INTRODUCTION
There is a public perception that New York State is a largely urban and suburban landscape with little remaining open space. However, two thirds of the state's landscape is covered by forests and woodland. Further, although more than one fifth of the state is protected in two big state parks, the Adirondack and Catskill Parks, most of this forested landscape, some 14 million acres, is in the hands of almost half a million private woodlot and industrial forest owners.
However, observers in this extensive state forested landscape are witnessing a steady decline in the number of several key bird species. For example, the Northern Forest region, which includes the Adirondack Park and the Tug Hill Plateau in New York, ranks among the most important priorities in eastern North America for long-term bird conservation, according to Partners in Flight. This is a broad coalition of bird conservation groups of which National Audubon Society is an active member.
Many species of birds that breed, migrate through, or winter in the Northern Forest region are declining in population. For example in the past 30 years, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Veery have declined almost 3% per year while Canada Warbler have declined more than 5% per year. As a result of declining bird populations and the recognition that certain regions of North America are more important for the conservation of some species than are others, Audubon and Partners in Flight have created regional species WatchLists, or lists of species whose conservation should be a priority in a specific region. In the Adirondack region, for example, the three species listed above as well as others such as the Black-throated Blue Warbler are on the WatchList.
Different logging practices result in stands with different structural characteristics (e.g. overstory cover, midstory cover, and course woody debris), which in turn affect the faunal communities found there. Research performed by National Audubon Society of New York State staff has shown that priority species, such as WatchList species, can be affected by forest management in the Adirondacks. For example, forest management practices that result in post-harvest northern hardwood forest conditions of high overstory cover and high shrub level cover are associated with significantly higher densities of breeding Black-throated Blue Warblers compared to managed or unmanaged forests that do not exhibit these conditions. The forest biodiversity project of NASNY aims to determine how forest management practices in New York state affect WatchList bird species such as the Black-throated Blue Warbler, as well as amphibians and other wildlife. With this information in hand, we will help private forest owners manage their lands in a manner consistent with the habitat requirements of these species.
Providing forest land owners with this bird and wildlife information and showing the link between their woodlot management decisions and the impact on various species of concern is a major goal of Audubon's forest and bird conservation programs. Audubon's forest biodiversity research project, now underway and in its second field research season, will provide the half million private owners of 14 million acres of private forests with a 'sustainability' guide to better manage their lands for birds and wildlife.
AN OVERVIEW:
AUDUBON'S FOREST PROGRAM IN NEW YORK STATE
For the past decade the main emphasis of Audubon's forestry program in New York state has been to press for state purchase of crucial parcels to add to the Forest Preserve in the Adirondack and Catskill parks, as well as other smaller but equally critical parcels across the state. We will continue to press for additional state land acquisitions as the opportunities arise. We have supported the state open space conservation plan and the process to revise this plan twice in the last six years.
We have also supported the passage of federal legislation to protect the Great Northern Forest and to provide funds for the 'state-side' of the Land and Water Conservation Fund as well as funds for Forest Legacy to purchase conservation easements to protect working forests in the Adirondacks and Tug Hill.
However, though this concerted land acquisition action has focused on public lands - adding to the Forest Preserve, some three million acres managed by the State DEC, and adding to the 250,000 acres managed by State Parks - we are now developing joint forestry and bird conservation programs that address the needs of two other major pieces of our forested landscapes:
»14 million acres of forest lands owned by half a million private non-industrial as well as industrial forest landowners, and
»700,000 acres of publicly owned multiple-use reforestation lands outside the Adirondack and Catskill parks, managed by the State DEC for timber production.
Last year Audubon contributed to the preparation of a guidebook to forest landowners on what the conservation community means by sustainable forestry. The booklet, Forestry for the Future, published by the Northern Forest Alliance, (of which Audubon is a very active member) addresses the basic principles that we believe forest owners and managers, both private and public, should follow to produce a much healthier forested landscape in the Northeastern states.
Two issues were apparent to us from this work. First, private landowners need a much more specific guidebook or computer-based program to help them make sustainable forest management decisions on their own property, and second, the state of New York, which owns and manages so much of the forest resource, not only should set a good example of sustainability principles to the industrial and non-industrial landowners, but also benefit from the results of our research on the private forest lands.
As a result, we have developed two related projects in our forest program which go to the heart of this:
»first, our continued monitoring of the state's forest practices on 700,000 acres of multiple-use reforested lands which were recently certified as 'green' and 'well managed' by the National Wildlife Federation as part of the SmartWood certification program; and
»second, our forest ecology research, based on a similar project initiated by Pennsylvania Audubon, now beginning its second field data-gathering season in New York state and being expanded from the Adirondacks to the Catskills.
With respect to the certified state lands, Audubon served on the oversight and advisory committee as this certification process unfolded last year. The state can now proudly say that it is managing according to basic sustainability principles, and has met some 75 management criteria set by the international Forest Stewardship Council. However, certification is just the start of the process, not the end. We must now continue to hold the state forest managers to the highest 'green' certification standards with continued monitoring of their work. Our monitoring of the SmartWood conditions on state lands will ensure that the state lives up to its 'green' label and sets a good example for the small woodlot owners as well as the big, industrial forest owners.
The forest ecology research project will provide the half million private owners of the majority of New York state's forests with a 'sustainability' guide to better manage their lands for birds and wildlife. In addition, it will contribute to the 'green' management of state lands in New York, given that detailed bird and wildlife data is an element that needs to be augmented in 'green' certification programs. In the following section, which outlines the Project Details, we discuss some of the preliminary results and conclusions based on one year of data collection and the experience from the Pennsylvania Audubon study which can be applied in New York State.
PROJECT DETAILS
Goal and Objectives: Audubon's goal is to foster management of private forests in New York state consistent with the habitat needs of wildlife species. To accomplish that goal, we have two objectives. First, we aim to find out how tree harvest techniques and intensity affect faunal diversity and abundance by studying the relationships between post-harvest stand conditions and wildlife communities. Second, we plan to disseminate our findings to private landowners, foresters, and loggers in the form of management recommendations.
Study Design and Stand Selection: We identified and secured permission to work on 20 northern hardwood forest stands in the Adirondacks, including 10 stands in the central Adirondacks (hereafter central ADK group) and 10 stands in the northern Adirondacks (hereafter northern ADK group). Two study areas were used in order to examine any regional differences that occur in species' responses to logging. In addition, 8 salvage-logged stands in the northern Adirondacks (which were logged in response to damage sustained in the January 1998 ice storm) were studied to assess differences between conventional logging and salvage logging in their effects on wildlife as part of a research project with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry. The results of the salvage logging study will be discussed in a separate document. The central ADK and northern ADK groups each consisted of eight stands that had been logged between 1 and 9 years ago (results from the PA study indicated no significant effect of time since harvest when stands were restricted to those harvested within this time period) and two that have not been logged in at least 75 years, to serve as controls. All stands were at least 12 ha in size. In stands larger than 12 ha, all sampling was restricted to a 12 ha area.
Research Methods: Vegetation and Stand Characteristics - We randomly chose and located 15 sampling points in each of the twenty stands in the central and northern ADK groups and collected vegetation and other stand characteristics data (see Table 1) at each of the points. Tree basal area was measured using a 10-factor basal area prism; each tree included in the variable-radius plot was measured for diameter at breast height (dbh) and inspected for nesting cavities. Percent of overstory canopy cover (>10m high) and midstory canopy cover (between 3 and 10m high) were estimated using a transparent grid sighting device. Percent shrub cover (<3m high) was estimated within a 3m-radius plot. The percentages of all other cover types (Table 1) were estimated ocularly in 1m2 quadrats. Ground cover is defined as vegetation <1m high. Course woody debris was sampled along a randomly oriented 40m transect centered on the sampling point; the diameters of all logs >7cm intersecting the transects were measured and converted to log volume. An index was used to quantify the relative abundance of temporary and permanent water sources inside of and/or proximal to each stand. Index scores for water range from 1-5 for each stand as follows: 1 = no known source of water in or near the stand; 2 = one source of water on stand adjacent to, but not within, the study stand; 3 = more than one source of water adjacent to, but not within, the study stand; 4 = one source of water within the stand; and 5 = more than one source of water within the stand.
Table 1. Vegetation and other stand characteristics data collected at each stand.
Data collected (units)
Latitude (°)
Longitude (°)
Basal area, live trees and snags (m2/ha)1
Conifer importance index (%)1,2
Overstory cover (%)1
Midstory cover (%)1
Shrub cover (%)1
Ground cover (%)1
Leaf litter cover (%)1
Exposed rock (%)1
Slash cover (%)1
Fern cover (%)1
Rubus spp. Cover (%)1
Herbaceous cover (%)1
Tree cavities (#)1
Water availability index (score)3
Slope (%)1
Aspect (°)1
Tree canopy height (m)4
Course woody debris (m3/ha) 1
1 Data collected at each sampling point within the stand.
2 Relative amount of coniferous tree basal area to total tree basal area.
3 Ranges from 1-5, 1 = no known source of water in or near the stand; 2 = one source of water adjacent to study stand, but none within the stand; 3 = more than one water source adjacent to stand, but none within the stand; 4 = one water source within the stand; 5 = more than one water source within the stand.
4 Measured at between 5 and 10 (10 in all but 2 cases) points per central and northern ADK stand.
Breeding Birds - The composition of the breeding bird community of each stand was evaluated using fixed-radius intensive point counts. Birds identified by sight and/or sound were counted at six of the 15 randomly located sampling points in each central and northern ADK stand. The six points selected in each central and northern ADK stand were at least 100m from the stand edge and usually 150m apart. Each stand was visited three times during the breeding season (1 June through 15 July). Birds were counted within five hours of dawn (generally 05:30 h to 10:30 h, during the diel period of maximum vocal activity) for 10min per point on each visit and tallied as occurring either within the first three minutes, the fourth or fifth minute, or the last 5min of the count. In addition, birds were tallied as occurring either within or outside of a 40m-radius circle centered on each point. Counts were not conducted during excessive wind or rain storms when vocalizations or observations could be obscured by rustling leaves.
Amphibians - The amphibian community of each stand was sampled using time-constrained, area searches, which consisted of two searchers systematically searching possible cover items for amphibians. Each stand was searched twice during the field season, once in the latter half of July and once during the latter half of August. Each search lasted 2h (total of 4 researcher-hours) and covered the whole stand. Cover items searched included forest litter, under rocks, logs, and loose bark, in temporary pools, streams, and seeps, and at the edges of permanent water sources.
Carrion Beetles - The carrion beetle community (family Silphidae) at each stand was sampled using baited traps suspended 2 m above the ground in trees. Two traps were operated in each stand 100 m apart. Traps were operated for 15 or 16 days during the latter half of July and early August. There were 12 days of complete overlap when traps were being operated in all stands at the same time. Traps consisted of roofed-over 3.5 l plastic containers containing 750 ml of dilute formalin. They were baited with a single chicken leg (60-80 g) placed in a cup suspended over the formalin and covered with fiberglass mesh to reduce colonization by beetles and flies and thereby prolong bait viability. Holes cut in the sides of the containers provided places for the beetles to enter.
Sample Preliminary Results: Breeding Birds - We conducted a total of 408 point counts for breeding birds during the 1999 field season. In the course of those counts, we tallied 5,043 individual birds of 74 species. Preliminary analysis of the data revealed several promising relationships. Avian species richness appears to be related to residual basal area, the cross-sectional area of trees remaining after the harvest (Figure 1). There was no statistical difference between northern and central ADK stands, and the overall relationship suggests a negative relationship between avian richness and residual basal area, although the results are not statistically significant (P=0.133). This result is similar to that found in PA.
We also found that avian species richness was significantly related to certain vegetation or habitat variables. For example, avian richness is significantly, positively related to the amount of ground cover of the stands (Figure 2, P<0.05) and the trend did not differ between northern and central ADK groups. Again, this finding is consistent with the results from the PA study, indicating a strong trend across different parts of the northern forest.
Figure 2. Avian species richness determined by 5 min point counts conducted at six points within each central and northern Adirondacks stands three times during the breeding season compared to percent ground cover.
In addition to the effects on species richness of entire communities, we found significant effects on the abundances of individual species. One of those species is the Black-throated Blue Warbler, which is a neotropical migrant that has been identified by Audubon as a WatchList species in the Adirondacks, based on the Partners In Flight ranking system. The abundance of Black-throated Blue Warblers was significantly, positively correlated with the amount of overstory cover of the stands (Figure 3, P is less than 0.05) and also the amount of shrub level cover of the stands (Figure 4, P is less than 0.05). In fact, multiple linear regression analysis indicated that both overstory cover and shrub cover are significant predictors of Black-throated Blue Warbler abundance.
Amphibians - During the 1999 field season, we conducted more than 170 researcher-hours of area and cover object searches for amphibians and detected 2,340 individual amphibians of 17 species. A total of 22,791 cover objects were turned over and examined in this process. As for birds, preliminary analyses are very encouraging. Trends suggest that amphibian species richness increases in relation to stand basal area, as expected from the PA study results, although the relationship is not statistically significant (P=0.182). There was no significant difference between the northern and central Adirondack groups.
Carrion Beetles - Carrion beetle traps appear to have been very effective, although two traps were lost due to disturbance by predators. Overall, we captured a total of 10,129 individual beetles of 10 species. Preliminary analysis indicates the potential for several interesting relationships between Silphid richness and abundance and stand post-harvest conditions, although details are not available at this time.
Conclusions: Initial results of our research from the 1999 field season are very encouraging. Robust trends between species richness and abundance and post-harvest stand conditions in northern hardwood forests are evident. Trends appear to be consistent between geographic regions and between conventional and salvage logging and to be consistent with the findings of Pennsylvania Audubon from their similar study. In many cases these trends only approach statistical significance, but larger sample sizes after another field season will increase our ability to draw firm conclusions about them. Clearly the potential exists for science to guide the management of private forests in New York state for the benefit of diverse wildlife communities and individual species of concern.
Acknowledgments: Many peopled helped make the 1999 field season a success. In particular, Jim Arrigoni provided invaluable assistance to M. Burger in the field; his hard work made our ambitious schedule possible. Several people helped us to identify stands for inclusion in the study, including Jenna Spear O'mara who initiated our contact with NY State foresters in the Potsdam office; state foresters John Gibbs, Tim Baxter, Don Brown, and Pat Whalen; private consulting foresters Chris Thompson, Frank Bassett, and Bob McGlaughlin; Dick Sage and others at the Adirondack Ecological Center in Newcomb; Kevin Virkler at the Adirondack League Club; and Leon Canell at the Sweet Pond Hunting Club in DeGrasse. We thank landowners and others who allowed us access to forest properties, including Joe Kutsko at the Adirondack League Club, John Beinecke, Frances Beinecke, Rick Beinecke, Bill Beinecke, the Langley Associates, Bill Porter and Dick Sage at the Huntington Wildlife Forest, John Molnar at the Palmer Sportsmen Club, John Wood at Higley Flow State Park, Tim and Therese Baxter, Aubrey Chapin, and Leon Canell. John Wood provided free camping at Higley Flow State Park and Bob and Bonnie Thomas provided room and board in Old Forge. Thanks to Paul Manion for allowing us to use one of his GPS units. Thanks to Brad Ross for sharing his insights gained while conducting similar studies in PA.
