Date of Award:
5-2004
Document Type:
Thesis
Degree Name:
Master of Science (MS)
Department:
Wildland Resources
Department name when degree awarded
Forest, Range, and Wildlife Sciences
Committee Chair(s)
John C. Malechek
Committee
John C. Malechek
Committee
Dale L. Bartos
Committee
James E. Bowns
Committee
E. Bruce Godfrey
Abstract
The West has lost up to 60% of its historic aspen stands over the last century, probably as a result of the successional tendency of aspen to be replaced by coniferous species in the absence of periodic fires. One of several major impacts of this change is the loss of understory forage as conifer canopy cover increases. I measured understory biomass in aspen stands ranging from 0% to 81 % absolute conifer cover in the canopy and found that understory production declines exponentially as conifers replace aspen. I also did an economic analysis to determine the value of the forage that is not being produced by aspen sites due to a presence of coniferous species within the tree canopy. Study results indicate significant losses in forage, marketable through the sale of livestock, and losses in revenue generated through grazing fees for the USDA Forest Service.
Checksum
5473a5ddc1ec020cc552ae85b1f2f1be
Recommended Citation
Stam, Barton R., "Quantifying Losses of Understory Forage in Aspen Stands on the Dixie and Fishlake National Forests" (2004). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023. 6592.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/6592
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