| Disturbance ecology suggests that if patterns created by boreal harvesting more closely resemble effects of natural disturbance, then boreal birds should more easily cope with habitat changes associated with harvesting. This idea was tested by documenting avian community responses to partial-cutting treatments applied in Fort Nelson, British Columbia. The purposes of this study were threefold: (1) to investigate changes in the bird community following partial-cutting in boreal forest stands; (2) to compare point-count and transect bird survey methods and determine the degree of correlation between the two datasets; and (3) to test the applicability of bird-habitat models developed in Alberta's boreal forest for predicting species abundance in a boreal forest environment in northern British Columbia. Two bird survey protocols, point-counts and fixed-width transects, were employed in 4 partial-cut and 2 uncut (control) stands. Each stand was surveyed 4 times per season over 2 breeding seasons. |
