Traditional management of forests: plant and bird community responses to alternative restoration of oak–hazel woodland in Sweden

Published source details Hansson L. (2001) Traditional management of forests: plant and bird community responses to alternative restoration of oak–hazel woodland in Sweden. Biodiversity and Conservation, 10, 1865-1873.
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This study is summarised as evidence for the following.

	Action	Category
	Employ grazing in non-grassland habitats Action Link
	Thin trees within forests Action Link
	Manually control or remove midstorey and ground-level vegetation (including mowing, chaining, cutting etc) in forests Action Link

Employ grazing in non-grassland habitats

In a replicated study in four oak- Quercus spp. hazel Corylus avellana woodlands (average size 5.3 ha) in 1996-1999 in Uppland and Åland, Sweden (Hansson 2001), breeding and migrant birds were found to be more numerous in sites grazed from spring to autumn than in some abandoned sites (average of 12 breeding and 5 migrant birds in grazed sites vs. 2-4 in abandoned sites). However, abundances did not differ between grazed sites and those subject to brush cutting and tree thinning (average of eight breeding bird species and seven migrants), and migrants were less abundant than in sites under simulated traditional management (16 breeding birds and 12 migrants). Traditional management involved sites being cleared in spring, mown in mid-late summer and grazed in autumn. A total of 65 bird species were observed. Birds present in spring did not differ in abundance between management types.
Thin trees within forests

A replicated study in four oak-hazel Corylus avellana woodlands (average size 5.3 ha) in 1996-1999 in Uppland and Åland, Sweden (Hansson 2001), found that sites that were subject to brush cutting and tree thinning had similar numbers of migrant and breeding birds as grazed sites, and more than some abandoned sites. Sites under traditional management (cleared in spring, mown in mid-late summer and grazed in autumn) had higher abundances of migrant birds. This study is discussed in detail in ‘Employ grazing in natural and semi-natural habitats’.
Manually control or remove midstorey and ground-level vegetation (including mowing, chaining, cutting etc) in forests

A replicated study in four oak- hazel Corylus avellana woodlands (average size 5.3 ha) in 1996-1999 in Uppland and Åland, Sweden (Hansson 2001), found that sites that were subject to brush cutting and tree thinning (see ‘Thin trees within forests’) had similar numbers of migrant and breeding birds as grazed sites, and more than some abandoned sites. Sites under traditional management (cleared in spring, mown in mid-late summer and grazed in autumn) had higher abundances of migrant birds. This study is discussed in detail in ‘Employ grazing in natural and semi-natural habitats’.