Keepingour forests incheck

by Richard Robinson

n 2002, the Department ofConservation and Land Management

(CALM) set up a new program torecord and monitor the dynamicbiodiversity of Western Australia’ssouth-west forests and woodlands.Called ‘FORESTCHECK’, it combinesthe monitoring of invertebrates, fungi,lichens, flowering plants, vertebrates andthe physical attributes of forest structureinto one integrated program to gathermore cohesive information on thestatus of the State’s forest biodiversity.The program ensures that data aregathered on all groups of organismsfrom the same point in time and space,and uses standardised collectionmethods.This uniform approach allowsfor more accurate studies on theinteractions between these organismsand the effects of management on

biodiversity as a whole, without havingto make assumptions about the varyingenvironmental and climatic conditionsthat are inevitably recorded in separatestudies.

Collective careDeveloped through CALM’s

Science Division, with significant inputfrom a wide range of scientists fromother agencies, FORESTCHECKprovides forest managers withinformation about changes and trendsoccurring in key elements of forestbiodiversity associated with forestactivities. The program stems fromState, national and internationalobligations to ensure that our forestsand woodlands are managed in anecologically sustainable manner. It is along-term project that aims to have a

network of permanent sites—some ofwhich will be monitored every fiveyears or so—to continue to provideinformation on our forests for futuregenerations.The first major analysis ofinformation collected from the projectsince 2002 will be undertaken in 2006.

Considering the vast number ofspecies that inhabit WA’s south-westforests, the new monitoring program isan ambitious one. At present, theFORESTCHECK team is concentratingon the jarrah forests, with future plansto extend into other ecosystems. Up to20 research, technical and office stafffrom CALM’s Science Division aredirectly involved in gathering andanalysing information on the abundantplants and animals—including mammals,reptiles, birds, fungi, lichens andinsects—living in the forests, and onforest attributes such as structure, soilnutrients, soil disturbance, litter andwoody debris. Staff members fromlocal CALM districts in Donnelly,Wellington and the Perth Hills havealso assisted with the establishment ofmonitoring sites.

Logging forest activitiesSince the program started two years

ago, FORESTCHECK researchers

Facing pageMain Coral vine (Kennedia coccinea)with jarrah trees in the background.Photo – M & I Morcombe

Above The distinct brown and grey-banded fan-like fruit bodies of the turkeytail fungus (Trametes versicolor). Photo – Richard Robinson

Left Western pygmy possum(Cercartetus concinnus).Photo – Jiri Lochman

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I

The study of Western Australia’s diverse

range of flora and fauna has been

undertaken in State forests for many years.

These studies have generally focused on

individual species or communities.

Recently, however, a fully integrated

monitoring program that aims to better

understand and manage the amazing

biodiversity of our forests was initiated.

have set up permanent monitoring sitesin the southern and central jarrahforest regions around Manjimup andCollie. Now, as FORESTCHECKenters its third year, sites are being setup for this year’s monitoring in thenorthern jarrah forest surroundingDwellingup and east of Kelmscott.

The sites in the jarrah forest aredesigned to monitor the effects oflogging on biodiversity and the forest’srecovery following logging.These sitesinclude plots in unlogged forest, andforest that has been subjected toshelterwood and gap harvest methods.Shelterwood harvesting occurs whenthe trees are ready to be felled but thereis not an adequate number of saplingsestablished to take their place. Thetechnique involves the partial removalof trees to encourage seedlings toestablish and develop within the foreststand. Gap creation occurs when thestocking of saplings is adequate, andinvolves the near-complete removal ofthe overstorey to allow the saplings todevelop without obstruction, and toeventually become a new forest.

Top left Southern boobook owl (Ninoxboobook).Photo – Jiri Lochman

Above A nesting box in jarrahshelterwood near Collie.Photo – Lachie McCaw

Centre left The red and white mushroomof Cleland’s russula (Russula clelandii).

Left An orange crust lichen, Rhizocarponpolycarpum, found on small granite rocks.Photos – Richard Robinson

58 LANDSCOPE

Variety—the spice of forest lifeInformation gained from data

collected so far highlights theextraordinary diversity of life formsthat flourish in our jarrah forests. In thejarrah forest surrounding Manjimup andCollie alone, the FORESTCHECKteam has recorded the presence of1,670 species—and that’s after onlytwo monitoring periods. The widerange of plants and the unique animalshave always been a drawcard for peoplewho want to explore the south-westjarrah forest. But team members havediscovered an abundance of relativelyunknown species of invertebrates,fungi and lichens. Combined, thesethree groups account for three quartersof the total diversity recorded, andspecies in each group number in thehundreds. Compared with floweringplants and vertebrates, study on theclassification of invertebrates, fungi andlichens is limited.The majority of themare yet to be named, and manyspecimens have been collected andrecorded for the first time. Insects,alone, are so numerous that it wouldtake a disproportionate amount of timeto sort them into their respectivespecies, so only those larger than acentimetre are recorded, unless they area distinctive or targeted species. Fungiare also plentiful, but only those thatproduce visible fruiting bodies late inautumn, following the start of thesoaking winter rains, are recorded.

Functional fungi,invertebrates, lichens

Fungi are important in forestecosystems because they decomposedead plant and animal material andrecycle nutrients. The striking red andwhite Cleland’s russula (Russula clelandii)

belongs to a group of fungi that bind tothe roots of plants and help them takeup and absorb nutrients from the soil.Other fungi, such as the turkey tail fungus(Trametes versicolor) and the orange-footedmycena (Mycena carmeliana), decay woodand initiate the natural recycling process.

Recording the presence of fungirelies on them producing mushroomsor coral, puffball, cup and bracket-likefruiting structures (see ‘Forest Fungi’,LANDSCOPE, Spring 2002). But themajority of fungal fruiting bodies areshort-lived and only produced over ashort period of time, making them achallenge to monitor.

Invertebrates are also important as afood resource for other organisms suchas reptiles, birds and mammals. Insects,like native bees and jewel beetles, areimportant because they pollinate theflowers of plants. Many insects are well

hidden or only come out at night, sorecording the presence of species likethe Dryandra moth (Carthaea saturnioides)requires capturing them using lighttraps. Ground-dwelling insects, likecrickets, and other invertebrates, likescorpions, are caught in small pitfalltraps. Other insects, such as weevils, thatlive in the foliage of understorey treesand shrubs, necessitate the beating orshaking of branches to dislodge themonto a large sheet or tarpaulin.For large,dominant trees, it is difficult to recordwhat insects are present in the canopy,and this is perhaps why we know solittle about which species inhabit them.

Lichens are also important colonisersof harsh habitats such as rocks and baresoil. Because they absorb most of theirnutrients from the atmosphere, or fromthe surface of the object or plant onwhich they grow, they are good

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Right Regrowth jarrah forest.Photo – Dennis Sarson/LochmanTransparenciesInset graph Preliminary results fromFORESTCHECK indicate that thenumbers of species inhabiting loggedand unlogged jarrah forest are similar,and that the majority of the species arein the little known invertebrate, fungiand lichen groups.

indicators of ecosystem health. Manylichens are obscure, blending well intotheir surroundings, and seeing themrequires a keen eye. Others are brightlycoloured (see ‘Lichens’, LANDSCOPE,Autumn 2003). Some are found ontree trunks, while others, such asspecies of Usnea, commonly called ‘oldman’s beard’, grow on the branches ofmany shrubs. Flat crust-like species ofBuellia, Rhizocarpon and Lecanora can befound on the surface of rocks, and theleafy Thysanothecium hookeri is foundexclusively on termite mounds.

Early findingsWhile preliminary results from

FORESTCHECK suggest thatlogging in the jarrah forest has not hada major impact on the number ofspecies present, they do show thatdifferent species inhabit the logged andregenerating sites compared with sitesthat have not been logged. Howimportant this change in species

Top left A syrphid fly feeding on thenectar of a jarrah flower.Photo – Tom Chvojk

Above Small mushrooms of the orange-footed mycena (Mycena carmeliana) on a jarrah log.Photo – Richard Robinson

Centre left The spectacular Dryandramoth (Carthaea saturnioides) is caught inlight traps.Photo – Alan Wills

Left The echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus)and other native animals rely oninvertebrates as a food source.Photo – Jiri Lochman

60 LANDSCOPE

composition is, will be the focus of themajor data analysis planned for 2006.

Certainly, logging produces ageneral increase in compacted soils dueto log landings (where logs arestockpiled in the forest for transport)and extraction tracks that are used toretrieve them—and mapping thesetracks shows that, together, they coverabout 16 per cent of the cut block.

The southern area of jarrah forestsupports greater numbers of plantspecies and a higher proportion of marritrees. These forests tend to be denserand, probably because they are wetter,contain a few more species of weedsthan the forests further north. Resultsshow that gaps in the forest tend to bedensely stocked with saplings, but theirdensity in shelterwoods that have ahigh component of banksia and/orsheoak trees in them tends to bevariable.This is likely to be due to thethick cover of leaves and needles thatprevent the successful germination andestablishment of jarrah seed.

No rare plants have been recordedso far, but some rarely seen mammalssuch as echidnas, pygmy possums anddunnarts have been captured andreleased. However, numbers ofmammals were very low or notrecorded in areas that had not beenbaited for foxes. Both boobook andmasked owls have also been recordedduring night spotlight studies.Scorpion flies (Austromerope poultoni),caught in both light and pitfall traps,are endemic to Western Australia and arelict species that has survived in thesouth-west from the time of theancient Gondwanan forests.

Forests for the futureForests are important habitats that

harbour much of the biodiversity ofsouth-west Western Australia.They arealso necessary for human recreationand social well-being, while some areasare an important source for forestproducts such as timber and minerals.Management of our forests—whether

for nature conservation, recreation,timber production or mineralextraction—has some impact on theecology, and the plants and animalsliving there. Programs likeFORESTCHECK, that are committed

to monitoring these impacts, producethe necessary information to helpprotect our native forests andinhabitants, so that they will surviveand thrive well into the future.

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Right Gnarled veteran jarrah treesprovide essential habitat for many nativeanimals. Photo – Lachie McCaw

Richard Robinson is a research scientist at CALM’s Science Division ResearchCentre in Manjimup. He can be contacted on (08) 9771 7985.

The staff involved in FORESTCHECK are: Tom Burbidge, Ray Cranfield, Janet Farr,Tom Hamilton, Karina Knight, Graeme Liddelow, Glenda Lindsay, Shelley McArthur,Lachie McCaw, Amanda Mellican, John Neal, Kirsten Pearce, Richard Robinson,Bob Smith, Verna Tunsell, Bruce Ward, Kim Whitford, Alan Wills and Lin Wong.

CALM is very appreciative of the many people from other agencies who attendedworkshops and provided comment during the initial development stages ofFORESTCHECK, and to the Forest Products Commission which contributes to thefunding of the program.

The FORESTCHECK concept was originally proposed by the Science Division’sDirector Neil Burrows and Science Adviser Ian Abbott, and is now coordinatedthrough the Science Division Research Centre at Manjimup. Staff involved can becontacted at the centre on (08) 9771 7985.

Annual FORESTCHECK Reports can be viewed and downloaded from the ScienceDivision website at: www.naturebase.net/science/science.html