Introduction to the FIA Down Woody Materials Indicator1st of 3 Part Training Series
Christopher WoodallDWM National Indicator Advisor
Outline
• Indicator Updates• What are Down Woody Materials?• Why Collect DWM data?• Sampling Design Theory
Indicator Updates
• No sample protocol changes• Field manual updated in 2004• Web-site updated• DWM sample design and analysis in press –
NC-GTR-256• Web-based dissemination of data and wider use
of data
Definition of DWM
Dead material within forests in various stages of decay such as fallen trees,
branches, and leaf litter
The FIA program places numerous forest ecosystem components into the
DWM Indicator
DWM ComponentsCoarse Woody Debris
Duff
Slash
Shrubs/Herbs
FineWoodyDebris
Litter
Coarse and Fine Woody Debris
Transect Diameter Class Name
0.00-0.24 inches Small FWD
0.25-0.99 inches Medium FWD
1.00-2.99 inches Large FWD
3.00+ inches CWD
Fuel-Hour Classes
Transect Diameter Class Name Hour-Class
0.00-0.24 inches Small FWD 1-hour
0.25-0.99 inches Medium FWD 10-hour
1.00-2.99 inches Large FWD 100-hour
3.00+ inches CWD 1000+-hour
Duff and Litter
“unrecognizable plant parts”
“dead plant material on forest floor surface”
Slash/Residue Piles
Piles of CWD
Shrub and Herbs
“Live and dead shrubs/herbs including
grass, herbaceous woody plants, and
vines”
Fuelbed
“Depth of the fuel’s complex, from forest
floor to the tallest fuel component”
Why collect DWM data?
• Indicator of Forest Health• Wildlife Habitat• Fuels Estimation• Carbon Estimation• Completes Life Cycle of Trees
Indicator of Forest Health
SoilsCrown Condition
Down Woody Materials
Ozone Injury
LichensVegetation
Structure and DiversityTree Damage
Wildlife
The DWM Inventory describes the amount and condition of wildlife habitat through estimation of coarse woody debris attributes.
Wildlife
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
1800
2000
Il IN IA KS MI MN MO NE ND SD WI
State
ft3 /acr
e
Mean estimates of CWD volumes for forests of the North Central Region
Wildlife
68%
17%
14%
1%
3.0-7.9 8.0-12.9 13.0-17.9 18.0+
Transect Diameter (in)A40%
1%
20%6%
33%
1 2 3 4 5
Decay ClassB
Proportions of coarse woody debris pieces per acre by transect diameter (A) and decay class (B) (1=least decayed, 5=most decayed), Indiana, 2001-2003
Fuels1-hr
10-hr
100-hr
Total Fine Woody Debris
Fire Science
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
1-hr 10-hr 100-hr 1000-hr Duff Litter
Fuel Classes
Tons
/acr
e
NC StatesEco Prov 212PRNLBWCA Non-Blow DownBWCA Blow Down
Estimates for DWM in
Boundary Waters Canoe
Area Compared to rest of region
Carbon Estimation
Estimates of Regional Carbon Pools for
Coarse Woody Debris
Estimates for International Treaties
and Criterion Indicators
DWM and National Inventory
Completes inventory of trees from living, to dead, to decomposed
Microplot Sapling
Sub-plot Tree
Sub-plot Standing
Dead
DWM Down and Dead
Summary of DWM Components
DWM Sampling Theory
DWM diversity requires a diversity of sampling methods
DWM Component Sampling Design
CWD, FWD Transect
Duff, Litter, Fuelbed
Simple Random Sampling at Specified Points in Sub-plot
Shrubs and Herbs Micro-plot
Slash Piles Sub-plot
Sampling on the Sub-Plot
N
4 3
2
1
MicroplotSubplot
Slash Piles
Similar to sampling phase two trees, if a center of a slash pile
coincides with a subplot it is
considered an “in” slash pile
Sampling on the Sub-Plot
FIA Subplot
“out” slash pile“in” slash pile
Slash piles are sampled across all
four subplots
Sampling on the Microplot
6.8 ftRadius
In order to estimate shrub/herb heights and
coverage for forests (fuel ladders)
estimate shrub/herb heights and coverage
occurring on micro-plot
Depth Estimates on Subplot
Duff
Litter
Fuelbed
In order to estimate depth of duff, litter,
and the fuelbed on a subplot…
12 sample points located for measurement on
subplots
Depth Estimates on Subplots
4 3
2
1
Sample Locations
Transect Sampling
FWD and CWD pieces are not all counted within a given area
rather…
All FWD and CWD pieces that intersect a sampling plane are
tallied
Transect Sampling
Probability of match stick intersecting
randomly placed line related to number of sticks and length of
line
Transect Sampling Planes
Fuel Bed
IntersectingSampling
Plane
CWD Pieces
DWM Sample Protocol establishes 6 foot tall sampling transects that radiate from FIA subplot centers to intersect fine woody pieces
CWD and FWD Transects
Use 3 transects established on each subplot to sample CWD, one transect on each subplot to
sample FWD4
30°
150°
270°
30°
150°
270°
30°
150°
270°
30°
150°
270°
3
2
1
Bringing it all Together
Key
N
430°
150°
270°
30°
150°
270°
30°
150°
270°
30°
150°
270°
3
2
1
Transect Information
FWD < 0.25”& 0.26”-0.99”
FWD 1.00”-2.99”
CWD => 3.00”
6 ft. s.d.
10 ft. s.d.
24 ft. h.d.
s.d.= slope dist., h.d.=horizontal dist.
Sub-plot
Micro-plot
CWD Transect
FWD Transect
Distances between sub-plot points: 120 ft., Distance from sub-plot center and microplot center: 12 ft., Distance betweenSub-plot 1 and sub-plots 2, 3, and 4: 207.8 ft. at angles (degrees) 150, 210, and 270 respectively.
Conclusions
• The DWM indicator estimates numerous ecosystem components
• Data Crucial to Fire, Carbon, and Wildlife Sciences
• Integral Part of National FIA Program, Completes Tree Life Cycle
• Series of different sampling techniques for estimation of various DWM components applied to phase two plots