FIA’s Down Woody Materials Field Sampling Protocols 2nd of 3 Part Training Series Christopher Woodall DWM National Indicator Advisor

Outline Transect Segmenting Coarse Woody Debris Fine Woody Debris Duff, Litter and Fuelbed Shrubs and Herbs Slash Piles

feet (h.d.) Three / subplot CWD 20 ft (s.d.) FWD (small & medium) Subplot 14 ft (s.d.) 24ft (s.d.) 6 ft (s.d.) 10 ft (s.d.) FWD (large) One per subplot Annular plot 6.8 ft. radius microplot Duff, Litter, Fuelbed depths 24 ft. location, every transect

Transect Segmenting 1) Only sample DWM components on accessible forest land 2) Must map changes in forest condition classes along transects 

Transect Segmenting Non-Forest CC #2 10 ft Transect length must equal 24 ft, Horizontal Dist. Sub plot TCCBEGIN SDIST SLOPE % END SDIST Forest CC #1

Coarse Woody Debris Sampling Procedures Depend on Decay of Individual Pieces Freshly Fallen Moderate DecayMostly Decayed

CWD Decay Classes Decay ClassStructural IntegrityTexture of Rotten Portions 1 Sound, intact, freshly fallen, bark on Intact, no rot 2 Sound Mostly intact, sapwood rotting and soft, can’t pull off easily 3 Heartwood sound, supports own weight Heartwood hard, rot beginning, large cubical rot pieces, sapwood easily pulled off or missing 4 Heartwood rotten, does not support its own weight, but holds shape Heartwood soft, small cubical decay pieces, metal pin easily pushed into heartwood 5 None! Spreads out on ground, losing shape of log Wood is soft, crumbly, heavily decomposed, powdery when dry

CWD Tally Rules Point of Intersection Transect Transect Diameter CWD Piece Axis Decay Classes  Piece >= 3” Transect Diameter  Piece >= 3’ Long Decay Class 5  Piece >= 5” Transect Diameter  Piece >= 3’ Long  Piece >= 5” Above ground-level

CWD Tally Rules Cont’d Only tally portion of log above ground and or above water Standing dead trees are CWD if they lean >= 45  from vertical Must have a diameter >= 3 inches along entire length Tally a piece each time it intersects any transect, regardless of the number of times If log split down center, treat as two separate pieces

CWD Forks and Branches Forked Pieces Each fork must meet minimum specs Fork with largest diameter at the crotch is the ‘main bole’ 2 nd fork ends at the crotch Large branch Branch must meet minimum specs Length measured from small end to the point where it connects to main bole

CWD Measurements Sub plotTRAN CWD DISTSPP TRAN DIAM SML DIAM LRG DIAM TOT LENG DECAY CLASSHOL? CWD HIST Decay Class Length Transect Diameter CWD distance Large End Diameter Small End Diameter Decay Class Species Hollow? CWD History

CWD Lengths and Diameters Measure here Measure here Length is measured between diameter measurements When the ends of the log are splintered or crumbling from decay…measure the diameter at the point where it best represents the overall volume of the log.

CWD Lengths Separates if Pulled CWD Length CWD Diameter If CWD piece is fractured, either across diameter or length, and crew determines it would separate if pulled by either end… Then… Tally as two separate CWD pieces

Fine Woody Debris Subplot Cond. Class Small FWD Med. FWD Large FWD Reason High RP Transect Count FWD pieces, by size class, intersecting subplot transects

FWD Sample Design Tallied on 150 degree transect on each subplot 20 ft (s.d.) 14 ft (s.d.) 24ft (s.d.) 6 ft (s.d.) 10 ft (s.d.) Large FWD: Tally pieces 1” – 2.9” Small FWD: Tally pieces < ¼ ” Medium FWD: Tally pieces >= ¼ ” –.9” Size-Class Tally Counts

FWD Tally Rules Estimate FWD tally after count > 50 for diameter < 1 inch Estimate FWD tally after count > 20 for diameter >= 1 inch Make attempt to tally FWD first due to trampling If count exceeds 100 in any size class indicate reason why (i.e. rat’s nest or fallen tree) If a pile intersects the FWD transect (14 – 24’) do not measure FWD (code ‘Yes’ for ‘RP_on_transect’)

Duff, Litter, and Fuelbed SubplotTransectDL_Samp Duff Depth Litter Depth Fuelbed Depth 11501inches feet Depth of 3 fuel layers above mineral soil

Duff, Litter, and Fuelbed Mineral Soil Duff Litter CWD & FWD Fuelbed Depth Subplot Measure depths at 24 ft (slope distance) on every transect. Obstructions: If a rock or other significant obstruction is found at sample point, do not measure any depths. If a log is found at sample point, measure fuelbed depth but NOT duff and litter.

Duff, Litter, Fuelbed Duff and litter depth not sample, fuelbed sampled All sampled Nothing sampled Use coding options to take quality measurements, since we measure these variables at twelve points on each plot, don’t collect data if measurement obstructed or compromised

Microplot Fuels Subplot Live Shrub % Live Shrub HT Dead Shrub % Dead Shrub HT Live Herb % Live Herb HT Dead Herb % Dead Herb HT Litter % % Cover Classes

Microplot Sampling Estimate coverage (%) and tallest height (ft) of live/dead shrubs/herbs on microplot Estimate coverage (%) of litter on microplot

Microplot Sampling Herbs Herbs and Shrubs Shrubs Live and Dead Shrubs: plants (non-trees), woody stems Herbs: non-woody herbaceous plants including ferns, moss, lichens, sedges, and grasses (< 6 ft in height) Live: Still attached Dead: Still attached or dislodged, but not down and decaying

Slash/Residue Piles Every slash pile, whose center coincides with a subplot, is assigned to a shape category, dimensions measured, and density estimated SubplotCC Pile AZ ShapeLNG1LNG2WID1WID2HT1HT2 Pile Den

Slash/Residue Tally Rules Tally CWD piles where efficiency of sampling is improved using pile protocol instead of transects Pile’s center must be in accessible forest land Pile’s center must be < 24 ft h.d. from subplot center Pile must contain pieces of CWD >= 3” diameter Estimate % of pile that contains CWD >= 3” (packing ratio)

Pile Shape Codes

Pile Density Estimation = Stacked cord approaches 80% density = = 01% 20%

End of Part 2 of 3 programs/indicators/dwm/