Louisiana's

Forests, 2013

Sonja N. Oswalt

United States Department of Agriculture

Forest Service

Southern

Research Station

Resource Bulletin

SRS–210
About the Author

Front cover: top left, Echinacea pallida wildflowers on the Kisatchie National Forest. (photo courtesy of the U.S. Forest Service); top right, sunset 

over Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge, Louisiana. (photo by Steve Hillebrand, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service); bottom, Louisiana black bear 

(Ursus americanus luteolus). (photo by Pam Mcllhenny, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Source: NCTC Image Library). Back cover: top left, nest site 

for red-cockaded woodpecker in Louisiana. (photo by Steve Hellebrand, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service); top right, Echinacea pallida wildflowers on 

the Kisatchie National Forest. (photo courtesy of the U.S. Forest Service); bottom, dusky gopher frog, a species that relies on longleaf pine forests. 

(photo by John A. Tupy, U.S. Department of Agriculture).

Sonja N. Oswalt is a Forester with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, 

Southern Research Station, Forest Inventory and Analysis Research Work Unit, 

Knoxville, TN 37919.

www.srs.fs.usda.gov

Newborn Louisiana black bear cub. [photo by Darren Boudreaux, USDA Natural Resource Conservation 

Service (NRCS)]
Louisiana's

Forests, 2013

Sonja N. Oswalt

Baldcypress tree at Lacassine 

National Wildlife Refuge 

in Louisiana. (photo by 

Steve Hillebrand, U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service)
ii

FOREWORD

The Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) 

unit of the U.S. Department of Agriculture 

Forest Service, Southern Research Station 

(SRS) conducts continuous inventories 

of forest resources in 13 Southern States 

(Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, 

Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North 

Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, 

Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia), as well as 

Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

It is a collaborative partnership with the 

Southern Group of State Foresters of these 

States, the Southern Region National Forest 

System, and State and Private forestry.

This bulletin presents the findings of the 

2013 survey of Louisiana, which includes 

field data collected from 2001 to 2013 and 

includes 2,736 forested plots out of 5,582 

total plots. A total of 3,848 plots from 2009 

to 2013 were used to calculate growth, 

removals, mortality, and area change. 

Sixty-nine percent of the total plots were 

remeasured plots and these include 1,887 

About Forest Inventory and Analysis Inventory Reports

forested plots. While sample protocols, 

processing procedures, and definitions 

have changed over the decades since FIA 

sampling in Louisiana began, attempts have 

been made to harmonize the data when 

possible. This data represents the most 

comprehensive data collected on public and 

private lands in the State.

Tabular data collected by FIA is available to 

the public through various tools accessible 

via the Internet at http://srsfia2.fs.fed.us/. 

Data referenced in this report were obtained 

from the Forest Inventory and Analysis 

Database on May 11, 2015. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The SRS gratefully acknowledges FIA field 

personnel, Information Management, 

and Technical Publications for their 

dedication, hard work and assistance. We 

also appreciate the cooperation of other 

public agencies and private landowners for 

providing access to measurement plots.

Nest site for red-cockaded 

woodpecker in Louisiana. 

(photo by Steve Hellebrand, 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
iii

Contents

Page

About Forest Inventory and Analysis Reports ............................................................ ii

Foreword....................................................................................................................... ii

Acknowledgments........................................................................................................ ii

List of Figures ............................................................................................................... iv 

List of Tables ................................................................................................................. v 

Introduction.................................................................................................................. 1

Area............................................................................................................................... 2 

Stand Origin................................................................................................................ 5

Forest Ownership........................................................................................................ 6

Age ............................................................................................................................. 8 

Forest Composition....................................................................................................... 9

Diversity and Composition........................................................................................... 9 

Volume, Productivity, and Biomass .............................................................................. 12

Growth, Removals, and Mortality................................................................................ 14 

Forest Health and Disturbance.................................................................................... 16 

Emerald Ash Borer....................................................................................................... 17 

Invasive Plants............................................................................................................. 18 

Inventory Design .......................................................................................................... 19 

Area Estimation ........................................................................................................... 19 

Statistical Reliability...................................................................................................... 20

Measurement Error...................................................................................................... 20 

Sampling Error ............................................................................................................ 20 

Precautions ................................................................................................................. 20

Literature Cited............................................................................................................. 21

Glossary......................................................................................................................... 23 

Appendix A—Inventory Quality Assurance and Quality Control .............................. 37

Quality Assurance and Quality Control Methods.......................................................... 37

Field Audits ................................................................................................................. 37

Measurement Quality Objectives ................................................................................. 38

Appendix B—Supporting Tables.................................................................................. 39
iv

Figure 1—Louisiana parishes and survey units colored by forest area

proportion, 2013............................................................................................................. 2

Figure 2—Forest area gains and losses from the oak-gum-cypress

forest-type group, Louisiana, 2008–13 ............................................................................ 3

Figure 3—Forest area gains and losses from the oak-pine forest-type

group, Louisiana, 2008–13.............................................................................................. 4

Figure 4—Forest area gains and losses from the oak-hickory

forest-type group, Louisiana, 2008–13 ............................................................................ 4

Figure 5—Forest area gains and losses from the loblolly-shortleaf

pine forest-type group, Louisiana, 2008–13..................................................................... 5

Figure 6—Change in timberland area by forest-type group and year,

Louisiana, 1974–2013...................................................................................................... 5

Figure 7—Area of forest land proportioned by ownership, Louisiana, 2013 .................... 6

Figure 8—Area of forest land (excluding nonstocked area) by forest-type

group and stand-age class (years), Louisiana, 2013.......................................................... 8

Figure 9—Number of live shortleaf pine trees (≥1-inch d.b.h.) on timberland

by year, Louisiana ........................................................................................................... 12

Figure 10—Proportion of live-tree volume on forest land by owner,

Louisiana, 2013............................................................................................................... 12

Figure 11—Area of hardwoods by survey unit and site productivity class,

Louisiana, 2013............................................................................................................... 13

Figure 12—Area of softwoods by survey unit and site productivity class,

Louisiana, 2013............................................................................................................... 13

Figure 13—Average annual per-acre net growth, removals, and mortality

by survey unit, Louisiana, 2013 ....................................................................................... 14

Figure 14—Proportion of live ash trees (≥1-inch d.b.h./d.r.c.) on forest land

by survey unit, Louisiana, 2013 ....................................................................................... 17

Figure 15—Proportion of live ash tree volume (≥5 inches d.b.h./d.r.c.) on

forest land by survey unit, Louisiana, 2013 ...................................................................... 17

Figure 16—Proportion of subplots infested with privet by the percentage of

the subplot covered, Louisiana, 2013 .............................................................................. 18

List of Figures

Page
v

List of Tables

Page

Text Tables 

Table 1—Area and number of family forests by reason for owning forest land

and woodland, Louisiana, 2013 ...................................................................................... 7

Table 2—Common name, scientific name, and FIA species code of tree species,

Louisiana, 2013............................................................................................................... 9

Table 3—Area of forest land disturbed annually by forest-type group and

disturbance class, Louisiana 2013 .................................................................................... 16

Appendix Tables

Table B.1—Number, volume, growth, removals, and mortality on forest land

per species group, Louisiana, 2013.................................................................................. 39

Table B.2—Percentage of area by land status, Louisiana, 2013 ....................................... 40

Table B.3—Area of forest land by forest-type group and ownership group,

Louisiana, 2013............................................................................................................... 41

Table B.4—Area of forest land by forest-type group and stand-size class,

Louisiana, 2013............................................................................................................... 42

Table B.5—Area of forest land by forest-type group and stand origin,

Louisiana, 2013............................................................................................................... 43

Table B.6—Number of live trees on forest land by species group and

diameter class, Louisiana, 2013 ....................................................................................... 44

Table B.7—Net volume of live trees on forest land by forest-type group

and stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 ............................................................................... 45

Table B.8—Net volume of live trees on forest land by species group and

ownership group, Louisiana, 2013 .................................................................................. 46

Table B.9—Net volume of live trees on forest land by species group and

diameter class, Louisiana, 2013 ....................................................................................... 47

Table B.10—Net volume of live trees on forest land by forest-type group and

stand origin, Louisiana, 2013 .......................................................................................... 48

Table B.11—Aboveground dry weight of live trees on forest land by ownership

class and land status, Louisiana, 2013 ............................................................................. 49
vi

List of Tables

Page

Table B.12—Aboveground dry weight of live trees on forest land by species

group and diameter class, Louisiana, 2013 ...................................................................... 50

Table B.13—Total carbon of live trees on forest land by ownership class and

land status, Louisiana, 2013 ............................................................................................ 51

Table B.14—Average annual net growth of live trees on forest land by

forest-type group and stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13)................. 52

Table B.15—Average annual net growth of sawtimber on timberland by

species group and ownership group, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13)................... 53

Table B.16—Average annual mortality of live trees on forest land by forest-type

group and stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13) .................................. 54

Table B.17—Average annual mortality of sawtimber on timberland by species

group and ownership group, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13) .............................. 55

Table B.18—Average annual removals of live trees on forest land by forest-type

group and stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13) .................................. 56

Table B.19—Average annual removals of sawtimber on timberland by species

group and ownership group, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13) .............................. 57
Introduction

INTRODUCTION

Forests and forestry-related activities 

represent an important part of Louisiana 

culture. In the 2012 Resources Planning 

Act (RPA) report (Oswalt and others 2014), 

Louisiana comprised 9 percent of all forest 

land in the eight States of the South Central 

United States. The importance of forests 

on water quality and the State’s position 

of importance in the Lower Mississippi 

Alluvial Valley also necessitates a clear 

understanding of the forest resources in 

Louisiana. The need to understand, track, 

and practice knowledgeable stewardship 

in the forests of the 21st century landscape 

cannot be overstated. More than ever, 

landowners, policymakers, industries, and 

researchers are seeking information to feed 

into business development opportunities, 

forecasting models, and conservation goals 

as well as long-term economic development 

plans. The goal of this publication is to 

provide up-to-date information on the 

resources of Louisiana’s forests to aid in 

landscape-level planning and policymaking, 

and to provide a starting point for those 

interested in learning about and researching 

Louisiana’s forest landscape.

Echinacea pallida wildflowers on 

the Kisatchie National Forest. (photo 

courtesy of the U.S. Forest Service)
2

Area

AREA

In the 17th century, prior to European 

settlement, Louisiana was nearly 

100 percent forested. Estimates suggest as 

much as 26 million acres of Louisiana’s 

27 million acres of terrestrial land were 

forested (Kellog 1909). Agricultural 

clearing from the late 1800s through the 

1970s, combined with some clearing for 

development, led to consistent declines in 

forest acreage from early settlement through 

the 1990s. Today, forests cover 14.9 million 

acres (55 percent) of the Louisiana 

landscape. Virtually all of that (14.7 million 

acres) is available for timber production. 

The Northwest, Southwest, and Southeast 

units are most heavily forested, while 

the South and North Delta—the center 

of agricultural production in the State—

remain least forested (fig. 1). There are 

about 3.5 forested acres for every nonforest 

acre in the Northwest unit, compared to 

0.4 forested acres for every nonforest acre in 

the South Delta. 

The area of oak-gum-cypress forests has 

remained stable since 1984, following a 

significant decrease in area in the mid-1970s 

in response to rising soybean prices. The 

2005 survey showed a significant decline 

in area of wetland forests in Louisiana, 

but given the rapid recovery in 2013 to 

1991 area levels, it seems most likely that 

the decline noted in 2008 was due in part 

to data collection issues noted in Oswalt 

and Bentley (2013). From 2008 to 2013, 

70 percent of forest land classified as oakgum-cypress remained in that forest type. 

Figure 2 shows gains (multiple colors) 

and losses in the remaining 30 percent of 

oak-gum-cypress forest land to and from 

other forest types, nonforest, and water. For 

example in figure 2, of the 30 percent of 

Figure 1—Louisiana parishes and survey units colored by forest area proportion, 2013.

Percent forested

1–25

26–50

51–75

76–93

<1

Morehouse West

Carroll

East

Carroll

Richland

Madison

Franklin

Tensas

Catahoula

Concordia

Cameron

Acadia

Vermilion

Avoyelles

St. Landry

Lafayette

St. Martin

Iberia

St. Mary

Pointe

Coupee

West

Feliciana

W. Baton

 Rouge

Iberville Ascension

Assumption

St.

James

St. John

Baptist

Lafourche

St. Charles

Jefferson

Orleans

St. Bernard

Plaquemines

Terrebonne

Sabine

Natchitoches

Grant

La Salle

Vernon

Rapides

Beauregard Allen Evangeline

Calcasieu Jefferson

Davis

East

Feliciana St.Helena

Tangipahoa Washington

E. Baton

Rouge

St. Tammany Livingston

Caddo

Bossier Webster

Claiborne Union

De Soto Red River

Bienville

Lincoln

Jackson

Winn

Ouachita

Caldwell

North Delta

Northwest

Southeast

South Delta

Southwest
3

Area

oak-gum-cypress that converted to another 

forest type in 2013, the largest proportion 

went to elm-ash-cottonwood. Conversely, 

plots that were oak-hickory and nonforest 

in 2008 contributed the largest gains to the 

oak-gum-cypress forest type.

Mixed oak-hickory and mixed oak-pine 

forest areas have both declined significantly 

since 1991. Thirty-two percent of oak-pine 

forest land remained in the oak-pine foresttype group. Forty-two percent of forest 

acreage lost from the oak-pine forest-type 

group moved into the loblolly-shortleaf 

pine forest-type group (fig. 3). Oak-hickory 

contributed the greatest gains in forest area 

to the oak-pine forest-type group. Most 

losses out of oak-hickory went to oakgum-cypress, followed by loblolly-shortleaf 

pine (fig. 4). Gains from other forest types 

were primarily divided between oak-pine, 

loblolly-shortleaf, and oak-gum-cypress.

The loblolly-shortleaf pine forest-type group 

experienced significant increases in area 

from 1984 to 2013, with the most dramatic 

increase (24 percent) between the 1991 and 

2005 survey periods (fig. 5). The increase 

in pine forests coincides with rising pine 

sawtimber prices in Louisiana beginning in 

the late 1980s and reaching record highs 

in 1997 and 1998. Rosson (1995) reported 

notable increases in removals from 1984 

to 1991, which coincide with the increase 

in stumpage prices and, at the time, were 

concerning as removals were beginning 

to exceed growth in Louisiana pine 

forests. The potential for a good return on 

investments likely led to increased planting 

rates in that forest type and, in fact, planted 

loblolly and shortleaf pine acreage doubled 

from 1991 to 2013. Since 2008, most gains 

in loblolly-shortleaf came from oak-pine 

and oak-hickory (fig. 5). 

Figure 2—Forest area gains and losses from the oak-gum-cypress forest-type group, Louisiana, 2008–13.

Forest-type group—time 1Forest-type group—time 

2

Oak-hickory

Other/nonforest

Elm-ash-cottonwood

Oak-pine

Loblolly- shortleaf pine

Longleaf-slash pine

Nonstocked

Oak-gum-cypress

Oak-hickory

Loblolly- shortleaf pine

Oak-pine

Longleaf-slash pine

Elm-ash-cottonwood

Nonstocked Exotic hardwoods

Other hardwoods

Exotic hardwoods

Other hardwoods

Oak-gum-cypress

Other/nonforest
4

Area

Figure 3—Forest area gains and losses from the oak-pine forest-type group, Louisiana, 2008–13.

Forest-type group—time 1Forest-type group—time 

2

Oak-pine Oak-pine

Loblolly-shortleaf pine

Loblolly-shortleaf pine

Oak-hickory

Oak-gum-cypress

Longleaf-slash pine

Exotic hardwoods

Elm-ash-cottonwood

Nonstocked Oak-gum-cypress

Longleaf-slash pine

Elm-ash-cottonwood

Oak-hickory

Other hardwoods

Exotic hardwoods

Nonstocked Other hardwoods

Other/nonforest

Other/nonforest

Figure 4—Forest area gains and losses from the oak-hickory forest-type group, Louisiana, 2008–13.

Nonstocked

Other hardwoods Other hardwoods

Oak-hickory

Forest-type group—time 1Forest-type group—time 

2

Oak-hickory

Oak-pine

Loblolly-shortleaf pine

Oak-gum-cypress

Longleaf-slash pine

Exotic hardwoods

Oak-gum-cypress

Loblolly-shortleaf pine

Oak-pine

Exotic hardwoods

Longleaf-slash pine

Elm-ashcottonwood Elm-ash- cottonwood

Nonstocked

Other/nonforest Other/nonforest
5

Area

Stand Origin

In survey year 2013, most (69 percent) 

of Louisiana forest land was naturally 

regenerated. Of the remaining planted 

forest land, 70 percent was categorized in 

the loblolly-shortleaf pine forest-type group. 

Since 1974, the area of planted loblollyshortleaf pine timberland (forest land was 

not categorized in the 1970s) increased from 

789,644 acres to 3.2 million acres—a fourfold increase (fig. 6). In contrast to softwood 

forest land, 90 percent of hardwood forest 

land in Louisiana is naturally regenerated. 

Only 10 percent of public forest land was 

planted in 2013, compared with 34 percent 

of privately owned land, and in fact, 

96 percent of planted forest land is privately 

owned. 

Figure 6—Change in timberland area by forest-type group and 

year, Louisiana, 1974–2013.

Year

1974 1984 1991 2008 2013

Area (million acres)

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

Figure 5—Forest area gains and losses from the loblolly-shortleaf pine forest-type group, Louisiana, 2008–13.

Forest-type group—time 1Forest-type group—time 

2

Loblolly-shortleaf pine

Loblolly-shortleaf pine

Oak-pine

Oak-pine

Longleaf-slash pine

Oak-hickory

Oak-hickory

Oak-gum-cypress

Nonstocked

Elm-ash-cottonwood

Longleaf-slash pine

Oak-gum-cypress

Exotic hardwoods

Elm-ash-cottonwood Exotic hardwoods

Other hardwoods

Nonstocked

Other hardwoods

Other/nonforest

Other/nonforest
6

Area

Forest Ownership

Understanding ownership patterns and the 

motivations for owning forests can help 

decisionmakers and land managers tailor 

their services to the needs of the State. 

Additionally, in the case of privately owned 

forests, understanding landowner interests 

and weighing those in the context of 

ecological concerns and timber availability 

helps professionals develop sustainable 

forest practices.

In 2013, 87 percent of Louisiana’s 

forest land was privately owned. About 

2.6 million privately owned acres were 

forest industry, comprising 18 percent of 

total forest land (fig. 7). Forest land area 

owned by forest industry declined by 

roughly 40 percent (an area of 1.7 million 

acres) from 2005 to 2013. That decline in 

industry ownership mirrors a southwide 

decline in industry-owned land of roughly 

50 percent since the early 2000s as much 

of the industry forest land in the South was 

sold to timber investment management 

organizations (TIMOs) and real estate 

investment trusts (REITs). Nonindustrial 

corporate land (such as TIMOs and REITs) 

accounted for 31 percent of forest land in 

2013, an increase from 2.3 million acres in 

2005 to 4.7 million acres in 2013.

Forest land owned by individuals did 

not change from 2005, and constituted 

37 percent of total forest land. The National 

Woodland Owner Survey (NWOS) asks 

for feedback from family forest owners 

regarding their ownership intents and 

concerns, among other questions. In 

2013, Louisiana family forests were 

typically owned by 5 or fewer owners, 

with most (40 percent) owned by 2 or 

fewer individuals. Seventy percent of 

family owned forest land was >75 percent 

forested.1

 The majority (76 percent) of 

ownerships consisted of <50 acres, while the 

overall average holding was approximately 

68 acres. 

Figure 7—Area of forest land proportioned by 

ownership, Louisiana, 2013.

U.S. Forest

Service

5%

Other 

Federal

3%

State and local

5%

Forest industry

18%

Nonindustrial 

private

69%

1Butler, B.J.; Hewes, J.H.; Dickinson, B.J. [and 

others]. Family forest ownerships of the United 

States, 2013: tabular results from the U.S. Department 

of Agriculture Forest Service, National Woodland 

Owner Survey. [Manuscript in preparation]. Author 

can be reached at: U.S. Department of Agriculture 

Forest Service, Northern Research Station, Newtown 

Square, PA 19073.
7

Area

Louisiana forest land owners appear to 

care deeply about family heritage and the 

character of the State’s forests and wildlife. 

The most commonly reported reason for 

owning forest land was to pass the land 

on to children or other heirs, followed by 

protection of water resources and wildlife 

habitat. Aesthetics and protection of 

biological diversity also ranked among the 

most important reasons for owning forest 

land, while firewood, vacationing, and 

nontimber forest products were among the 

least important reasons for Louisianans 

who own forest land. The desire to pass 

forest land on to children or other heirs 

appears to follow in the footsteps of 

previous generations, given that 69 percent 

of ownerships were reported to have been 

purchased or inherited from the current 

owners’ parents or in-laws (table 1). 

Table 1—Area and number of family forests by reason for owning forest land and woodland, 

Louisiana, 2013

Reasona

Totals Percentage 

Acres SE n

Ownerships SE Acres SEOwnerships SE

- - - - - - - thousand - - - - - - - - - - - - - - percent - - - - - - - 

To enjoy beauty or scenery 2,869 233 49 9 56.9 5.1 64.6 14.4 81

To protect nature or biological 

diversity 2,484 229 44 9 49.7 5.0 58.0 13.5 70

To protect water resources 2,767 232 54 9 55.6 5.2 71.8 15.5 78

To protect or improve wildlife habitat 3,499 232 49 8 73.5 5.9 70.0 15.6 97

For land investment 3,674 230 45 8 70.9 5.1 59.2 12.8 101

Part of my home site or primary 

residence 1,854 214 35 8 37.3 4.6 47.1 12.0 53

Part of cabin or vacation home site 630 141 6 2 12.8 2.9 8.3 3.2 18

Part of farm or ranch 1,819 213 27 7 37.4 4.7 36.2 10.5 52

Privacy 2,449 229 33 5 49.3 5.0 43.1 9.2 70

To raise my family 1,994 218 33 7 41.6 4.9 44.8 11.7 57

To pass land on to my children 

or other 4,163 220 67 10 81.5 5.2 86.1 16.8 117

For firewood 665 145 10 3 13.7 3.0 14.1 5.1 19

For timber products 3,289 233 24 5 64.4 5.1 32.1 7.5 90

For nontimber forest products 315 103 6 3 6.4 2.1 7.7 3.7 9

For hunting 2,904 233 35 7 57.2 5.1 47.5 11.5 83

For recreation, other than hunting 2,064 220 27 6 40.7 4.6 36.1 9.1 59

Other 210 85 <1 <1 3.9 1.6 <1.0 <1.0 6

SE = standard error; n = sample size.

a

 Categories are not mutually exclusive.

While enhancing natural resources is clearly 

important to Louisiana forest owners, 

only 5 percent of owners covering 35 

percent of acres reported having a written 

management plan. When asked how they 

preferred to receive forest and woodland 

management information, 59 percent of 

owners (owning 63 percent of acreage) 

favored written materials such as brochures 

or other publications while only 33 percent 

(owning 34 percent of acres) preferred 

Internet resources. The desire for printed 

material over online material may, in part, 

reflect the age demographic of family forest 

owners. In 2013, 94 percent of primary 

family forest owners were over the age of 

45, and 79 percent were over the age of 55.
8

Area

Figure 8—Area of forest land (excluding nonstocked area) by foresttype group and stand-age class (years), Louisiana, 2013.

Forest-type group

Longleaf-slash

Loblolly-shortleaf

Oak-pine

Oak-hickory

Oak-gum-cypress

Elm-ash-cottonwood

Other hardwood

Exotic hardwood

Area (thousand acres)

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

≤20 

21–40 

41–60 

61–80 

>80 

Stand-age class (years)

Age

Thirty-six percent of Louisiana’s forest 

area was estimated to be ≤20 years old. 

Forty-eight percent of that young forest 

was loblolly-shortleaf pine. Unlike loblollyshortleaf forest area where 50 percent of 

acreage was ≤20 years old, oak-gum-cypress 

acreage fell primarily within the 41–60 and 

61–80 year age classes. Only 12 percent of 

oak-gum-cypress acreage was ≤20 years 

of age (fig. 8). Cypress regeneration in the 

altered hydrologic regimes of the Lower 

Mississippi Alluvial Valley, including 

Louisiana, is an ongoing concern for forestry 

and wetland professionals in Louisiana and 

Mississippi.
9

Forest Composition

FOREST COMPOSITION 

Tracking the number, diversity, and volume 

of trees in Louisiana’s forests is important 

to understanding the availability of timber, 

wildlife habitat, and other ecosystem 

services. Knowing where volume is 

available aids in economic development 

planning as well as understanding whether 

or not timber supply can meet the demands 

placed on the resource.

Diversity and Composition

Crews recorded 111 tree species in Louisiana 

during the 2013 survey (table 2). Loblolly 

pine was the most common, with over 

25,000 observations—4 times the number 

of observations of the second most 

commonly recorded tree. Sweetgum was 

the next most commonly observed tree 

with 6,440 observations. The invasive 

Chinese tallowtree was the 7th most 

frequently recorded tree in Louisiana during 

2013. Thirty-four species had 8 or fewer 

observations, and 14 were only recorded 

one time.

Table 2—Common name, scientific name, and FIA species code of tree species, 

Louisiana, 2013

Common name Scientific name

FIA

species

code Observations

number

Loblolly pine Pinus taeda 131 25,672

Sweetgum Liquidambar styraciflua 611 6,440

Water oak Quercus nigra 827 3,546

Red maple Acer rubrum 316 3,186

Slash pine Pinus elliottii 111 2,782

Baldcypress Taxodium distichum 221 2,594

Chinese tallowtree Triadica sebifera 994 2,358

Water tupelo Nyssa aquatica 691 2,243

Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica 544 1,670

Sugarberry Celtis laevigata 461 1,667

Blackgum Nyssa sylvatica 693 1,500

Winged elm Ulmus alata 971 1,225

American hornbeam, musclewood Carpinus caroliniana 391 1,142

White oak Quercus alba 802 1,035

Southern red oak Q. falcata 812 1,007

American elm Ulmus americana 972 890

Black willow Salix nigra 922 888

Willow oak Quercus phellos 831 840

Longleaf pine Pinus palustris 121 675

Cherrybark oak Quercus pagoda 813 670

Overcup oak Q. lyrata 822 657

Post oak Q. stellata 835 587

Boxelder Acer negundo 313 515

Water hickory Carya aquatica 401 485

Waterelm, planertree Planera aquatica 722 459

Shortleaf pine Pinus echinata 110 452

Eastern hophornbeam Ostrya virginiana 701 449

Swamp tupelo Nyssa biflora 694 446

Texas red oak Quercus texana 828 430

continued
10

Forest Composition

Table 2—Common name, scientific name, and FIA species code of tree species, 

Louisiana, 2013 (continued)

Common name Scientific name

FIA

species

code Observations

number

Laurel oak Quercus laurifolia 820 429

American holly Ilex opaca 591 424

Mockernut hickory Carya alba 409 422

Black cherry Prunus serotina 762 381

Sweetbay Magnolia virginiana 653 362

Pecan Carya illinoinensis 404 330

American beech Fagus grandifolia 531 320

Hawthorn spp. Crataegus spp. 500 299

Common persimmon Diospyros virginiana 521 286

Honeylocust Gleditsia triacanthos 552 254

Southern magnolia Magnolia grandiflora 652 225

Slippery elm Ulmus rubra 975 219

Flowering dogwood Cornus florida 491 213

American sycamore Platanus occidentalis 731 192

Swamp chestnut oak Quercus michauxii 825 175

Pondcypress Taxodium ascendens 222 148

Sassafras Sassafras albidum 931 132

Spruce pine Pinus glabra 115 124

Yellow-poplar Liriodendron tulipifera 621 122

Pignut hickory Carya glabra 403 119

White ash Fraxinus americana 541 88

Cedar elm Ulmus crassifolia 973 82

Florida maple Acer barbatum 311 78

Live oak Quercus virginiana 838 65

Red bay Persea borbonia 721 60

Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides 742 59

Eastern redcedar Juniperus virginiana 68 57

Blackjack oak Quercus marilandica 824 54

Shumard oak Q. shumardii 834 53

Sourwood Oxydendrum arboreum 711 50

Red mulberry Morus rubra 682 47

Black oak Quercus velutina 837 43

Bitternut hickory Carya cordiformis 402 43

River birch Betula nigra 373 41

Eastern redbud Cercis canadensis 471 41

Chinaberry Melia azedarach 993 41

Osage-orange Maclura pomifera 641 28

Waterlocust Gleditsia aquatica 551 20

Two-wing silverbell Halesia diptera 582 18

Shagbark hickory Carya ovata 407 17

Tungoil tree Vernicia fordii 995 16

continued
11

Forest Composition

Table 2—Common name, scientific name, and FIA species code of tree species, 

Louisiana, 2013 (continued)

Common name Scientific name

FIA

species

code Observations

number

Black hickory Carya texana 408 16

Chittamwood, gum bumelia Sideroxylon lanuginosum 381 13

American plum Prunus americana 766 13

Swamp white oak Quercus bicolor 804 12

Camphortree Cinnamomum camphora 858 12

Black locust Robinia pseudoacacia 901 12

Mimosa, silktree Albizia julibrissin 345 11

Bluejack oak Quercus incana 842 8

Pawpaw Asimina triloba 367 8

Black walnut Juglans nigra 602 8

Shellbark hickory Carya laciniosa 405 7

American basswood Tilia americana 951 7

Bigleaf magnolia Magnolia macrophylla 654 6

Southern crab apple Malus angustifolia 662 6

Carolina ash Fraxinus caroliniana 548 5

Sugar maple Acer saccharum 318 4

Ginkgo, maidenhair tree Ginkgo biloba 561 4

Delta post oak Quercus similis 836 4

Silverbell spp. Halesia spp. 580 3

White basswood Tilia americana 952 3

Carolina basswood T. americana 953 3

Other or unknown live tree Tree unknown 999 3

Hackberry Celtis occidentalis 462 3

Dwarf post oak Quercus margarettiae 840 3

Hickory spp. Carya spp. 400 2

Cucumbertree Magnolia acuminata 651 2

Pin cherry Prunus pensylvanica 761 2

Red hickory Carya ovalis 412 1

Largeleaf geigertree Cordia sebestena 865 1

Scarlet oak Quercus coccinea 806 1

Turkey oak Q. laevis 819 1

Bur oak Q. macrocarpa 823 1

Weeping willow Salix sepulcralis 929 1

Cockspur hawthorn Crataegus crus-galli 501 1

Chokecherry Prunus virginiana 763 1

Southern shagbark hickory Carya carolinae-septentrionalis 413 1

Southern catalpa Catalpa bignonioides 451 1

White mulberry Morus alba 681 1

Sweet crab apple Malus coronaria 663 1

Striped maple Acer pensylvanicum 315 1

Serviceberry spp. Amelanchier spp. 356 1
12

Forest Composition

Population estimates of hardwoods >1-inch 

d.b.h. outnumbered softwoods by more 

than double, despite the prevalence of 

loblolly pine. The sweetgum species group 

constituted 17 percent of hardwoods, 

only surpassed by Eastern noncommercial 

hardwoods (a catch-all group for a broad 

variety of species, including Chinese 

tallowtree). Red oak species, soft hardwood 

species (e.g., black cherry, sycamore), 

and soft maple (e.g., red maple) also 

composed large proportions of the Louisiana 

hardwood population. Ash trees, a species 

group of concern due to recent detections 

of the invasive Emerald Ash Borer insect, 

numbered 281 million trees in the State, 

mostly in the 1- to 3-inch diameter range. 

Shortleaf pine populations in Louisiana 

have been declining since the 1974 

inventory, and continued to decline in 

the State. In 1974, shortleaf populations 

numbered 359 million trees. In 2013 the 

species numbered just 25 million trees—a 

loss of 93 percent over just 40 years (fig. 9). 

Shortleaf pine is valuable economically 

and ecologically, providing pulp, plywood, 

veneer and sawtimber. While shortleaf 

is slower growing than loblolly pine, it 

uses water more efficiently and its slower 

growth and clear bole make it a better 

dimensional lumber option than either 

Virginia or loblolly pines (Mattoon 1915). 

Shortleaf and loblolly hybridize easily. In 

older shortleaf populations, littleleaf disease 

(a fungal pathogen) can decimate stands. 

Fire suppression over the last 40–50 years 

combined with intentional replacement 

with faster-growing loblolly pine has 

resulted in the continuing declines in 

shortleaf pine, though more recently efforts 

are being made to restore shortleaf pine 

communities across the South.

Volume, Productivity, and 

Biomass

Statewide live-tree volume equaled 

24.9 billion cubic feet. Fourteen percent 

of live-tree volume was owned by forest 

industry in Louisiana, while nonindustrial 

private organizations and individuals owned 

68 percent. Only 18 percent of volume was 

publicly owned (fig. 10).

On timberland, live-tree volume was 

24.4 billion cubic feet. Loblolly pine 

accounted for 36 percent of all live-tree 

volume on timberland in Louisiana. 

Baldcypress, sweetgum, water oak, and 

water tupelo were also important from 

a volumetric standpoint though, unlike 

loblolly pine, each of those accounted 

for <10 percent of live-tree volume, 

individually. 

Figure 9—Number of live shortleaf pine trees (≥1-inch d.b.h.) on 

timberland by year, Louisiana.

Year

1974 1984 1991 2008 2013

Number of trees (million)

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

Figure 10—Proportion of live-tree volume on forest 

land by owner, Louisiana, 2013.

National

forest

8%

State and local

6%

Forest industry

14% Other

Federal

4%

Nonindustrial

private

68%
13

Forest Composition

Softwood live-tree volume went from 

10 billion cubic feet in 1991 to 12 billion 

cubic feet in 2013, a 21 percent increase. 

Ninety-seven percent of softwood volume 

was in growing stock. Hardwood livetree volume went from 10.6 billion cubic 

feet in 1991 to 12.1 billion cubic feet in 

2013, an increase of 14 percent. Seventyeight percent of hardwood volume was in 

growing stock.

The Northwest survey unit had the largest 

area of high-productivity hardwood 

forest types, with 519,000 acres with site 

productivity estimated at 120 cubic feet per 

acre per year or higher (fig. 11). The North 

Delta had the least area of high-productivity 

hardwood forest types, but it was also 

one of the least forested units, in general. 

Oak-hickory acreage was highest in the 

northwest unit, along with absolute volume 

in the oak-hickory forest-type group, 

though per-acre oak-hickory volume was 

somewhat higher in the South Delta survey 

unit. Oak-gum-cypress absolute volume 

and acreage was highest in the South Delta, 

while the per-acre volume of oak-gumcypress was comparable in the South Delta 

and the Southeast.

The Southwest survey unit had the largest 

area of high-productivity softwood forest 

types, with 1.2 million acres with site 

productivity estimated at 120 cubic feet per 

acre per year or higher (fig. 12). The South 

Delta, at 42,764 acres, had the least amount 

of high-productivity softwoods, followed 

by the North Delta. In terms of forest-type 

group, per-acre volume of loblolly-shortleaf 

pine was comparable among all survey 

units, though absolute volume was much 

higher in the Northwest and Southwest 

than any other unit. Acreage was highest 

in those units, as well. Longleaf-slash 

pine absolute volume and acreage was 

concentrated in the Southwest unit, 

though per-acre volume was highest in the 

Northwest unit.

The dry weight of aboveground livetree biomass totaled 668 million tons. 

Hardwoods comprise 56 percent of that 

total as a group, although loblolly and 

shortleaf pines (primarily loblolly) comprise 

32 percent, independently. Translated 

to carbon, Louisiana forests contain 

334 million tons (aboveground live trees).

Figure 11—Area of hardwoods by survey unit and site productivity 

class, Louisiana, 2013.

Survey unit

Northwest

Southwest

South Delta

Southeast

North Delta

Area (thousand acres)

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

225+

165–224

120–164

(cubic feet/acre/year)

Site productivity class

Figure 12—Area of softwoods by survey unit and site productivity 

class, Louisiana, 2013.

Survey unit

Southwest

Northwest

Southeast

North Delta

South Delta

Area (thousand acres)

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

225+

165–224

120–164

(cubic feet/acre/year)

Site productivity class
14

Growth, Removals, and Mortality

GROWTH, REMOVALS, AND 

MORTALITY 

Components of change like tree growth, 

removals in the form of harvest or land use 

change, and tree mortality shed light on the 

sustainability of the resource in a given area. 

If net growth (growth minus mortality) 

exceeds removals then either productivity 

is high, planting or natural reversions 

from nonforest land uses have occurred, 

or management practices have helped to 

ensure that overharvesting is not occurring. 

Often, the reality is a combination of many 

factors. If removals exceed growth over a 

sustained period of time, there may have 

been a large mortality event (thereby 

lowering net growth), or there may be a 

need to assess harvesting practices, land use 

change, and the long term sustainability 

of the forest. Components of change are 

calculated on an average annual basis, 

and are only calculated on plots with 

multiple measurements through time. 

Standard errors can be slightly higher for 

these components because of a reduced 

sample size than for some other forest 

metrics; therefore, users are cautioned to 

limit analyses or inferences to large scales 

such as the unit or State. In Louisiana, the 

plot population used to calculate growth, 

removals, and mortality numbered 3,848 

sampled plots.

Average annual net growth (gross growth 

minus mortality) of live trees on Louisiana 

forest land was 1.1 billion cubic feet from 

2009–12. That equates to roughly 68 cubic 

feet per acre on average annually across the 

State (fig. 13). Per-acre growth rates were 

highest in the Northwest unit at an average 

of 87 cubic feet, annually, and were lowest 

in the South Delta unit at 28 cubic feet on 

average, annually. The loblolly-shortleaf 

pine managed forests in the Northwest and 

Southwest likely contribute to the high 

annual growth rates, while slower growing, 

older oak-gum-cypress forests in the South 

Delta result in lower total annual per-acre 

values in that unit.

Figure 13—Average annual per-acre net growth, removals, and 

mortality by survey unit, Louisiana, 2013.

Survey unit

North Delta

South Delta

Southwest

Southeast

Northwest

Volume (cubic feet/acre/year)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Growth 

Removals

Mortality 
15

Growth, Removals, and Mortality

Average annual net forest land growth 

was about 1.4 times higher than removals 

during the survey period (fig. 13). Removals 

on forest land averaged 733 million cubic 

feet per year. These removals include 

harvests and diversions to other land uses, 

though harvest removals accounted for the 

majority of removal volume in Louisiana 

(727 million cubic feet). Removals on 

timberland in Louisiana appear higher than 

removals on forest land (which is counterintuitive given that timberland is a smaller 

area), because removals from timberland 

include diversions on U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service property to reserved land—thus, 

some volume was removed from the 

available-to-harvest timber base into the 

unavailable-to-harvest reserved land base 

without any actual tree removal. 

Softwood species group accounted for the 

largest proportion of forest land removals at 

542 million cubic feet per year. The loblolly 

and shortleaf pine species group alone 

accounted for 60 percent of all removals 

volume, and 81 percent of softwood 

removals volume. The cypress species 

group which is often of concern in the 

State accounted for only about 2 percent of 

average annual removals volume on forest 

land. Most softwood removals came from 

nonindustrial private land; only 26 percent 

came from forest industry land.

Hardwood forest land removals averaged 

191 million cubic feet on average, annually. 

The majority of removals in hardwoods 

were in the other red oaks (e.g., southern 

red oak, pin oak, water oak, etc.) and 

sweetgum species groups. Very little 

hardwood removal volume came from 

ownerships outside nonindustrial private 

land, which accounted for 84 percent 

of hardwood removals. Forest Industry 

accounted for about 10 percent of 

hardwood removal volume.

Mortality on Louisiana forest land averaged 

299 million cubic feet of volume (or 

23 million trees >5 inches d.b.h.) annually 

during the survey period (2009–13). 

Hardwood mortality averaged 17 million 

trees, annually, compared to 6 million 

softwood trees. Mortality rates were highest 

in the Southeast and South Delta, which 

lost 36 cubic feet per acre on average, 

annually. The average per-acre mortality 

rate was 22 cubic feet, annually, across all 

units. The largest per-acre mortality (in 

forest-types with a sample large enough to 

adequately report) occurred in the oakgum-cypress forest-type group, which 

averaged 39 cubic feet annually across the 

State and 80 cubic feet per acre annually in 

the Southeast.
16

Forest Health and Disturbance

FOREST HEALTH AND 

DISTURBANCE

Fire and weather events were the two 

biggest disturbance agents in Louisiana 

forests during the survey period. Weather 

damage was detected on 183,600 acres, 

with highest weather-related damage in the 

oak-gum-cypress and elm-ash-cottonwood 

forest type groups (table 3). Fire damage, 

in contrast, was highest in the loblollyshortleaf pine forest type, and averaged 

119 thousand acres, annually. Fire damage 

includes intentionally set prescribed fires 

for management purposes, as well as 

unintentional wildfire.

Weather-related damage in southern 

Louisiana is most likely hurricane and 

tropical storm-related damage. Besides 

lingering effects from Hurricane Katrina in 

2005, southern Louisiana has experienced 

10 named hurricanes, tropical storms, and 

tropical depressions including Hurricane 

Rita and Hurricane Gustav, both of which 

caused widespread damage. Other severe 

weather events in Louisiana that cause 

damage to trees can range from heavy 

straight-line winds to hail or ice storms, 

unusually heavy flooding, and tornadoes. 

Table 3—Area of forest land disturbed annually by forest-type group and disturbance class, 

Louisiana, 2013 

Forest-type groupa

Disturbance class

Insects Disease Weather Fire

Domestic 

animals

Wild 

animals Human

Other 

natural

thousand acres

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 0.0 0.0 5.4 29.2 0.0 0.0 1.6 0.0

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 0.0 0.8 14.7 62.7 0.7 0.0 4.4 2.0

Total softwoods 0.0 0.8 20.0 91.9 0.7 0.0 5.9 2.0

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 0.0 0.0 9.2 7.6 0.7 0.0 0.3 0.0

Oak-hickory 0.0 0.0 16.9 15.8 1.8 0.4 2.2 0.0

Oak-gum-cypress 0.0 0.0 81.3 0.4 2.1 7.4 3.4 0.0

Elm-ash-cottonwood 0.0 0.0 50.1 0.0 5.0 2.0 0.0 2.5

Other hardwoods 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 0.0 0.0 3.7 0.6 1.7 0.0 0.9 0.0

Total hardwoods 0.0 0.0 161.2 24.4 11.4 9.9 6.9 2.5

Nonstocked 0.0 0.0 2.4 2.8 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0

All groups 0.0 0.8 183.6 119.1 12.1 10.8 12.8 4.5

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of > 0.0 but < 0.05.

a

 Based on past conditions.
17

Forest Health and Disturbance

Emerald Ash Borer

Emerald ash borer (EAB) (Agrilus 

planipennis) has been found in many 

Southern States, including Tennessee, 

Missouri, Kentucky, Georgia, North 

Carolina, Arkansas, and was most recently 

detected in Webster Parish, Louisiana. This 

raises concerns for forestry professionals 

and landowners in Louisiana who own trees 

in the genus Fraxinus.

There are an estimated 285 million ash 

trees >1 inch d.b.h. in Louisiana. Ash 

species make up 3 percent of the species in 

the State and 4 percent of the hardwood 

species in the State. Seventy-six percent 

of ash trees are in bottomland hardwood 

forest-type groups (oak-gum-cypress and 

elm-ash-cottonwood). The largest number 

of ash trees (62 percent) occurs in the South 

Delta and Southwest survey units (fig. 14). 

Seventy-three percent of ash trees are 

<3 inches d.b.h.

Ash species contribute an estimated 

613 million cubic feet of all-live volume and 

1.7 billion board feet of sawtimber volume 

on forest land. Sixty-two percent of ash 

volume occurs in the South Delta survey 

unit, alone (fig. 15).

Net annual growth (growth minus 

mortality) on ash trees on Louisiana forest 

land was 6 million cubic feet, on average, 

while annual mortality was 12 million cubic 

feet on average. Average annual removals 

equaled 6 million cubic feet in 2013. Ash 

removals in Louisiana come primarily from 

privately owned timberland. Research 

Figure 14—Proportion of live ash trees (≥1-inch d.b.h./d.r.c.) 

on forest land by survey unit, Louisiana, 2013.

North Delta

14%

South Delta

34%

Southwest

28%

Southeast

7%

Northwest

17%

Figure 15—Proportion of live ash tree volume (≥5 inches 

d.b.h./d.r.c.) on forest land by survey unit, Louisiana, 

2013.

North Delta

13%

South Delta

62%

Southwest

10%

Southeast

2%

Northwest

13%

indicates that small populations of EAB 

grow together, advancing the invasion front 

and increasing the overall spread (Herms 

and McCullough 2014). Assuming no 

change in the resource, EAB could impact 

over 2.2 billion cubic feet of ash volume 

should it infest the States of Alabama, 

Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
18

Forest Health and Disturbance

Invasive Plants

Invasive plants were found on 3,963 out 

of 8,689 forested subplots in Louisiana in 

2013. That means that 46 percent of all 

subplots sampled contained at least one 

invasive plant—nearly half of all subplots. 

Chinese tallowtree (Triadica sebifera) was 

the most common tree species, and was 

detected on 1,501 subplots (17 percent). 

On 51 percent of the subplots on which 

it occurred, Chinese tallowtree covered 

between 1 and 10 percent. The tree 

occupied a trace amount of aerial cover 

on 24 percent of subplots, between 

11 and 50 percent of area on 17 percent of 

subplots, and between 51 and 90 percent 

on 6 percent of subplots. Tallowtree only 

completely covered (91–100 percent 

aerial coverage) 13 subplots. Chinese 

tallowtree, as noted in previous studies, is 

progressively moving northward in States 

along the gulf coast. The tree, which was 

originally introduced as a species valued 

for its economic value in producing candles 

and soap, has converted former wet prairie 

to forest in many coastal counties (Bruce 

and others 1997). Tallowtree was most 

frequently noted in parishes occurring along 

the coast.

Privets (Ligustrum spp) were the most 

common shrub species, at >1,300 subplots. 

In comparison, the next most common 

species was Nandina, found on 54 subplots. 

On the subplots where it was detected, 

privet generally covered >1 percent of the 

subplot but <90 percent. Privet covered 

>90 percent of subplot area only 1 percent 

of the time (fig. 16).

Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) 

was by far the most common invasive vine 

on subplots in Louisiana, and occurred on 

23 percent of subplots, and 51 percent of 

subplots with invasive presence. In contrast, 

all other vines (including Kudzu), occurred 

on only 1 surveyed subplot.

Figure 16—Proportion of subplots infested with privet 

by the percentage of the subplot covered, Louisiana, 

2013.

1–10

49%

11–50

18%

51–90

5%

Trace (<1)

27%

91–100

1%
19

Inventory Design

INVENTORY DESIGN

The following provides a very general 

description of the sample design used to 

derive forest resource estimates provided in 

this report. Only the current sample design 

is included. Users wishing to learn about 

how the current methodology differs from 

previous methodologies should refer to the 

inventory methods in previous State reports 

(Oswalt and Bentley 2013). Highly detailed 

explanations of current FIA sample design 

and estimation procedures are in Bechtold 

and Patterson (2005). 

The Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) 

sampling design is based on a grid of 

hexagons superimposed on a map of 

the United States with each hexagon 

approximately 6,000 acres in size and at 

least one permanent plot established in 

each hexagon. In Phase 1 of FIA’s multiphase inventory, the population of interest 

is stratified and plots are assigned to 

each stratum to increase the precision of 

estimates. During Phase 2 (P2), tree and 

site attributes are measured for forested 

plots established in each hexagon. P2 plots 

consist of four 24-foot fixed-radius subplots 

on which standing trees are inventoried. 

During Phase 3, select forest health 

indicators (tree crown condition, forest 

soils, vegetation diversity, and down woody 

materials) are measured on 1

∕16th of P2 plots 

so that each plot represents approximately 

96,000 acres.

Area Estimation

Forest area estimates for Louisiana 2013 

were based on classifying National Land 

Cover Database points. Stratification of 

forest and nonforest was performed at the 

unit level. Area estimation of all lands and 

ownerships was based on the probability of 

selection of P2 plot locations. As a result, 

the known forest land area for specific 

ownerships will not always agree with area 

estimates based on probability of selection. 

For example, the acreage of national forests 

as published by the National Forest System 

will not agree exactly with the statistical 

estimate of national forest land generated 

by FIA. These numbers could differ 

substantially for very small areas.

Louisiana black bear (Ursus americanus luteolus). (photo by Pam Mcllhenny, 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Source: NCTC Image Library)
20

Statistical Reliability

STATISTICAL RELIABILITY

A relative standard of accuracy has been 

incorporated into the forest survey. This 

standard satisfies user demands, minimizes 

human and instrumental sources of error, 

and keeps costs within prescribed limits. The 

two primary types of error are measurement 

error and sampling error.

Measurement Error

There are three elements of measurement 

error: (1) bias, which is caused by 

instruments which are not properly 

calibrated; (2) compensating, which 

is caused by instruments of moderate 

precision; and (3) accidental, which is 

caused by human error in measuring 

and compiling. All of these are held to a 

minimum by a system that incorporates 

training, check plots, and editing and 

checking for consistency. Editing checks 

screen out logical and data entry errors 

for all plots. It is not possible to determine 

measurement error statistically, but it is 

possible to hold it to a minimum.

Sampling Error

Sampling error is associated with the 

natural and expected deviation of the 

sample from the true population mean. This 

deviation is susceptible to a mathematical 

evaluation of the probability of error. 

FIA inventories supported by the full 

complement of sample plots are designed 

to achieve reliable statistics for the region. 

Sampling error increases as the area or 

volume considered decreases in magnitude. 

Sampling errors and associated confidence 

intervals are often unacceptably high for 

small components of the total resource. 

However, there may be instances where 

a smaller component does not have a 

proportionately larger sampling error. This 

can happen when the post-defined strata 

are more homogeneous than the larger 

strata, thereby having a smaller variance. 

For specific post-defined strata the sampling 

error is available from online retrievals 

using the Forest Inventory Data Online 

(FIDO II) at http://199.128.173.26/fido/

mastf/index.html, or can be calculated 

using the following formula. (Note: 

Sampling errors obtained by this method 

are only approximations of reliability 

because this process assumes constant 

variance across all subdivisions of totals.)

where

SEs = sampling error for subdivision of State 

total

SEt = sampling error for State total

Xs = sum of values for the variable of 

interest (area or volume) for subdivision of 

State

Xt = total area or volume for State

Precautions

Users are cautioned to be aware of the 

highly variable accuracy and questionable 

reliability of small subsets of the data, 

e.g., volume estimates by parish. 

When summarizing statistics from the 

FIA database, users should familiarize 

themselves with the procedures used to 

compute sampling error as outlined above.

√ Xt SEs = SEt

√ Xs
21

Literature Cited

LITERATURE CITED

American Society for Quality Control. 

1994. American national standard: 

specifications and guidelines for quality 

systems for environmental data collection 

and environmental technology programs. 

ANSI/ASQC E4-1994. Milwaukee, WI: 

Energy and Environmental Quality 

Division, Environmental Issues Group. 

32 p.

Bechtold, W.A.; Patterson, P.L., eds. 2005. 

The enhanced Forest Inventory and 

Analysis program—national sampling 

design and estimation procedures. Gen. 

Tech. Rep. SRS–80. Asheville, NC: U.S. 

Department of Agriculture Forest Service, 

Southern Research Station. 85 p. 

Bruce, K.A.; Cameron, G.N.; Harcombe, 

P.A.; Jubinsky, G. 1997. Introduction, 

impact on native habitats, and 

management of a woody invader, the 

Chinese tallow tree, Sapium sebiferum (L.) 

Roxb. Natural Areas Journal 17(3): 

255–260.

Herms, D.A.; McCullough, D.G. 2014. 

Emerald ash borer invasion of North 

America: history, biology, ecology, 

impacts, and management. Annual 

Review of Entomology. 59: 13–30. 

Kellog, R.S. 1909. The timber supply of the 

United States. Forest Service Circular 

166. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, Forest Service. 40 p.

Mattoon, W.R. 1915. Life history of 

shortleaf pine. U.S. Department 

of Agriculture Bulletin No. 244. 

Washington, DC: U.S. Department of 

Agriculture Forest Service. 46 p.

Oswalt, Sonja N.; Bentley, James W. 2013. 

Louisiana’s forests, 2005. Resour. Bull. 

SRS–192. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department 

of Agriculture Forest Service, Southern 

Research Station. 56 p.

Oswalt, S.N.; Smith, W.B.; Miles, P.D.; 

Pugh, S.A. 2014. Forest resources of the 

United States 2012: a technical document 

supporting the Forest Service 2015 

update of the RPA Assessment. Gen. 

Tech. Rep. WO–91. Washington, DC: U.S. 

Department of Agriculture Forest Service, 

Washington Office. 218 p.

Oswalt, S.N.; Oswalt, C.M. 2012. Invasive 

plants found in Louisiana forests, 2009 

forest inventory and analysis factsheet. 

E-Science Update SRS–061. Asheville, 

NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture 

Forest Service, Southern Research 

Station. 4 p.
22

Sunset over Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge, Louisiana. (photo by Steve Hillebrand, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
23

Glossary

GLOSSARY

All-live tree—All living trees. All size 

classes, all tree classes, and both saw-log 

and nonsaw-log species are included. See: 

FIA tree species list in the field manual.

Average annual mortality—Average 

annual volume of trees ≥5.0 inches d.b.h. 

that died from human and natural causes 

during the intersurvey period, excluding 

those removed by harvesting, cultural 

operations, land clearing or changes in land 

use.

Average annual removals—Average 

annual volume of trees ≥5.0 inches d.b.h. 

removed from the inventory by harvesting, 

cultural operations (such as timber-stand 

improvement), land clearing, or changes in 

land use during the intersurvey period.

Average net annual growth—Average 

annual net change in volume of trees ≥5.0 

inches d.b.h./d.r.c. without taking into 

account losses from cutting (gross growth 

minus mortality) during the intersurvey 

period.

Basal area—The cross sectional area of a 

tree at breast height or of all the trees in a 

stand, usually expressed in square feet or 

square feet per acre.

Bioindicator species—A tree, woody 

shrub, or nonwoody herbaceous species 

that responds to ambient levels of ozone 

pollution with distinct visible foliar 

symptoms that are easy to diagnose.

Biomass—For the southern region, total 

aboveground biomass is estimated using 

allometric equations and is defined as the 

aboveground weight of wood and bark in 

live trees ≥1.0 inch d.b.h./d.r.c. from the 

ground to the tip of the tree, excluding all 

foliage (leaves, needles, buds, fruit, and 

limbs <0.5 inch in diameter). Biomass is 

expressed as oven-dry weight and the units 

are tons. 

Note: the weight of wood and bark in limbs 

<0.5 inch in diameter is included in the 

biomass of small-diameter trees. 

Additionally, biomass in the merchantable 

stem is estimated regionally, where the 

main and merchantable stems are defined as 

follows.

Main stem—The central portion of the tree 

extending from the ground level to the 

tip for timber species. Woodland species 

includes from ground level to the tips 

of all branches of qualifying stems. For 

timber species trees that fork, the main 

stem refers to the fork that would yield 

the most merchantable volume.

Merchantable stem—That portion of the 

main stem of a timber species tree from 

a 1-foot stump to a minimum 4-inch top 

diameter inside or outside bark depending 

on species. That portion of a woodland 

species tree from the d.r.c. measurements 

to the 1.5-inch diameters of all the 

qualifying stems. 

Nationally aboveground and belowground 

biomass is estimated from each tree’s sound 

volume using a Component Ratio Method 

that is consistently applied in all FIA 

regions.

Gross aboveground biomass—Total tree 

biomass excluding foliage and roots with 

no deductions made for rotten, missing, 

or broken-top cubic-foot cull. 

Net aboveground biomass—Gross 

aboveground biomass minus deductions 

for missing cull, broken-top, and a 

reduction for a proportion of rotten cull 
24

Glossary

for live or standing dead trees ≥5.0 inches 

d.b.h (Rotten cull will have a factor 

to reduce specific gravity separately 

from sound wood). Live and standing 

dead trees 1.0 to 4.9 inches only have 

deductions for broken-top cull. Additional 

deductions are made for dead trees ≥1.0 

inch using decay class.

Belowground biomass—Coarse roots only. 

Further, the total net aboveground biomass 

estimated using the Component Ratio 

Method is divided into the following 

components:

Top—That portion of the main stem of 

a timber species tree above the 4-inch 

top diameter. For woodland species, this 

component of the biomass is included 

with branches.

Branches—All the branches of a timber 

species tree excluding the main stem. 

That portion of all the branches of 

qualifying stems of woodland species 

above the 1.5-inch diameter ends.

Bole—See: Merchantable stem. 

Stump—That portion of timber species 

below 1-foot to ground level. That portion 

of woodland species from all the d.r.c. 

measurements to ground level.

Blind check—A reinstallation done 

by a qualified inspection crew without 

production crew data on hand; at least two 

full subplots are completely remeasured 

along with all the plot level information. 

The two datasets are maintained separately. 

Discrepancies between the two sets of data 

are not reconciled. See: Quality assurance 

and quality control.

Bole—Trunk or main stem of a tree. (See: 

Main stem.)

Census water—See: Land use.

Coarse woody debris (CWD)—

Downed, dead tree and shrub boles, large 

limbs, and other woody pieces with a 

minimum small-end diameter of ≥3 inches 

and a length of ≥3 feet not attached to a 

living or standing dead source.

Cold check—An inspection done either 

as part of the training process, or as part 

of the ongoing quality control program. 

Normally the installation crew is not present 

at the time of inspection. The inspector has 

the completed data in-hand at the time 

of inspection. The inspection can include 

the whole plot or a subset of the plot. Data 

errors are corrected. See: Quality assurance 

and quality control.

Components of change—Volume 

increment and decrement values that 

explain the change in inventory between 

two points in time. Components of change 

are usually expressed in terms of growingstock or all-live merchantable volume. 

These components can be expressed as 

average annual values by dividing the 

component by the number of years in the 

measurement cycle. FIA inventories are 

designed to measure net change over time, 

as well as the individual components of 

change that constitute net change (e.g., 

growth, removals, mortality). Change 

estimates are computed for two sequential 

measurements of each inventory panel. 

Upon remeasurement, a new initial 

inventory is established for remeasurement 

at the next scheduled inventory. As such, 

computation of change components is not 

intended to span more than one inventory 

cycle. Rather, the change estimation process 

is repeated cycle by cycle. This simplifies 

field protocols and ensures that change 

estimation is based on short and relatively 

constant time intervals (e.g., 5 years). 

Change estimates for individual panels are 

combined across multiple panels in the 

same manner as panels are combined to 

obtain current inventory parameters such 

as total standing volume. FIA recognizes 
25

Glossary

the following components of change as 

prescribed core variables; they usually are 

expressed in terms of growing-stock or alllive volume, where t is the initial inventory 

of a measurement cycle, and t + 1 is the 

terminal inventory: 

Cut—The volume of trees cut between 

time t and time t + 1. The estimate is 

based on tree size at the midpoint of 

the measurement interval (includes 

cut growth). Tree size at the midpoint 

is modeled from tree size at time t. 

Trees felled or killed in conjunction 

with a harvest or silvicultural operation 

(whether they are utilized or not) are 

included, but trees on land diverted 

from forest to nonforest (diversions) are 

excluded.

Cut growth—The growth of cut trees 

between time t and the midpoint of 

the measurement interval. Tree size at 

the midpoint is modeled from tree size 

at time t. This term also includes the 

subsequent growth on ingrowth trees that 

achieve the minimum diameter threshold 

prior to being cut.

Diversion—The volume of trees on land 

diverted from forest to nonforest (or, 

for some analyses, this may also include 

land diverted to reserved forest land 

and other forest land), whether utilized 

or not, between time t and time t + 1. 

The estimate is based on tree size at the 

midpoint of the measurement interval 

(includes diversion growth). Tree size at 

the midpoint is modeled from tree size at 

time t.

Diversion growth—The growth of diversion 

trees from time t to the midpoint of the 

measurement interval. Tree size at the 

midpoint is modeled from tree size at time 

t. This term also includes the subsequent 

growth on ingrowth trees that achieve 

the minimum diameter threshold prior to 

diversion. 

Growth on ingrowth—The growth on trees 

between the time they grow across the 

minimum d.b.h./d.r.c. threshold and time 

t + 1. 

Ingrowth—The volume of trees at the 

time that they grow across the minimum 

d.b.h./d.r.c. threshold between time t and 

time t + 1. The estimate is based on the 

size of trees at the d.b.h./d.r.c. threshold 

which is 1.0 inch for all-live trees and 

5.0 inches for growing-stock trees. This 

term also includes trees that subsequently 

die (i.e., ingrowth mortality), are cut (i.e., 

ingrowth, cut), or diverted to nonforest 

(i.e., ingrowth diversion); as well as trees 

that achieve the minimum threshold after 

an area reverts to a forest land use (i.e., 

reversion ingrowth).

Mortality—The volume of trees that die 

from human or natural causes between 

time t and time t + 1. The estimate is 

based on tree size at the midpoint of the 

measurement interval (includes mortality 

growth). Tree size at the midpoint is 

modeled from tree size at time t.

Mortality growth—The growth of trees 

that died from human or natural causes 

between time t and the midpoint of 

the measurement interval. Tree size at 

the midpoint is modeled from tree size 

at time t. This term also includes the 

subsequent growth on ingrowth trees that 

achieve the minimum diameter threshold 

prior to mortality.

Reversion—The volume of trees on land 

that reverts from a nonforest land use to 

a forest land use (or, for some analyses, 

land that reverts from any source to 

timberland) between time t and time t + 1. 

The estimate is based on tree size at the 

midpoint of the measurement interval. 

Tree size at the midpoint is modeled from 

tree size at time t + 1.

Reversion growth—The growth of 

reversion trees from the midpoint of the 
26

Glossary

measurement interval to time t + 1. Tree 

size at the midpoint is modeled from tree 

size at time t + 1. This term also includes 

the subsequent growth on ingrowth trees 

that achieve the minimum diameter 

threshold after reversion.

Survivor growth—The growth on trees 

tallied at time t that survive until time 

t + 1.

The following components of change may 

be used to further quantify changes in 

growing-stock (but not all-live) volume:

Cull decrement—The net gain in growingstock volume due to reclassification of cull 

trees to growing-stock trees between two 

surveys. Cull decrement is the volume 

of trees that were cull at time t, but 

growing stock at time t + 1. The estimate 

is based on tree size at the midpoint of 

the measurement interval. Tree size at 

the midpoint can be modeled from tree at 

time t, time t + 1, or both.

Cull decrement growth—The growth from 

the midpoint of the measurement interval 

to time t + 1 on trees that were cull at 

time t, but growing stock at time t + 1. 

Tree size at the midpoint can be modeled 

from tree size at time t, time t + 1, or both.

Cull increment—The net reduction 

in growing-stock volume due to 

reclassification of growing stock trees 

to cull trees between two surveys. Cull 

increment is the volume of trees that 

were growing stock at time t, but cull at 

time t + 1. The estimate is based on tree 

size at the midpoint of the measurement 

interval (includes cull increment growth). 

Tree size at the midpoint can be modeled 

from tree size at time t, time t + 1, or both.

Cull increment growth—The growth to the 

midpoint of the measurement interval 

between time t and t + 1 of trees that were 

growing stock at time t, but cull trees at 

time t + 1. Tree size at the midpoint can 

be modeled from tree size at time t, time 

t + 1, or both.

Condition class—The combination of 

discrete landscape and forest attributes 

that identify, define, and stratify the area 

associated with a plot. Examples of such 

attributes include condition status, forest 

type, stand origin, stand size, owner group, 

reserve status and stand density. 

Crown—The part of a tree or woody plant 

bearing live branches or foliage. 

Crown vigor class—A visual assessment 

of the apparent crown vigor of saplings. 

The purpose is to separate excellent 

saplings with superior crowns from stressed 

individuals with poor crowns.

Crown density—The amount of crown 

stem, branches, twigs, shoots, buds, foliage, 

and reproductive structures that block light 

penetration through the projected crown 

outline. Measured as a percentage.

Crown dieback—Recent mortality of 

branches with fine twigs, which begins 

at the terminal portion of a branch and 

proceeds toward the trunk. Dieback is only 

considered when it occurs in the upper and 

outer portions of the tree. Dead branches 

in the lower live crown are not considered 

as part of crown dieback, unless there is 

continuous dieback from the upper and 

outer crown down to those branches.

Cull—Portions of a tree that are unusable 

for industrial wood products because of 

rot, form, or other defect. Cull is further 

categorized as the following: 

Broken-top cubic-foot cull—The brokentop proportion of a timber species tree’s 

merchantable portion from the break 

to the actual or projected 4-inch top 

diameter outside bark, or to where the 

central stem forks, where all forks are 

<4.0 inches diameter. For trees 1.0 to 

4.9 inches diameter this is the proportion 

of the main stem missing due to a 

broken-top.
27

Glossary

Form board-foot cull—The part of the tree’s 

saw-log portion that is sound but not 

usable for sawn wood products due to 

sweep, crook, forking, or other physical 

culls.

Missing cubic-foot cull—The proportion 

of a tree’s merchantable portion that is 

missing or absent. Does not include any 

cull deductions above actual length for 

broken-top timber trees. Does include 

cull deductions above actual length for 

broken-top woodland species. Trees with 

d.b.h./d.r.c. <5.0 inches have a null value 

in this field.

Percent board-foot cull—Percentage of 

sound and unsound board-foot volume, 

to the nearest 1 percent.

Rotten cubic-foot cull—The proportion of 

a tree’s merchantable portion that is in 

a decayed state. Does not include any 

cull deductions above actual length for 

broken-top timber trees. Does include 

cull deductions above actual length for 

broken-top woodland species. Trees 

<5.0 inches d.b.h. have a null value in 

this field.

Rotten/missing cull—The part of the tree’s 

merchantable portion that is decayed 

and/or absent due to other factors.

Total board-foot cull—The proportion of 

a timber species tree’s saw-log portion 

that is rotten, missing, or sound but 

not useable for sawn wood products 

due to sweep, crook, forking, or other 

physical defects (form board-foot cull). 

Nonsaw-log species and softwoods 

<9.0 inches d.b.h. and hardwoods 

<11.0 inches d.b.h. have a null value in 

this field.

Cull tree—Live trees that are unsuitable 

for the production of some roundwood 

products, now or prospectively. Cull trees 

can include those with decay (rotten cull) or 

poor form, limbiness, or splits (rough cull). 

Rough cull is suitable for pulpwood and 

other fiber products.

Cycle—One sequential and complete set of 

panels.

Diameter at breast height (d.b.h.)—

The diameter for tree stem, located at 

4.5 feet above the ground (breast height) 

on the uphill side of a tree. The point 

of diameter measurement may vary on 

abnormally formed trees.

Diameter class—A classification of trees 

based on diameter outside bark, measured 

at breast height (d.b.h.) above the ground 

or at root collar (d.r.c.). Note: Diameter 

classes are commonly in 2-inch increments, 

beginning with 2-inches. Each class provides 

a range of values with the class name being 

the approximate midpoint. For example, 

the 6-inch class includes trees 5.0 through 

6.9 inches d.b.h.

Disturbance—Natural or humancaused disruption that is ≥1.0 acre in size 

and results in mortality and/or damage 

to 25 percent of all trees in a stand or 

50 percent of an individual species’ count 

or, in the case when the disturbance does 

not initially affect tree growth or health 

(e.g. grazing, browsing, flooding, etc.), 

affects 25 percent of the soil surface or 

understory vegetation. For initial forest 

plot establishment the disturbance must be 

within the last 5 years. For remeasured plots 

only those disturbances that have occurred 

since the previous inventory are recognized. 

Diversion—See: Components of change.

Down woody material (DWM)—DWM 

is dead material on the ground in various 

stages of decay. It includes coarse and fine 

woody material. Previously named down 

woody debris (DWD). The depth of duff 

layer, litter layer, and overall fuelbed; fuel 

loading on the microplot; and residue piles 

are also measured as part of the DWM 

indicator for FIA.

Dry weight—The oven-dry weight of 

biomass. 
28

Glossary

Federal land—An ownership class 

of public lands owned by the U.S. 

Government. See: Ownership. 

Fine woody debris (FWD)—Downed, 

dead branches, twigs, and small tree or 

shrub boles <3 inches in diameter not 

attached to a living or standing dead source.

Fixed-radius plot—A circular sampled 

area with a specified radius in which all 

trees of a given size, shrubs, or other items 

are tallied.

Foliage transparency—The amount 

of skylight visible through microholes in 

the live portion of the crown, i.e. where 

you see foliage, normal or damaged, or 

remnants of its recent presence. Recently 

defoliated branches are included in foliage 

transparency measurements. Macroholes 

are excluded unless they are the result 

of recent defoliation. Dieback and dead 

branches are always excluded from the 

estimate. Foliage transparency is different 

from crown density because it emphasizes 

foliage and ignores stems, branches, fruits, 

and holes in the crown. 

Forest floor—The entire thickness of 

organic material overlying the mineral soil, 

consisting of the litter and the duff (humus).

Forest industry land—See: Ownership.

Forest land—Land that is at least 

10 percent stocked by forest trees of any 

size, or land formerly having such tree 

cover, and is not currently developed 

for a nonforest use. The minimum area 

for classification as forest land is 1 acre. 

Roadside, streamside, and shelterbelt strips 

of timber must be at least 120 feet wide to 

qualify as forest land. Unimproved roads 

and trails, streams and other bodies of 

water, or natural clearings in forested areas 

shall be classified as forest, if <120 feet 

in width or 1.0 acre in size. Forest land is 

divided into timberland, reserved forest 

land, and other forest land (such as 

woodland). 

Forest type—A classification of forest 

land based upon and named for the tree 

species that forms the plurality of live-tree 

stocking. A forest-type classification for a 

field location indicates the predominant 

live-tree species cover for the field location; 

hardwoods and softwoods are first grouped 

to determine predominant group, and 

forest type is selected from the predominant 

group. 

Forest-type group—A combination of 

forest types that share closely associated 

species or site requirements.

Elm-ash-cottonwood—Forests in which 

elm, ash, or cottonwood, singly or in 

combination, constitute a plurality of the 

stocking. (Common associates include 

willow, sycamore, beech, and maple.)

Loblolly-shortleaf pine—Forests in which 

loblolly pine, shortleaf pine, or other 

southern yellow pines, except longleaf 

or slash pine, singly or in combination, 

constitute a plurality of the stocking. 

(Common associates include oak, hickory, 

and gum.)

Maple-beech-birch—Forests in which 

maple, beech, or yellow birch, singly or 

in combination, constitute a plurality of 

the stocking. (Common associates include 

hemlock, elm, basswood, and white 

pine.)

Oak-gum-cypress—Bottomland forests 

in which tupelo, blackgum, sweetgum, 

oaks, or southern cypress, singly or in 

combination, constitute a plurality of the 

stocking, except where pines account for 

25 to 50 percent of stocking, in which 

case the stand is classified as oak-pine. 

(Common associates include cottonwood, 

willow, ash, elm, hackberry, and maple.)

Oak-hickory—Forests in which upland 

oaks or hickory, singly or in combination, 

constitute a plurality of the stocking, 

except where pines account for 25 to 
29

Glossary

50 percent, in which case the stand is 

classified oak-pine. (Common associates 

include yellow-poplar, elm, maple, and 

black walnut.)

Oak-pine—Forests in which hardwoods 

(usually upland oaks) constitute a 

plurality of the stocking but in which 

pines account for 25 to 50 percent of the 

stocking. (Common associates include 

gum, hickory, and yellow-poplar.)

Fuel class—Categories of forest fire fuels 

defined by the approximate amount of time 

it takes for moisture conditions to fluctuate. 

Large coarse woody debris pieces take 

longer to dry out than smaller fine woody 

pieces.

1,000-hour fuels—Coarse woody debris 

with a transect diameter ≥3.0 inches in 

diameter and ≥3.0 feet long.

100-hour fuels—Fine woody debris with 

a transect diameter between 1.0 and 

2.9 inches.

10-hour fuels—Fine woody debris with 

a transect diameter between 0.25 and 

0.9 inches.

1-hour fuels—Fine woody debris with a 

transect diameter ≤0.24 inches.

Growing-stock trees—Live largediameter timber species (excludes nonsawlog species) trees with one-third or more of 

the gross board-foot volume in the entire 

saw-log portion meeting grade, soundness, 

and size requirements or the potential to do 

so for medium-diameter and small-diameter 

trees. A growing-stock tree must have one 

12-foot log or two noncontiguous 8-foot 

merchantable logs, now (large diameter) or 

prospectively (medium diameter and small 

diameter), to qualify as growing stock.

Hardwoods—Tree species belonging to 

the botanical divisions Magnoliophyta, 

Ginkgophyta, Cycadophyta, or Pteridophyta, 

usually angiospermic, dicotyledonous, 

broad-leaved and deciduous.

Soft hardwoods—Hardwood species with 

an average specific gravity of ≤0.50, such 

as gums, yellow-poplar, cottonwoods, red 

maple, basswoods, and willows.

Hard hardwoods—Hardwood species with 

an average specific gravity >0.50, such as 

oaks, hard maples, hickories, and beech.

Hot check—An inspection normally done 

as part of the training process. The inspector 

is present on the plot with the trainee and 

provides immediate feedback regarding 

data quality. Data errors are corrected. Hot 

checks can be done on training plots or 

production plots. See: Quality assurance and 

quality control. 

Land—The area of dry land and land 

temporarily or partly covered by water, such 

as marshes, swamps, and river flood plains. 

Land cover—The dominant vegetation or 

other kind of material that covers the land 

surface. A given land cover may have many 

land uses. 

Land use—The purpose of human activity 

on the land; it is usually, but not always, 

related to land cover.

Southern regional present land use 

categories are as follows:

Accessible timberland—Land that is within 

the population of interest, is accessible, 

is on a subplot that can be occupied at 

subplot center, can safely be visited, and 

meets the criteria for forest land (see: 

forest land).

Accessible other forest land—Land that meets 

the definition of accessible forest land, but 

is incapable of producing 20 cubic feet per 

acre per year of industrial wood under 

natural conditions because of adverse site 
30

Glossary

conditions. Adverse conditions include 

sterile soils, dry climate, poor drainage, 

high elevation, steepness and soil 

rockiness.

Agricultural land—Land managed for 

crops, pasture, or other agricultural use. 

The area must be at least 1.0 acre in size 

and 120 feet wide (with the exception 

of windbreak/shelterbelt, which has no 

minimum width). This land use includes 

cropland, pasture (improved through 

cultural practices), idle farmland, orchard, 

Christmas tree plantation, maintained 

wildlife opening, and windbreak/

shelterbelt.

Rangeland—Land primarily composed of 

grasses, forbs, or shrubs. This includes 

lands vegetated naturally or artificially 

to provide a plant cover managed like 

native vegetation and does not meet the 

definition of pasture. The area must be at 

least ≥1.0 acre in size and ≤120 feet wide.

Developed—Land used primarily by 

humans for purposes other than forestry 

or agriculture. This land use includes 

cultural (business, industrial/commercial, 

residential, and other places of intense 

human activity), rights-of-way (improved 

roads, railway, power lines, maintained 

canal), recreation (parks, skiing, golf 

courses), and mining.

Other—Land parcels ≥1.0 acre in size 

and ≥120 feet wide, which do not fall 

into one of the uses described above. 

Examples include undeveloped beaches, 

barren land (rock, sand), marshes, bogs, 

ice, and snow. This land use includes 

nonvegetated, wetland, beach, and 

nonforest-chaparral.

Census water—Rivers and streams that 

are >200 feet wide and bodies of water 

>4.5 acres in size.

Noncensus water—Rivers, streams and 

other bodies of water that do not meet 

the requirements for census water.

Nonsampled—Not sampled due to denied 

access, hazardous conditions, being 

outside the U.S. or other reasons.

Large-diameter trees—Softwoods 

≥9.0 inches d.b.h. and hardwoods 

≥11.0 inches d.b.h. These trees were called 

sawtimber-sized trees in prior surveys. See: 

Stand-size class.

Litter—Undecomposed or only partially 

decomposed organic material that can be 

readily identified (e.g., plant leaves, twigs, 

etc.).

Main stem—The central portion of the 

tree extending from the ground level to the 

tip for timber species. For woodland species 

the main stem extends from the ground 

level to the tips of all branches of qualifying 

stems. For timber species trees that fork, the 

main stem follows the fork that would yield 

the most merchantable volume.

Measurement quality objective 

(MQO)—A data user’s estimate of the 

precision, bias, and completeness of data 

necessary to satisfy a prescribed application 

(e.g., Resource Planning Act, assessments by 

State foresters, forest planning, forest health 

analyses). Describes the acceptable tolerance 

for each data element. MQOs consist of 

two parts: a statement of the tolerance and 

a percentage of time when the collected 

data are required to be within tolerance. 

MQOs can only be assigned where standard 

methods of sampling or field measurements 

exist, or where experience has established 

upper or lower bounds on precision or 

bias. MQOs can be set for measured data 

elements, observed data elements, and 

derived data elements. 

Medium-diameter tree—Softwood 

timber species 5.0 to 8.9 inches d.b.h. and 

hardwood timber species 5.0 to 10.9 inches 

d.b.h. These trees were called poletimbersized trees in prior surveys. See: Stand-size 

class.
31

Glossary

Microplot—A circular, fixed-radius plot 

with a radius of 6.8 feet (0.003 acre) that 

is used to sample trees <5.0 inches d.b.h./

d.r.c., as well as other vegetation. Point 

center is 90 degrees and 12 feet offset from 

point center of each subplot. 

Mortality—See: Components of change.

National forest land—See: Ownership.

Noncensus water—See: Land use.

Nonforest land—Land that does not 

support or has never supported, forests, 

and lands formerly forested where use 

for timber management is precluded by 

development for other uses. Includes areas 

used for crops, improved pasture, residential 

areas, city parks, improved roads of any 

width and adjoining rights-of-way, power 

line clearings of any width, and noncensus 

water. If intermingled in forest areas, 

unimproved roads and nonforest strips must 

be ≥120 feet wide, and clearings, etc., ≥1.0 

acre in size, to qualify as nonforest land.

Nonindustrial private forest land—

See: Ownership.

Operability—The viability of operating 

logging equipment in the vicinity of the 

condition. Operability classes are as follows:

No problems.

Seasonal access due to water conditions in wet 

weather.

Mixed wet and dry areas typical of 

multichanneled streams punctuated with dry 

islands.

Broken terrain, cliffs, gullies, outcroppings, etc., 

which would severely limit equipment, access, 

or use.

Year-round water problems (includes islands).

Slopes 20 to 40 percent.

Slopes >40 percent.

Other forest land—Forest land other 

than timberland and reserved forest land. 

It includes available and reserved forest 

land that is incapable of producing 20 cubic 

feet per acre per year of wood under 

natural conditions because of adverse site 

conditions such as sterile soils, dry climate, 

poor drainage, high elevation, steepness, or 

rockiness.

Other public land—See: Ownership.

Other removals—The volume of 

trees removed from the inventory by 

cultural operations such as timber stand 

improvement, land clearing, and other 

changes in land use, resulting in the 

removal of the trees from timberland.

Ownership—A legal entity having control 

of a parcel or group of parcels of land. 

An ownership may be an individual; a 

combination of persons; a legal entity such 

as corporation, partnership, club, or trust; or 

a public agency.

National forest land—Federal land that 

has been legally designated as national 

forests or purchase units, and other land 

under the administration of the Forest 

Service, including experimental areas and 

Bankhead-Jones Title III land.

Forest industry land—An ownership class of 

private lands owned by a company or an 

individual(s) operating a primary woodprocessing plant. 

Nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) land—

Privately owned land excluding forest 

industry land.

Corporate—Owned by corporations, 

including incorporated farm ownerships.

Individual—All lands owned by 

individuals, including farm operators.

Other public—An ownership class that 

includes all public lands except national 

forests.
32

Glossary

Miscellaneous Federal land—Federal land 

other than national forests.

State, parish, and municipal land—Land 

owned by States, parishes, and local 

public agencies or municipalities, or land 

leased to these governmental units for 

50 years or more.

Ozone (O3)—A gaseous air pollutant 

produced primarily through sunlight-driven 

chemical reactions of NO2 and hydrocarbons 

in the atmosphere and causing foliar injury 

to deciduous trees, conifers, shrubs, and 

herbaceous species. 

Ozone bioindicator site—An open 

area used for ozone injury evaluations on 

ozone-sensitive species. The area must meet 

certain site selection guidelines regarding 

size, condition, and plant counts to be used 

for ozone injury evaluations in FIA.

Phase 1 (P1)—FIA activities related to 

remote sensing, the primary purpose of 

which is to label plots and obtain stratum 

weights for population estimates.

Phase 2 (P2)—FIA activities conducted on 

the network of ground plots. The primary 

purpose is to obtain field data that enable 

classification and summarization of area, 

tree, and other attributes associated with 

forest land uses.

Phase 3 (P3)—A subset of Phase 2 plots 

where additional attributes related to forest 

health are measured. 

Plantation—Stands that currently show 

evidence of being planted or artificially 

seeded.

Poletimber-sized tree—Softwood 

timber species 5.0 to 8.9 inches d.b.h. and 

hardwood timber species 5.0 to 10.9 inches 

d.b.h. Now referred to as medium-diameter 

trees.

Private land—See: Ownership. 

Productivity class—A classification of 

forest land in terms of potential annual 

cubic-foot volume growth per acre at 

culmination of mean annual increment 

(MAI) in fully stocked natural stands. 

Quality assurance (QA)—The 

total integrated program for ensuring 

that the uncertainties inherent in FIA 

data are known and do not exceed 

acceptable magnitudes, within a stated 

level of confidence. Quality assurance 

encompasses the plans, specifications, 

and policies affecting the collection, 

processing, and reporting of data. It is the 

system of activities designed to provide 

program managers and project leaders 

with independent assurance that total 

system quality control is being effectively 

implemented.

Quality control (QC)—The routine 

application of prescribed field and 

laboratory procedures (e.g., random check 

cruising, periodic calibration, instrument 

maintenance, use of certified standards, 

etc.) in order to reduce random and 

systematic errors and ensure that data are 

generated within known and acceptable 

performance limits. Quality control also 

ensures the use of qualified personnel; 

reliable equipment and supplies; training 

of personnel; good field and laboratory 

practices; and strict adherence to standard 

operating procedures. 

Reserved forest land—Forest land 

where management for the production of 

wood products is prohibited through statute 

or administrative designation. Examples 

include national forest wilderness areas and 

national parks and monuments.

Reversion—Land that reverts from a 

nonforest land use to a forest land use. See: 

Components of change.

Sapling—Live trees 1.0 to 4.9 inches 

d.b.h./d.r.c. 
33

Glossary

Seedling—Live trees <1.0 inch d.b.h./d.r.c. 

that are ≥6.0 inches in height for softwoods 

and ≥12.0 inches in height for hardwoods 

and >0.5 inch d.b.h./d.r.c. at ground level 

for longleaf pine.

Site index—The average total height that 

dominant and codominant trees in fullystocked, even-aged stands will obtain at key 

ages (usually 25 or 50 years). 

Small-diameter trees—Trees 1.0 to 

4.9 inches in d.b.h./d.r.c. These were called 

sapling-seedling sized trees in prior surveys. 

See: Stand-size class.

Softwoods—Tree species belonging to the 

botanical division Coniferophyta, usually 

evergreen having needles or scale-like 

leaves. 

Species group—A collection of species 

used for reporting purposes. 

Stand—Vegetation or a group of plants 

occupying a specific area and sufficiently 

uniform in species composition, age 

arrangement, structure, and condition as 

to be distinguished from the vegetation on 

adjoining areas. 

Stand age—A stand descriptor that 

indicates the average age of the live 

dominant and codominant trees in the 

predominant stand-size class of a condition. 

Standing dead tree—A dead tree 

≥5.0 inches d.b.h. that has a bole which 

has an unbroken actual length of at least 

4.5 feet, and lean <45 degrees from vertical 

as measured from the base of the tree to 

4.5 feet.

Stand origin—A classification of forest 

stands describing their means of origin.

Planted—Planted or artificially seeded.

Natural—No evidence of artificial 

regeneration.

Stand-size class—A classification of 

forest land based on the diameter-class 

distribution of live trees in the stand. See 

definitions of large-, medium-, and smalldiameter trees.

Large-diameter stands—Stands at least 

10 percent stocked with live trees, with 

one-half or more of total stocking in 

large- and medium-diameter trees, and 

with large-diameter tree stocking at least 

equal to medium-diameter tree stocking.

Medium-diameter stands—Stands at least 

10 percent stocked with live trees, with 

one-half or more of total stocking in 

medium- and large-diameter trees, and 

with medium-diameter tree stocking 

exceeding large-diameter tree stocking.

Small-diameter stands—Stands at least 

10 percent stocked with live trees, in 

which small-diameter trees account for 

more than one-half of total stocking.

Nonstocked stands—Stands <10 percent 

stocked with live trees.

Stand structure—The predominant 

canopy structure for the condition, only 

considering the vertical position of the 

dominant and codominant trees in the 

stand and not considering trees that are 

intermediate or overtopped. As a general 

rule, a different story should comprise 

25 percent of the stand.

Nonstocked—The condition is <10 percent 

stocked.

Single-storied—Most of the dominant/

codominant tree crowns form a single 

canopy (i.e., most of the trees are 

approximately the same height).

Multistoried—Two or more recognizable 

levels characterize the crown canopy. 

Dominant/codominant trees of many 

sizes (diameters and heights) for a 

multilevel canopy.
34

Glossary

State, parish, and municipal land—

See: Ownership. 

Stocking—(1) At the tree level, stocking 

is the density value assigned to a sampled 

tree (usually in terms of numbers of trees or 

basal area per acre), expressed as a percent 

of the total tree density required to fully 

utilize the growth potential of the land. 

(2) At the stand level, stocking refers to 

the sum of the stocking values of all trees 

sampled.

Subplot—A circular area with a fixed 

horizontal radius of 24.0 feet (

1⁄24 acre), 

primarily used to sample trees ≥5.0 inches at 

d.b.h./d.r.c.

Survivor tree—A sample tree alive at both 

the current and previous inventories. 

Timberland—Forest land that is producing 

or capable of producing 20 cubic feet 

per acre or more per year of wood at 

culmination of MAI. Timberland excludes 

reserved forest lands. 

Treatment—Forestry treatments are a 

form of human disturbance. The term 

treatment further implies that a silvicultural 

application has been prescribed. This does 

not include occasional stumps of unknown 

origin or sparse removals for firewood, 

Christmas trees, or other miscellaneous 

purposes. The area affected by any 

treatment must be at least 1.0 acre in size.

None—No observable treatment.

Cutting—The removal of one or more 

trees from a stand. SRS FIA categories are 

the following:

Clearcut harvest—The removal of the 

majority of the merchantable trees in a 

stand; residual stand stocking is under 

50 percent.

Partial harvest—Removal primarily 

consisting of highest quality trees. 

Residual consists of lower quality 

trees because of high grading or 

selection harvest (e.g. uneven aged, 

group selection, high grading, species 

selection).

Seed-tree/shelterwood harvest—Crop trees 

are harvested leaving seed source trees 

either in a shelterwood or seed tree. 

Also includes the final harvest of the 

seed trees.

Commercial thinning—The removal of 

trees (usually of medium-diameter) 

from medium-diameter stands leaving 

sufficient stocking of growing-stock 

trees to feature in future stand 

development. Also included are 

thinning in large-diameter stands 

where medium-diameter trees have 

been removed to improve quality of 

those trees featured in a final harvest.

Timber stand improvement (cut trees only)—

The cleaning, release, or other stand 

improvement involving noncommercial 

cutting applied to an immature stand 

that leaves sufficient stocking. 

Salvage cutting—The harvesting of dead 

or damaged trees or of trees in danger 

of being killed by insects, disease, 

flooding, or other factors in order to 

save their economic value.

Site preparation—Clearing, slash 

burning, chopping, disking, bedding, 

or other practices clearly intended 

to prepare a site for either natural or 

artificial regeneration.

Artificial regeneration—Following a 

disturbance or treatment (usually 

cutting), a new stand where at least 

50 percent of the live trees present 

resulted from planting or direct seeding.

Natural regeneration—Following a 

disturbance or treatment (usually 

cutting), a new stand where at least 

50 percent of the live trees present (of 

any size) were established through the 

growth of existing trees and/or natural 

seeding or sprouting.
35

Glossary

Other silvicultural treatment—The use of 

fertilizers, herbicides, girdling, pruning, or 

other activities designed to improve the 

commercial value of the residual stand, or 

chaining, which is a practice used on 

woodlands to encourage wildlife forage.

Tree—A woody perennial plant, typically 

large, with a single well-defined stem 

carrying a more or less definite crown; 

sometimes defined as attaining a minimum 

diameter of 3 inches and a minimum height 

of 15 feet at maturity. For FIA, any plant on 

the tree list in the current field manual is 

measured as a tree. 

Tree class—An assessment of the general 

quality of a tree.

Cull species—Species measured at d.r.c. and 

timber species (measured at d.b.h.) that 

would not produce saw-logs. See national 

list of nonsaw-log species.

Growing stock—Live large-diameter timber 

species (excludes nonsaw-log species) 

trees with one-third or more of the gross 

board-foot volume in the entire sawlog portion meeting grade, soundness, 

and size requirements or the potential 

to do so for medium-diameter trees. 

A growing-stock tree must have one 

12-foot log or two noncontiguous 8-foot 

merchantable logs, now (large-diameter) 

or prospectively (medium-diameter), to 

qualify as growing stock.

Rough cull—Trees that do not contain at 

least one 12-foot saw log or two 8-foot 

logs now or prospectively, primarily 

because of roughness or poor form. 

Less than 1

∕3 of its gross board-foot 

volume meets size, soundness, and grade 

requirements and <1⁄2 of the cubic-foot 

cull is rotten or unsound.

Rotten cull—Trees that do not contain at 

least one 12-foot saw log or two 8-foot 

logs now or prospectively and/or do not 

meet grade specifications for percent 

sound primarily because of rot. All species 

not having 1

∕3 or more of its gross boardfoot volume meeting size, soundness, and 

grade requirements, and over 1⁄2 of the 

cubic-foot cull is rotten or unsound.

Tree grade—A classification of the sawlog portion of large-diameter trees based 

on: (1) the grade of the butt log, or (2) the 

ability to produce at least one 12-foot or 

two 8-foot logs in the upper section of the 

saw-log portion. Tree grade is an indicator 

of quality; grade 1 is the best quality.

Volume—A measure of the solid content 

of the tree stem used to measure wood 

quantity.

Gross board-foot volume—Total board-foot 

volume of wood inside bark without 

deductions for total board-foot cull.

Gross cubic-foot volume—Total cubic-foot 

volume of wood inside bark without 

deductions for rotten, missing, or brokentop cull.

Net board-foot volume—Gross board-foot 

volume minus deductions for total boardfoot cull.

Net cubic-foot volume—Gross cubic-foot 

volume minus deductions for rotten, 

missing, and broken-top cull.
36

Dusky gopher frog, a species that relies on longleaf pine forests. (photo by John A. Tupy, U.S. Department of Agriculture)
37

Appendix A—Inventory Quality Assurance and Quality Control

INVENTORY QUALITY 

ASSURANCE AND QUALITY 

CONTROL

The goal of the FIA quality assurance (QA) 

program is to provide a framework that 

ensures that forest assessments meet given 

standards for completeness, accuracy, and 

absence of bias. This program is organized 

in accordance with the protocols set forth in 

the American National Standard for Quality 

of Environmental Data collection (Part B 

of American Society for Quality Control 

1994). One of the goals of the FIA program 

is to include data quality documentation in 

all nationally available reports, including 

State reports and national summary reports. 

This report includes a summary of phase 2 

variables and measurement quality objective 

(MQO) analyses from FIA blind check 

measurements. Quality assessments of the 

phase 3 data will be addressed in future 

reports. Quality control procedures include 

feedback to field staff to provide assessment 

and improvement of crew performance. 

Additionally, data quality is assessed 

and documented using performance 

measurements and post survey assessments. 

These assessments then are used to identify 

areas of the data collection process that 

need improvement or refinement in order 

to meet quality objectives of the program.

Quality Assurance and Quality 

Control Methods

FIA implements QA methods in several 

different ways. These methods include 

nationally standardized field manuals, 

portable data recorders (PDR), training 

and certification of field crews, and field 

audits. The PDRs help assure that specified 

procedures are followed. The minimum 

national standards for annual training of 

field crews are: (1) a minimum of 40 hours 

for new employees, and (2) a minimum of 

8 hours for return employees. Field crew 

members are certified via an in situ test plot. 

All crews are required to have at least one 

certified person present on the plot at all 

times.

Field Audits

A hot check is an inspection normally done 

as part of the training process. The inspector 

is present with crew to document crew 

performance as they measure plots. The 

recommended intensity for hot checks is 

2 percent of the plots installed.

Cold checks are done at regular intervals 

throughout the field season. The crew 

that installed the plot is not present at 

the time of inspection and does not know 

when or which plots will be remeasured. 

The inspector visits the completed plot, 

evaluates the crew’s data collection, and 

notes corrections where necessary. The 

recommended intensity for cold checks is 

5 percent of the plots installed.

A blind check is a complete reinstallation 

measurement of a previously completed 

plot. However, the QA crew remeasurement 

is done without the previously recorded 

data. The first measurement of the plot 

is referred to as the field measurement 

and the second measurement as the QA 

measurement. The field crews do not know 
38

Appendix A—Inventory Quality Assurance and Quality Control

in advance when or which of their plots 

will be measured by a QA crew. This type 

of blind measurement provides a direct, 

unbiased observation of measurement 

precision from two independent crews. 

Plots selected for blind checks are chosen 

to be a representative subsample of all 

plots measured and are randomly selected. 

Blind checks are planned to be made within 

2 weeks following completion of the field 

measurement. The recommended intensity 

for blind checks is 3 percent of the plots 

installed.

Measurement Quality Objectives

Each variable collected by FIA is assigned 

a MQO with desired levels of tolerance for 

data analyses. The MQOs are documented 

in the FIA national field manual (http://

www.fia.fs.fed.us/library/field-guidesmethods-proc/). In some instances, the 

MQOs were established as a “best guess” 

of what experienced field crews should 

be able to consistently achieve. Tolerances 

are somewhat arbitrary and were based 

on the ability of crews to make repeatable 

measurements or observations within the 

assigned MQO. Evaluation of field crew 

performance is accomplished by calculation 

of the differences between the field crew 

and QA crew data collected on blind check 

plots. Results of these calculations are 

compared to the established MQOs.

In the analysis of blind check data, an 

observation is within tolerance when the 

difference between the field crew and QA 

crew observations does not exceed the 

assigned tolerance for that variable. For 

many categorical variables, the tolerance 

is “no error” allowed, so only observations 

that are identical are within the tolerance 

level.
39

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.1—Number, volume, growth, removals, and mortality on forest land per species group, Louisiana, 2013 

Species group All live

Number 

growingstocka

Volume 

all live

Volume 

growingstockGrowth 

all live

Growth 

growingstockRemovals 

all live

Removals 

growingstockMortality 

all live

Mortality 

growingstock

million trees million cubic feet - - - - - - - - - - - - - million cubic feet per year - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Longleaf and slash 

pines 338.5 99.4 1,194.4 1,172.7 79.0 76.9 90.8 90.8 7.5 7.4

Loblolly and shortleaf 

pines 2,023.8 799.2 9,158.3 8,985.9 681.0 664.9 439.0 430.0 52.5 50.4

Other yellow pines 11.3 2.9 64.0 56.6 -1.6 -1.8 1.4 1.4 4.8 4.8

Cypress 132.5 77.5 1,955.8 1,837.0 27.6 29.9 10.4 10.4 7.2 4.9

Other eastern 

softwoods 11.5 0.6 7.3 4.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.0

Select white oaks 154.8 26.4 629.8 590.5 12.3 10.9 9.2 8.9 7.1 6.9

Select red oaks 91.5 16.8 489.9 458.6 12.4 11.3 6.5 6.4 5.3 4.6

Other white oaks 109.5 28.1 753.1 588.8 9.4 7.8 6.9 6.6 8.2 6.7

Other red oaks 961.9 122.4 3,040.7 2,664.6 71.5 66.2 57.2 52.6 65.2 55.2

Hickory 211.6 26.0 645.3 562.0 13.7 11.9 15.4 14.3 8.9 7.3

Hard maple 16.6 1.1 12.0 8.6 0.9 0.5 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.0

Soft maple 705.3 26.8 428.0 228.0 6.3 3.3 5.1 3.3 14.8 7.7

Beech 33.8 5.0 166.0 123.6 -0.6 -0.5 0.8 0.7 4.2 3.6

Sweetgum 1,110.9 115.2 1,798.8 1,571.9 41.0 37.9 46.7 44.6 29.8 23.9

Tupelo and blackgum 378.4 85.8 1,561.5 1,261.3 19.2 16.8 7.0 6.3 11.3 7.9

Ash 284.6 28.3 612.9 492.3 5.6 3.0 5.7 5.2 11.6 9.7

Cottonwood and aspen 10.0 1.1 61.1 56.8 2.2 1.8 2.3 2.3 2.4 2.3

Basswood 0.8 0.3 2.2 1.4 -0.1 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Yellow-poplar 14.6 3.1 50.9 49.4 1.6 1.5 2.1 2.1 1.6 1.6

Black walnut 1.1 0.0 2.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other eastern soft 

hardwoods 983.7 92.0 1,693.0 1,050.3 46.2 29.5 18.2 15.4 38.2 21.4

Other eastern hard 

hardwoods 300.0 9.5 177.6 109.8 3.9 1.9 3.0 1.8 4.1 2.6

Eastern noncommercial 

hardwoods 1,202.1 0.0 415.3 0.0 16.5 0.0 5.3 0.0 13.8 0.0

All species 9,088.7 1,567.5 24,920.1 21,874.6 1,048.2 974.0 733.3 703.1 298.7 228.8

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 For trees with diameter >5.0 inches.
40

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.2—Percentage of area by land 

status, Louisiana, 2013 

Land status Area

percent

Accessible forest land

Unreserved forest land

Timberland 43.1

Unproductive 0.1

Total 43.2

Reserved forest land

Productive 0.7

Unproductive 0.0

Total 0.7

Total forest land 44.0

Nonforest and other area

Nonforest land 35.5

Water

Noncensus water 0.7

Census water 18.8

Total 55.0

Nonsampled area

Access denied 0.5

Hazardous conditions 0.6

All area 100.0

Total area (thousands of acres) 33,520.0

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to 

totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 

but <0.05.
41

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.3—Area of forest land by forest-type group and ownership group, Louisiana, 2013 

Forest-type group

All 

ownerships

U.S. Forest 

Service

Other 

Federal

State and local 

government

Forest 

industry

Nonindustrial 

private

thousand acres 

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 797.2 156.7 35.0 7.2 158.4 439.9

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 5,150.2 319.4 68.1 63.3 1,440.8 3,258.7

Total softwoods 5,947.4 476.1 103.0 70.5 1,599.2 3,698.6

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 1,215.9 76.1 32.6 29.0 257.6 820.6

Oak-hickory 1,915.8 82.2 29.8 46.2 267.2 1,490.3

Oak-gum-cypress 3,806.5 57.3 196.5 464.6 365.1 2,723.1

Elm-ash-cottonwood 1,489.2 0.6 84.9 173.1 87.6 1,143.0

Other hardwoods 4.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.4

Exotic hardwoods 390.6 0.0 6.0 6.6 18.6 359.4

Total hardwoods 8,822.4 216.3 349.7 719.5 996.1 6,540.8

Nonstocked 195.3 0.0 0.0 12.9 32.0 150.4

All groups 14,965.1 692.4 452.8 802.9 2,627.2 10,389.8

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.
42

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.4—Area of forest land by forest-type group and stand-size class, 

Louisiana, 2013 

Forest-type group

All size 

classes

Stand-size class

NonstockedLarge 

diameter

Medium 

diameter

Small 

diameter

 thousand acres 

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 797.2 395.0 231.7 170.5 0.0

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 5,150.2 2,452.2 1,649.8 1,048.3 0.0

Total softwoods 5,947.4 2,847.2 1,881.5 1,218.8 0.0

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 1,215.9 605.2 174.6 436.2 0.0

Oak-hickory 1,915.8 869.1 280.0 766.8 0.0

Oak-gum-cypress 3,806.5 2,800.1 517.0 489.3 0.0

Elm-ash-cottonwood 1,489.2 840.2 282.0 367.0 0.0

Other hardwoods 4.4 0.0 0.0 4.4 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 390.6 16.7 77.4 296.5 0.0

Total hardwoods 8,822.4 5,131.2 1,331.0 2,360.2 0.0

Nonstocked 195.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 195.3

All groups 14,965.1 7,978.4 3,212.5 3,578.9 195.3

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.
43

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.5—Area of forest land by forest-type group and 

stand origin, Louisiana, 2013 

Forest-type group Total

Stand origin

Natural 

stands

Artificial 

regeneration

thousand acres

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 797.2 313.6 483.6

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 5,150.2 1,932.3 3,218.0

Total softwoods 5,947.4 2,245.9 3,701.5

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 1,215.9 906.4 309.6

Oak-hickory 1,915.8 1,692.4 223.4

Oak-gum-cypress 3,806.5 3,601.0 205.5

Elm-ash-cottonwood 1,489.2 1,388.8 100.4

Other hardwoods 4.4 4.4 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 390.6 370.9 19.7

Total hardwoods 8,822.4 7,963.8 858.6

Nonstocked 195.3 148.6 46.7

All groups 14,965.1 10,358.3 4,606.8

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.
44

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.6—Number of live trees on forest land by species group and diameter class, Louisiana, 2013 

Species group

All 

classes

Diameter class (inches)

1.0– 

2.9

3.0–

 4.9

5.0– 

6.9

7.0– 

8.9

9.0– 

10.9

11.0– 

12.9

13.0– 

14.9

15.0– 

16.9

17.0– 

18.9

19.0– 

20.9

21.0– 

24.9

25.0– 

28.9

29.0– 

32.9

33.0– 

36.9 37.0+

million trees 

Softwood

Longleaf and slash 

pines 338.5 167.6 67.0 43.9 27.7 11.6 7.7 5.3 4.0 2.2 0.8 0.4 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

Loblolly and shortleaf 

pines 2,023.8 744.8 453.1 347.2 221.0 112.2 61.2 35.2 20.5 12.4 7.4 6.4 1.6 0.5 0.3 0.0

Other yellow pines 11.3 5.2 2.4 1.2 0.7 0.7 0.3 0.2 0.3 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Cypress 132.5 27.1 18.7 17.1 14.9 14.0 11.6 8.4 7.0 5.4 4.0 2.7 0.9 0.5 0.2 0.3

Other eastern 

softwoods 11.5 8.1 2.3 0.6 0.3 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total softwoods 2,517.6 952.8 543.5 410.0 264.6 138.6 80.8 49.2 31.9 20.2 12.1 9.6 2.5 1.0 0.5 0.3

Hardwood

Select white oaks 154.8 97.8 26.3 9.3 6.1 4.7 3.1 2.2 1.5 1.5 0.5 1.1 0.4 0.2 0.0 0.1

Select red oaks 91.5 56.8 16.0 5.4 3.6 2.4 1.3 1.6 1.0 0.8 0.8 1.0 0.4 0.1 0.2 0.1

Other white oaks 109.5 56.8 15.6 9.2 8.2 4.8 3.7 2.8 2.3 1.7 1.0 2.0 0.8 0.3 0.1 0.1

Other red oaks 961.9 676.3 132.4 53.5 30.1 18.5 12.3 10.5 8.2 5.5 4.5 5.4 2.7 1.1 0.5 0.4

Hickory 211.6 147.4 28.8 11.1 6.7 5.5 3.6 2.4 1.8 1.4 1.2 0.7 0.5 0.2 0.0 0.1

Hard maple 16.6 13.5 1.4 0.7 0.5 0.2 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Soft maple 705.3 539.3 102.6 32.3 15.6 7.5 3.2 2.2 1.2 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

Beech 33.8 22.5 3.7 1.8 1.2 1.1 0.7 0.5 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0

Sweetgum 1,110.9 776.9 189.0 60.7 31.8 18.9 12.7 8.0 5.4 3.5 1.6 1.4 0.8 0.1 0.0 0.0

Tupelo and blackgum 378.4 205.1 51.4 32.6 27.4 21.1 17.5 11.5 6.1 2.4 1.5 1.1 0.4 0.1 0.0 0.0

Ash 284.6 207.7 34.3 14.7 8.6 6.5 4.2 3.0 2.0 1.5 0.7 0.8 0.5 0.1 0.0 0.0

Cottonwood and aspen 10.0 6.8 1.8 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Basswood 0.8 0.5 0.0 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Yellow-poplar 14.6 6.9 4.3 1.5 0.9 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Black walnut 1.1 0.0 0.9 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other eastern soft 

hardwoods 983.7 660.2 153.8 71.5 37.5 22.5 15.0 8.6 5.6 3.4 2.2 2.2 0.8 0.3 0.0 0.1

Other eastern hard 

hardwoods 300.0 226.0 52.0 12.1 4.5 2.0 1.0 0.9 0.7 0.5 0.1 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Eastern noncommercial 

hardwoods 1,202.1 883.7 217.7 63.6 23.9 8.7 2.7 1.1 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total hardwoods 6,571.1 4,584.1 1,032.1 380.6 206.7 125.1 81.7 55.7 37.1 23.6 15.2 16.8 7.8 2.7 1.0 1.0

All species 9,088.7 5,536.9 1,575.6 790.6 471.3 263.7 162.5 104.9 68.9 43.8 27.3 26.4 10.3 3.7 1.4 1.3

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.
45

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.7—Neta volume of live trees on forest land by forest-type group and 

stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 

Forest-type group

All size 

classes

Stand-size class

NonstockedLarge 

diameter

Medium 

diameter

Small 

diameter

million cubic feet 

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 1,222.7 918.1 286.6 18.0 0.0

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 8,895.8 6,713.5 2,076.4 105.9 0.0

Total softwoods 10,118.5 7,631.6 2,363.0 123.9 0.0

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 1,940.1 1,638.5 206.4 95.2 0.0

Oak-hickory 2,336.2 1,948.8 263.7 123.7 0.0

Oak-gum-cypress 8,294.4 7,635.7 578.3 80.4 0.0

Elm-ash-cottonwood 2,038.7 1,702.1 292.2 44.4 0.0

Other hardwoods 1.1 0.0 0.0 1.1 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 183.3 21.5 101.4 60.4 0.0

Total hardwoods 14,793.9 12,946.6 1,442.0 405.3 0.0

Nonstocked 7.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 7.7

All groups 24,920.0 20,578.1 3,805.1 529.1 7.7

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Excludes rotten, missing, and form cull defects volume.
46

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.8—Neta volume of live trees on forest land by species group and ownership group, Louisiana, 2013 

Species group

All 

ownerships

Ownership group

U.S. Forest 

Service

Other 

Federal

State and local 

government

Forest 

industry

Nonindustrial 

private

million cubic feet 

Softwood

Longleaf and slash pines 1,194.4 412.3 51.6 6.3 156.8 567.4

Loblolly and shortleaf pines 9,158.3 1,065.4 172.2 178.9 1,988.1 5,753.7

Other yellow pines 64.0 0.0 0.0 2.5 11.7 49.8

Cypress 1,955.8 36.4 98.3 251.6 92.9 1,476.6

Other eastern softwoods 7.3 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.4 6.4

Total softwoods 12,379.8 1,514.4 322.1 439.5 2,250.0 7,853.8

Hardwood

Select white oaks 629.8 68.1 2.8 10.9 91.0 457.2

Select red oaks 489.9 20.3 7.5 19.4 78.3 364.5

Other white oaks 753.1 40.6 58.2 184.3 59.7 410.4

Other red oaks 3,040.7 183.0 148.3 209.2 319.6 2,180.6

Hickory 645.3 33.8 23.3 115.7 46.3 426.1

Hard maple 12.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 1.6 10.2

Soft maple 428.0 10.5 26.8 22.8 32.0 335.9

Beech 166.0 13.5 0.0 0.5 30.3 121.6

Sweetgum 1,798.8 105.6 104.0 68.7 283.5 1,236.9

Tupelo and blackgum 1,561.5 42.9 92.4 108.5 125.8 1,191.9

Ash 612.9 13.5 56.4 73.3 42.1 427.7

Cottonwood and aspen 61.1 0.0 1.2 5.6 2.2 52.1

Basswood 2.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.7 1.5

Yellow-poplar 50.9 0.0 0.0 4.3 4.6 42.0

Black walnut 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0

Other eastern soft hardwoods 1,693.0 24.9 93.2 186.8 115.0 1,273.1

Other eastern hard hardwoods 177.6 7.0 24.2 19.8 15.2 111.4

Eastern noncommercial hardwoods 415.3 10.7 10.2 27.1 31.4 335.8

Total hardwoods 12,540.3 574.3 648.5 1,057.1 1,279.3 8,981.0

All species 24,920.0 2,088.7 970.6 1,496.6 3,529.3 16,834.9

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Excludes rotten, missing, and form cull defects volume.
47

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.9—Neta volume of live trees on forest land by species group and diameter class, Louisiana, 2013 

Species group

All 

classes

Diameter class (inches)

5.0– 

6.9

7.0– 

8.9

9.0– 

10.9

11.0– 

12.9

13.0– 

14.9

15.0– 

16.9

17.0– 

18.9

19.0– 

20.9

21.0– 

24.9

25.0– 

28.9

29.0– 

32.9

33.0– 

36.9 37.0+

million trees 

Softwood

Longleaf and slash 

pines 1,194.4 116.0 172.9 145.1 165.7 173.5 183.2 131.6 54.9 41.0 10.3 0.0 0.0 0.0

Loblolly and shortleaf 

pines 9,158.3 826.5 1,334.3 1,327.3 1,231.2 1,099.8 906.2 738.0 585.2 663.8 246.4 114.2 85.5 0.0

Other yellow pines 64.0 4.1 5.1 9.4 6.2 4.7 12.8 11.0 0.0 10.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Cypress 1,955.8 52.8 99.5 171.2 213.7 216.2 260.2 252.2 242.4 219.5 98.7 58.2 28.4 42.9

Other eastern 

softwoods 7.3 1.5 1.3 1.2 0.4 1.5 1.3 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total softwoods 12,379.8 1,001.0 1,613.0 1,654.3 1,617.1 1,495.7 1,363.6 1,132.9 882.7 934.8 355.4 172.4 113.9 42.9

Hardwood

Select white oaks 629.8 25.6 38.8 54.8 59.5 61.9 59.1 74.3 30.5 103.2 47.5 39.2 8.5 26.9

Select red oaks 489.9 17.7 24.1 28.9 25.5 44.8 35.8 46.1 53.0 87.0 52.1 12.8 38.5 23.6

Other white oaks 753.1 23.5 45.3 48.9 57.9 68.7 67.9 73.0 51.8 149.8 76.3 38.5 23.5 28.0

Other red oaks 3,040.7 147.9 186.2 211.4 219.2 270.3 297.1 267.7 279.1 441.9 295.9 171.1 126.6 126.5

Hickory 645.3 25.1 37.9 59.2 63.6 62.1 65.7 68.5 74.6 64.1 59.1 33.6 10.4 21.2

Hard maple 12.0 1.5 3.4 2.5 3.2 0.0 0.0 1.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Soft maple 428.0 84.5 84.9 70.1 44.5 47.7 33.2 17.8 16.0 15.2 8.2 5.9 0.0 0.0

Beech 166.0 4.5 7.1 12.1 12.0 11.4 23.6 19.1 30.4 25.5 16.8 3.4 0.0 0.0

Sweetgum 1,798.8 137.6 190.8 219.0 246.0 228.4 214.7 187.9 109.7 122.7 105.2 23.3 7.0 6.5

Tupelo and blackgum 1,561.5 87.5 162.4 228.3 297.4 273.6 199.2 96.2 78.2 71.2 43.3 15.2 0.0 8.9

Ash 612.9 39.6 52.1 71.4 67.6 76.1 69.3 68.5 39.9 53.7 57.9 10.0 6.7 0.0

Cottonwood and aspen 61.1 0.4 1.2 1.4 3.2 5.1 10.8 2.0 2.0 9.9 7.2 5.5 0.0 12.4

Basswood 2.2 0.7 0.4 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Yellow-poplar 50.9 4.5 5.9 3.9 3.3 3.3 2.0 5.6 8.7 13.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Black walnut 2.0 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 1.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other eastern soft 

hardwoods 1,693.0 175.0 200.2 217.2 224.5 180.2 167.5 132.7 106.6 154.5 76.0 39.6 0.0 19.1

Other eastern hard 

hardwoods 177.6 27.9 23.2 19.2 15.2 18.9 19.3 20.5 8.2 18.4 0.0 6.8 0.0 0.0

Eastern noncommercial 

hardwoods 415.3 136.0 116.4 76.6 36.7 23.4 9.7 6.4 6.3 0.0 3.9 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total hardwoods 12,540.3 939.7 1,180.3 1,325.7 1,379.5 1,375.9 1,275.5 1,089.1 895.2 1,330.8 849.5 404.9 221.1 273.2

All species 24,920.0 1,940.7 2,793.3 2,980.0 2,996.6 2,871.6 2,639.1 2,222.0 1,777.9 2,265.6 1,204.9 577.3 335.0 316.1

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

aExcludes rotten, missing, and form cull defects volume.
48

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.10—Neta volume of live trees on forest land by 

forest-type group and stand origin, Louisiana, 2013 

Forest-type group Total

Stand origin

Natural 

stands

Artificial 

regeneration

million cubic feet 

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 1,222.7 581.7 641.0

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 8,895.8 4,768.4 4,127.3

Total softwoods 10,118.5 5,350.1 4,768.3

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 1,940.1 1,830.1 110.0

Oak-hickory 2,336.2 2,280.5 55.7

Oak-gum-cypress 8,294.4 8,268.2 26.2

Elm-ash-cottonwood 2,038.7 2,027.2 11.5

Other hardwoods 1.1 1.1 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 183.3 181.4 1.9

Total hardwoods 14,793.9 14,588.5 205.3

Nonstocked 7.7 7.4 0.3

All groups 24,920.0 19,946.1 4,974.0

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Excludes rotten, missing, and form cull defects volume.
49

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.11—Aboveground dry weighta of live trees on forest land by ownership class and land status, 

Louisiana, 2013 

Ownership class

All forest

 land

Ownership class

Unreserved Reserved

Total Timberland

Unproductive Total ProductiveUnproductive

thousand tons 

U.S. Forest Service

National Forest 51,626.8 50,279.2 50,279.2 0.0 1,347.7 1,347.7 0.0

Total 51,626.8 50,279.2 50,279.2 0.0 1,347.7 1,347.7 0.0

Other Federal

National Park Service 355.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 355.3 355.3 0.0

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 13,585.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 13,585.3 13,585.3 0.0

Dept. of Defense/Dept. of Energy 11,622.9 11,622.9 11,622.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 25,563.5 11,622.9 11,622.9 0.0 13,940.6 13,940.6 0.0

State and local government

State 29,697.5 29,697.5 29,697.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Local 10,481.0 10,481.0 10,481.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other nonfederal public 689.2 689.2 689.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 40,867.7 40,867.7 40,867.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Forest industry

Corporate 91,398.6 91,398.6 91,398.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Individual 2,428.7 2,428.7 2,428.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 93,827.3 93,827.3 93,827.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Nonindustrial private

Miscellaneousb 456,501.2 456,501.2 456,415.0 86.2 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 456,501.2 456,501.2 456,415.0 86.2 0.0 0.0 0.0

All classes 668,386.5 653,098.3 653,012.1 86.2 15,288.3 15,288.3 0.0

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Calculations based on TREE_REGIONAL_BIOMASS.REGIONAL_DRYBIOT table in FIADB users guide.

b

 Includes amounts gathered from corporations, conservation/natural resource organizations, unincorporated local partnerships/

associations/clubs, Native Americans, and individuals.
50

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.12—Aboveground dry weighta of live trees on forest land by species group and diameter class, Louisiana, 2013 

Species group

All 

classes

Diameter class (inches)

1.0– 

2.9

3.0–

 4.9

5.0– 

6.9

7.0– 

8.9

9.0– 10.9

11.0– 

12.9

13.0– 

14.9

15.0– 

16.9

17.0– 

18.9

19.0– 

20.9

21.0– 

24.9

25.0– 

28.9

29.0– 

32.9

33.0– 

36.9 37.0+

million trees 

Softwood

Longleaf and slash 

pines 31,185.3 873.3 1,814.5 3,055.7 4,139.9 3,385.3 3,893.3 4,092.6 4,313.0 3,123.2 1,282.9 969.1 242.4 0.0 0.0 0.0

Loblolly and shortleaf 

pines 217,160.7 2,405.4 8,122.6 22,310.8 31,140.4 29,563.7 27,027.2 23,985.0 19,745.6 16,004.1 12,683.3 14,478.1 5,340.7 2,481.2 1,872.5 0.0

Other yellow pines 1,367.6 21.2 41.7 76.5 99.9 192.5 128.1 97.8 265.6 227.5 0.0 216.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Cypress 47,155.0 116.0 365.0 882.7 1,809.2 3,355.8 4,515.3 4,836.7 6,051.0 5,990.5 5,913.4 5,472.0 2,637.6 1,782.0 755.9 2,672.0

Other eastern 

softwoods 253.3 23.6 29.9 42.2 32.0 28.1 8.0 32.0 27.6 0.0 30.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total softwoods 297,122.0 3,439.5 10,373.8 26,368.0 37,221.4 36,525.3 35,571.8 33,044.1 30,402.9 25,345.2 19,909.6 21,136.1 8,220.7 4,263.2 2,628.4 2,672.0

Hardwood

Select white oaks 19,401.0 450.7 683.7 687.1 1,021.4 1,459.4 1,617.6 1,757.7 1,682.6 2,195.9 933.8 3,039.3 1,463.2 1,233.7 264.9 910.0

Select red oaks 15,630.2 246.0 431.0 420.6 603.1 767.3 691.9 1,289.9 1,035.3 1,365.8 1,648.0 2,699.3 1,685.8 408.4 1,224.6 1,113.3

Other white oaks 23,945.7 243.4 384.8 654.9 1,249.4 1,340.9 1,616.2 1,970.1 2,106.5 2,196.1 1,644.6 4,817.5 2,599.5 1,306.5 738.5 1,076.7

Other red oaks 95,333.4 3,265.5 3,384.3 4,230.3 5,091.5 5,688.7 6,014.6 7,656.8 8,480.8 7,711.9 8,142.4 13,264.5 9,120.3 5,457.3 3,689.8 4,134.6

Hickory 19,696.3 659.1 656.6 706.7 989.2 1,531.0 1,675.5 1,665.4 1,840.4 1,915.6 2,129.0 1,881.6 1,757.4 1,207.3 318.8 762.8

Hard maple 431.6 55.0 41.6 42.3 94.6 70.0 88.8 0.0 0.0 39.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Soft maple 16,084.1 2,195.9 2,645.1 2,223.5 2,169.1 1,805.5 1,156.3 1,224.3 887.0 439.9 483.7 463.1 256.2 134.4 0.0 0.0

Beech 5,517.5 104.3 89.8 117.3 179.1 308.3 352.3 321.4 724.6 652.5 943.3 820.5 684.5 219.7 0.0 0.0

Sweetgum 48,881.8 2,681.3 4,056.1 3,622.8 4,338.9 4,877.0 5,444.0 5,212.0 4,929.5 4,408.6 2,561.9 3,058.7 2,665.6 602.1 252.0 171.4

Tupelo and blackgum 37,737.8 895.4 1,222.4 1,790.1 3,308.0 4,721.8 6,425.3 6,260.0 4,750.2 2,426.1 1,977.7 1,918.5 1,378.6 405.6 0.0 258.0

Ash 13,550.9 793.5 723.3 997.8 1,151.7 1,457.6 1,392.7 1,460.8 1,251.2 1,265.0 757.0 1,003.3 1,003.5 188.4 105.2 0.0

Cottonwood and aspen 1,475.5 36.4 23.9 8.3 24.6 28.4 66.9 110.1 242.8 44.2 60.9 226.1 171.6 128.9 0.0 302.3

Basswood 59.5 0.5 0.0 12.3 7.2 9.2 0.0 0.0 30.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Yellow-poplar 1,249.6 23.9 147.2 99.3 121.6 78.3 68.4 67.4 41.9 119.8 189.5 292.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Black walnut 107.5 0.0 35.7 8.9 0.0 6.7 5.6 0.0 0.0 50.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other eastern soft 

hardwoods 45,602.0 2,491.5 3,633.3 3,833.1 4,325.1 4,732.6 5,038.6 4,175.3 3,941.4 3,361.5 2,632.1 3,968.0 2,019.9 965.0 0.0 484.7

Other eastern hard 

hardwoods 7,430.1 1,006.7 1,324.2 751.2 610.7 521.8 417.6 571.8 600.5 584.2 257.8 569.0 0.0 214.4 0.0 0.0

Eastern noncommercial 

hardwoods 19,129.9 3,978.5 5,031.9 3,803.9 2,771.5 1,656.1 788.5 513.0 209.2 151.6 136.5 0.0 89.2 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total hardwoods 371,264.6 19,127.6 24,514.9 24,010.4 28,056.7 31,060.5 32,860.9 34,256.0 32,754.2 28,928.6 24,498.3 38,021.8 24,895.4 12,471.7 6,593.8 9,213.7

All species 668,386.5 22,567.1 34,888.7 50,378.3 65,278.1 67,585.9 68,432.7 67,300.2 63,157.1 54,273.8 44,407.9 59,157.9 33,116.1 16,734.9 9,222.2 11,885.7

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.aCalculations based on TREE_REGIONAL_BIOMASS.REGIONAL_DRYBIOT table in FIADB users guide.
51

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.13—Total carbona of live trees on forest land by ownership class and land status, Louisiana, 2013 

Ownership class

All forest

 land

Land status

Unreserved Reserved

Total Timberland

Unproductive Total ProductiveUnproductive

thousand tons 

U.S. Forest Service

National Forest 25,813.4 25,139.6 25,139.6 0.0 673.8 673.8 0.0

Total 25,813.4 25,139.6 25,139.6 0.0 673.8 673.8 0.0

Other Federal

National Park Service 177.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 177.6 177.6 0.0

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 6,792.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 6,792.7 6,792.7 0.0

Dept. of Defense/Dept. of Energy 5,811.5 5,811.5 5,811.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 12,781.8 5,811.5 5,811.5 0.0 6,970.3 6,970.3 0.0

State and local government

State 14,848.8 14,848.8 14,848.8 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Local 5,240.5 5,240.5 5,240.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other nonfederal public 344.6 344.6 344.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 20,433.9 20,433.9 20,433.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Forest industry

Corporate 45,699.3 45,699.3 45,699.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Individual 1,214.3 1,214.3 1,214.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 46,913.6 46,913.6 46,913.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Nonindustrial private

Miscellaneousb 228,250.6 228,250.6 228,207.5 43.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total 228,250.6 228,250.6 228,207.5 43.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

All classes 668,386.5 653,098.3 653,012.1 86.2 15,288.3 15,288.3 0.0

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

aEstimates of carbon calculated by multiplying aboveground dry tree biomass by 0.5. Calculations based on TREE_REGIONAL_BIOMASS.

REGIONAL_DRYBIOT table in FIADB users guide.

b

 Includes amounts gathered from corporations, conservation/natural resource organizations, unincorporated local partnerships/

associations/clubs, Native Americans, and individuals.
52

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.14—Average annual net growth of live trees on forest land by 

forest-type group and stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 

2009–13)

Forest-type group

All size 

classes

Stand-size class

NonstockedLarge 

diameter

Medium 

diameter

Small 

diameter

million cubic feet per year

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 79.6 27.0 26.5 26.0 0.0

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 594.0 221.7 205.7 166.6 0.0

Total softwoods 673.6 248.7 232.2 192.7 0.0

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 103.6 43.4 15.8 44.4 0.0

Oak-hickory 105.0 43.3 20.1 41.6 0.0

Oak-gum-cypress 90.5 60.3 19.5 10.6 0.0

Elm-ash-cottonwood 57.0 30.7 18.6 7.7 0.0

Other hardwoods 0.9 0.7 0.0 0.2 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 10.7 1.7 5.1 3.8 0.0

Total hardwoods 367.7 180.1 79.1 108.4 0.0

Nonstocked 6.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 6.9

All groups 1,048.2 428.8 311.3 301.1 6.9

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.
53

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.15—Average annual net growth of sawtimber on timberland by species group and ownership group, 

Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13)

Species groupa

All 

ownerships

Ownership group

U.S. Forest 

Service

Other 

Federal

State and local 

government

Forest 

industry

Nonindustrial 

private

million board feet b per year

Softwood

Longleaf and slash pines 288.5 68.0 4.7 2.3 37.5 175.9

Loblolly and shortleaf pines 2,509.8 194.1 24.8 35.5 540.3 1,715.2

Other yellow pines -12.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 3.4 -16.1

Cypress 160.8 1.3 4.4 4.7 11.8 138.6

Other eastern softwoods 0.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.6

Total softwoods 2,947.1 263.4 33.8 42.5 593.0 2,014.3

Hardwood

Select white oaks 40.4 4.3 0.2 -4.5 1.8 38.7

Select red oaks 47.4 -2.9 0.5 4.3 13.7 31.7

Other white oaks 37.0 2.4 2.1 4.1 3.5 24.9

Other red oaks 254.5 -1.6 3.3 18.7 20.2 213.9

Hickory 53.8 3.8 0.7 11.2 1.9 36.2

Hard maple 1.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.4

Soft maple 11.8 -0.1 3.4 1.7 0.3 6.4

Beech -4.0 -5.7 0.0 0.0 1.2 0.4

Sweetgum 137.5 10.6 -0.7 7.8 31.4 88.4

Tupelo and blackgum 58.0 0.9 2.5 7.5 7.7 39.4

Ash 8.2 2.4 1.7 -0.5 2.9 1.7

Cottonwood and aspen 9.6 0.0 0.0 -9.2 1.4 17.4

Basswood 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Yellow-poplar 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 1.1 0.4

Black walnut 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other eastern soft hardwoods 76.3 1.8 1.1 9.8 19.9 43.6

Other eastern hard hardwoods 5.7 0.1 1.1 0.7 0.4 3.4

Eastern noncommercial hardwoods 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total hardwoods 739.5 16.1 15.9 52.2 107.4 547.9

All species 3,686.6 279.5 49.8 94.7 700.5 2,562.2

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Based on current conditions.

b International 1⁄4-inch rule.
54

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.16—Average annual mortality of live trees on forest land by 

forest-type group and stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 

2009–13)

Forest-type groupa

All size 

classes

Stand-size class

NonstockedLarge 

diameter

Medium 

diameter

Small 

diameter

 million cubic feet per year 

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 8.4 6.5 1.4 0.5 0.0

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 54.1 42.6 9.9 1.6 0.0

Total softwoods 62.5 49.1 11.3 2.1 0.0

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 19.1 16.9 1.5 0.7 0.0

Oak-hickory 40.9 35.7 3.3 2.0 0.0

Oak-gum-cypress 127.5 120.3 5.2 2.0 0.0

Elm-ash-cottonwood 42.3 34.6 6.9 0.8 0.0

Other hardwoods 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 5.3 0.8 3.0 1.5 0.0

Total hardwoods 235.2 208.4 19.8 7.0 0.0

Nonstocked 0.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.9

All groups 298.7 257.5 31.1 9.1 0.9

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Based on past conditions.
55

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.17—Average annual mortality of sawtimber on timberland by species group and ownership group, 

Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13)

Species groupa

All 

ownerships

Ownership group

U.S. Forest 

Service

Other 

Federal

State and local 

government

Forest 

industry

Nonindustrial 

private

million board feet b per year

Softwood

Longleaf and slash pines 30.2 6.7 0.0 0.0 2.6 20.9

Loblolly and shortleaf pines 203.5 14.7 1.2 14.0 15.1 158.6

Other yellow pines 29.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 29.1

Cypress 16.7 0.0 0.0 0.9 0.0 15.7

Other eastern softwoods 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total softwoods 279.5 21.4 1.2 14.9 17.7 224.4

Hardwood

Select white oaks 34.0 1.7 0.0 5.8 4.7 21.9

Select red oaks 25.1 6.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 18.4

Other white oaks 21.3 0.0 0.0 13.3 0.0 7.9

Other red oaks 271.3 26.8 0.0 23.8 31.0 189.6

Hickory 31.2 0.0 0.0 3.2 1.6 26.4

Hard maple 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Soft maple 15.5 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.2 15.0

Beech 14.6 6.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 8.4

Sweetgum 75.1 2.8 0.0 5.8 4.5 62.1

Tupelo and blackgum 22.9 4.7 0.0 0.0 1.1 17.1

Ash 30.9 0.0 0.0 0.3 1.6 28.9

Cottonwood and aspen 12.8 0.0 0.0 12.8 0.0 0.0

Basswood 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Yellow-poplar 7.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 7.1

Black walnut 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other eastern soft hardwoods 72.2 0.0 0.7 5.6 3.3 62.6

Other eastern hard hardwoods 6.9 0.0 0.0 1.9 0.0 5.0

Eastern noncommercial hardwoods 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total hardwoods 640.8 48.9 0.7 72.9 47.9 470.4

All species 920.3 70.3 1.9 87.8 65.6 694.8

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Based on current conditions.

b

 International 1⁄4-inch rule.
56

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.18—Average annual removals of live trees on forest land by 

forest-type group and stand-size class, Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 

2009–13)

Forest-type groupa

All size 

classes

Stand-size class

NonstockedLarge 

diameter

Medium 

diameter

Small 

diameter

million cubic feet per year

Softwood types

Longleaf-slash pine 89.1 71.1 16.8 1.2 0.0

Loblolly-shortleaf pine 438.0 295.4 131.1 11.5 0.0

Total softwoods 527.1 366.6 147.8 12.7 0.0

Hardwood types

Oak-pine 47.3 33.6 8.8 4.9 0.0

Oak-hickory 48.0 38.1 6.0 4.0 0.0

Oak-gum-cypress 86.6 81.0 5.5 0.1 0.0

Elm-ash-cottonwood 22.6 20.0 2.6 0.0 0.0

Other hardwoods 0.5 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0

Exotic hardwoods 1.1 0.0 0.3 0.7 0.0

Total hardwoods 206.1 173.1 23.2 9.8 0.0

Nonstocked 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1

All groups 733.3 539.7 171.0 22.5 0.1

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a Based on past conditions.
57

Appendix B—Supporting Tables

Table B.19—Average annual removals of sawtimber on timberland by species group and ownership group, 

Louisiana, 2013 (2001–08 to 2009–13)

Species groupa

All 

ownerships

Ownership group

U.S. Forest 

Service

Other 

Federal

State and local 

government

Forest 

industry

Nonindustrial 

private

million board feet b per year

Softwood

Longleaf and slash pines 411.9 39.1 0.8 13.1 70.9 288.0

Loblolly and shortleaf pines 1,645.8 6.8 32.8 23.9 362.3 1,220.1

Other yellow pines 8.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 8.6

Cypress 59.6 0.0 9.4 0.0 5.4 44.9

Other eastern softwoods 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2

Total softwoods 2,126.2 45.8 43.0 37.0 438.6 1,561.8

Hardwood

Select white oaks 29.1 2.1 0.0 0.0 6.5 20.6

Select red oaks 26.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 3.8 22.9

Other white oaks 26.4 0.0 0.5 0.0 1.2 24.7

Other red oaks 228.4 0.0 5.5 10.8 21.4 190.7

Hickory 64.0 0.0 1.6 2.2 0.0 60.1

Hard maple 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Soft maple 4.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.1

Beech 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0

Sweetgum 175.6 4.0 23.5 3.0 1.2 143.9

Tupelo and blackgum 16.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 3.3 13.4

Ash 21.0 0.0 2.2 2.6 1.0 15.2

Cottonwood and aspen 11.9 0.0 0.0 9.2 0.0 2.6

Basswood 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Yellow-poplar 10.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.8 9.7

Black walnut 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Other eastern soft hardwoods 53.1 0.0 9.2 1.3 0.7 41.9

Other eastern hard hardwoods 18.7 0.0 13.6 2.1 0.0 3.1

Eastern noncommercial hardwoods 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Total hardwoods 688.1 6.1 56.1 31.1 40.0 554.9

All species 2,814.3 51.9 99.0 68.1 478.6 2,116.6

Numbers in rows and columns may not sum to totals due to rounding.

0.0 = no sample for the cell or a value of >0.0 but <0.05.

a

 Based on current conditions.

b

 International 1⁄4-inch rule.
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July 2016

Southern Research Station

200 W.T. Weaver Blvd.

Asheville, NC 28804

DEPAR TMENT OF AGRICU L TURE

Oswalt, Sonja N. 2016. Louisiana's forests, 2013. Resour. Bull. 

SRS–210. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest 

Service, Southern Research Station. 57 p.

The principle findings of the 2013 forest survey in the State of 

Louisiana and changes that have occurred since previous surveys 

are presented. Topics examined include forest area, ownership, 

forest-type groups, stand structure, timber volume, growth, 

removals, and mortality. Emerald ash borer and invasive plants are 

also discussed in the context of Louisiana’s forests.

Keywords: Components of change, forest inventory, FIA, forest 

survey, forest trends, Louisiana, plantations.
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Oppossum. (photo courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

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