Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Guide – Woodland/Forest land

Owner/Operator / District
County / Field Office
Assisted By / Acres / Date:
Location
General Information: Woodland or forest land is land with trees as the predominant vegetation. In Colorado, there are a number of woodland types including pinyon-juniper in lower elevation forests, Ponderosa pine-Douglas fir, mixed conifer (spruce-fir-pine) as elevation increases, and bristlecone pine at the highest elevations. Aspen stands may be found mixed with conifers or as the dominant species up to the sub-alpine zone. This model may be used on all forest land, other than riparian areas, in Colorado. A score of 0.5 or higher meets NRCS Quality Criteria for a Resource Management System.
Factor / Values / Before / After
1 Stand diversity
a) Mature, uneven-aged stand, dominated by 2 or more tree species (includes willow-cottonwood riparian areas, mixed species forests, and ponderosa pine or aspen dominated climax communities)
b) Uneven-aged stand dominated by one tree species
c) Even-aged stand, dominated by 2 or more tree species (includes spruce-fir, high elevation alder-spruce riparian areas, and pinon-juniper)
d) Even-aged stand dominated by one tree species (includes lodgepole pine, Douglas fir, and spruce-fir forest dominated by one species / 1.0
0.7
0.4
0.1
2 Snags (do not evaluate this factor in PJ stands)
a) More than 5 snags >12”dbh per acre
b) 2-5 snags >12” dbh and/or 5 or more snags 4-12” dbh
c) 2-5 snags 4-12” dbh
d) <2 snags of any size per acre / 1.0
0.5
0.3
0.1
3 Canopy closure
a) >40%
b) 20-40%
c) <20% / 1.0
0.5
0.1
4 Forest size – Forest interior species are those that use forest areas that are more than 300 feet from the forest edge.
a) Forested block is > 120 contiguous acres
b) Forested block is 80-120 contiguous acres
c) Forested block is 40-79 contiguous acres
d) Forested block is 10-39 contiguous acres
e) Forested block is <10 contiguous acres / 1.0
0.8
0.5
0.3
0.1
5 Forest openings – Naturally occurring or artificially created openings in the forest interior are beneficial to many species. These openings are not connected to other open conduits (e.g.-logging roads) that connect with the forest edge.
a) Natural/artificial openings on 5-15% of forest area. No opening > 2 acres and no more than 500’ wide. Native grasses and forbs dominate vegetation in opening
b) Natural/artificial openings on 1-5% or 16-25% of forest area. No opening >2 acres and no more than 500’ wide. Native grasses and forbs dominate vegetation in opening
c) No openings or openings that don’t fit criteria in a or b / 1.0
0.5
0.2
6 Understory
a) Understory consists primarily of native grasses, forbs, and/or woody species
b) Understory dominated by invasive species
c) No live vegetation in understory / 1.0
0.5
0.2
7 Grazing Management
a) Prescribed grazing system is followed and it addresses fish and wildlife concerns or not grazed
b) Prescribed grazing system is followed but it does not address fish and wildlife concerns
c) No prescribed grazing system / 1.0
0.5
0.1
HSI Value is the lowest before value for the above 7 factors. To improve the HSI, this lowest value must be increased by implementing changes that will increase the value in the after condition / HSI