obviously concentrated along the trails and roads * the natutal glades and 

 openings, or about 6ut«evet bi* turned-over areas* Here, where the forest 

 canopy is broken, they find the greatest variety fif vegetation to provide 

 seeds, ' fruits, nuts, herbage, or browse. In addition they find more abun- 

 dant and more varied cover than in the gloomy depths of the polid forests, 

 where one may walk for railes without seeing a living thing. 



■ In these mature forests where the canopy is complete, both food 

 and cover are at a minimujn and only those species may be found that are 

 specially adapted to live in or on the dominant forest trees. Tree 

 squirrels, chipmunks, woodpeckers, kinglets, chickadees, and similar 

 forms are found most frequently, although even these are often more abun- 

 dant near the edges of these solid forests than in their centers. 



The same thing is true to a slightly less extent in the mixed 



hardwoods of the eastern States, though here the number of birds and 



animals fo"und in the forest depths is somewhat greater, due to the 

 greater diversity of trees which raalce up the stand. 



For the sake of better illustrating the point, a cutting cycle 

 on a given working circle handled on a sustained yield basis may be 

 assumed to be 80 years. If this program should be followed, the area 

 which has been cut over 20 years or less will be about 25 percent of 

 the total. This 25 percent will furnish suitable environment (other 

 things being equal) and favorable shelter and food conditions for most 

 of the wildlife, particularly game species, to be found on the total 

 unit, and the wildlife distribution over the entire area will be roughly 

 governed by the distribution of tlus age class. Obviously, the more 

 widely distributed these newly cut-over lands can be, the more uniform 

 will be the distribution of wildlife and the more fully it will be able 

 to utilize such food and cover resources as are available in the less 

 favorable age classes. 



In estimating carrying capacity for wildlife the percentage of the 

 forest in this class and its distribution are a.ll important. For example, 

 a 100,000-acre unit might be rated not on the basis of 100,000 acres of 

 forest but rather on the 25,000 acres of 1 to 20 year old forest which 

 furnishes the real game habitat. The smaller amount of cover in the older 

 age classes between 20 ajid 80 might well be considered as a reserve for 

 utilization under extraordinary conditions, and carrying capacities calcu- 

 lated on the capacity of the main game range. 



From this standpoint the 1,250 acres to be cut over in a given year 

 would be of much greater value if distributed as 25 50-acre cuttings than 

 one operation of 1,250. If such a program could be followed for 20 years, 

 the result would be the building of a permanent maximum carrying capacity 

 by distributing the valuable age classes throughout the entire 100,000 

 acres. Naturally there would be other complicating factors, which are be- 

 ing ignored in order to demonstrate clearly the basic importance of such 

 a program. 



Logging engineers and foresters will immediately raise the point ' 

 that logging in 50-acre units is uneconomical and therefore impossible. 

 The forestry management plan must of necessity consider this point, and 



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