Browsing by Author "Fornwalt, Paula J., author"

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Open Access
Disturbance impacts on understory plant communities of the Colorado Front Range
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2009) Fornwalt, Paula J., author; Romme, William H., advisor
Pinus ponderosa - Pseudotsuga menziesii (ponderosa pine - Douglas-fir) forests of the Colorado Front Range have experienced a range of disturbances since they were settled by European-Americans approximately 150 years ago, including settlement-era logging and domestic grazing, and more recently, wildfire. In this dissertation, I explored the impacts of these disturbances on understory plant communities. I investigated the long-term effects of settlement-era logging and grazing on forest understories by comparing understory composition at a historically logged and grazed site to that of a site that was protected from past use. I found little to no evidence of long-term logging and grazing impacts on understory richness, cover, and composition in upland forests. Long-term changes in richness, cover, and composition due to past logging and grazing were somewhat apparent in riparian forests, however, where these activities were likely the most intense. I analyzed data collected before (1997) and after (2003-2007) the 2002 Hayman Fire to examine wildfire effects on understory communities. Some declines in species richness and cover were observed immediately following fire, but by 2007, richness and cover often exceeded prefire conditions, even in severely burned areas. Fire-induced changes in community composition were apparent in all postfire years; regardless of fire severity, these changes were primarily due to new species recruitment, particularly short-lived native forbs, rather than due to a loss of prefire species. While exotic richness and cover generally increased as fire severity and time since fire increased, they remained low at the end of the study, and have not yet interfered with the recovery of the native understory community. I conducted a literature review to examine the mechanisms through which Front Range understory species establish after fire (i.e., by sprouting, establishing from soil-stored seed, and/or establishing from offsite seed). I found that postfire establishment mechanisms for many species are poorly understood, although some broad patterns did emerge. Short-lived forbs appear to establish postfire primarily through soil-stored seed, while sprouting is the most common postfire establishment mechanism for long-lived forbs, graminoids, and woody plants. Many species have multiple postfire establishment mechanisms, which helps to ensure their continued presence after fire.
Open Access
Principles and practices for the restoration of ponderosa pine and dry mixed-conifer forests of the Colorado Front Range
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2018-01) Addington, Robert N., author; Aplet, Gregory H., author; Battaglia, Mike A., author; Briggs, Jennifer S., author; Brown, Peter M., author; Cheng, Antony S., author; Dickinson, Yvette, author; Feinstein, Jonas A., author; Pelz, Kristen A., author; Regan, Claudia M., author; Thinnes, Jim, author; Truex, Rick, author; Fornwalt, Paula J., author; Gannon, Benjamin, author; Julian, Chad W., author; Underhill, Jeffrey L., author; Wolk, Brett, author; USDA, publisher
Wildfires have become larger and more severe over the past several decades on Colorado's Front Range, catalyzing greater investments in forest management intended to mitigate wildfire risks. The complex ecological, social, and political context of the Front Range, however, makes forest management challenging, especially where multiple management goals including forest restoration exist. In this report, we present a science-based framework for managers to develop place-based approaches to forest restoration of Front Range ponderosa pine and dry mixed-conifer forests. We first present ecological information describing how Front Range forest structure and composition are shaped at multiple scales by interactions among topography, natural disturbances such as fire, and forest developmental processes. This information serves as a foundation for identifying priority areas for treatment and designing restoration projects across scales. Treatment guidelines generally reduce forest densities and surface and crown fuels, enhance spatial heterogeneity across scales, and retain drought- and fire-tolerant species, old trees, and structures important for wildlife. Implementation of these guidelines is expected to enhance forest resilience to disturbance and climate change, as well as sustain important ecosystem services. Finally, this report emphasizes the importance of adaptive management and learning through monitoring and experimentation to address uncertainties inherent in the restoration process.
Open Access
The Front Range Forest Reconstruction Network: reconstructing forest structure and fire history in montane Front Range forests to inform restoration activities
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2012-12) Fornwalt, Paula J., author; Brown, Peter M., author; Huckaby, Laurie S., author; Battaglia, Michael A., author; Cheng, Antony S., author; Colorado Forest Restoration Institute, publisher
Open Access
The historic 2020 fire year in northern Colorado and southern Wyoming: a landscape assessment to inform post-fire forest management
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022-11) Rodman, Kyle C., author; Davis, Kimberley T., author; Chambers, Marin E., author; Chapman, Teresa B., author; Fornwalt, Paula J., author; Hart, Sarah J., author; Marshall, Laura A. E., author; Rhoades, Charles C., author; Schloegel, Catherine A., author; Stevens-Rumann, Camille S., author; Veblen, Thomas T., author; Southwest Ecological Restoration Institutes (SWERI), publisher