Pacific-slope Flycatcher
Pacific-slope Flycatcher
Forest condition: Old Growth/Mature Forest
Habitat Attribute: Deciduous Canopy/Subcanopy Trees
Habitat Objectives
Landscapes: Within landscapes >1,000 ha (2,500 ac), maintain
– approximately 90% as late-successional coniferous forest that includes a high percent of unfragmented core areas of densely canopied forest and patches of thinly canopied forest interspersed with patches of mixed coniferous-deciduous forest and deciduous forest (includes riparian habitat) (2-10%) with site-level habitat conditions as described below.
Sites: Where ecologically appropriate in forests >40 years old provide
– >20% deciduous canopy cover, particularly where associated with riparian zone or wet site deciduous trees especially red alder.
Sites: In harvest units with deciduous tree site potential, retain all deciduous canopy trees near the riparian zone (i.e., within one tree length of outer boundary of existing riparian buffer) to expand potential suitable nesting and foraging habitat.
Sites: Riparian buffer zones within harvest units should be >40 m (130 ft) wide to provide suitable habitat and should meet site-level habitat conditions described above.
Habitat Conservation Strategies
– In forests managed for wood products with an existing deciduous canopy component, extend rotation age to >80 years to allow for development of canopy and sub-canopy gaps for suitable foraging habitat.
– Conduct conifer tree thinning where there is potential for understory development of deciduous trees, particularly in wet sites. Conduct thinning early in forest development (<20 years-old) to enhance competitive opportunities for deciduous trees, and minimize short-term effect of reduced canopy closure and suitability of habitat.
– Where deciduous trees have been retained from earlier successional stages, ensure release of these trees by thinning of conifers shading them out.
– If deciduous trees have not been retained from earlier successional stages and the site is suitable, conduct thinning in scattered patches (variable-spaced) to open up the canopy and allow for understory development of deciduous trees adjacent to the closed-canopy conifer dominated forest.
– Conduct repeated thinning as necessary in conjunction with a longer rotation to maintain a deciduous canopy component for a longer period of time.
– When conducting thinning activities, minimize mechanical impact on shrub cover to maintain this desired feature.
Cited Plan
