18 



NATURALIST'S GUIDE TO THE AMERICAS 



ing. 8 Timber exploitation also has a 

 disturbing effect on the animal life of 

 the forest, but under proper manage- 

 ment and control of predatory animals 

 the forester contends that the game 

 animals will increase. So far as the 

 forester is concerned, the main reason 

 for preserving natural areas is to retain 

 a standard of accomplishment of Nature 

 alone, to serve as a guide by which the 

 correctness of the forester's efforts to 

 improve on Nature may be gauged. 



In addition to the justification of 

 these natural areas as objects of re- 

 search in forestry and other biological 

 sciences, there is another valid reason 

 for the preservation of representative 

 natural conditions in the National 

 Forests. This is the rapidly increasing 

 appreciation of such areas for scenic 

 and recreational purposes. It is the 

 aim of the United States Forest Service 

 in administering the National Forests 

 to devote every tract of forest land to 

 its highest use. It is not unduly 

 stretching the spirit of this announced 

 purpose to assume that it will embrace 

 the appropriate treatment of areas 

 which are chiefly valuable for scientific 

 study, esthetics or recreation. 



For utilitarian reasons it is evident 

 that the Forest Service cannot be ex- 

 pected to satisfy every requirement 

 with natural virgin forest conditions. 

 The National Parks and National Monu- 

 ments, on the contrary, do in many 

 cases meet these requirements. The 

 forests embraced in them will undoubt- 

 edly be preserved, and the opportunity 

 is presented for establishing in them 

 definitely located study areas, subject 

 to the policy of administration. A 

 study of the accompanying map (figs. 1 

 and 2) will show that the reserved areas 

 are widely distributed over the country. 

 Doubtless areas representative of widely 

 prevailing natural conditions can be 

 found in them. This will make it pos- 

 sible to limit the number of such areas 

 within the National Forests to a scale 

 consistent with their administrative 



8 Korstian, C. F. "Grazing in the National 

 Forests." This volume, pp. 33-34. 



policies, selecting only such locations 

 as will preserve and maintain typical 

 virgin conditions, and offer a home to 

 all forms of wild life within the forest 

 itself and yet not interfere materially 

 with important timber sales or other 

 large commercial developments. Be- 

 cause of their diversity of conditions 

 and types, National Forests offer to 

 ecologists untold opportunities for study. 



Within the 157 million acres of 

 National Forests there are many areas 

 of wilderness of rugged and diversified 

 topography which have no great eco- 

 nomic importance for timber or forage, 

 but which possess high value both 

 for recreational and scientific purposes. 

 The Forest Service policy of best and 

 most appropriate use includes the 

 building of trails through these areas, 

 partly for fire protection and partly 

 to make them more accessible for just 

 such purposes as those mentioned. An 

 important step toward adequate pro- 

 tection of game would be the legisla- 

 tion long urged by game conserva- 

 tionists for the establishment, by 

 Presidential action, of federal game 

 refuges in the National Forests. Still 

 another important list of areas, on 

 which natural conditions are already 

 being preserved, are the municipal 

 watersheds, protected as sources of 

 city water supply. Furthermore, be- 

 cause of economic inaccessibility or 

 other such factors, vestiges of virgin 

 forest will doubtless remain untouched 

 indefinitely, although they may not be 

 formally incorporated in specifically 

 reserved areas. 



With proper cooperation between the 

 various "wild life" and "natural con- 

 ditions" advocates the greater part of 

 their needs could be adequately met 

 without the reservation of a prohibi- 

 tively large acreage. The present quota 

 of National Parks, municipal water- 

 sheds and other forest areas which are 

 safeguarded against exploitation and 

 depredation are not wholly adequate. 

 There is still need for a few more areas 

 in each forest region which must be 

 carefully selected to insure a proper 



