image: This is Varied Thrush, a species associated with older forests in the Pacific Northwest. view more
Credit: Image courtesy of Benjamin T. Phalan
A study suggests that efforts to maintain and restore old-growth forests in the US Pacific Northwest are effective, but an uptick in forest fires has slowed down the success rate. The 100-year Northwest Forest Plan, which halted clearcutting on millions of hectares of federal land, was instituted in 1994 to protect and restore old-growth forests in the Pacific Northwest. Benjamin T. Phalan, Matthew G. Betts, and colleagues examined the plan's impact by evaluating bird abundance as an indicator of biodiversity. Abundance trends before and after 1994 were determined with North American Breeding Bird Survey data for 12 bird species found in older forests and 12 species found in regenerating forests. The plan anticipated that it may take decades to end species declines, and the authors found ongoing declines in both groups of birds. However, species associated with older forests declined faster than species in regenerating forests. Older forests also declined, mostly due to increased fires, whereas regenerating, or early-seral habitats, increased in some regions. Because forest regeneration is an inherently slow process, forest plans should continue to emphasize conservation of old-growth habitats, according to the authors.
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Article #18-13072: "Impacts of the Northwest Forest Plan on forest composition and bird populations," by Benjamin T. Phalan et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Matthew G. Betts, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR; tel: 541-737-3841; e-mail: matt.betts@oregonstate.edu
Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences