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Articles 1 - 9 of 9
Full-Text Articles in Forest Sciences
Rusty Blackbird Use Of Commercial Spruce-Fir Forests Of Northern New England, Luke M. Douglas
Rusty Blackbird Use Of Commercial Spruce-Fir Forests Of Northern New England, Luke M. Douglas
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) has experienced a steep population decline since the 1970s, with qualitative accounts suggesting that the species’ numbers have been falling prior to the 1950s. The reason for this decline is still not fully understood, though recent work suggests that habitat destruction and disturbance in the breeding and wintering ranges are likely causes. The species is a habitat specialist that relies on spruce-fir stands located near wetlands for breeding in the boreal and Acadian forests of North America. Historically, the natural disturbance regime in the Acadian region included biotic agents such as beaver and …
Assessing The Long-Term Effects Of Natural Disturbance-Based Silvicultural On The Avian Assemblage At The Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Program, Carl Pohlman
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Active forest management alters the resources available to forest-obligate species. Large-scale intensive management practices where timber production is the primary objective can lead to notable ecological changes in forest ecosystems. A key concept of ecological forestry is to design forest management activities to emulate natural disturbance regimes as a way to maintain the ecological integrity of forests. The Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Program (AFERP) was undertaken as an experimental demonstration of management reflective of the region’s disturbance regime, which typically produces small canopy gaps. AFERP includes nine research areas assigned to three silvicultural treatments: unharvested control, small gap (expanding-group selection …
Food-Web And Functional Trait Community Structure Of Predator Assemblages In Pine Forests Under Different Management Regimes, Connor Adams
Food-Web And Functional Trait Community Structure Of Predator Assemblages In Pine Forests Under Different Management Regimes, Connor Adams
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Anthropogenic activities can alter natural disturbance regimes in ecosystems, and thereby affect the structure and function of biological diversity. As many of the world’s ecosystems are degraded beyond natural recovery, well-defined restoration goals are necessary to maintain the ecological processes that provide valuable ecosystem services. Utilizing taxonomic, functional, and food-web approaches, I investigated the impacts of forest management practices in structuring predator communities in two pine forest systems of eastern Texas. The results of this study indicate that the increased frequency of forest management practices such as prescribed fires and thinning operations encourages predator diversity while increasing functional and trophic …
The Future Of Maine's Forests Under Alternative Socioeconomic, Climate And Conservation Pathways, Jianheng Zhao
The Future Of Maine's Forests Under Alternative Socioeconomic, Climate And Conservation Pathways, Jianheng Zhao
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Maine is a historically important timber supply region in North America and understanding the potential change in forestlands and their product industries affected by climate change and various socio-economic conditions can better improve the forest healthy and sustain a sustainable product industry. A statistical harvest choice model for the state of Maine was developed in chapter 1. It was estimated using a multinomial logit model of two products, under varying management intensities, and ownership classifications across varying market conditions. Results indicate that stumpage prices have a significant effect on forest landowners' harvest decisions and that the expansion of conservation land …
Evaluation Of Airborne Lidar As A Tool For Obtaining Sustainable Forest Management Of Maine's Forests, Rei Hayashi
Evaluation Of Airborne Lidar As A Tool For Obtaining Sustainable Forest Management Of Maine's Forests, Rei Hayashi
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The first objective of this study was to evaluate the applicability of using a low density (ca. 1 point m2) discrete-return LiDAR for predicting maximum tree height, stem density, basal area, quadratic mean diameter, and stem volume using an area-based approach. The research was conducted at the Penobscot Experimental Forest in central Maine, where a range of stand structures and species composition is present and generally representative of northern Maines forests. Using a variety of high dimensional LiDAR metrics, a prediction model was developed using random forest, a nonparametric approach, based on reference data collected in fixed radius circular plots. …
Production Ecology And Stand Dynamics Of Young Acadian Forest Stands In Response To Silvicultural Intensity And Compositional Objectives, Andrew S. Nelson
Production Ecology And Stand Dynamics Of Young Acadian Forest Stands In Response To Silvicultural Intensity And Compositional Objectives, Andrew S. Nelson
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Early successional stands are common across the Acadian forests of eastern Canada and the Northeastern US. However, productivity and dynamics of these stands, as well as the underlying mechanisms influencing these processes, under different management scenarios are poorly understood. To address this need, I used a factorial experiment that controlled silvicultural intensity and species composition to quantify the effects of varying treatments on early stand dynamics, and the physiological and morphological factors influencing tree performance . Specifically, I studied: 1) species differences in aboveground allometrics, 2) light capture, light-use efficiency (LUE; growth/light capture), and foliar carbon isotope composition (δ13C) of …
Effects Of Forest Management On Click Beetle (Coleoptera: Elateridae) Assemblages In The Acadian Forest Of Maine, Shelly L. Thomas
Effects Of Forest Management On Click Beetle (Coleoptera: Elateridae) Assemblages In The Acadian Forest Of Maine, Shelly L. Thomas
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Click beetle (Coleoptera: Elateridae) assemblages were examined in three experiments in the Acadian forest of Maine. First, I used flight intercept traps to compare Elaterid assemblages in stands that developed after clearcut, shelterwood, and selection harvests. Click beetle richness was highest in stands managed under a selection system and lowest in stands regenerated using the clearcut method. The abundance of click beetle species was lower in stands managed by clearcutting than in stands managed using the shelterwood and selection methods. Hardwood basal area was the best environmental predictor for both species richness and species abundance. Second, I examined whether Elaterid …
Dynamics Of Forest Structure Under Different Silvicultural Regimes In The Acadian Forest, Michael R. Saunders
Dynamics Of Forest Structure Under Different Silvicultural Regimes In The Acadian Forest, Michael R. Saunders
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Research plots in many long-term studies of forest ecosystems often cannot be used for spatial modeling because of their small scale and nested inventory design. This has been unfortunate as these plots represent some of the best records of structural development as affected by forest management. I developed methodologies to reconstruct both tree height growth and spatial pattern in these types of plots from historical inventory records and stem-mapped data, and then retrospectively investigated 3-dimensional structural development as affected by five silvicultural and harvesting treatments (unmanaged natural area, commercial clearcut, fixed-diameter limit, 5-year selection, and 3-stage shelterwood— with and without …
Forestry Cooperatives For Diverse Management Goals: An Assessment Of Interest Levels Among Maine's Nonindustrial Private Forest Owners Enrolled In The Tree Growth Tax Program, Brian Jonathan Schneider
Forestry Cooperatives For Diverse Management Goals: An Assessment Of Interest Levels Among Maine's Nonindustrial Private Forest Owners Enrolled In The Tree Growth Tax Program, Brian Jonathan Schneider
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Owners of small, non-industrial woodland parcels in the United States maintain heterogeneous management goals for their individual parcels. Research has shown that timber harvesting is becoming less of a priority for this landowner group. In addition, average parcel size for these ownerships has decreased noticeably over the past 20 years. Parcelization, forest fragmentation and the presence of varied landowner goals complicate the matter of conducting ecologically sound, financially feasible forest management. The purpose of this study was to present thee forestry cooperative models to small, non-industrial woodland owners in Maine and to ascertain interest levels. Cooperative models were based on …