302 



ANSWERS FROM DAVE ANDERSON, ALASKA DEPARTMENT 

 r.QF -fliSH, AND J3AME ^ , „ 



Questions Submitrea by Senaror Dale Bumpers 



Question 1 Why is high volume old-growth forest in the 

 Tongass so valuable for wildlife habitat and 

 fisheries? 



High-volume old-growth forest includes stands 

 with greater than 30,000 board feet per acre 

 (net inventory volume) . These occur on lower 

 elevation slopes and valley bottoms on 

 productive well-drained soils. Trees on these 

 sites are predominantly western hemlock and 

 Sitka spruce, some of which exceed 200 ft in 

 height and over 8 ft in diameter. These are 

 the most productive areas on the forest and 

 represent only 4% of the entire Tongass land 

 base. 



Just as farm and ranch lands are established 

 in the most productive regions of the country, 

 the highest density wildlife populations also 

 occur on the most productive lands. In 

 southeastern Alaska, the most important, or 

 critical winter habitat, for the Sitka black- 

 tailed deer is high-volume old-growth forest, 

 specifically hemlock-dominated stands on well- 

 drained slopes. 



For example, in the deep snow winter of 1982, 

 65% of the relocations of radio-collared deer 

 on Admiralty Island occurred in high-volume 

 old-growth even though that habitat made up 

 only 8% of the study area (see Table 3, p. 28 

 of Attachment A) . The strong preference deer 

 exhibited for this relatively rare habitat 

 type was in response to areas which had the 

 least amount of snow and the most available 

 food. The broken, multi-layered canopy of 

 old-growth stands allows for the penetration 

 of sufficient sunlight to promote the growth 

 of an abundant understory of forest-floor 

 plants (food for deer). The tall, large- 

 limbed canopy of high-volume old-growth 

 intercepts the greatest amount of snow of any 

 habitat type on the Tongass (see abstract. 

 Attachment B) . It is in these stands that 

 winter food for deer is most available because 

 the least amount of snow accumulates on the 

 forest floor. "Selection of high-volume old- 

 growth stands for clearcut logging can be 

 expected to disproportionately affect deer 

 populations in areas subject to periodic, deep 

 snows" (see p. 32, Attachment B) . 



