Standing deadwood for keystone bird species in the eastern boreal forest: Managing for snag dynamics
Abstract
Extensive even-aged management of the boreal forest and its consequences on the loss of late-seral stages (>100 years) is raising concerns about the future of organisms associated with standing deadwood. The considerable reduction of deadwood not only at the stand but at the landscape level is considered to be one of the principal causes of biodiversity loss in managed forest ecosystems worldwide. Ecosystem-oriented management approaches propose a fundamental change in forestry practices whereby live and dead tree retention becomes an important consideration in forest harvesting. We use woodpecker assemblages and their association with standing deadwood for both nesting and foraging to emphasize the importance of the entire range of snag degradation stages for maintenance of key ecological processes in habitat remnants of managed landscapes. We argue that bridging foraging and nesting knowledge of woodpecker’s snag requirements can refine conservation objectives for deadwood retention in the boreal forest. Key words: deadwood, woodpeckers, hole-nesting community, late-seral forests, keystone species, foraging and nesting tree requirements, food webs, nest webs, snag management
Résumé
L’aménagement équien de la forêt boréale transforme le couvert forestier notamment en réduisant la proportion de forêts âgées (>100 ans). Cette diminution des forêts âgées s’accompagne d’une baisse considérable du bois mort à l’échelle des peuplements et des paysages, ce qui est considérée comme l’une des principales causes de perte de diversité biologique dans les forêts aménagées à l’échelle mondiale. Les approches écosystémiques proposent un changement fondamental en foresterie, soit que la rétention des arbres vivants et morts dans les forêts aménagées devient une considération importante en aménagement forestier. Dans cet article, nous utilisons les assemblages de pics et leurs relations avec le bois mort sur pied pour statuer sur l’importance de conserver le spectre complet de stades de dégradation du bois mort dans les habitats résiduels des territoires aménagés pour maintenir les fonctions écologiques des pics, un groupe d’espèces clés dans les forêts âgées. Nous considérons l’importance de faire les liens entre les besoins d’alimentation et de reproduction des pics pour raffiner les objectifs de conservation du bois mort en forêt boréale. Mots clés bois mort, pics, communauté cavicole, forêts âgées, espèces clés, arbres d'alimentation et de nidification, réseaux trophiques, réseaux de cavités, aménagement des bois morts
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Published In
The Forestry Chronicle
Volume 85 • Number 2 • March 2009
Pages: 227 - 234
History
Version of record online: 18 March 2011
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Pierre Drapeau, Antoine Nappi, Louis Imbeau, and Michel Saint-Germain. 2009. Standing deadwood for keystone bird species in the eastern boreal forest: Managing for snag dynamics. The Forestry Chronicle.
85(2): 227-234. https://doi.org/10.5558/tfc85227-2
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