Silviculture In Central And Southeastern Oak-Pine Forests

Abstract The objective of this chapter is to document the Neotropical migratory bird NTMB communities of eastern pine-oak and oak hickory forests and provide information on how silviculture practices affect those bird communities. The area covered is the southeastern pine-oak forests from Virginia to eastern Oklahoma and eastern Texas and the oak-dominated forests northerly, particularly the midwestern United States. Eastern pine-oak and oak-hickory forest are characterized by conifers and hardwoods, particularly pines and oaks in the south, oaks and hickories northerly from the east to midwest, and bottomland hardwoods along rivers and streams. Climate is generally mild and annual precipitation averages about 100-150 cm. The moderate climate and diverse vegetative systems support abundant and diverse wildlife communities. The current Neotropical migrants found in this region represent a group of robust species that were able to survive the drastic land use practices of the 1800s and early 1900s. Species associated with old-growth forests have declined. Exotics, and species associated with man-altered habitats and younger forests have generally increased over the long term (Smith and Petit 1988). Silviculture, or the culture of trees, is the manipulation of forest stand establishment, composition, and growth. Even-aged stands are regenerated by clear cuts, seed tree, or shelter wood cuts, uneven-aged stands usually are re generated by individual tree or group selection.