Although wildlife is a principal concern of forest landowners and professionals, they lack simple methodologies for assessing habitat and wildlife use prior to and following management activities. This study compared survey methods for evaluating vegetative and structural habitat components.
Methods selected are readily compatible with commonly used forest inventory procedures.
Critical habitat variables for 227 wildlife species were identified through literature review and an expert panel. The resulting habitat and wildlife species matrix, coupled with the assessment metric, provides an important first step in quantifying potential wildlife use. Increasingly my research considers the interaction of people and resource management. Ultimately this research informs the development of education materials and programs for specific audiences that can, through change, improve and sustain these resources. Several recent projects have focused on riparian forest issues.