The project is being directed by Drs. Casey Huckins of MTU's Department of Biological Sciences and David Flaspohler of the School of Forestry and Wood Products. They are interested in the relationship between certain types of forest characteristics (such as age and composition of forest stands) and local avian and aquatic communities.
"Riparian forests provide vital ecosystem services in the form of wildlife and fisheries habitat and also maintain stream and lake water quality," says Huckins. "These forests are connected hydrologically, chemically, and biologically through the transport of water and nutrients from uplands to riparian zones and eventually into downstream waters. Forestry and road-building activities can change the landscape in ways that disrupt normal ecosystem processes."
He notes that buffer strips of uncut timber are commonly left along riparian corridors in recognition of the potential effects of timber harvest on ecological processes along streams. But it is generally acknowledged that the characteristics of buffer strips must be tailored to individual site characteristics, so a fixed prescription may not be appropriate.
"There has been extensive research describing how riparian zones are affected by forest management," says Huckins, " but most of that has been in the western States and we feel there is a real need for comparable research in the upper Great Lakes region."
The Michigan Tech study will focus primarily on mixed northern hardwood forests and will compare data from older forests that were selectively cut as many as 50 years ago with data from younger stands that were cut in the past 10 years.
"Timber cutting and associated road building can have significant effects on aquatic habitat," he says. "It can result in increased sand loading in streams and this affects fish spawning conditions and can also affect habitat for stream macroinvertebrates, which are important food for trout and other species such as sculpins and darters. Logging can also increase water temperatures and that's not good for trout."
Avian ecologist Flaspohler notes that forestry practices can have an impact on bird populations by altering the type of tree species and cover available. This, in turn, can affect the type and number of insects in the logged area.
"We're dealing primarily with migratory song birds such as warblers, vireos, grosbeaks and flycatchers that live in riparian areas along small streams," he says. "Any practice that reduces the amount of insects in an area diminishes the food supply for these birds."
Flaspohler says the Michigan Tech research team will look at riparian areas before and after timber harvesting to determine whether cutting causes a change in bird and insect species and will also determine what bird species inhabit upland areas
as opposed to riparian areas.
"We also plan to look at how beaver activity affects stream habitat," says Flaspohler. "We'll have an opportunity to check stream conditions and aquatic populations before and after beaver dam removal. We'll also be able to see if beaver damming activity affects bird populations."
He says that long range plans call for the MTU team to expand its study to examine the effects of timber cutting on entire watersheds. "We hope to use the data we collect to help the ongoing process of defining the best management practices for this region," he says.