New Research
Shows Nearby National, State Forests Have Less Plant Diversity
|
Chequamegon-Nicolet
National (photo by Joshua Mayer)
|
New research shows tribal forests in northern Wisconsin have
older trees, and better plant diversity and tree regeneration than
surrounding state or national forests. Researchers with Dartmouth
College and the University of Wisconsin-Madison published their
findings in a recent issue of the journal Ecology
and Society.
Study authors examined forests on four Indian reservations in
northern Wisconsin, including the Menominee, Bad River, Lac du Flambeau
and Lac Courte Oreilles reservations. Tribal forests retained essentially
all of their plant diversity from 50 years ago, said Don Waller,
study author and professor of botany and environmental studies at
UW-Madison. He said many of the differences between tribal and off-reservation
lands seem to be linked to an overabundance of whitetail deer.
"The deer seem to be curtailing tree regeneration. They've decimated
the understory, cover and diversity in many areas, including those
state parks that banned hunting for many years," said Waller. "On
the Indian reservations, we have lower deer densities and a different
approach to managing both forests and wildlife."
According to the study, tribal forests hosted 25 to 50 percent
fewer deer per acre. One reason for the lower density of deer on
reservations is that tribes and their members tend to harvest deer
at higher rates, said Jonathan Gilbert, director of the Biological
Services Division with the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife
Commission.
"It's their cultural regulations that permit this. Tribal members
are out harvesting deer for food primarily," said Gilbert. "They
want to be able to do that during a broad range of times so not
only during nine days in November."
In addition, tribes have looked to diversify forest cover in
order to ward off potential ecological or economic challenges, according
to Marshall Pecore, forest manager for Menominee Tribal Enterprises.
"I think they're able to withstand a lot of these big unpredictable
future changes like climate change and the like," said Pecore.
He said more diversity within the forest gives the tribe more
flexibility in facing those challenges over the long-term.
Waller said their research suggests forests may benefit from
changes to deer or forestry management.
"We can learn that if we harvest deer in a different way and
if we harvest forests in a different way, we can better retain plant
diversity. We can ensure higher tree regeneration," said Waller.
"We can store and sequester more carbon and biomass in our forests,
addressing some of the greenhouse gas problem that we face."
The study is good information that may help guide future management
decisions, said Brad Hutnik, silviculturist for the Division of
Forestry at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
"We're always looking for long-term studies that are looking
for trends within the landscape that can inform our management,"
said Hutnik.
He added state foresters are trying to provide county deer advisory
councils with better information to help guide deer management recommendations.
"When we work with citizen deer advisory committees now through
forestry, we're actually working on a process to get them better
information about forest regeneration at a county level," said Hutnik.
"Just like the tribes are looking at this, we can also use very
good information at a local scale to help them make recommendations
about management within a county."
In a statement, Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest Supervisor
Paul Strong said the research provides more insight into land management,
as well as the policies, people and natural processes that play
a role.
"Many factors are affecting the ability of forests to sustain
the social, economic, and ecological values they can provide," wrote
Strong. "These kinds of studies help shape future evaluations and
decisions."
|