ConserveOnline - Current Status, Limitations and Need for New Approaches to Increase Knowledge of Anadromous Habitat Distribution in Alaska's Coastal Forests, by Brian J. Frenette

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Current Status, Limitations and Need for New Approaches to Increase Knowledge of Anadromous Habitat Distribution in Alaska's Coastal Forests, by Brian J. Frenette

By Web Admin on 6/5/2007 | Keyword(s): Session i: alaska's wild salmon program

The coastal forests of Alaska are some of the last remaining temperate rainforests in the world, and propagate thousands of kilometers of anadromous streams producing millions of salmon annually. The terrain is abrupt with elevations quickly reaching upwards of four thousand feet within a short distance from sea level which in turn forces precipitation amounts ranging from as little as 76 cm annually (inland), to more than 10 m annually (outer coast). The resulting geologies and climate of this landscape are diverse, and all play a large role in the formation and productivity of both terrestrial and aquatic habitats. However, the vegetation is dominated by large Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) and Western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla) in the overstory, with a variety of herbaceous species in the understory making identification of aquatic habitats difficult to see using traditional remote-sensed data (i.e. aerial photographs). The end result is that many streams are typically missing from existing maps. This results in inadequate consideration during land-use planning, and has led to conflicts between landowners and regulatory entities. We are exploring spatial modeling as a way to improve our knowledge of how these important aquatic habitats are distributed across the coastal forest ecosystem, and develop a predictive tool for use in GIS by land managers during the planning process.

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