Part of the Forest School Level 3 Online Training Course.

1. FOREST ECOLOGY
LEVEL 3 UNIT 1
A R C H I M E D E S E A RT H

3. Ecology is….
……..the study of the relationships between living
organisms, including humans, and their physical
environment; it seeks to understand the vital connections
between plants and animals and the world around them
(Ecological society of America)

4. Sustainability is….
• (for ecology)…the capacity to endure: how biological
systems remain diverse and productive indefinitely.

5. Conservation is…..
……….a state of harmony between men and land
A Sand County Almanac” Aldo Leopold – 1949

6. WHAT IS A FOREST?
That portion of a geographically large area dominated by trees.
As an ecosystem, it is meant to include all plants and
sometimes the animals dependent upon the trees and plants.
Smaller area of largely homogenous tree compositions are
called stands”.
• Only trees? A community? An ecosystem?
•Includes animals? Fish? Streams & lakes? Houses?
•How big of an area?
•Regeneration areas? Plantations? Christmas tree farm?
•Ecological processes like nutrient or energy cycling?

7. WHAT IS A FOREST?
The forest is a complex ecosystem consisting mainly of
trees that buffer the earth and support a myriad of life
forms. The trees help create a special environment which,
in turn, affects the kinds of animals and plants that can
exist in the forest.
(Edu.green)

8. FOREST ECOLOGY

9. COMPOSITION OF THE WOODLAND

10. STRUCTURE OF THE WOODLAND

11. FUNCTION OF THE WOODLAND

12. Vertical Structure is…
….The ladder like up and down arrangement of the
woodlands and forests
Co-Dominant Co-Dominant
Dominant
Intermediate Intermediate
Suppressed
Shrubs
Ground Cover

13. Horizontal Structure is…
……tree density within woodlands and across the
landscape because of the ground layer
40% 80% 100%

14. EDGES, SNAGS, AND FRAGMENTATION
Edge Effect
Forest Fragmentation
Green. 1995. Birds and Forests. P.55. UM-Cartography Lab.
Large Snags

15. ENERGY CAPTUREEnergyCapture
Trophic Levels
10%

16. ECOSYSTEM CYCLING
Gains
Losses

17. SUCCESSION
Grasses
& Herbs
Shrubs &
Saplings
Young
Forest
Mature
Forest
Old
Forest
Wisconsin DNR, 1995. Wisconsin’s Biodiversity as a Management Issue. P. 22.

18. SUCCESSION

19. DISTURBANCE
Forested ecosystems are dependent upon disturbance for
renewal and to provide biological diversity.
The plants and animals in a forest don’t know whether the
disturbance is caused by natural events or human-caused
events.
Natural Events
Fire
Wind
Animals
Flooding
Diseases/Insects
Human-Caused Events
Fire
Harvest
Pollution
Development
Exotic Introductions

20. WOODLAND & WILDLIFE
MANAGEMENT
Woodland ecosystems, flora and fauna (wildlife) is managed
by manipulating the forest to provide the kind and variety of
habitat needed for the specific goals of the woodland.

21. FORESTRY MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
• encourages plant diversity
• encourages forest regeneration
• causes multiple age distributions
• provides “edge”
• creates horizontal and vertical structure
• adds more micro-environments
• accelerates system metabolism & nutrient cycling

22. IDEAS FOR MANAGEMENT
In most parts of the country, forest is a small part of the landscape.
This ensures that Forest Schools Practitioners need to arrange
priorities for habitat management. To fulfill the stakeholder needs
across the board
1. Plant a variety of indigenous species
2. Leave large snags & large fallen logs
3. “Create” future tree cavities
4. Construct brush piles
5. Mix areas of varying vertical structure
6. Create small openings
7. Make habitat piles