Chapter 4 Habitats
Addendum 2
Examples of Piedmont and Coastal Plain oak forests can be found on several public lands, including Caswell Game Lands, William B. Umstead State Park, Morrow Mountain State Park, Uwharrie National Forest, and Croatan National Forest.
4.4.19.3 Problems Affecting Habitats
The greatest threats to remaining examples of oak-hickory forests are destruction and degradation associated with development and conversion to successional forests by logging. While all remaining oak-hickory forests regenerated after past logging, present-day harvests often result in regeneration by species other than oaks. Conservation of the best examples and areas important to landscape connectivity is the most important action needed for this habitat. As with other formerly widespread community types, fragmentation is a concern. Past and ongoing land use changes associated with development not only reduce the extent of habitat but leave remaining oak — hickory communities as isolated patches. While this habitat remains common and most of its component species are widespread, most natural oak-hickory forests are on dissected landscapes comprised of multiple community types and are not extensive. While most component species are abundant and widespread, some species, particularly mammal and bird species, may only be able to persist in large areas or they may be excluded from areas near the forest edge. The chances for some of these animals to survive may be enhanced by protecting forested connections between larger forested blocks. Fire is believed to have been a natural part of all Piedmont and Coastal Plain oak forests. While its frequency and importance are not precisely known, regular fires give a competitive advantage to oaks, hickories, and shortleaf pine relative to most other tree species. There is now much concern that these species are not regenerating. Other species are much more abundant in forest understories and are increasing in the canopy. Harvests that once resulted in regeneration of oaks now often lead to stands of other species. Fires also lead to more open canopy conditions and greater cover and diversity of herbs. Low intensity fires would be beneficial but intense wildfires can be destructive. Regular fires also reduce fuel loads and reduce the potential for catastrophic canopy-killing fires. The restriction of oak forests in the Coastal Plain to fire-sheltered sites suggests a need for fires to be less frequent than in the longleaf pine communities that occupied the uplands. The Xeric Hardpan Forests appear to have changed most with removal of fire, but fire probably had similar, if less dramatic, effects on the other community types. Most or all rare plants in this group are likely to benefit from fire and the habitat conditions it creates.
2022 Addendum 2 NC Wildlife Action Plan
4A2- 5
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