silver-haired bat

Redwoods may offer bats a haven amid disease, rising temperatures

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Bats are a top conservation priority. Not only are these fascinating mammals vulnerable to climate change, but many species around the world are also falling victim to a fungal disease called white-nose syndrome. New research funded by Save the Redwoods League suggests that coast redwood forests may offer bats refuge from both of these threats.

Steller’s jay

Programs reduce densities of birds preying on threatened marbled murrelets

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Research funded by Save the Redwoods League suggests that programs designed to help reduce jay populations in areas where marbled murrelets nest, including old-growth coast redwood forests, will give these threatened seabirds a better chance at successful reproduction.

California myotis bat

Study shows bats’ resilience after giant sequoia fire

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Climate change is increasing the intensity and frequency of wildfires, and many animal species may be at risk in this new normal. Bats are considered ecosystem indicators because they occupy a wide variety of niches and because they are very …

triptych panel of redwood tree 3d images compared side by side

Researchers use lasers to measure local redwoods’ carbon storage

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Alexander Barajas-Ritchie and Lisa Patrick Bentley, PhD, of Sonoma State University have shown that 3D models generated from light detecting and ranging (LiDAR) technology may work at providing accurate estimates for local redwood trees in Northern California.

Nisene Marks State Park

How human encroachment changes the forest’s edge

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Nanako Oba, a graduate student in the Environmental Studies Department at San Jose State University, conducted a study at the Forest of Nisene Marks State Park to investigate the edge effects on soil, trees, and understory plants in recovering second- and third-growth redwood forests

Study Suggests Fires Increase Relative Abundance of Redwoods

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Researchers believe that fires burned through most redwood forests every six to twenty-five years; in other words, it was a normal occurrence. What is not normal, is the lack of wildfires in the redwood forest.

While it takes mere decades for second-growth redwoods like these to reach impressive heights, it takes can more time for the forest to truly recover.

How Long It Takes for a Forest to Recover after Clear-cutting

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For the sake of redwoods conservation, it’s crucial to understand the patterns of natural recovery in second-growth forests. Researchers at San Jose State University wondered how long it takes for a forest to truly recover after clear-cutting, and decided to approach the question by comparing forests in different age classes.

Unofficial trails including this one in Redwood National and State Parks' Grove of Titans result in trampling that can harm roots of ancient trees. Photo by Claudia Voigt

Mitigating Effects of Unofficial Trails on Ancient Redwood Groves

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And now, because of internet and mobile technology, the locations of more and more of the tallest redwoods are becoming public knowledge, drawing more people to these giants. This often leads to people blazing their own trails either because the officially designated trail does not provide close access, or because there is no official trail to a specific tree or grove. These unofficial trails are called social trails. So, just how great is the impact of these unofficial trails?

The study found that although trees within 5 meters of each other (like these here) were more likely to be clones than trees farther away, they weren’t always. Photo by Jason Hollinger, Flickr Creative Commons

Some Coast Redwoods May Seem to Be Clones, but They’re Not

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If you’ve visited a coast redwood forest, you’ve probably seen these trees growing around the stump of a logged giant. These “fairy rings,” as they’re known informally, show how the coast redwood reproduces asexually by sending new sprouts up from the trunk base of a parent redwood. The mystery was whether these sprouts are genetically identical copies of the parent redwood. Because 95 percent of the current coast redwood range is younger forests, understanding the genetics of the coast redwood is critical for conservation and restoration.

A study found that thinned areas supported higher populations of prey species for the endangered northern spotted owl (pictured) and the rare Humboldt marten.

Thinning Stands Boosts Wildlife Diversity

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For many years, selective thinning has been considered a potential tool for accelerating old-growth forest characteristics in the dense stands of young trees that typically cover harvested redwood lands. Now, research by the US Forest Service has confirmed the wisdom of thinning, or removing select trees to reduce competition in a stand. Learn more about this research.

A study confirms that northern giant sequoia groves have lower genetic diversity than central and southern groves. Photo by Bob Wick

Lower Genetic Diversity Puts Giants at Risk

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Recent League-funded research by Richard Dodd, an Environmental Science Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, confirms that northern groves (north of the Kings River drainage) have lower genetic diversity than central and southern groves. This could have profound consequences for long-term conservation strategies for the species, especially considering the changing global climate.

Genetic profiles of specific coast redwood strains mean some trees could demonstrate greater resilience in certain types of climatic conditions than others. Photo by Paolo Vescia

Genes Could Influence Trees’ Conservation

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Genetic profiles of specific coast redwood strains mean some trees could demonstrate greater resilience in certain types of climatic conditions than others.

For a League-sponsored study, Wicket sniffs for the scent of a white-footed vole, one of the rarest and least understood mammals in North America, and one of the only mammals endemic to the coastal coniferous forests of Northern California and Oregon. Photo by Humboldt State University

Seeking Elusive White-Footed Voles

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The League funded an ambitious study to learn more about white-footed voles. Unfortunately, they’re almost impossible to find in the luxuriant understory of the typical coastal redwood forest. In response, researchers have released the hounds.

New Zealand mud snails showed up in Redwood National Park in 2009. These prolific creatures could reduce insect numbers, and therefore the food web. Photo by Darren M. Ward

Snail Invasion Could Mean Trouble for Food Web

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Humboldt State University fisheries biologist Darren Ward was concerned, but not surprised, when New Zealand mud snails showed up in Redwood National Park in 2009. With help from a grant from Save the Redwoods League, Ward and a colleague at the US Geological Survey, Adam Sepulveda, began searching to see if they were moving upstream. Learn more about this research.