Keyword: ecosystems

• Landscape Ecology and Natural Disturbances: Relationships to Biodiversity.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0154.htm
  in that increasingly precious global treasure - biodiversity. British Columbia's natural ecosystems have all evolved, and are still evolving, under the influence of natural disturbances such as wildfire, wind, and insects. To maintain a range of ecosystems and habitats and to maintain biodiversity, a new approach in forest management applies the concepts of landscape and disturbance ecology. ...

• Field studies of seed biology.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0184.htm
  ulture literature are generally not applicable, and traditional ecological studies (e.g., of seed banks) tend to be primarily descriptive with little emphasis on experimental approaches. The primary objective of this manual is to detail methods that have been gleaned from the literature and from personal experience of the authors. It is a manual of methods with some general guidelines and interpretation. Relevant background papers are cited where appropriate, but it is not a literature review. The manual is intended for use by researchers in public and private forest resource management agencies, universities, and colleges. Although specifically directed to tree seed research in forested ecosystems, many of the methods described can be used to study seeds of graminoid, herb, and shrub species in both forest and non-forest plant communities. The extensive background information included in the text also provides valuable reference material for many who have an interest in tree seeds, but who are not dir ...

• Assessing and responding to the effects of climate change on forest ecosystems.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0188.htm
  Assessing and responding to the effects of climate change on forest ecosystems. ...

• Year-to-year variations in the water and energy balances of forest ecosystems.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0209.htm
  Year-to-year variations in the water and energy balances of forest ecosystems. ...

• The effect of climate change on forest ecosystems in British Columbia.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0211.htm
  The effect of climate change on forest ecosystems in British Columbia. ...

• A provincial correlation of regional forest vegetation potential and brush hazard interpretations.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0308.htm
  A database has been compiled from regional site identification and interpretation field guides to summarize vegetation management interpretations for the ecosystems of British Columbia. This project summarized existing vegetation potential, brush hazard, and vegetation complex interpretations to evaluate similarities and differences of interpretations applied to similar ecosystems in different forest regions. Three sorts of the database are given and the results summarized by (1) site association, (2) biogeoclimatic ecological classification (BEC) variant and site series (BEC units), and (3) vegetation potential / brush hazard. Regional field guide vegetation potential descriptions were compared and found to be similar in nature but dissimilar in content. The range and frequency of vegetation potential are given for approximately 72% of the BEC units within British Columbia. Most of the extreme to high vegetation potential entries occurred in the CWH, ESSF, ICH, and SBS zones. The CWH zone was the most ...

• A system for the classification of seral ecosystems within the biogeoclimatic ecosystem classification system: first approximation.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0453.htm
  A system for the classification of seral ecosystems within the biogeoclimatic ecosystem classification system: first approximation. ...

• Variable stand-density yields of natural lodgepole pine stands in Alberta.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0628.htm
  In Management of lodgepole pine ecosystems. Symp. Proc. D.M. Baumgartner (editor) Coop. Ext., Wash. St. Univ. Press, Pullman, Wash. Vol. I, pp.186-207. ...

• An annotated bibliography on forest-range ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0662.htm
  An annotated bibliography on forest-range ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest. ...

• A field guide for identification and interpretation of ecosystems of the northwest portion of the Prince George Forest Region.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0686.htm
  A field guide for identification and interpretation of ecosystems of the northwest portion of the Prince George Forest Region. ...

• A field guide for identification and interpretation of ecosystems of the Rocky Mountain Trench, Prince George Forest Region.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0692.htm
  A field guide for identification and interpretation of ecosystems of the Rocky Mountain Trench, Prince George Forest Region. ...

• Describing ecosystems in the field.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0763.htm
  Describing ecosystems in the field. ...

• Classification and interpretation of some ecosystems of the Rocky Mountain Trench, Prince George Forest Region, British Columbia.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/0773.htm
  Classification and interpretation of some ecosystems of the Rocky Mountain Trench, Prince George Forest Region, British Columbia. ...

• Evaluation of the effectiveness of Chondrostereum purpureum for the control of mechanically brushed trembling aspen suckers in a 2-year-old conifer plantation: Third-year results.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1082.htm
  Several vegetation control options are currently available to British Columbia foresters. Some of the more common options, such as herbicide application or manual brushing operations, may be limited in their effectiveness for a number of reasons. For example, public opposition may curtail the operational application of herbicides, while site conditions may preclude the use of manual brushing of competing vegetation (Boateng and Comeau 1997). Other less common methods may be restricted in their use to specific ecosystems. The Research Branch of the B.C. Ministry of Forests, in partnership with the Canadian Forest Service, the Biology Department of the University of Victoria, and Mycologic Inc., are currently involved in testing the use of a fungus, Condrostereum purpureum, as a method of controlling vegetation that competes with planted conifer seedlings. The purpose of this research was to evaluate promising methods for managing vegetation in conifer plantations. Condrostereum purpureum is an ideal can ...

• Wetland ecosystems of interior British Columbia.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1101.htm
  Wetland ecosystems of interior British Columbia. ...

• Climate change: implications for the Boreal forest.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1124.htm
  The findings of the recent IPPC Second Assessment Report conclude that the boreal forest is more sensitive and will be more affected by climate change than either temperate or tropical forests. Results suggest that over the next century in response to projected changes in temperature and moisture patterns the boreal ecosystem will undergo major changes in ecosystem boundaries, growth and natural disturbances related to fire and insects. This paper outlines the key highlights of the IPCC and more recent literature in terms of the effects of climate change for the boreal forest over the next 100 years. As well, the boreal forest appears to be responding to environmental changes that have occurred over the last century and more particularly over the last 30 years. Changes in boreal ecosystems related to the permafrost zone, vegetation productivity, disturbances related to fire and the carbon cycle have been noted. This paper reviews some of the major highlights of the changes that have been noted. Many of ...

• The ecology of wetlands.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1144.htm
  This extension note describes the basic ecological features of wetland ecosystems. It is a foundational document that provides important concepts and background information to be applied in future extension notes on wetland management. Major topics and concepts covered in this document are: definition of a wetland ecosystem and comparison of characteristics with other related ecosystems, recognition of the different applications of the term "wetland ecosystem" at site and landscape scales, major environmental factors and their effects on wetland ecosystems, classification of wetland ecosystems, successional patterns in wet-land ecosystems, natural disturbance regimes of wetlands, role of reserves in protecting wetland ecosystems, regional variation in wetland abundance and characteristics, and some important management issues for wetland ecosystems in British Columbia. ...

• From here to eternity: The perils of policy analysis.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1145.htm
  IN: C. Hollstedt, K. Sutherland and T. Innes, Editors. Procedings: "From science to management and back: A science forum for southern interior ecosystems of British Columbia." Southern Interior Forest Extension and Research Partnership, December 1 - 2, 1999, Kamloops, B.C. pp. 55-58. ...

• Analysis of livestock use of riparian areas: literature review and research needs assessment for British Columbia.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1148.htm
  Riparian areas are diverse, productive, and important to the overall ecological framework of British Columbia. There is heightened awareness of the potential effects of resource management activities in riparian areas. This concern is encapsulated in riparian regulations and guidelines of the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act. Information regarding livestock use of riparian areas was compiled and reviewed as a .first step in developing research to address the information needs of riparian area management in British Columbia. Literature on the effects and interactions of livestock grazing in riparian areas throughout North America was reviewed. Six general conclusions were drawn from the synthesis and review of the literature: Most of the available information on livestock–riparian interactions is primarily applicable to arid ecosystems (equivalent to, or drier than, the Bunchgrass biogeoclimatic zone), Most of the available information on livestock–riparian interactions is applicab ...

• British Columbia Forest Service's Science Program: Science to support sustainability.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1182.htm
  The prime mandate of the BC Forest Service's Forest Science Program is to bring scientific innovation to bear on sustainable forest management. For over 80 years, its staff has been an integral part of many significant changes to forest policies and practices. Decentralized researchers are in direct contact with local forest managers and resource users throughout the province, ensuring a focus on operationally relevant research as well as providing an accessible source of best available scientific knowledge to support policies and practices. Five core research activities within the program, including growth and yield, silviculture, forest genetics, ecology and earth sciences, yield valuable short and long-term information about how to sustain ecosystems, enhance timber production and manage forests for a variety of resource uses. In cooperation with partners and clients in universities, institutes, government agencies, the forest industry and others in both research and extension, program scientists and st ...

• Forest ecosystems of Canada pilot project - Developing an empirical data protocol for correlating Provincial/Territorial forest ecosystem classification elements.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1192.htm
  Forest ecosystems of Canada pilot project - Developing an empirical data protocol for correlating Provincial/Territorial forest ecosystem classification elements. ...

• Riparian Areas: Providing Landscape Habitat Diversity
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1214.htm
  Riparian areas represent less than 10% of the provincial land base, but are often considered the most dynamic of all landscape features. Natural disturbances and fluvial processes continually work together in these areas to create distinctive ecosystems that are crucial for biological habitat diversity. Because of their usually abundant supplies of water and nutrients, most riparian sites are highly productive for timber. Riparian ecosystems also exert a great influence over animal and plant life, and many wildlife species depend on riparian areas in some way for food, water, security, rest, travel, and reproduction. However, because riparian areas usually occupy the lowest topographic positions in landscapes and have natural connections throughout the watershed, they are particularly sensitive. Many of the known negative effects of historical land-use practices on forested riparian areas resulted from a focus on the individual stand or stream reach. Resource managers now realize that a larger landscap ...

• Seral Stages across Forested Landscapes: Relationships to Biodiversity
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1215.htm
  Various plants and animals rely on different forest ecosystem "stages" to meet their habitat needs. Grizzly bears, for example, can range over hundreds of square kilometres in search of the food resources available in open and young forests before hibernating deep in mature forests. Some plant species can only develop on open, treeless, freshly disturbed sites, while certain canopy-dwelling insects spend their entire lifetime on the broad lichen- and moss-covered limbs of a single ancient spruce. During spring and summer, deer may sample tender herbs in clearcut areas, but, in severe winters, retreat several kilometres to protective old-growth stands. Landscapes and the ecosystems that compose them "age" through time. The process of forest aging called "succession" transforms the composition of forested ecosystems as biotic communities respond to and modify their environment. Succession is an important topic in landscape ecology because of its significant effects on landscape diversity and the subseque ...

• Effects of nitrogen and boron fertilization on foliar boron nutrition and growth in two different lodgepole pine ecosystems.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1239.htm
  Effects of nitrogen and boron fertilization on foliar boron nutrition and growth in two different lodgepole pine ecosystems. ...

• Adaptation to climate change in forest management.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1243.htm
  BC Journal of Ecosystems and Management, Volume 4, Number 1. ...

• Coarse woody debris: inventory, decay modelling, and management implications in three biogeoclimatic zones.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1342.htm
  BC Journal of Ecosystems and Management 5(2):14-29. ...

• Review of Global Climate Change and Human Impacts on Forest Ecosystems, J. Puhe and B. Ulrich, Ecological Studies, Vol. 143, Springer, Berlin, 2001.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1347.htm
  Review of Global Climate Change and Human Impacts on Forest Ecosystems, J. Puhe and B. Ulrich, Ecological Studies, Vol. 143, Springer, Berlin, 2001. ...

• Adapting Forest Management to the Impacts of Climate Change in Canada.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1390.htm
  This report identifies a range of ways that climate change may impact human and economic systems (e.g. market impacts, land use change, availability and cost of raw material supply, change in habitat and our ability to preserve ecosystems in fixed boundary parks, etc). It does not however focus on the role of Canadian forests in sequestering carbon, as this has been covered in detail elsewhere. The report also considers factors that may influence our capacity to adapt. These factors include inherent features and properties of social systems (such human capital and social capital), policy and institutional factors, and awareness and processes by which risk perceptions are socially constructed. The ultimate goal is to isolate the most vulnerable systems and regions, and to understand why these systems and regions are vulnerable so that impacts of climate change on vulnerable elements of Canadian society can be reduced. This report provides a synthesis of conceptual approaches that can be used to assess vulne ...

• Spatial climate data and assessment of climate change impacts on forest ecosystems.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1392.htm
  Spatial climate data and assessment of climate change impacts on forest ecosystems. ...

• Climate change impacts and adaptation in forestry.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1395.htm
  ductivity is presented. Many forest ecosystems and species will have to adapt autonomously because management can only influence the timing and direction of forest adaptation at selected locations. In general, society will have to adjust to however forests adapt. Sustainable forest management already embodies many of the activities that will be required to respond to the effects of climate change on forests. Including adaptation to climate change as part of forest planning does not necessarily require a large financial investment now with an unknown future payback time. ...

• Adaptation to climate change in forestry management: challenges and responses.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1396.htm
  Future climate change will bring changes in the range of occurrence of species, in forest disturbance and in forest growth. These changes in turn will affect society's ability to use forest resources. We already take account of climate in forest management and utilize many of the activities that will be required to respond to the effects of climate change on forests. However, many forest ecosystems and species will have to adapt autonomously because management can only influence the timing and direction of forest adaptation at selected locations. In general, society will have to adjust to however forests adapt. There are numerous challenges that will need to be address in developing and applying adaptive action. These include revising expectations of forest use, determining research and educational needs, development of forest policies to facilitate adaptation, and determining when to implement responses. It is important to start now assessing forest vulnerability to climate change and developing adaptatio ...

• Adaptation to climate change in forestry.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1397.htm
  Climate change adaptation strategies for the forest management sector should be based on the application of vulnerability assessment or risk management concepts. A planning framework for facilitating adaptation in forestry must address biophysical and socio-economic impacts, and will include policy and institutional considerations. The framework requires us to analyze the situation and assess current and future vulnerabilities of forests to climate change. We can then develop risk management strategies that include actions needed now and in the future to aid responses to climate changes. Adaptation needs to reduce current vulnerability to climate change and speed recovery after disturbance in a changed climate. The adaptation plan should include monitoring of the state of the forest to detect change. An example of using this framework to adapt to changing forest productivity is presented. Many forest ecosystems and species will have to adapt autonomously because management can only influence the timing and ...

• Development of a Research Strategy for Mountain Pine Beetle Issues Associated with Forest Stewardship Division Functions.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1411.htm
  The current mountain pine beetle (MPB; Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) epidemic is the largest known outbreak in British Columbia’s history. This outbreak has resulted in serious implications for ecosystems, communities, and local economies, and many issues have arisen that require research for an adequate resolution. The Chief Forester of British Columbia therefore requested the initiation of a research strategy as a step in resolving these important issues. The development process for the Mountain Pine Beetle Stewardship Research Strategy involved four steps: analyzing the forest stewardship needs, analyzing the research knowledge gaps, prioritizing the knowledge gaps, and writing the MPB stewardship research strategy. The needs analysis involved the identification of stewardship issues by both client groups and researchers; researchers also identified research projects that are planned, under way, or completed. During the gap analysis phase, this information was used to determine the gaps in ...

• Garry Oak (
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1421.htm
  This field guide covers the native plant communities with a component of Garry oak (Quercus garryana) in British Columbia. It is a guide to identification of these communities, which can be applied to the woodlands, savannah, meadow, and rock outcrops within and near the zone of influence of oak canopy. The guide does not cover very specific occurrences, such as vernal pools, or the broader set of associated ecosystems that help form the Garry oak landscape. In the background work (Erickson 1996, 1998, 2002b) on which this guide is based, Garry oak ecosystems were interpreted as a climax conditioned by a natural disturbance regime. This would occur within a smaller geographic scale than that addressed by the provincial biogeoclimatic ecosystem classification (BEC). In the BEC context they are placed as seral in comparison to climax Douglas-fir forest on circum-mesic sites, and could possibly be considered as a disclimax. This guide does not focus on management, which is addressed only via rankings a ...

• Fire effects on selected shrubs, trees, amphibians, birds, and mammals in Garry oak and associated ecosystems.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1423.htm
  Fire effects on selected shrubs, trees, amphibians, birds, and mammals in Garry oak and associated ecosystems. ...

• Fire effects on selected bryophytes, lichens and herbs in Garry oak and associated ecosystems.
  http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/pubs/pubs/1424.htm
  Fire effects on selected bryophytes, lichens and herbs in Garry oak and associated ecosystems. ...