Abstract
Modern timber management practices often influence forage production for elk (Cervus elaphus) on broad temporal and spatial scales in forested landscapes. We incorporated site-specific information on postharvesting forest succession and forage characteristics in a simulation model to evaluate past and future influences of forest management practices on forage values for elk in a commercially managed Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii, PSME)-western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla, TSHE) forest in western Washington. We evaluated future effects of: (1) clear-cut logging 0, 20, and 40% of harvestable stands every five years; (2) thinning 20-year-old Douglas fir forests; and (3) reducing the harvesting cycle from 60 to 45 years. Reconstruction of historical patterns of vegetation succession indicated that forage values peaked in the 1960s and declined from the 1970s to the present, but recent values still were higher than may have existed in the unmanaged landscape in 1945. Increased forest harvesting rates had little short-term influence on forage trends because harvestable stands were scarce. Simulations of forest thinning also produced negligible benefits because thinning did not improve forage productivity appreciably at the stand level. Simulations of reduced harvesting cycles shortened the duration of declining forage values from approximately 30 to 15 years. We concluded that simulation models are useful tools for examining landscape responses of forage production to forest management strategies, but the options examined provided little potential for improving elk forages in the immediate future.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature Cited
Alaback, P. B. 1982. Dynamics of understory biomass in Sitka spruce-western hemlock forests of southeast Alaska.Ecology 63:1932–1948.
Bradley, W. P. 1982. History, ecology and management of an introduced wapiti population in Mt. Rainier National Park, Washington. PhD thesis. University of Washington, Seattle, 274 pp.
Christensen, N. L., and L. S. Davis. 1984. Introduction: Linking wildlife models with models of vegetation succession. Pages 337–338in J. Verner, M. Morrison, and C. J. Ralph (eds.), Wildlife 2000: modeling habitat relationships of terrestrial vertebrates. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison.
Cooper, K. C. 1987. Seasonal movements and habitat use of migratory elk in Mount Rainier National Park. MS thesis. Oregon State University, Corvallis, 84 pp.
Cowan, I. McT. 1945. The ecological relationship of food of the Columbian black-tailed deer,Odocoileus hemionus columbianus (Richardson), in the coast forest region of southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia.Ecological Monographs 15:109–139.
Franklin, J. F., and C. T. Dyrness. 1973. Natural vegetation of Oregon and Washington. USDA Forest Service General Technical Report PNW-8.
Franklin, J. F., K. Cromack, Jr., W. Denison, A. McKee, C. Maser, J. Sedell, F. Swanson, and G. Juday. 1981. Ecological characteristics of old-growth Douglas-fir forests. USDA Forest Service General Technical Report PNW-118.
Garrison, G. A., and J. G. Smith. 1974. Habitat of grazing animals. Pages 1–10in O. Cramer (ed.), Environmental effects of forest residues in the Pacific Northwest. USDA Forest Service General Technical Report PNW-24.
Hanley, T. A. 1984. Habitat patches and their selection by wapiti and black-tailed deer in a coastal montane coniferous forest.Journal of Applied Ecology 21:423–436.
Hanley, T. A., C. T. Robbins, and D. E. Spalinger. 1989. Forest habitats and the nutritional ecology of Sitka black-tailed deer: A research synthesis with implications for forest management. USDA Forest Service General Technical Report PNW-230.
Harper, J. A. 1985. Ecology and management of Roosevelt elk in Oregon. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Portland, 70 pp.
Hemstrom, M. A., and J. F. Franklin. 1982. Fire and other disturbances of the forests in Mount Rainier National Park.Journal of Quaternary Research 18:32–51.
Henderson, J. A., and D. Peters. 1981. Preliminary plant associations and habitat types in the White River Ranger District, Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Portland.
Hett, J., R. Taber, J. Long, and J. Schoen. 1978. Forest management policies and elk summer carrying capacity in theAbies amabilis forest, western Washington.Environmental Management 2:561–566.
Hobbs, N. T., and T. A. Hanley. 1990. Habitat evaluations: Do use/availability data reflect carrying capacity?Journal of Wildlife Management 54:515–522.
Ivlev, V. S. 1961. Experimental ecology of the feeding of fishes. Yale University Press, New Haven, Connecticut.
Jenkins, K. J., and E. E. Starkey. 1991. Food habits of Roosevelt elk.Rangelands 13:261–265.
Jenkins, K. J., and E. E. Starkey. 1993. Winter forages and diets of elk in old-growth and regenerating coniferous forests in western Washington.American Midland Naturalist 130:299–313.
Juday, G. P. 1977. Location, composition and structure of old-growth forests of the Oregon Coast Range. PhD thesis. Oregon State University, Corvallis.
Leslie, D. M., Jr., E. E. Starkey, and M. Vavra. 1984. Elk and deer diets in old-growth forests in western Washington.Journal of Wildlife Management 48:762–775.
Mereszczak, I. M., W. C. Krueger, and M. Vavra. 1981. Effects of range improvement on Roosevelt elk winter nutrition.Journal of Range Management 34:184–185.
Meslow, E. C., C. Maser, and J. Verner. 1981. Old-growth forests as wildlife habitat.North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference 46:325–329.
NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). 1980. Climatological data: Washington annual summary. National Climatic Center, Asheville, North Carolina.
Raedeke, K. J., and J. F. Lemkuhl. 1985. A simulation procedure for modeling the relationships between wildlife and forest management. Pages 377–382in J. Verner, M. Morrison, and C. J. Ralph (eds.), Wildlife 2000: Modeling habitat relationships of terrestrial vertebrates. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison.
Raedeke, K. J., and R. D. Taber. 1979. Mechanisms of population regulation in western Washington forests forCervus andOdocoileus.Transactions of the International Congress of Game Biologists 14:69–79.
Shugart, H. H., Jr., T. R. Crow, and J. M. Hett. 1973. Forest succession models: A rationale and methodology for modeling forest succession over large regions.Forest Science 19:203–212.
Starkey, E. E., D. S. deCalesta, and G. W. Witmer. 1982. Management of Roosevelt elk habitat and harvest.Transactions of the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference 47:353–362.
Trainer, C. E. 1971. The relationship of physical condition and fertility of female Roosevelt elk (Cervus canadensis roosevelti). MS thesis. Oregon State University, Corvallis, 95 pp.
Wallmo, O. C., and J. W. Schoen. 1980. Response of deer to secondary forest succession in southeast Alaska.Forest Science 26:448–462.
Witmer, G. W., M. Wisdom, E. P. Harshman, R. J. Anderson, C. Carey, M. P. Kuttel, I. D. Luman, J. A. Rochelle, R. W. Sharpf, and D. Smithey. 1985. Deer and elk. Pages 231–258in E. R. Browne (ed.), Management of wildlife and fish habitats in forests of western Oregon and Washington. USDA Forest Service Publication Number R6-F&WL-192-1985.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jenkins, K., Starkey, E. Simulating secondary succession of elk forage values in a managed forest landscape, western Washington. Environmental Management 20, 715–724 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01204142
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01204142