Effects of timber harvesting on low elevation populations of southern Appalachian salamanders

We examined the effects of timber harvesting on southern Appalachian salamander communities in a managed watershed in Pisgah National Forest, western North Carolina, USA. Salamander abundance and species richness were lowest in very young stands and highest in stands more than 120 years old. Comparisons of recent clearcuts less than 5 years old with mature stands more than 80 years old suggest that terrestrial salamanders are completely eliminated or reduced to very low numbers when mature forests are clear cut. Comparisons of stand age categories further suggest that salamander abundance in local communities slowly increases for a century or more after stands are intensively harvested. We roughly estimate that logging during the last century by both the private and public sector has resulted in 1 70% decline in salamander numbers within the study area as a whole. Implementation of an ecosystem-management strategy which reverses the current trend of having landscapes dominated by early and mid-successional forests would help restore depleted populations to levels where salamanders better fulfill their ecological roles as forest-floor insectivores. Other management techniques that would benefit salamanders include leaving buffers along headwater streams, and using harvesting techniques which assure that the basic structure and function of forests remain intact following timbering operations.