Monitoring ecological recovery of reclaimed wellsites: Protocols for quantifying recovery on forested lands.

We developed a scientifically robust and financially sustainable monitoring protocol to enable a consistent assessment of ecological recovery of physical, chemical, and biological indicators at certified reclaimed industrial wellsites in forested lands in noutheastern Alberta. Using the developed protocols, data can be generated from measurement of soil, vegetation, and landscape indicators at reclaimed wellsites and adjacent reference sites. We selected the appropriate vegetation, soil, and habitat indicators for a long-term reclamation monitoring program and have provided sampling protocols for the selected indicators here. The protocols may be used to identify and prioritize indicators of reduced ecosystem health and to track ecological recovery of reclaimed sites over time. The development of these integrated monitoring protocols is a first step towards successful and consistent long-term monitoring to assess ecological recovery of certified wellsites in Alberta. These protocols can be applied to wellsites and other similar sized disturbances in other forested regions too.

A framework for adaptive monitoring of the cumulative effects of human footprint on biodiversity.

Effective ecological monitoring is imperative in a human-dominated world, as our ability to manage functioning ecosystems will depend on understanding biodiversity responses to anthropogenic impacts. Yet, most monitoring efforts have either been narrowly focused on particular sites, species and stressors - thus inadequately considering the cumulative effects of multiple, interacting impacts at scales of management relevance - or too unfocused to provide specific guidance. We propose a cumulative effects monitoring framework that integrates multi-scaled surveillance of trends in biodiversity and land cover with targeted evaluation of hypothesized drivers of change. The framework is grounded in a flexible conceptual model and uses monitoring to generate and test empirical models that relate the status of diverse taxonomic groups to the nature and extent of human "footprint" and other landscape attributes. An adaptive cycle of standardized sampling, model development, and model evaluation provides a means to learn about the system and guide management. Additional benefits of the framework include standardized data on status and trend for a wide variety of biodiversity elements, spatially explicit models for regional planning and scenario evaluation, and identification of knowledge gaps for complementary research. We describe efforts to implement the framework in Alberta, Canada, through the Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute, and identify key challenges to be addressed.

Alberta biodiversity monitoring program - monitoring effectiveness of sustainable forest management planning.

A conceptual model of sustainable forest management is described based on three connected and necessary components: Policy/Strategic Planning, Operational Planning, and Effectiveness Monitoring/Science. Alberta's proposed Forest Management Planning Standard is described as an example of operational planning. The standard utilizes coarse and fine filter approaches to conserving biodiversity and sets requirements for implementation monitoring. The Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Program (ABMP) is described as an example of effectiveness monitoring supporting Operational Planning. The ABMP is a rigorous science-based initiative that is being developed to monitor and report on biodiversity status and trends throughout the province of Alberta, Canada. The basic survey design consists of 1656 sites, 20 km apart, evenly spaced on a grid pattern across Alberta. Sites will be sampled over a five-year period at a rate of 350 sites/year. Standardized sampling protocols will be used to cover a broad range of species and habitat elements within terrestrial and aquatic environments, as well as broader landscape-level features. Trends and associations detected by ABMP products will be validated through cause-effect research. ABMP focuses research on critical issues and informs both operational planning and the development of policy and strategic-level plans. The Alberta Forest Management Planning Standard and the ABMP are described as key components to implementing resource planning based on ecosystem management principles.

Effects of Patch Size on Birds in Old-Growth Montane Forests.

Following habitat alteration or fragmentation, competition, parasitism, and predation from species that live in the new habitats may reduce the survival and reproductive success of species living in the original habitats. Negative influences from species that live outside the remnant patches are expected to be greater in small rather than in large remnant patches because more "external" species are expected to move through the centers of small remnant patches. We surveyed birds within remnant patches of old-growth montane forests on Vancouver Island, Canada, (1) to evaluate whether the richness and abundance of non-old-growth bird species were larger at the center of small rather than large patches and (2) to evaluate whether the opposite was true of old-growth bird species. More non-old-growth bird species were present at the center of small remnant patches of old growth than in large old-growth patches. We found no relationship, however, between patch size and richness or abundance of old-growth bird species at the center of remnant patches of old growth. This was true for old-growth species with open, cup-shaped nests and cavity nests. Old-growth birds may have been affected less in our study area than in other areas because they evolved within heterogeneous montane forests and interacted with non-old-growth species throughout their evolutionary histories or because the contrast between old-growth forests and logged areas was less than that between the forests and agricultural/urban areas that were surveyed in other studies. Efectos del tamaño de parches sobre las aves en bosques primarios de montaña.

Resumen: Luego de la alteracion o fragmentación del hábitat, la competencia, parasitismo y predación de especies que viven en los nuevos hábitats pueden reducir la supervivencia y el éxito reproductivo de las especies que viven en sus hábitats originales. Se espera que las influencias negativas por parte de las especies que viven fuera de los parches remanentes, será mayor en los parches pequeños que en los grandes, dado que se espera que una mayor cantidad de especies "externas" se traslade a través de los centros de los pequeños parches remanentes. Estudiamos pájaros dentro de los parches remanentes de los bosques primarios de montaña en la Isla de Vancouver, Canadá, para (1) evaluar si la riqueza y abundancia de especies de pájaros en los bosques no-primarios fue mayor en el centro de los parches pequenños que en el centro de los grandes y (2) evaluar si ocurría to opuesto con las especies de pájaros de los bosques primarios. Una mayor cantidad de especies de pájaros de bosques no-primarios, estuvieron presentes en el centro de los parches remanentes pequeños de los bosques primarios que en los parches de mayor tamaño. Sin embargo, no encontramos relación alguna entre el tamaño del parche y la riqueza o abundancia de las especies de pájaros de bosques primarios en el centro de los parches remanentes en los bosques primarios. Esta situación se observó para las especies de bosques primarios con nidos abiertos en forma de taza y nidos en cavidaaes. Los pájaros de los bosques primarios podrían haber sido menos afectados en nuestra área de estudio en comparación con otras áreas, porque evolucionaron dentro de bosques montaños heterogéneos e interactuaron con especies de crecismiento no-primario a través de sus historias evolutivas o por que el contraste entre bosques primarios y áreas taladas es menor que entre bosques y áreas agriculturales urbanes que han sido consideradas en otros estudios.