches, and leaving all the biomassin situ), and “salvage logging” (SL; removal of logs and elimination of woody debris). Risk of herbivory and damage intensity were monitored for two years. The pattern of attack by ungulate herbivores varied among treatments and years. In any case, there was an overall reduction in the risk of herbivory in the PCL treatment, presumably because the highest habitat complexity in this treatment hampered ungulate movement and foraging. As a result, the burnt logs and branches spread over the ground acted as a physical barrier that protected seedlings from herbivores. This protection may be used for the regeneration of shrubs and trees, and it is of interest for the regeneration of burnt sites either naturally or by reforestation.

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