The use of forest maps for the description of wildlife habitats: limits and recommendations

Abstract

We evaluated the reliability of forest maps for describing wildlife habitats. During the summer of 1997, we sampled 186 boreal forest stands located in Jacques-Cartier Park, Quebec. In each stand, we measured slope, crown closure, basal area, as well as tree height and age. We determined if map classifications, with regard to dominant species composition, density, tree height, tree age, and slope, correlated with field observations. We also measured lateral cover and deciduous browse availability, variables that are considered useful for the characterization of wildlife habitats, to examine how these habitat features were related to map classification. Age (57% of the sites correctly classified) and density (34%) were the variables for which map classification had the best and worst correspondence with field measurements, respectively. Dominant species on maps were correctly identified in <74, <55, and <40% of the sites in coniferous, mixed, and deciduous stands, respectively. The use of a simple classification method based on cover type alone resulted in improved correlations, since 94, 60, and 29% of the coniferous, mixed, and deciduous stands, respectively, were properly identified on maps. We related lateral cover and food availability to stand categories using the most reliable map variables. We conclude that forest maps are useful for describing major habitats at the stand level. When forest resource maps are to be used for studying habitat suitability, we recommend sampling a subset of stands to assess if important wildlife habitat features, which reflect species requirements, can be related to habitat characteristics as determined by the maps.