Estimating production of paper birch and utilization by browsers

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
A 4-year study was conducted to develop methods for estimating production and utilization of paper birch (Betulapapyrifera Marsh.) on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska. Twenty-four individual birch saplings were tagged in each of 101 stands. Fall estimates were made of annual production and spring estimates were made of utilization on each tagged sapling. Regression equations were developed from clipped-plant measurements and weights and used to estimate production of each tagged sapling. Diameters of browsed twigs on the tagged saplings were measured and regression equations were developed to estimate how much annual growth had been removed from each sapling. Three estimates of utilization were developed for each stand: percentage current annual growth (CAG) weight browsed, percentage CAG twigs browsed, and percentage birch saplings browsed. These were highly correlated. An estimate of percentage CAG weight browsed usually requires clipping studies; however, that value can be estimated reliably with either of the latter two estimators of use.

This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit: