Interactions between Timber Harvest and the Aquatic Ecology of Northern White-Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) Lowland Forests

Northern white-cedar lowlands in Maine are forest habitats that are managed as conventional timberlands, though the aquatic biota and processes present within them are often overlooked. Although forests may appear dry during harvest periods, recent data has shown they can remain wetted in localized pits throughout the year and at times much of the forest may be flooded. Even from a terrestrial perspective, impacts of forestry operations on these ecosystems remain poorly understood. Recent research has largely focused on regeneration and seedling dispersal of cedar trees. There remains a gap in the literature as to what types of aquatic biodiversity and processes these forests support and how those are impacted by forest management practices. Our research encompasses harvested and control stands in three working cedar forestlands in Maine. The goal of this research is to expand our understanding of the intermittent wetland habitat and biological processes of northern white-cedar wetland habitats, with the specific objective of determining how rates of aquatic leaf litter processing vary between pit and mound microtopographic positions. Answering these questions will help to inform managers of the hidden biodiversity and processes that drive habitat functioning and will provide a basis for further research on aquatic ecosystem processes in these habitats.