NCRS - The Changing Midwest Assessment

Although the Forest Service does not have a comprehensive monitoring program for plants and animals on the scale of the Forest Inventory and Analysis Program, we do carefully consider the impacts of forest management on plants and animals. Further, we work closely with fish and wildlife management agencies to insure that forests are being managed with plants and animals in mind. In particular, we pay special attention to “indicator” species and species of special concern, which serve as indicators of forest health. In so doing, we developed a series of slide shows that depict changes in Total Deer Harvest, Antlered Deer Harvest, Insect Defoliators and Exotics, and Relative Abundance of Birds. Although the public and resource managers have long considered white-tailed deer a species of special interest, monitoring efforts have increased in recent years because of concern about Chronic Wasting Disease. We also developed as series of slide shows that depict changes in the relative abundance of birds. To continue, select one of the slide shows by clicking on the links above – they may also be accessed from the scroll bar on the left side of this page.

USDA Forest Service - North Central Research Station
Last Modified: Thursday, 12 February 2004