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BREEDING BIRD RESPONSES TO THREE SILVICULTURAL TREATMENTS IN THE OREGON COAST RANGE
Author(s) -
Chambers Carol L.,
McComb William C.,
Tappeiner John C.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
ecological applications
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.864
H-Index - 213
eISSN - 1939-5582
pISSN - 1051-0761
DOI - 10.1890/1051-0761(1999)009[0171:bbrtts]2.0.co;2
Subject(s) - snag , silviculture , generalist and specialist species , habitat , disturbance (geology) , ecology , range (aeronautics) , biology , abundance (ecology) , clearcutting , paleontology , materials science , composite material
Silvicultural alternatives to clear‐cutting have been suggested to promote development, retention, or creation of late‐successional features such as large trees, multilayered canopies, snags, and logs. We assessed bird response to three silvicultural alternatives to clear‐cutting that retained structural features found in old Douglas‐fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii ) forests and that imitated natural disturbance regimes more closely than did traditional clear‐cutting: (1) small‐patch group selection treatment representing a low‐intensity disturbance; (2) two‐story treatment, representing a moderate to high‐intensity disturbance; and (3) modified clear‐cut treatment, representing a high‐intensity disturbance. We counted diurnal breeding birds 1 yr prior to and 2 yr after harvest to estimate effects of the silvicultural treatments on bird communities compared with uncut controls. The small‐patch group selection treatment was most similar in species composition to control stands. The two‐story treatment was more similar to the modified clear‐cut treatment. Ten bird species remained abundant following the small‐patch group selection treatment. They declined in abundance in modified clearcuts and two‐story stands. These species included four neotropical migratory species and five species with restricted geographic ranges and habitat associations. Nine species increased in response to moderate and/or high‐intensity disturbances. This group included a larger proportion of species that were habitat generalists. Silvicultural treatments imitating low‐intensity disturbances were most effective in retaining bird communities associated with mature forest; high‐intensity disturbances such as the two‐story and modified clear‐cut treatments greatly altered bird community composition. Bird responses to the silvicultural treatments that we studied indicate that a variety of stand types is needed to meet needs of all species.