Clearcut and re-seed forests

Overall effectiveness category Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)
Number of studies: 2
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How is the evidence assessed?

Effectiveness

30%
Certainty

35%
Harms

0%

Calculating overall effectiveness category

Study locations

Key messages

One of two replicated studies from the USA found similar bird densities in clearcut and re-seeded sites as in sites under other managements.
A replicated study from the USA found that pine stands replanted with native pines held more scrub-sucessional species than stands managed with tree thinning, midstory tree removal and burning.

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

A replicated study in 1991 in Ocala National Forest, an area of sand pine Pinus clausa scrub in Florida, USA (Greenberg et al. 1995), found similar densities and species richness of birds in areas that were clearcut and ‘brake-seeded’ (i.e. direct seeding on to small, machine-made mounds), compared with areas that were burned, or were clearcut with the understorey also mown. Results were similar for the breeding season (389 birds/km²and five species for clearcut and re seeded areas vs. 581 birds/km², six species for clearcut and mown; 389 birds/km², five species for burned) and winter (894 birds/km²and 11 species for clearcut and re seeded areas vs. 594 birds/km², ten species for clearcut and mown; 531 birds/km², 12 species for burned). Shrub-nesting species were most abundant in mown plots. In summer, the threatened Florida scrub-jay Aphelocoma coerulescens was evenly distributed across plots, in winter it was found only in re-seeded plots. All management occurred 5-7 years before the study in 1991.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Greenberg C.H., Harris L.D. & Neary D.G. (1995) A comparison of bird communities in burned and salvage-logged, clearcut, and forested Florida sand pine scrub. The Wilson Bulletin, 107, 40-54.
A replicated study in 1995-1996 in pine Pinus spp. savanna in South Carolina, USA (Krementz & Christie 1999), found that stands managed for red-cockaded woodpeckers Picoides borealis held fewer scrub-successional species than stands where non-native pines were removed and replanted with longleaf pines Pinus palustris (31-36 species in managed stands vs. 54-55 in replanted stands). However, no differences in survival rates were apparent for Bachman\'s sparrow Aimophila aestivalis (a near-threatened species), indigo bunting Passerina cyanea, and combined scrub-successional birds between stand types. Management for woodpeckers involved tree thinning, midstory tree removal and burning.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Krementz D.G. & Christie J.S. (1999) Scrub-successional bird community dynamics in young and mature longleaf pine-wiregrass savannahs. Journal of Wildlife Management, 63, 803-814.

Please cite as:

Williams, D.R., Child, M.F., Dicks, L.V., Ockendon, N., Pople, R.G., Showler, D.A., Walsh, J.C., zu Ermgassen, E.K.H.J. & Sutherland, W.J. (2020) Bird Conservation. Pages 137-281 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

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This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Bird Conservation

Related Actions

Actions	Effectiveness	Studies	Category
Mow or cut natural grasslands Action Link	Trade-off between benefit and harms	6	Synopsis Link
Protect nest trees before burning Action Link	No evidence found (no assessment)	0	Synopsis Link
Use patch retention harvesting instead of clearcutting Action Link	Likely to be beneficial	2	Synopsis Link