Restoration and Garry Oaks Flashcards
What are 3 main measures for restoring GO?
Restore essential ecosystem characteristics
- Spatial integrity (deals w/ habitat fragmentation)
- Biotic integrity (deals w/ exotic species)
- Re-introduction of fire disturbance regime (deals w/ horizontal and vertical structure)
What happens when fire is suppressed in GO?
CDF will overtop GO when fire is absent
What are 2 types of GO systems?
With Fire: Savannah (Open Forest)
Without Fire: Woodland (Closed Forest)
What percent of original GO ecosystems remain?
2.5%
How many endangered or threatened plant species are harboured in GO ecosystems?
30 red-listed
17 blue-listed
Where is the oldest and largest GO tree?
NCC property in Maple Bay
2 Facts about the spatial integrity of GO
- VI is the northern extension of GO
- Victoria and Maple Bay were once prime GO woodlands and meadows
Latin name for Garry Oak
Quercus garryana
Georgia Depression
Grasslands of Vancouver Island and northern range of GO
Red List in BC
Ecological communities, and indigenous species and subspecies that are extirpated, endangered or threatened in BC
Blue List in BC
Ecological communities, and indigenous species and subspecies of special concern (formerly vulnerable) in BC
Where are the GO ‘hotspots’ in BC?
Victoria, Duncan, Hornby Is., Courtenay (some), and a few small pockets in Fraser Valley area
Restoration: if shown a historical photo, determine whether or not a system can be restored to a historical state. Why or why not?
May not be able to go back because of many reasons:
- Present day Stakeholders and objection
- Long-term effects including climate change
eg. IVBRP
Beacon Hill, 1880’s
- Occupied by FN for 1000s of years for Camas cultivation and settlement
- Europeans established Commonwealth Park with exotic species, bear pit, horse buggy racetrack (present day circle drive), petting zoo
Major impact on Beacon Hill
Heavy cultural use for millennia first by FN then European colonizers
Name some Native grasses that are good for Biotic Integrity (‘The Good’)
- Lemmon’s Needlegrass (Achnatherum lemmonii)
- California Brome (Bromus carinatus)
- Pacific Brome (Bromus pacificus)
- Alaska Brome (Bromus sitchensis)
- California Oatgrass (Danthonia californica)
- Blue Wildrye (Elymus glaucus)
- Roemer’s Fescue (Festuca roemeri)
- Alaska Oniongrass (Melica subulata)
Name some of the bad invasive species (‘The Bad’)
- Colonial Bentgrass (Agrostis capillaris)
- Sweet Vernalgrass (Anthoxanthum odoratum)
- Brome species: Rip-gut (Bromus rigidus) and Soft Brome (Bromus hordeaceus)
- Early Hairgrass (Aira praecox)
- Silver Hairgrass (Aira caryophyllea)
- Hedgehog Dogtail (Cynosurus echinatus)
- Common Velvet-grass (Holcus ianatus)
- Orchard Grass (Dactylis glomerata)
- Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis)
- Barren Fescue (Vulpia bromoides)
Name some of the ugly invasive species (‘The Ugly’)
- English Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)
- Scotch Broom (Cytisus scoparius)
- Daphne (Daphne laureola)
- English Ivy (Hedera helix)
And so many more!
What does fire disturbance prevent?
Prevents dominance by conifers (CDF) and promotes grasslands and GO Savannah landscapes.
What was the frequency and severity of fire disturbance?
High frequency and cool burning, low severity every few years
Who managed the historical landscape with fire?
FN women managed the landscape for camas production every few years in spring and fall fires.
Moderate fire frequency
High-severity once every 50-100 years
What happens to the GO in a fire regime?
Trees survive and oak dominated stands will occur
- GO bark is heat/fire resistant and will re-sprout in the event that the top is killed
What happens when fire disturbance regimes are removed, and what is this called?
W/o periodic fire the Oak dominated savannahs and woodlands convert to CDF forests
- ie. Succession
- Presently occurring
Coppice
Increased stem density due to cloning
- Seen in GO trees when cut down and roots survive
- Coppice happened with GOs b/c of Colonial logging
What happens with fire exclusion and colonial logging?
- Oak stands increase in tree density
- Grassy understories decrease
- Understories replaced by invasive natives (Snowberry and Indian Plum)
- Exotic deciduous shrubs move in (Broom, Hawthorn, Blackberry)
What method of management besides fire can help prevent long-term loss of oak dominance?
Selective logging of CDF will preserve deciduous oak forest dominance
