Adaptive silviculture for wildlife: Supporting forest biodiversity through forest climate adaptation

Background/Question/Methods

Anthropogenic climate change has altered the abundance, distribution, and species richness of many wildlife and plant communities. Rising temperatures and changing precipitation are moving species’ climate niches, and species are expected to range shift poleward, upslope, and to deeper depths to keep up. The northeastern region of the United States is particularly at risk for losing unique habitat, including the northern hardwoods and boreal ecosystems that are found at their southern edge there. To protect forest health, silvicultural approaches are being considered to address recent and future climate change impacts. However, little research has investigated how to manage forest for wildlife persistence in the face of climate change. We analyzed camera trap data taken in three types of adaptive management plots and in the surrounding Northern New England landscape. The camera traps have been active for the last five years, capturing changes in biodiversity and species behavior driven by climate change. Approximately 100,000 images have been recorded from 2016-2021, including conservation species of concern American marten, snowshoe hare, and moose, as well as white-tailed deer.

Results/Conclusions

We have found that the moose and white-tailed deer populations are altering because of their climatic niches are changing. This research works with state and federal resource managers, as well as regional researchers, to inform them of the impacts of the different types of forest manipulation and coproduce research questions related to impacts of wildlife on forest and vice versa. Ultimately, the results from this research are to inform forest management techniques to support the persistence of northern forest wildlife in the face of climate change.