Cooperative Research: Chequamegon-Nicolet and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission

The effects of logging on understory plants is studied

(Contributed by Greg Knight, 715-748-4875)

The Anishinaabe (Chippewa) bands that signed the Treaties of 1836, 1837, 1842, and 1854 retained hunting, fishing, and gathering rights within lands ceded to the U.S. Government. Much of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest is part of these ceded lands and is important to the Anishinaabe bands for hunting, fishing, and gathering.

Forest understory plants in particular are significant gathering resources and play an important role in Anishinaabe culture.

Forest management activities such a tree harvest can have effects on forest understory plant species, from direct impacts of the tree harvesting equipment operations to changes in sunlight levels reaching the forest floor from removal of harvested trees. Other potential impacts include an overall decline in understory plant species richness and cover and increases in non-native plant species. Past scientific studies of tree harvest impacts on understory plant species have been criticized for failing to distinguish tree harvesting impacts from pre-existing site differences. Therefore GLIFWC proposed a long term study that would document site conditions before and after tree harvest treatments in northern hardwood forest stands that are selectively cut as the common treatment in northern hardwood stands. The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest recognized the merit of assessing selective-cut logging impacts to understory plant species and agreed, through a Memorandum of Agreement, to work with GLIFWC staff to develop and implement this long term study (10 to 15 years) on the National Forest. The goal of this study is to document selective-cut tree harvest impacts to understory plants, and document if and how long understory plants recover to pre-tree harvest conditions. The presence of non-native species would also be noted in both pre and post harvest.

In 1997, four study sites with paired treatment and control plots, all with similar soil and vegetation composition characteristics and minimal disturbance since the 1920's, were selected within northern hardwood stands on the Medford-Park Falls Ranger District. Four to five years of pre-timber harvest data were collected on the plots and the data analysis revealed statistical differences in plant species richness between paired plots at sites 2 and 3 during the spring sampling period and site 4 during the summer sampling period. These differences pointed out the importance of several years of pre-harvest data collecting to take into account these differences between the paired plots when analyzing post tree harvest sampling data.

Currently, all four study sites have had tree harvest operations completed and post harvest data collecting is ongoing.