Blue Ridge Country May/June 2024 - 10

Aging Gracefully
How important are old-growth forests to
the critters who live there?
BY NANCY HENDERSON
F
or many Blue Ridge residents, the term " oldgrowth
forest " might simply conjure up images
of tall trees, shade-loving wildflowers and
woodpeckers tapping in the distance. But it's not that
simple, says Todd Schneider, a wildlife biologist at the
Georgia Department of Natural Resources.
" There's no definition as far as size, but old growth
is basically virgin forest [that has never been logged] or
forest that has had a long time to recover [from some
type of disturbance]. It's a complicated, multi-level
structure. So you have the upper canopy, but then in
the middle you have different-age trees, a lot of dead
stuff on the ground that's rotting, decaying,
providing places for fungi and
other plants to grow. It's a much more
organically rich site. "
Not only do old-growth forests
lessen the effects of climate change
by storing large amounts of carbon
and filtering clean air; they provide critical habitat
for certain animals. In the Southeast, says Schneider,
some salamanders and invertebrates have " become
really tightly associated " with old forests and need the
habitat to survive.
" It's really a matter of those species being tied in a
LEFT TO RIGHT:
Cerulean warblers seem to have
a preference for old forests.
Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest is
home to 400-year-old trees.
kind of developmental or evolutionary sense to these
environments so they really get in the groove, " he
says. " That is what they're capable of living in, and
if you remove that, they fade out. The populations
decline. They sometimes go extinct. "
Because birds generally adapt better to changing
habitats than other critters, says
Schneider, most Blue Ridge avians
don't depend on old-growth forests,
although a few, like the Cerulean
warbler that spends its summers in
Southeastern woodlands, seem to
prefer the mix of thick canopy and
open gaps that let sunlight pour in.
Unlike in the western U.S., where the endangered
HELP PROTECT OLD-GROWTH FORESTS
* " Visit several of the sites, " says Todd Schneider, a wildlife biologist
at the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, " to get a
feel or impression of them, and a better understanding. "
* Volunteer to work with biologists at the U.S. Forest Service or
other agency to conserve these valuable woodlands, or make a
monetary donation.
* If you're a landowner who's willing to sell easements or
other rights to protect forested land on your property, contact
the appropriate conservation agency. Tax advantages and
incentive programs are available. Says Schneider, " They might
work something out with you, either actual outright buying or
some kind of long-term lease agreement, so that the land is
preserved. "
northern spotted owl and other imperiled species still
rely on old-growth habitat, says Schneider, " In the
East, there's very little old growth left. "
Over time, most native forests have been altered, at
least to some degree, by lightning strikes, fire, storms,
disease and clear-cutting.
" A lot of what we see nowadays, because we've
had a couple hundred years of heavy human intervention,
has been highly modified from what it was, "
Schneider says. " We lost things like the [American]
chestnut because of chestnut blight back in the early
1900s. That was a keystone species that influenced a
lot of this forest in the Blue Ridge Mountains. "
10 BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM
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Blue Ridge Country May/June 2024

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