SUMMER, 1997

Third Annual Project Workshop:

A Progress Report from a Partnership in Landscape Level Ecosystem Management

Collaboration at the Heart of the Job rore~t ecosystems must be Illan:!ged through collaborative

~tewardship. Region:!1 Forester Hal Salwasserexplained to research­er<;. Forest Planners from the Nonhem Region. line offi cers. project planners. and rcsource specialists at the BittelTOOI Ecosystem Manage­ment Resc:!rch Project's annual workshop. The global dem:!nd for ~e rvices and product~ from forests wi ll cOlllinlle to grow rapidly in the coming years. according to Salwasser. Scientists lind managcrs II1 USt work together to ensure th:!t temperate forests can cont inue to provide services and products for centuries to come.

IntemlOuntain Station Director Denver Ilums poillled OUi that researchers need to maintain objectivity in regard to managemcnt decisions even in collaboration. If objectivi ty is lost. hc said. the reliability and credibi lity of managemelll based on science will be lost. '00.

The worhhop. held March I I and 12 in Missoula. alerted managers throughout the Northern Region to l1'oject re~earch. The fir~ t day focused on connections between research. Regional guide­lines for planning. and the Columbia River Basi n assessment. Forest Service personnel from the Region have worked on planning protocols during the past year. reported Doug Glevanik. Regional Directorof Ecosystem Assessment and Planning. Protocols. Glcvanik explained. are recommended ways 10 ""gather and store data. analyze data. in terpret and use results. and set consistelll definitions and terminol­ogy:' Selected protocols were presented in tandem wi th research projects to demonstr:!te ways to obtain informalion for planning and management. (Sec stories on pp. 4. 6. and 12.)

t:li:abeth 8el/(j (seattd). Chris S/(Il/ing (center). and Judy Fried~ (right) ~gister fNlrticifNlnts at the M(lrch workshop.

On the workshop's second day. researchers summarized indi­vidual projects. many of them described in this issue of ECO-Report. To close out the day. a panel of Bi tterroot residents and planners summarized their thoughts on public involvement in planning (sec article. p. 6).

Summer field Trips - Mark Your Calendar! The Bitterroot Ecosystem Mallagement Research Projcci is

hosting three fie ld Irips for the public this summer. so mark your

mm"'-lm'eTf'd ;IUI of II )'el/oll " ',.-ble.- jhm IIll.' b/'nl/"ml.,·ili~f'{1 by" 11"," ,,·hl'm/<"ll Cuwbird.

ca lendar and watch for more information in future mail mgs.

As ECO-Report goes to press. plans are in place to \'isit " Habltat for Small Ones"" on luly 9. Ste\enwille wildlife biologist Dave Lockm;m \00111 descnbe bird habitat in aspcn and upland ~ltCS. University of Montana graduate ~tudent Josh Tewksbury wi ll lead visilOn. to ne~t ~ites of neotropicalmigrant bird~. and ecologi~t Dean Pearson \\ill ~hare hi~ discoveries about ~lI1aJl mammal habitat.

On July 29. learn aOoot "SiI\iculiure and Fire for Ponderosa Pine Forests:' Visit the BcarlFrc<l Burr demon~tration :!rea in forest composed of se('ond-growth ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir. To reduce

fire hazard and improve conditions for developing old-growth pinc in this fore~t . th ree management strategies have been used. including prescribed fire. Research Forester Steve Arno will describe fire history. Cathy Stewan and Brooke Thompson. Stevensville sil vicul­turist and fire management officer. wil l describe treatments. Bitterroot Ecosystem Management Research Project Director Clint Carlson will discuss tree pathogens and their ecological roles. and researcher L. Jack Lyon will di scuss elk habitat. Call 777-5461 to sign up.

On Sep!. 4. come along 10 "Lick Creek: Ten Years of Managing for the Ecosystem." Researchers and Darby District staff will present current findings in the Lick Creek and Lost Horse Creel drainages. home of some of the Forc~t Sen·ice·s first projects demonstrat­ing ecosystcm management. Call 821 -3913 to sign up.

inside • SteweDSyllle Welt CeDI ... 1 Dttlslon • Researc:b aDd DemoutralioD

ProjttlS

• Tbe "Spolllgh" ' - Dipper Watc:ber

• Field Trips 0' the Pasl Year

U.S. I).,\ . Forest St"nkl': Koc ," , ' l\Iounta in KeSl':lrch 5 l:1tion. Ki ll t"rrool NlIo lio .uoll t-u rest T he Unil fr); il)' of Montana School of f orestry

Riparian Areas: Small Sites, Big Treasures liy J ane Kapler Smith

Ripariuo arcas comprise less than one percent o r the area in the western United States. according to Stevensville wildlife biologist Dave Lockman. but their role in providing habitat is enormous. Of the bird ,pecies that breed in weslern MOnlana. 65 percent ncst primari ly in riparian sites. usi ng mainly deciduous shrubs and trees. Small mammals re ly on large woody debris for ,he Iter as they trallcl th rough the fore st ,carching for food. Native fi sh require ~treams with clear wlIIer and pools around fallen logs. Sites \\ ilh these qualities are [rea~urcs within the forested landscape. ,clcntists and managers emphasized during a field trip for the public 10

to 30 inches of snow during Skidding operations. All sapling and pole grand fir were cuI. Felled s(lpl ings and poles were left on half o f the area. which will be burned this fa ll. They were remo\'ed from the other half of the area and piled ncar the road , where firewood collcctors cou ld gather them . 1\'I(lteri(l1 rem(lining there this fall will be burned.

During harvesting. the \1.110 small streams crossi ng the skid trail (an o ld logging road) received protection frOIll temporary log bridges. Additional attention was given to stream habitat a.~ several large logs were placed across streams and cut so their ends would rest in thc water. Fishcries

biologists hope thcse logs Larry Creek last July (sec (lrllc lc. p. II ). Treatments/or the birds.

will cause pools to form . Pools are esscntial resting and feeding habitat for At Larry Creek. re­

\earchers are using harvesting and prescribed fire to restore shrubs. herbs. western larch. and ponderosa pine while reducing poh:lllial for severe wild fire. Two years ago. when University of Montana graduale slUdent Malt Arno began his re~earch, the scencry was "a wall of grand fir." mostly 10 to 20 feet tall. with older pines. larch, Douglas-fir, and cottonwood imerspersed. Shrubs were hard to find. Woody debris covered the ground- mostly twigs and branches from the dense under­growth. Arno's goal has been to crealI.' a significantly rnore open forest ~tructure whcre shrubs. cottonwoods. and aspen can thrive, and where ponderosa pine and larch can regenerate.

The treatments are nearing completion. The timber han'es\ protccted large pines. larches. and cottonwoods. Using his 85-horsepower farm tractor (lnd special harvest­ing winch. Arno removed nearly five truc k loads of Douglas-fir and grand fir logs over frozen ground. Soil was doubly protected last winter. when the ground was covered by 20

nalive trout specics. Are the treatments good for habitat?" 1

can' t see that thcy would do anything but good for birds:' Lockman says. A wild turkey nested on the harvested area thi s spring where. two YCltrs ago. it wouldn't have been able to find thc ground. Remnants of shrubs were budding in smal l p(ltches. If shrubs do not regenerate rapidly on the treatment sites. according to research director Mick I-Iarrington. planting may be considered.

Harvesti ng and burning on a riparian si te can actually protect it from severe fire. according to Leslie Anderson. Stevcnsvillc ass istant fire managemcnt officer. If a severe fire burns through an untreated riparian area. st reams are filled wilh s ill for many years. and water temperatures rise substantially until vegetat ive co\'er is restored. According to Anderson. removing the dense fir al Larry Creek will help protect the sitc from severe fire. Monitoring will help managers learn what techniques work for protecting theM! ccological trea~ure troves.

(ufO Larr)' Crttl. Slit INfort han·tSling. Muy. 1995:

2

Can you find rtstarrhtr Mrlfl Amo IItxt to tht fift­SC(Jrrtd trtt stump? Photo by Madt(wl KtnJl'f

(8tlow) Afttr han,t.lting: {n May of tllis year. f){/\'e Lockman (right) and /_ucia S%r.:.rmo look for sprouting shrubs OIl hlJn'nttd Jile.

i ·

Larry Creek ~s Come full Circle

shtlttr to fit rifNlrian rtJtomtion projtCI.

Trees removed in the Larry Creek restonltion project will keep the nlin off families al reunions. children at school outings. and employees at company picnics.

Mike Wilson. resource technician with the Stevensville District. plans to use about a third of the logs harvested in the restora tion project for a picnic she lter at the Larry Creek group campground. The sheller. he says. "will enable people \0 weather the shun rainstorms we o ften have" in the area.

The logs ha\'e already been milled at Findley Lumber, Florence. Fill material and a concrete pad come next. A construc­tion company will build the 16 by 20 fOOl

shel ter. which will accommodate five picnic tables.

Wilson hopes a concrete company will donate labor and/or materia ls for the shelter. Plywood and shingles are also needed. Contact the Stevensvi lle Ranger Distric t. 406-777-5461.

ECO-Report e Published by the

Rocky Mountain Research Station r. O. Box 8089, Missoula, MT 59807

(406) 329-4805

Editor : Jane Kapler Smith Staff Writer: Lucia Solorzano Copy Editor: Janet Howard

The United States Depanment of Agriculture. (US DA) Foresl Service. is a di\'crse organization committed to equal opponunity in employment and program del ivery. US DA pro hibits discrimination on thc basis of racc. color. natiOll<ll origin. sex. religion. age. disability. political affiliation and familial status. Persons believi ng (hey ha\'C becn discriminated against by USDA should contact the Secretary. U.S. Dcpanmcnt of Agricuhurc. Washington. D.C. 20250. or call 202-720-7327

Stevensville Ranger Selects Management for Ecosystem Restoration

h)' Llld:1 Solorzano

Man<lgcl11cn[ of [he 39.400 aCTC Sle\cn ~\' iltc Wc~t CCnlral :mal ysis area on the Hiul'rrool N:uioewl Fore" will foeti!> on returning about 7.700 :!Cf(oS o f land west o f Vklor :md Ste\'cns\ ille to .... more suslain · able r.:o nditioll.·· The Stevcn~\'il1c Wcst CCnlral Decision Notice. released in November 1996 and upheld in February 11)1.)7 following two appelii s. dears the way for \cgclali\(: Irealmcn l ~.

The \CICCh:d a llcmath'c (A ltem .. ti,·c One) Includes prccommcrcial lh inning on 1.200 acre.;;. commercii'! harvcsling on 1.IIX) acrc". and prc~cribcd burning on 5 ,4(XJ acres. Ahernative Onc was modified in rC'I)OIl~c to publ ic cOlleen" ,[boUI economic cfficicrKY. fC:l ~i bilily. and hl1f\'c~ 1 aCl1\itics wi thin the Sclway-Biucrroot Roodle!>s Area. The modifications reduced the total amount of \'egel:lt ivc treatment:. from 8.500 acres to 7.700. Four o ther a lt e rmlli\'e~ were studied in the En vi ron· mental Assessment .

The decision by 1)i ~trict Ranger Thom;l~ G. Wagner followed work by his predecessor Lc~1ie Weldon ;md an interdi ~· ciplinary team headed by 1)a\'e Si lvieus. Planning included one of the most ex t en~h'e

public outreach cffons in Bitterroot National Forest history-29 public meet-

ings. three lield reviews. and two meetings with ;11\ interest group.

Wagner. in the decision notice. write~ that Alternative One was "designed to restore the eco~y~tems and resource \'a[ues in the area Ihat have been affected by pa't harvesting. road construction. and the exc lusion of fire. The Selectcd Alte rnati ve wi ll ensure the ~ustainabi l it y of biologic;ll di vers ilY and integrity at the landscape. community. and spc(' ies levels Ihrough ecosystem stewardship aclions."

Two groupl> appealed the d ....... ision nOlice. sayi ng that it violated the National Erl\'ironmental Policy Act by not completi ng an environmental impaci statemcnt. fai led 10 comply with Ihe Forest Plan Standard\ for e lk habitat. and failed to comply as well with the Admini str'Jtive Procedure Act by followin g "arbit r'Jry and capricious ded,ion making." However. Katherine Q. Solberg. the appeal reviel'l ing officcr. found that the District Ranger evaluatcd all available information that W;IS re levant in m;rk ing the decision. Solberg conduded in her report: "The deci~ion and the r.ltionille leading to the deCision arc well documen!ed and demonstrate the deci~ion is reasoned llIld informed."

Implementation of the dcci~ ion has begun: projccts are scheduled through the year 2000.

Projects planned in Stevensville West Central area:

• Vegetation res toration through commercial harvest on 1,100 acres of the 39.400 acre analysis area. Trent­menls arc designed to enhance conditions for old-growth ponderosa pine. reduce fuel loads, and provide wood products.

o Prescribed underbuming over a 20-year cycle on approximately 4.600 acres. including several ponderosa pine Old-growth areas. Prescribed underburning will be implemented for one time only on 800 acres of upper­elevation whitebark pine.

o Implementation of a comprehcnsh'e watershed and fisheries restor.lIion program. This project will include obliter.rtion and inactivntion of some roads 10 reduce sediment and improve fi sh productivity.

o Recreation aecess improvement. Parking ilrca~ and vehicle turnouts "ill be enlarged al Glen Lake Tra il head, Bear Creek Overlook. and Gash Point Trailhead.

Planners Put Models to Work hy

for the Stevcnwi l1e West Central ~ource~ ;lnd two forward-thinking

inanim;rte mode ls de~igned 10 ~how what fore'l are;l' would look ' I ;md without variou, trc;rtmen!s. the environmenta l effcch of timber haf\e~tillg. ;md 1'1 hat costs may mille cemlin I)PCS oftrcatment uII,uitable.

The SIMPPLLE ('omputer Illodel. which ~t:md~ for SIM ulatlllg \cgelatl\C Pauem\ ilud Pr.x:e'~e' at l.ilnd'>C'lpe waLE,. and MAG IS . • 111 ,lcnmyrn for r-,'l ulli -rc,ource An;rl),j, and Gcographic lnformmion SY~lcm. were u,ed to givc large-,cale and 'land-'IJecifie view\ of whalthc Ste\cn,villc We" Central area Ilouid I(lollike wilh and II 11houl undcrhurning. thinmng. or other tre;rtillenh.

According to Dale Sillieu!>. intcrdi-.ciplinilr) tcam leader for the project. S I ~ I PPLLI:: let the planne,", ,"''C hol'l ('urr~'nt forest health prnhlen., ~'{Juld I'IOT,en rf lefl untreated. Sa}, Sill ieu,. " 11 indl('aled that we rea lly needed ttl t;rke ,ome ac tiull 10 prc\en! "alld-rcplaci ng lire'. It ,Iho ,holl'ed that wrthOllt ac ti\c man;rgerncnt. the ,ub;rlpine fir. which i, w'ceptihlc to 'pnlcc budwnrm and 'lill1d replacing lire,. "ould conti nuc to repl;lee lodgcPQle pinc and wltiteb;rrk pine'"

The SIMPPLLE modd graphically di,played. cont inue~

Si l\ ieu,. "that our 5 to 10 )e,rr program for timber \;I1c, "ould hanlly make a denllll the 'pruce bud\\ornl and fuel problem. Addi tional h,rn'c,ri ng ilnd burning 1I"0uid be needed. oler a longer ]Jeriod or time. to re,tme the lilndwapc to il ,u'tain:rblc condition."

The MAGIS computer model examined each ,riterniltive. ~tand by '\Hlld. indi!;ating how well the proposcd treatment\ would meet

watershed. wildl ifc. and economic object ives. MAGIS b sched­uled for u'e agni n to help an inte rdi~ciplinary team describe ex isting eondition~ and del'elop ahern;r lives for the D;r ly Creck.! Sk.alkaho analysis area on Ihe Darby Hanger Distric t.

Dare Sildl'IHlhOlt"\" ilK"miolls ill/I,.. SII"'f'ludUf' II'CSI Celllml (irco lI""erc MA GIS renmlllwllded SI}I'cijk In'OII/WIIIS. Aboul 60 I'en'elll 0/ '''1' modl'! :~ ·· .• /I /otXf'stiOIl.I· .• wI'n' (1(1011/(' £1.

3

I

SOI,/rie Osborn answers qUeIt;OIu £11lrill8 presentation (1/ the Ma rch workshop.

by Lucia Solorzano

[t may seem 11 strange leap of science fro m the study of giraffes in Kenya 10 tracking Dippers in the Bitterroot. but that's ex.actly how 30-year-old Sophie Osborn of Stevensvil le got her stan in ornithology. This summer. you'lf find her slogging through streambeds and pushing through dense underbrush to follow North America's only lH.luatic songbird 10 its nest.

Until she visi ted Africa. Ihe native of Switzerland and 1988 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. with degrees in international relations and French literature. never realized that the fascinating field of wildlife biology cxislCd. She returned to Vermont. where she had lived since age 9, and began taking biology courses-and not ici ng birds. "In Africa:' she recalls. "wi ldli fe was so visible all the ti me . In Vermo nt. the only really visible wildlife was birds:'

Osborn became captivaled with the brilliantly colored eastern songbirds and the clegam birds of prey. She began several years of field study on birds ranging from Peregrine Falcon in Wyoming to Speckled Teal in Argentina. She was anracted to Montana by the work of Sallie Hejl. research bio logis t wit h the Rocky Mountain Research Station in Mi ssoula. and Dick Huno. professor o f orni thology at the University of Montana.

In spring 1996. Osborn started studying landscape e ffects on the habitat sclcrtion. distribution. and prOOuctivity of the American Dipper. The six inch Dipper. which takes ils name from the dipping

4

.highlighting researchers at work:

from Switzerland to Kenya to Bitterroot streams motion it makes when perched. can only be fou nd 011 fast-flowing streams. A solitary bird. it is JUSt as comfortable swi mming underwater to feed on aquatic inseo larvae as it is fl ying to its nest near falling or fast­running water. Dippers feed their young in the nest for twice as long as many other songbirds. "Bcing aquatic birds. they have to be so much more developed." observes Osborn. 'Tve seen them plunge right OUi of lhe nest in to whi tcwater:'

Last spring and summer. Osborn and two assis tants surveyed Dippen on 16 creeks in the Binerrroot. The team walked carryi ng heavy backpacks. wearing waders. Says Osborn: "We had to stay right along the st ream so as not to miss the Dippen. But in doing so. we were often hit in the face by branches or had to crawl on our stomachs under downfall. Ideally, we would have li ked to wa lk in the water along the edge of the creeks. but it was usually too d;mgerous with the high spring nmoff.··

Dippers typically build their nests in cliffs, sometimes by waterfalls. sometimes on large mid -stream boulders. In developed areas such as the Bitterroot Valley. many nest under bridges. Osborn and her crew located

a total of 24 active nests last year- 12 on undeveloped sites and 12 under bridges. On six of the seven large creeks studied. Osborn found Dippers were more likely 10 be present in undeveloped strcam portions. "Dippers are c harming. funny little birds: ' remarks Osborn. 'They share many of the same habitat needs as nati ve fi shes. which may be an additional incentive to protcct their environment. The presence of Dippers may indicate a healthy riparian system:'

Protection of clear. unpolluted streams will benefit not only the busy Dipper but also many of its riparian neighbors.

American Dipper. Photo by Sophie DIhurI!.

Diversity of Tiny Bitterroot Natives Few scient ists know the trul y tedious side of field study like Andrew Sheldon . whose

speciality is aquatic insects. panicularly stoneflies. Dr. Sheldon. a biology professor at the Un iversity of Mo ntana. now has two years of field work in Bitterroot streams behind him and hopes to determine the boundaries between stonefly species and what causes variation. Stoneflies begin emerging in the lower elevations of Bitterroot streams in february and cont inue until [he last corne out at the higher elevations in October. The 45 different specics e merge throughoulthe season. which demands repelllive census-takmg by She ldon.

During the summer of 1996. Sheldon collaborated with Australian geneticists Dr. J<lne Hughes and Dr. Peter Mather. The team discovered that stonefly populations from adjacent streams are vi rtually unique because so lil11c interchange of genetic material occurs between watersheds. "Within Stre<lms:' says Shcldon. "slOlleflies are pretty homogeneous. But every stream has ils own identity."

fauna Research Rich in Links to Protocols At the March workshop. L. J<lck Lyon reported that each of the fourl een research projects

on fauna supponed by the Bitterroot Ecosystem Management Research Projec t exemplifies one or more of the Regional fauna or aquatic protocols. Fred Samson <lnd Linda Ulmer summari zed the fauna and aquatic protocols. Lyon and Ward McCaughey then described key links between protocols and fauna research. Eight Project studies link to Coarse Filter protocols. nine to Species at Risk protocols. e leven to Viability protocols. six to Connectivity protocols. and twelve to Habitat Models. Three studies contribute to Featured Species protocol s. Researc h bei ng conducted at Tenderfoot Creek Experimental Forest addresses all three aquatic protocols­Watershed Characterization. Aquatic Benchmarks. and Mo nitoring.

- Many Ways to Manage Lodgepole Pine forests -by Lucia Solon:a nu

Research underway at the Tenderfoot Creek Experimental Forest ncar White Sulphur Springs will provide insights on how 10 sustain lodgepole pine foresls and water flow patterns over large areas. LoJgepole pine dominates a high percent­age of forests in the nonhern Rocky Mountains. including the BiHcrrOO\ National Forest. About hal f the stands at Tenderfoot arc two-aged, resulting from previous fi res of mixed severity. However, nearly 110 years have passed si nce the last major fire. Many of the trees are aging and becoming increasingly susceptible to damage from strong winds, winler kill from rJpid and extreme temperature fluc tuations. and wi ldfire.

Tenderfoot Creek is "a classic lodge­pole pille community:- says Colin Hardy, assistant coordinator of the project. in an area "big enough to make a significant difference in water flow." The Tenderfoot Creek site is espcrially valuable to research­ers because of d,lIa already collected on the watershed's hydrology. fire history. weather patterns. soils. fi sh. birds. and other wildlife.

Two sub-watersheds in the experimen­tal forest are being used in the study. Each has a hydrologically matched sub-watershed that will be Jeft untreated and then compared with treated sites. The headwaters of Tenderfoot Creek will be used as an additional area for comparison.

Prescribed Burn Completes Ponderosa Pine Treatments

by Stc\'e Arno Logging and exclusion of low­

intensity fire have produced thickets of diseased fir tfees (interior Douglas-fir and grand fir) in many areas fonnerly occupied by open ponderosa pine forest in the inland West. One such area is the BearlFred Burr Demonstration Site on the Stevensville Ranger District, Bitterroot National Forest. Stumps testify that the original stand, logged in the early 1900s. consisted of large ponderosa pines and Douglas-fi rs growing in open forest. The Slumps record a long history of frequent low-intensity fires.

PhOlOii by Stew> Amo.

Researchers and managers are testing six silvicultural treatments. including underburning an uncut stand. in the 60-acre study area. tiarvesting took place primarily in 1995; burning was completed in May. One of the main goals of cutting was to commercially remove as much small or diseased fir as possible while leaving an open stand of pine and the healthiest firs. Areas of heavy fuels. such as mis tletoe brooms. were burned j ust as the snow melted (left). A low-intensity bum over the entire area was conducted a week later (below).

These treatments are the first in a sequence to restore the stand . Eventually it should be relati vely opeo. resistant to iosect and disease epidemics and severe wildfire. It will have value for aesthetics. wildlife habitat. and watershed protection. It will also produce limber that can finance maintenance costs.

The public is invited to joi n a field trip to this Demonstration Site on Jul y 29 (see p. I).

Treatments will include shelte rwood harvests followed by low-severity underburns on some sites. and mixed­severity broadcast underburns on sites that arc not logged. Logging will produce twO stand structures: evenly spaced, and groups of unevenly spaced trees. The laller structure · resembles forests that resulted from hi storic mixed-severity fire s.

Three partners are collaborating on the Tenderfoot project: the Rocky Mountain Research Station. the Lewis and Clark National Forest. and the Bitterroot Ecosys­tem Management Research Project. Dr. Ward McCaughey of BOleman is the project coordinator. heading a 12-membcr planning committee. The study is cxpel:ted to take about 15 years to complcte and already has more than two dozcn research proposals relatcd to it.

Economics of Restoration Treatments

Can timber products underwri te the cost of ecosystem restoration treatments in ponderosa pine forest s? Yes. say silviculturist Carl Fiedler of the University of Montana School of Forestry and Charles Keegan of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Montana. if the treatments are designed properly. Fiedle r and Keegan designed a prescription for restoring a ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir stand in the Bitterroot National Forest. Their prescription developed a park-like stand of large ponde­rosa pine by reducing stand density and the proportion of Douglas-fir. This treatment yielded an average of 3,4 thousand board feet per acre, primarily of Douglas-fir. with a ne t value exceeding $700 per acre on tr.letor ground and exceeding $400 per acre on steep ground requiring cable systems.

An alternative thin-frorn -below prescrip­tion removed nearly all small trees from 5 to 9 inches in diameter. Timber products from this treatment had a negative net value of nearly $300 per acrc. On cable ground. losses exceeded $500 per acre.

Ecological and economic contrasts between the two prescriptions are dramatic . The first prescription direc tly addresses fire hazard. decl ining tree vigor. and species conver­sion problems. returning substantial revenue. The second is cost ly and fails to address long-term problems in the stand.

5

Public Advises Managers, Scientists, Citizens -by Lucia Soion:ano

Encourage greater publ ic involvement in forest management decisions. Keep Ihe process short . Keep it nonconfronlalional. and lei participants feci their \'oiees are heard-that's what a panel of Biuerroot re~idcn ls advised during the annual Project 'Aorkshop in March.

The four panel members. represent ing govern ment. busi ness. and private citizens. agreed that Ihe loudest voices on either side of an issue should not be allowed to discourage OIher members of the community from feeling their participation is wanted and needed.

"You need to create a process in which people feel comfortable:' observed Tim Schwcckc. who h;lS served as Ravalli County planning director for the past five years. Otherwise. he ex plained. 60 percent of the people are afrJid to stand up and say. '11Iis is what we think:'

Schwecke was joined on the pand by Doris Milner. a pri vate ci tizen long ac ti ve in forest issues: Harvey Hackett. a private rancher: and Dale Berry. a business owner currently involved in forming.m Economic Development Authority for the Bitterroot. The panel was moderated by Kerry McMenus. planner for the Bitterroot National Forest.

Panel ists addressed three questions in their lO-minute t<llks: How do people get involved? What successes and challenges have they ex.perienced'! How wou ld they improve the proces.~?

Schwecke found thai breaking meetings into small discussion groups. instead of

a llowing individuals to address an entire group. increases chances for serious dialogue. That helps make meetings less confrom:uional and more invi ting to ci tizens who are imerested in the process bill ha\'c nOi already decided on a panicular point of view.

Panelists also acknowledged that lengthy processes discourage m:my ci tizens from taking pan . Says Schwecke: " If they can see a clear end to the process. they ,lfC

more likely to panicipate." Doris Milner ci tes the stan of her own

deep involvement in forest issues as stemming from seeing that "something that I

On {/ field Irifl. Hillt'rrool residems Sle.wm Hrondborg (/e/l) ,/lid /Joris Milner " ie'" /HISlers describing lire/oresl ecosyJfem. using the ecosysfl'm itself {IS {I backdrop. Photo by Clint Carlson.

Bitterroot Projects Link with Human Dimensions Protocols

At the Project workshop in March. Regional social scientist Cynthia Manning explained l ink~ between Human Dimensions research in the Bitterroot Ecosystem Management

C)'lIIirill Mall/rilrg dt'Jcribe.f Iinh bl'fll't'tlr hl/lllmr diml"r ~'iOtH fl'Sl'arc/r lIIrd prolocoil'.

6

Research Project and Regional protocols for addressing Social Context and Commu­nications Strategy. Research by Kathleen Guthrie and Steve McCool. School of Forestry. The University of Montana. addressed success of collaborath'e public involvement (see story. p. 7). Research by Rebecca Richards and Krista McClusky. Depanment of Sociology at the Universi ty. is assessing the potential for use of several public panicipation methods for Forest planning. Lolo National Forest economi .~ t

Fred Stewan described the Economic Context for ecosystem-based management. Manning described the Scenery Manage­ment protocol. Uer summary set the stage for landscape architect Bob Benson. who summarized visual preferences regarding restoration treatments.

cherished :l great dcal was being threat­ened." Because. she noted. the Bitterroot National Forest exists like a pair of arms embrJcing residents of the valley. all people who live there have sonle concern for how the fores t is managed.

Members of the public need to become' educated in order to be effective panici­pants. "Education has to come first:' Milner stressed. '''Try to communicate :l1ld look at the OIher person's point of view." Entering with pn.--conceived notions. she nOted. detracts from the overall success of the process.

Hackett concurred on the need for citizens to learn about the i~sues being discussed- to grab their old science textboob, or buy or borrow new ones. and find out what the facts are. Says U .. cke1\: "We have a great black hole of public ignorance about (the) connections" between soil. trees. and habitat. "My own challenge was to get the infomlation."

Business leader Dale Berry urged that the planning process not be viewed as a win­lose situ .. tion . Citizens. he advised, need to know that their views have been heard. Then. even if the final decision is not what they would have chosen. they 51ill know they contributed to its development.

Finally. Berry noted. the acceptabi lity of the finnl decision dcpends on having someone at the lOp who is not swayed by the most verba l panicipants or the most letters to the editor. "Somebody's gOl to step up 10 the plate and do what's right for the Bitterroot Valley_ the National Forest. and the community as a whole:' he concluded.

Resources and Materials for

Teachers FireWorks is a collection of hands-on materials <lnd curricula being developed at the Intermountain Fire Sciences Laboratory 10 help teach children about fire ecology. Nellt school year will be a "pi lot ye<l r" for the project. Ecologist Jane Kapler Smith and technician N:rncy McMurray, Intermountain Fire Sciences Laboratory. will introduce Fire Works to teachers at workshops in Mi ssoula. October 16 and 17. If you're imerested In allending, contact them at 406-329·4809. De\'c1opment of Fire lt0rks is supponed by the Rocky Mountain Research Stalion. the Bitterroot Ecosystem Management! Research Ilroject. and the Nonhern Region.

----------I~iUNAl l Thoughts from stevensville by Thomas G. Wagner, Slc\'cnsville District Ranger

Tom Wagller lI'a~' ~' elected ; 'Citj~ell of the )~(/r" jll JUli e by the Darby Cil'jc Grollp and was IlOlIared at Darby FilII Day, J lllle 28.

It is a sunny day in the Bitterroot Valley. as I sit down at my computer with some thoughtS on the planning effort for the Stevensville West Central area. My involvement in this project began when Leslie Weldon transferred 10 a new assignment and I was asked [0 fi ll in behi nd her as District Ranger in Stevens­vi lle. My new assignment included making a fina l decision on managcmcni actions analyzed with in the Stevensville West Central Environmental A~scssmcnl .

Thi s decision was unique in its usc of partnership. The partners included the Rocky Mountain Research 51:lIion. University of MOnlana. BillerrOQl National Forest. and many shareholders wi th interest in National Forest lands.

The partnershi p brought together many ideas. the latest resource mode ling technology. and important research on the

ecosystems of western Montana. Just as important. the effort included a deep com­mitment to respond to resource and human issues in a way allowing for sustainability o f these treasured lands. The first order of business for me. then. is to thank all partners for their personal and professional e fforts and their willingness to stuy with the process over the past three years.

The decision on management of this landscape is really only the beginning. What is now important is that all that planning be tmnsferred to the landscape in carefull y impleme nted projec t.~ that wil l address vegeta ti ve. watershed and other resource concerns. Our future meeti ngs will be able to look at on-the-ground results from the three years o f planning. so we can learn from them and make adjus tments for fut ure actions.

by Lucia Solon:lno Many Ways to View Success

A dictionary may define success as p lanning- fail s to address theSe! three simply a ""sati ~fac tory outcome or result:· innuences. Guthrie calls for a "tr.tnsactive"" but Kathleen Guthrie. a graduate in resource type of planning that is based on public conservation at the University of Montana involvement. uses dialogue and mutual Sc hool of Forestry, found measu ring learning to address scientific uncertainty. success to be much more complicated. and helps to reach agreement on goals.

Guthrie completed her master's thesis Guthrie used four working propositions this spring on the topic "Measures of to help define success: (I) managers are Success in Public Invoh'ement Processes: most likely to view success in terms of An investigation of how managers. product: (2) researchers are mOSt likely to researchers and ---------------------- defin e success members of the "Undersr(lIIdillg how dijferellf people in terms of public define define success is airicalto achievirlg learning; (3) success." Guthrie managers are studied the success ill the public illl'o/vemelll pro(:ess. " most likely to

Stevensvil le Southwest and West Central planning processes beeausc of their level of public involvement.

Obscn 'cs Guthrie: "Unden.tanding how different people define success i~ critical 10

achieving success in the public involvement process."" Guthrie interviewed 12 managers, 12 researchers. and 18 memhcrs of the public in over 60 hours of taped conversa­tion from August to November 1996.

Guthrie recognizes three factors that have inn uenced public involvement in recent years: (I )greater levels of involve­ment ini tia ted by members of the public and public officials: (2) scientific uncenainty about complex tOpics such a~ ec~ystem management; and (3) lack of agreement on the objectives of a process.

The tradition<ll approach to decision making-what Guthrie calls "top-down"

define success in terms of political acceptance: and (4) members of the public are most likely to have broader mea~urcs of success than product. learning. o r poli tical acceptance.

In interviews wilh people in\'olvOO in Stevens\ille planning efforts. Guthrie discovered only partial suppon for her first three working propositions. Regarding the founh. Guthrie found that private ci ti zens did uSe! product. learning. and pol itical acceptance to measure success. Her research and that of previous studies indicate that al least five other measures of success arc embraced by the public: education. a sense of ownership. opponuni­lies to voice and hear diverse concerns. building relationSh ips, and implementation.

To achieve success in plann ing. Guthrie suggests that members of the public be encouraged to get involved early in the

process and that they be made to feel they have the power to veto a project. Formal and informal mectings. potluck dinners, and field trips all can enhance panicipants' sense o f responsibility. personal re lation­ships, and education.

Guthrie concedes that transactive planning is costly in tenns of ti me. She notes that any big project "requires a lot or planning processes. Transacli\'e planning should be a piece of the process-not only a piece. but a good ,md big piece,"

Video Describes Public Involvement The collabor.lIive planning e ffort

for the Stcvcnsville West Central area occurred over 2 112 years and took 29 meetings, The process is documented in a 25-minute videotape produced and directed by University of Montana graduale Rick Pu kis. The video. " Bridges to the Future: Natural Resource Management and Public Involvement in the Bitterroot Ecosys­tem:' includes interviews with partici~ pants to assess the process and summa­rize recommendations. 1lte video is in draft foml and is a\'ailable for loan from Jane Kapler Smith, 406-329-4805.

7

Seeking Ways to Protect Native Grasslands by Lucia Solonano

The Sawmill Creek Research Natural Area in the Stevensville Ranger District is known for its fescue grassland. a valuable resource for e lk in winter and spring. But the area also hosts numerous exotic weeds that reduce the diversity of native plants and

forage for elk. Chris Toney and Peter Rice. researchers al the University of Montana. arc investigating various biologicaL chemical. and mechanical methods of weed management that may restore Sawmi lrs rich grassland.

Treatments began in 1995 with hand digging and chemical application of the

herbicide picloram (Tonlon 12K) on small colonies of leafy spurge. dalmatian toadfiax. and SI. 10hn's­wort ("goat weed"). According [0

Toney. "The level of control. .. has been very good so far. nearly 100 percent. Within the area treatcd. the (weed) species did not corne back. although we continue 10 find new spots popping up in other areas:'

Spraying .".eeds {I/ SmHlrill CruJ: ReJ'ea"'h N(lfltral Area. PhOIO by P('I(r M . Rice.

Two species of biological contro l insects. a moth and a weevil, were re leased on test plots containing spol1ed knapweed in 1996. About 2.000 adult knapweed root moths were freed in mUltiple releases, with future releases planned. The feeding

moth overwinters a.~ a larva in the knapweed TOOt and can kill small plants and prevent larger ones from flowering. About 360 root weevils were ulso releused lust year. Mass rearing and distribution of the root weevil are underway at the Montana Agricultural Experiment Station in Corvall is.

Spol1cd knapweed along old logging roads was treated last summer with the herbicide clopyralid (Transline): picloram was applied 10 knapweed in grasslands. Be­cause knapwecd responds to low rates of picloram. tre:llment selectively removes the knapweed until insect populations take hold, minimizing the need for long-term herbicide use.

Rice and Toney's study also looks at the value of various si tes as elk winter range. If reducing exotic weeds invigoratcs native grasses. what effect will heavy grazing by elk have on the grasses' recovery? The st udy compares vegetation on open plots with that on fenced plots. Elk pellets in open plots will be counted 10 measure elk utilization and its effect on native grass recovery.

Research Down in the Dirt by Lucia Solorzano

University of Montana soil scientists Tom DeLuca and Urszula Choromanska arc studying how fire exclusion, underburning, and selective cutting affect the health of ponderosa pine fores ts. They arc staning at the root of the problem-literally. The sc ient ists arc examining how diffe rent management pr<lClices influence nutrients in the soil. They hope to determine whether under-burning in ponderosa pine forests is bcl1er for the soil than fire exclusion. which can make forests more susceptible to severe wildfires.

T-SHIRTS AVAILABLE

The researchers compared si tes that had been managed (thinned or burned) prior to wildfire with adj acent stands not burned by wildfire. One site in the Bitterroot National Forest (Willow Creek-sec story. p. 11) includes a plot where a 1996 wildfire killed most of the ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir : a second plot that was prescribed burned prior to the wildfire: a third plot prescribed burned but not burned by wildfire; and a founh. unburned. plot.

Study sites on the Flathead Indian Reservation near Hot Springs enable DeLuca and Choromanska 10 study

Thi s spring. Missoula graphics anist Wendy Smith dcsigned a new banner for ECO-Report. Its graphic design depicts dialogue. Wendy says . "That's the driving force in your project: ' The design has been used in slide shows. on reports, and on the Internet. T-shirts have just been produced-white. with the design printed as a decal on the left side. T-shirts arc available in M. L. and XL sizes for $10.00. Call Chris Stalling at (406) 542-4153.

8

influences of commcrcialthinning. One of the three plots was thinned in 1978 and then burned by wildfire in 1994: a second plot had thinning but no hum: a third had neither thinning nor burning.

A third study site. also in the Biner· root. will show how biomass removal affccts nutricnt availability. Treatments include selection cutting with different levels of slash removed. with and without underburning: conditions on treated sites will be compared with those on an untreated si te .

DeLuca and Chorornanska report interesting differences between plots. Consistent with existing literature. the amount of mineral nitrogen available for plant uptake and potentially rnineralizable nitrogen was highest immediatel y after the wildfire at Willow Creek.

Two years after wildfire at the Flathead site. however. the amount of potentially mineralizable nitrogen on burned plots was significant ly lower than that on unburned plots. Ammonium and amino-nitrogen remained high right after fire. but their concentrations were low on older burns, probably due to uptake by plants. leaching. and volati lization.

Funher study will help determine whether underburning. with or wi thout thinning. enhances the amount of available nitrogen in the soil. from which healthy stands of ponderosa pines draw thcir strength.

Prescribed Burn in Whitebark Pine by Lucia Solorzano

The first successful prescribed burn in mature whitebark pine forest in the U.S. gives fresh hope \0 managers hoping 10 reverse a 6O-year decline in the health of thi s tree species, a major source of food for many mammals and birds in hi gh elevation areas.

Bob Keane, research forester at the Intermountain Fire Sciences Lab, hailed the October 2. 1996 fire at Smith Creek on the east slope of the Bitterroot Range as "an absolute success, the best example of what we can do with prescribed bums" to restore whitebark pine. In the absence of wi ldland fires. subalpine fir and spmce have sup­plamcd whitcbark pi ne ill many stands. Epidemi c~ of mountain pine beetle and Ihe exotic white pine blister rust have reduced whitebark pine numbers. Prescribed burns. according 10 Keane. reduce compet ition from fir and spruce but lack the severity of wildfires, so they allow the fire-tolerant whitebark pine 10 survive.

The lO-acre Smith Creek site. locatcd at an elevation of about 7.300 feet, contained an

ROOK CORN[R

Review by Bob Keane, Intermountain Fire Sciences Laboratory

To many. the wonder of nature is the intricate net of how living things relate to each other and to their environment. No relationship is more fascinating than that between birds and pines. Dr. Ron Lanner. recently retired from Utah Stilte University, tells an amazingly comple~ tale of how the C lark's Nutcracker. a bird species in the jay family. has evolved with several species of pine to have a rich symbiotic relationship that benefits both. The pines have evolved characteristics that facil itate the harvesting of their seeds by nutcrackers. These charac teristics include cones that do not open readily. Instead. they arc displayed above the branch (rather than hanging from it) , and they contain large nutritious seeds. What docs the pine get in retu rn? The nutcracker has a specialized pouch and feeding habits that enable it 10 efficiently eat and store the seeds. L1nner tells how nutcrackers cache many pine seeds in the ground for consumption lilter. Those seeds that remain unclaimed by the nutcracker will eventually grow into trees.

Many pine species have evolved with

unlogged whitebark pine stand that was underburned. Thi s stand is adjacent 10 a stand that was logged in 199510 create small openings that would e ncourage C lark's Nutcrackers 10 cache whitebark pine seeds. a step crit ical for regenerating the species. The prescribed fire burned more than 50 percent of the unlogged stand in two days: burn coverage of the logged stand was estimated at about 90 percent. Effects o f the treatment on whitebark pine growth. underslOry species. and fuel loadings will be monilOred over the ne~ t ten years. Prelimi­nary rcsults arc encouraging. Keane recalls that. two weeks prior 10 the burn. "seven nutcrackers were actually harvesting cones and caching them on the site that had been cut. right in front of our faces:'

Smith Creek was the firs t of three sites to be treated with prescribed fi re; the remaining two aTe at Coyote Meadows in the Sapphire Mountains and Bear Creek Overlook area in the Bitterroots.

A review of

PresCfibedfire IOrches a subalpine fir (If Smith Creek. PlrolO by Sle .. e Amo.

Made for Each Other-a Symbiosis of Birds and Pines. by Dr. Ronald M. Lanner

the Clark's Nutcracker, but Lanner uses the whitebark pine as the primary example of hird-pine symbiosis. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the book is its world­wide scope. Dr. Lanner also describes relationship~ between nutcrJckers and pines in Europe. Siberia. and Japan. Incred ibly, different species of nutcrackers and pines seem to have the same symbiosis in every continent in the northern hemisphere.

Made /or ElICh Olher is written for general audiences with some background in naturJI history and tree ecology. It does not contain complex scientific terminology. although it contains interesting references to the scientific literature. Lanner includes the importance of pines in human cultures. including those of Native American and Siberian peoples. Readers interested in taxonomy will be especially thrilled wi th Lanner's treatment of pine genealogy. Lastly, the author tells the sad story of the decline of whitebark pine in the northern Rocky Mountains. I think this book wi ll be in teresting and informative to all those who enjoy learning more about the complex web

Clark:~ Nutcracker. PholO by Clim Car/sOfl.

that we call nature, especially if they enjoy tramping through hi gh elevation ecosystems and watching birds.

Lanner. Ronald M. 1996. Made /or Each Other - a Symbiosis 0/ Birds alld Pilles. New York: Oxford University Press. 160 pages. $ I 5.95 (paper) IS BN 0-19-508903-0: $35.00 (cloth) ISBN 0 19-508902-2.

9

forest Health and Elk Populations b~' L .Illl'k Lyon

How do you balance hiding cover with forage for clk 'l A recent study l'omplctcd by William Koncerak set out \0 an .. wcr thi s ques ti on.

Konccrak "s study W:lS conducted hetween July <Inc! November 1995 .It 400 plot~ in the BiUcrroot Val ley. Study ~ it cs

included 25 stands where undcrburns had been conduc ted periodically si nce 1976 and 15 adjacent unburned siles. Konccmk measured the number and size or lrec;; and ~hrub .. on each si le. and the cover and height of selected forage species. Where undcrbuming had occurred. stands were da~ .. ificd according to the number of years , lIlee the IllSI prescribed burn ,

Koncerak found that. over time after fire. bOlh canopy closure and hiding cover return \0 nCiIr prcburn levels-canopy c losure wi thin 10 yeOl rs :lI1d hiding ('over within 20 ye;lrs, However. burned areOls OIlways had less cover than unburned areas. The mean hiding covcr value for unburned stands was 52 percen t. The meOln for burned stands was 8 percent in the firstlwo years. 16 percent at five years, and 23 percent after eight to 19 ) ears.

Winter range forage increased after underburning and remai ned above preburn levels fo r :lpproxi mately 15 years. There was no significant difference in shrub ('over between burned and unburned plots.

Konccf:1k ;,ummarized his re--.cardl by pre!>enting two alternative management sn:narios for a 10.000 acre land.,cape . The i n i tialland~cape contained 4.000 :lcre~ of thennal and hiding cover. 1,000 acrc~ of meadow. ;)nd 5.000 acres of fore!> t thaI did not qUOIlify as e ither hiding o r therma l cover. The elk habitat potemial (:111 indicator of habitat quality) fo r thi ~ land~capc was judged to be 85 perccnt.

F OREST HEALTH MANAGEMENT :

Under one management scenario. underburning was con fined to fores t stand~ already providing hiding or thermal co\'er. Elk habitat potcntial initia lly incrca~ed to 100 pe rcent but declined rapidly lIfter 60 percent of the st,lJIds had been burne~1. In the other sce nario. existing cover areas were protected and underburni ng treat­ments were confined to noncover fore sl

E L K WINTER RANGE AND HIDING .. t and.~. El k habi tat potential reached 100 l>e rcent when all such stands had been treated. Konccr .. k-s conclusion WOlS that underburni ng would benefi t e lk until 25 to 50 pcrccnt of the total landscape had been burned. This is probably a higher level of treat ment than is possible fo r land manag­e rs to realize.

C OVER

10 20 30 40

Mountain Lions: Part of the Neighborhood h)' Lud:t SolorZltnO

Mountain lion in the Binerroot Valley and ebewhere are n01 reac ting to human expansion into their territory a.~ wildlife biologists might expect. Shawn Ri ley. a ductonll candidate at Cornell Uni\'ersity If\

M/JImlnin lim! in Swnn Vnl/;y 1'1!()/li b.lf SIWlI'll Ri/(y .

Ithaca, NY, Wl\nt~ 10 know why. Over the pOl~t 40 ycar~. mountain lion

numbers ha\e rebounded throughout the "estern ~tates and provinces. becoming "more abundant in more plOlee~ than we could ha\e predicted." ,a) .. Rile). The mountain lion. lno" n for being a !>hy and reelu;,i'e pred;.nor. 1ll:IY be the on I) ~pecie .. of big clli on eanh 10

:lnd abundant large animal s for food , making ideal habitat for a predator that relic!> on qealth to stalk and ambu .. h its prcy.

Central to Riky's work i~ the human re'pon-.c to lions. II hich he hOls re('orded through per .. onal inter\ iews_ wri tten quc,tionnaire ... and an analysi~ of media

co\'cmge in Montana increa!>e at the ,:mle lime that hUlll;)n development Iw .. inten~ified.

" flol!" wild call wildlife ger IJejore theY're roo wild!"

nC\\l~paper ... Riley plan .. to intcgratc hi~ ecological finding~

A~ their number .. have grown. so have incident\ of lion-human encounter ... Sa), Riley: "~ I ountain lion, arc here. lind it i .. not a large \\ ildcrnc .... i .. ~ue: it ha~ become a ~uburban i,,~ue confronting most com­munities that intcrfal'c "ith the II ildlal1d .....

Rile) .~ re .. carch. "hich \\ ill be com­pleted Ihi, 'limmer. exallli nc~ ecological factoT!> th;)\ nl;lle the l3illcrruot Valley allractive habitat for mount .. in lion. The l3 illerroot ha~ rugged te rrain. dell!>e co\"er.

with pcopJc'~ r.::~pon .. e~ 10 help de~ign appropri:lte pol icie .. for llI11nl\ging lion~. "Ocpending on \\ hether people II ant to iIK"Tea .. c o r decrea-.c thc mountain lion population. there arc .. clcr,llthi ngs they Clln do:- ~ay, Riley. "Bul that dircction needs to be SCI by ",ocicl}:- not gO\emrnem offid:lI .. aIOII1':. " How wild can wild life gel before they're too \\ ildT a~k~ Riley. "Where thIN: line~ arc drawn depends on how ~ocil!ly per­ceivcs the rbks."·

10------------------------------------------------------

field Trips of the Past Year Visit to Larry Creek 8( Bass Creek

by Ja ne Kapler Smith

Last July 10. researchers. managers. and members of the public vis ited the slopes nonh of Bass Creek; after a picnic. they mmed on 10 riparian habit:u along Larry Cree l.. . SiJueen mcmbcr~ of the public participated. The group first Mopped in the mid" of the Biucrrool Valley to vicw changes in forc~ l ~ and fire potential along the Bitterroot Face. Then panicipants loured u'pcn and ponderosa pine forest undcrbumed in 1994: Stc\'cnwi llc assistan t fire management officer Leslie Anderson and \il\icuhu ri ~ 1 Cathy Stcw:lTI showed 'prouling aspen l.l1ld the patchwork of open forc,' alternating wilh thickets. which was fonned by varia tions in fire severity.

Aftcr dinncr. p:lrticipants refocused on riparian habitat. This IOpic broughtlOgclher re~earchers from three discipline~-all

viewing the fore st in a slightly different way. In a small areu upstreum frOIll the campground. M.m Arno explained his projeci 10 reSlore deciduous shrubs and trees in riparian habitat (~ee article. p. 2).

Bio log ist Dean Pearson displayed a red-backed vole captured on Sweeney Ridge and a deer mouse that was live-trapped the night before on Arno'~ research sile. Colon.-d nags indicated thc roUle~ thm small m~unmuls had uSc<110 crisscross the site the night before; nearly every tr.lillay alongside a fallen log- a panern that. Pearson ~aid. is typical of small mammals in fore.~ t h,lbitats, "They usc the logs and othcr woody debris for hiding and escape cover:' he explained. 'These are important habitat components when everyone in the forest is out to cal you.

Un iversity of Montana graduate student Josh Tcwksbury and Stevensv ille wildlife

/)f!(111 Pl!arsolJ (left) sholl'S a I'Olt ( 111( 1 a ilur moust on Lurn' Cru/(/it/d trip.

biologist Dave Lockman presented a third viewpoint about riparian habitat- that of small migratory bi rds. The birds were invited to speak for themselves. as the two biologists displayed, then released. a male and fe male American Redstart captured a few minutes earlier in delicate ·'mist nets:' Deciduous trees and shrubs are essential nesting habitat for these tiny forest residents. Tewks bury said. and thi s kind of

cover has become less plentiful over the past century. Without fire. deciduous cover has declined on riparian sites . Birds find fewer nest sites when they return from wintering in Central and South America.

Willow Creek by J ane Kapler Smith

Planned and unplanned fire interweave at the edge of the Willow Creek burn northeast of Hamilton. Last October, Stevensvil le Dist rict staff aCeOml)an ied about 65 members of the public to the area to look at the boundary of the wildlire. an arson fire that crowned in Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine on steep slopes las t August II. Wind-blown firebrands landed in areas that had been prescribed burned with low­intensity fire in the spring of 1995 and 1996, and they d idn 't spread. At the ridge that forms the boundary between the untreated area and the prescribed burns 10 the easi. the fire dropped 10 the ground and was contained there by firefi ghters.

Discussion from visilOrs on the fie ld trip focused on plans to salvage dead and dying trees from the wildfire area. Since the field trip. the analysis of the proposulto helicopter log thc fire killed trees has becn completed. and District Ranger Tom Wagner has signed a decision to implement the proposal. According to Rick Floch. limber resource coordinalOr at the Darby District. the planned harvest would cover only part of the area burned by wildfi re. Some dead trees would be left to mect wild life needs and to sustain the soil. The appea l period for the salvage sule ended June 23.

Managers, Planners Visit Sixmile by Lucia Solo rzu no

The song of Audubon warbleN and evening grosbeaks trilling through newly opened green sp,lces were early ~igns of renewed fore st li fe that g reeled nearly 50 panic ipants in a M3Y 20 field trip to the Sixmile Demonstration Site near Huson.

Re~earcher Joc Scott led p3rticipanls on u half-day look at three s ite, trea ted in 1993 with thinning. fuel rcmo\al. and burning to n:ducc the risk of wildlire. The treatments all differed slightly. however. to meet a separate purpose: on one s ile to maintain aesthetic value; on the ~ecolld 10 ohlain ~ubstantial re~enue: and on the third 10 promote fore~t rc' tor.ttiOll.

Thirty people attended the morning session. 16 the afternoon session. Partici­pants carne from the 1.010. Bitterroot.

Flatheud, Kootenai, Gallatin. Panhandle and He lena National Forests. They included Um\,ersi ty of Montana faculty and students. employees fro m Stone Container, an owner o f a small rogging finn . officials from the state Depanment of Fish. Wildlife. and Park~, and interested citi..:ens.

Participants walked through each treatment site, examining the effects of low­impact and convention31 thinning; haf\es t­ing done by hand or with commercial logging equipme nt : and various slash treatments. including a broadcast burn. Participants in the morning session were ~truck by the sounds of birds and abundant wi ldflowers present in the site treated for forest restoration. a lthough blackened ponderosa pine trunks remain.

A technical report discussing linal findings from the study sites is avai lable. Contact Stevc Arno. 406-329-48 13.

Ste"e S/cmglr/('f 111',fcribtl' /rl'lI/ml'lI/.1 (luring Sixmile field trip.

11

Landscape Analysis Links with Protocols b}' J. Cn'l! Jones

At the third annual Billcrrool Ecosys­tem Management Rc~c:lrch Project workshop. Regional Planne r Tom Rhode provided an o\'crvicw of landscape assessments for planning al various scales. and discussed Nationa l Foresl f\.'lan3gcmcnt Act rcquircmcnls. Jimmie Chew and Greg Jones discussed the regional protocols that provide input for SIMPPLLE (SIMulating \cgctathe Pallcms and Processes at Landscape scalEs), and the planning needs

addressed by SIMPPLLE. Grcg Jones discussed the regional protocols that provide input for MAGIS (Multi -resource Analysis and Geographic Inform:!!;on System). and Ihe planning needs addressed by MAG IS. Kootenai National Forest operations research analyst Dan Thompson discussed modeling larger geographic areas with Spcrtrum programs and Geographic Infonmltion System tools. Mike Sweet. Uni ve rs ity o f Montana. described re lationships of sate llite· imagery data to vegetation protocols.

Ecosystem Management means partnership Furthering lhe go~l s of th is projeet requires public participation in decision·making processes. Would you like to bt.'Come a partner?

For more information. please call or write 10:

(lill1on E. Carlson. Project Leader. Rocky Mount~in Research Station P. O. BOI{ 8089. Missoula. MT 59807. (406) 542-4151

Thomas G. Wagner. District Ranger. Stevenwil1e Ranger Dimict 88 Main Street. Stevensville. MT 59870. (406) 777·546 1

Professor Robert Pfister. The University of Montana. School of Forestry Mis.w ula, MT 598 12, (406) 243-6582

Visit BEMRP on the Internet! hnp:llwww.l{lIlission.com/-int with link to Wcb site or

http://www.forcstry.umt.edulbemrp

ECO-Report Bitterroot Ecosystem Management

Researeh Project US DA Forest Service

Rocky Mountain Research Station P.O. Box 8089

Missoula. MT 59807

Thinking Ahead: forest Plan Revision

by Sue Hea ld The Biuerroot National Forest staff is

beginning to revisc thc Forest Plan. a task the Forest is charged wi th completing every 15 years. Team members include Kerry MeMenus, planning staff officer; Jeff Amoss. resource staff officer: Rich Torquemada. wildlife and fi sheries progr.1Il1 o fficer: Jack Kirkendall. fire management officer: Gary Decker. hydrologist: Dan Riuer. recreation program officer: and Herb SprJdlin. wilderness manager. Sue Heald. ecologist and assistant planner. will lead the team. The assessment will provide District Ranger Tom Wagner and Forest Supervi­sor Steve Kelly with a foundation for eh.mging the Forest Plan and identifying fUlure projects . Te~m members will complete assessments on large port ions of the Forest. one area at a time. Much of the infonnation about the Bitlcrroots will come from previous projects such as Stevensville West Central. The effort will identify long term direction for the Fore.~t.

The planning team is currently in the process of deciding how 10 provide opportunities ror the public to be mean · ingfully in\'o lved in updating the Forest Plan . Please contact Sue Heald at 406-363·7 142 for more inronnation.