1. Tree & Stand Growth/Wildlife Habitat 2. Lab Today Evaluating communities for wildlife habitat 3. Take Home Test due Thursday Oct 23, 5 pm

Transcription

1 NREM 301 Forest Ecology & Soils Day 17 October 14, 2008 Buffer Corridors as Wildlife Habitat In a Matrix of Cropfields 1. Tree & Stand Growth/Wildlife Habitat 2. Lab Today Evaluating communities for wildlife habitat 3. Take Home Test due Thursday Oct 23, 5 pm

2 I am a confused branch! I know I have terminal and lateral buds and primary and secondary meristems and long and short shoots but I couldn t tell you where any of these are HELP! Please send someone up to show me these parts.

3 I am really cool notice how nice my shape is and how runty those shrubs are below me someone said I was extroverted or excurrent or something like that what does that mean?? Is that why I look so cool?

4 I wanted to be cool like my bud in the previous picture but alas look how I turned out what the heck happened? Did I have determinate or indeterminate shoot growth don t my terminals have any control?

5 P 9 - Handout Roots Below Ground Productivity Group 3 Kinds of root systems, structure of a lateral root

6 Typical Root System Shapes Deep Coarse Textured Soils Deep Loams Shallow Soil Horizon Depth Or Water Table Root system plastic responds to site (P 12 Handout)

7 Root System Structure 4-10 Major Laterals Extend 3-15 ft from base Ave depth 2 5 ft Fine root-fans drip line & beyond Rope-like out 1 tree height (In Soils & Tree Handout)

8 Shape and Form of Root System is Very Plastic Sensitive to the Soil Environment All roots require oxygen for respiration so seldom are found permanently below the water table Some trees have aerenchyma tissue that carries oxygen from above-ground to roots under hypoxic conditions

9 Fill has been added to this tree what happens to the roots & tree? Solution where fill is needed Fill on most upland species will suffocate roots bottomland species can tolerate some why?

10 More Tree Root System Treatments What is the result of this trenching? How will this cut affect the tree? Solution to cut

11 Depth Group 4 Shape of crown and bole - influence of wind & location on these Width Stem Taper Butt Swell

12 Stand vs Open Trees a) Shorter, narrower crowns b) Boles smaller diameter c) Boles straighter d) Less branches on lower bole e) Less taper Open Grown Stand Grown

13 Wind What happens to roots when wind blows? Which side of the root system needs more reinforcement ie longer roots? Compression Tension

14 Are there more roots upslope or down-slope to help hold the tree up? p 49 - Soil & Tree Growth Handout

15 Group 5 Photo vs Geotropism Geotropic & Excurrent straight stems respond negatively to gravity Phototropic & Decurrent take advantage of light conditions

16 Competitive & Survival Adaptations of Conifers & Angiosperms (Deciduous Trees) Which evolved earlier? Where do they typically grow in North America? What conditions do they typically grow in? What are major differences between the two? Why do conifers not grow well in Iowa? Group Activity

17 What are major survival adaptations of conifers & angiosperms (deciduous trees)? Which evolved earlier? Conifers over 200 million ybp Angiosperms about 125 million ybp Where do they typically grow in North America? Conifers Boreal forest; PNW temperate rain forest; coastal mtns & Rocky mtns; SE US Angiosperms eastern US; along major river bottoms. What conditions do they typically grow in? Conifers areas of limited Ps cold temps; short, cool growing seasons; drier areas; fire prone areas; areas of high winds; mid-summer droughts; low nutrient availability Angiosperms areas of long, warm, humid growing seasons; cold snowless winters. Group Activity

18 What are major differences between the two? Conifers mainly evergreen, excurrent shape Angiosperms most lose leaves, decurrent shape Why do conifers not grow well in Iowa? Cold winters, no snow pack frozen soils; warm mid-winter temps stimulate Ps, trees desiccate. Group Activity

19 Group 6 Leaf Area Index vs Root Area Index & Above & Below Ground Competition Leaf Area Index = 5-7 Root Area Index = 2X LAI With mycorrhizae = 100X

20 Basal Area Concept Area of cross-section of all stems per unit area ft 2 per acre What are the other 43,460 ft 2 used for?

21 From a BA Perspective Why do We Thin? Thinning Response Shifting BA to Fewer Trees

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23 Habitat Lab Objectives Identify vegetation zones Identify plant species within each zone Understand how vegetation structure impacts habitat value Understand importance of structure to birds and other animals

24 Vegetation Zones Grass Tree Shrub Shrub/Grass Tree/Shrub

25 Tree/Shrub Grass Grass Grass Grass Tree/shrub

26 Straight Reach Identify vegetation zones on one side of stream Determine major plant species, heights, densities

27 Meandering Reach

28 Site Habitat type Tree/shrub Canopy Height (m) # of Trees BA of Trees # of Shrubs % Ground Cover % Canopy Cover Tree Species Green Ash Swamp White Oak Silver Maple Shrub Species Forb Species Red Osier Dogwood Ninebark High-bush Cranberry Chokecherry Giant Ragweed Goldenrod Sunflower Grass Species Brome Reed Canary Notes Close to road Close to bridge Etc.

29 Gray Catbird Migration Status: Neotropical migrant Habitat: Dense undergrowth; saplings and shrubs Diet: insects, berries Nesting: nest in dense shrubs American Goldfinch Migration Status: Year-round inhabitant Habitat: Brushy and weedy Diet: Small seeds, insects Nesting: shrub/tree, made of plant fibers and spider webs

30 Downy Woodpecker Migration status: Year-round inhabitant Habitat: Open deciduous woodlands, especially riparian areas. Diet: Insects (beetles, ants), berries, seeds Nesting: Excavate cavities in soft/rotten wood Ring-necked Pheasant Migration status: Year-round inhabitant Habitat: Size between acres. Nesting Habitat: >10 inch undisturbed grass with forbs Winter Habitat: Tall weeds or shrubby during day. Tall, grassy for night Nesting: Depression in ground.

31 Black-capped Chickadee Northern Rough-winged Swallow Northern Bobwhite

32 What should quail home range look like? 15 acres per covey up to 80 acres per covey Edge habitat (early- to mid-successional stages of succession, shade intolerant annuals & clump grasses; patches of woody plants & shrubs for cover) Ideal ( 50% annual weeds, legumes, row crops; 30% grasses (native clump grasses); 20% shrubby woody cover Riparian buffer

33 Open grassy area: Nesting Cover Warm-season bunch grasses (big & little bluestem; Indian grass, switchgrass, sideoats gramma at least 12 inches tall) Low-growing woody cover such as poison ivy & blackberry with sparse ground cover 30% of home range grassy/herbaceous cover ft from opening or edge Legumes & annual weeds are good provide high protein insects for chicks Cool season grasses usually not used not tall enough unless disturbed with fire

34 Brood Rearing Cover Brood rearing May September Legumes, annual weeds, fallow fields, minimum or no-till crop fields 25-50% of area should be bare ground Screening cover - > 6 in tall herbaceous cover for protection 40% of home range can be same as nesting area clump grasses provide open ground if burned occasionally

35 Protective & Escape Cover Predators hawks, owls, fox, coyote Shrubby cover year round for protection from predators Also thermal cover for shade in summer & warmth in winter Ideally > 30 X 50 ft in size often major limiting factor in ag fields ( 3-12 ft tall) Need lower part level to be dense thickets not open understory Covey headquarters loafing time Needs to be 70 ft from furthest of other habitat structures (riparian forest buffers along crop fields ideal)

36 Food for Bobwhite Seeds & fruits used throughout year especially fall & winter Annual weeds, legumes, grasses, grains, woody plants Insects very important spring, summer & fall, especially for chicks Critical over winter food needed usually OK if diverse native plantings ¼ ac food plot per covey OK (millet, legumes, etc) need larger if large deer population Seeds found on ground so bare ground important not thick litter that hide seeds.

37 Arrangement of Habitat 30-40% grassland (natives grasses & forbs) 5-20 ac patches 40-60% early successional grassland (disturbance dominated by annual & perennial forbs legumes important) 1-5 ac patches 5-20% brushy cover (trees OK but need brushy understory) patches 30 X 50 ft

38 Wild Turkey Mature oak hickory forest Nesting moderately dense understory grassy & woods, typically field/ forest edge Winter habitat open oak-hickory with hard mast (nuts), corn fields Roost in trees at night oaks with leaves and conifers provide thermal cover South & west exposure good as they may have less snow

39 White-footed Mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) Most abundant small rodent in mixed forests in the eastern US Also in brushy areas bordering agricultural lands Build nests in warm and dry places (hollow tree, vacated bird's nest) Home range 1/2 to 1 1/2 acres with 4 to 12 mice per acre Live 1 year, nocturnal, omnivorous Diet varies seasonally - seeds, berries, nuts, insects, grains, fruits, & fungi Do not hibernate - store seeds and nuts for the winter

40 Deer Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) Most common habitats - prairies, bushy areas, & woodlands Activity centers around a nest and food cache In grassland nest constructed just below ground level in its own burrow or one abandoned by another animal In forest construct nests near ground in stumps, logs, brush piles, tree cavities, reconstructed bird nests, tree bark Eat insects, other invertebrates, seeds, fruits, flowers, nuts, and other plant products In winter groups of ten or more of mixed sexes & ages huddle together in nests to conserve heat In winter may enter a daily torpor to reduce body temperature & conserve energy

41 See you in Lab at 3:10 Loading Dock