Abstract
• Aims
Six sampling alternatives were examined for their ability to quantify selected attributes of snags and hardwoods in conifer-dominated riparian areas of managed headwater forests in western Oregon.
• Methods
Each alternative was simulated 500 times at eight headwater forest locations based on a 0.52-ha square stem map. The alternatives were evaluated based on how well they estimated the number of hardwoods and snags per hectare and their basal area per hectare using root mean square error and percent bias.
• Results
In general, 3.6-m wide systematic strips oriented perpendicular to the stream outperformed the other alternatives. However, the variance of all six sampling alternatives was quite high and further research is needed to determine an optimal sampling method for quantifying hardwood and snag attributes in forests dominated by live conifers.
• Conclusion
When sampling snag and hardwood as a minor component of the overall forest composition within a riparian area, we suggest using 3.6-m strips perpendicular to the stream.
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Acknowledgment
We thank Timothy Drake and Andrew Neil for their support during the data collection phase of the project, and Dr. Jeremy Groom for his insights and comments on an earlier draft. We greatly appreciate the Bureau of Land Management and the DMS site coordinators for their support and encouragement.
Funding
We greatly acknowledge the cooperation and financial support provided by the Pacific North West Research Station (agreement number: 04-JV-11261953-414).
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Handling Editor: Barry Alan Gardiner
Contribution of co-authors
Theresa Marquardt collected data and wrote most part of the manuscript.
Dr. Hailemariam Temesgen wrote part of the manuscript, contributed to the design and analysis of the simulations, and handled reviews.
Dr. Paul D. Anderson wrote part of the manuscript and contributed to the Discussion section.
Dr. Bianca Eskelson conducted part of the simulation, prepared the figures, and critically reviewed the manuscript.
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Marquardt, T., Temesgen, H., Anderson, P.D. et al. Evaluation of sampling methods to quantify abundance of hardwoods and snags within conifer-dominated riparian zones. Annals of Forest Science 69, 821–828 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13595-012-0204-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13595-012-0204-5