NCASI FOUNDATION

THE NCASI FOUNDATION ACCOMPLISHES ITS MISSION THROUGH SPONSORED RESEARCH, INDEPENDENT STUDIES, AND OUTREACH. NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "WORKING FORESTS, FOREST SUSTAINABILITY, AND AT-RISK SPECIES THROUGH COLLABORATIVE CONSERVATION." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO QUANTIFY THE ROLE OF WORKING FOREST LANDSCAPES IN CONSERVING SPECIES-AT-RISK AND MAINTAINING AQUATIC AND TERRESTRIAL COMMUNITIES. SPECIFICALLY, WE SEEK TO EXAMINE SPECIES FROM MULTIPLE TAXONOMIC GROUPS OVER AN EXTENDED TIME HORIZON IN A LANDSCAPE DOMINATED BY CERTIFIED, PRIVATE FORESTS MANAGED PRIMARILY FOR TIMBER PRODUCTION.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED TECHNICAL WORK TO "IMPROVE THE SCIENCE AND RISK ASSESSMENT PROCESSES IN NATIONAL AMBIENT AIR QUALITY STANDARDS (NAAQS) REVIEWS." THIS WORK WILL IDENTIFY MORE MORE ROBUST METHODOLOGIES TO ENSURE THE SCIENCE USED TO INFORM FUTURE AMBIENT AIR RULEMAKINGS, AIMED TO PROTECT HUMAN HEALTH AND WELFARE, IS OF HIGH QUALITY AND PROVIDES THE APPROPRIATE STRENGTH AND WEIGHT OF EVIDENCE NECESSARY TO BASE DECISIONS ON FUTURE AMBIENT AIR QUALITY STANDARD LEVELS.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "POLLINATOR PATHWAYS ACROSS LANDSCAPES: FLORAL OCCURRENCE, POLLINATOR RICHNESS, AND PLANT/POLLINATOR INTERACTIONS IN THE OREGON COAST RANGE." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO CONDUCT SURVEYS OF POLLINATORS AND PLANTS THEY UTILIZE IN THE OREGON COAST RANGE. DATA COLLECTED WILL AID IN DEVELOPMENT OF SEED MIXES USED IN POLLINATOR HABITAT ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS ON THE SIUSLAW NATIONAL FOREST AND NEARBY PRIVATE INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY WITHIN THE SAME WATERSHEDS.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "FISHER CONSERVATION IN OREGON UNDER THE CANDIDATE CONSERVATION AGREEMENT WITH ASSURANCES (CCAA) PROGRAM." TEN LANDOWNERS IN OREGON HAVE ENTERED INTO CANDIDATE CONSERVATION AGREEMENTS WITH ASSURANCES (CCAA) WITH THE US FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE PRIOR TO THE PROPOSED THREATENED LISTING OF THE FISHER IN OREGON AND CALIFORNIA. PART OF THEIR INDIVIDUAL AGREEMENTS WITH USFWS STIPULATES THAT EACH CCAA PERMIT HOLDER CONTRIBUTE FUNDS TOWARDS FISHER CONSERVATION TO BE USED FOR RESEARCH OR HABITAT ENHANCEMENT. PROJECTS WILL ADDRESS FISHER DISTRIBUTIONS, POPULATION TRENDS, HABITAT RELATIONSHIPS, AND OTHER ACTIVITIES THAT INFORM FISHER CONSERVATION.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "CENTER FOR ADVANCED FORESTRY SYSTEMS (CAFS) PROGRAM." FUNDING COMMITTED BY CAFS MEMBER UNIVERSITIES WILL BE USED TO SUPPORT MULTI-YEAR RESEARCH PROJECTS CONSISTENT WITH CAFS TECHNOLOGY ROADMAP; DEVELOPMENT AND REFINEMENT OF DECISION-SUPPORT TOOLS; AND SYNTHESIS OF SCIENCE ON PRIORITY TOPICS SUCH AS FOREST HEALTH, CARBON, AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES RELEVANT TO FOREST INDUSTRY.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "IDENTIFYING SCIENCE-BASED CONSERVATION OPPORTUNITIES FOR HUMBODT MARTENS: FINE-SCALE HABITAT USE, MOVEMENT, AND DEMOGRAPHY IN LANDSCAPES THAT DIFFER IN FOREST COMPOSITION." THIS IS A MULTI-FACETED TELEMETRY STUDY PAIRED WITH NON-INVASIVE TECHNIQUES TO EVALUATE CRITICAL INFORMATION GAPS FOR HUMBOLDT MARTENS. THIS STUDY WILL PROVIDE MUCH NEEDED SCIENCE TO HELP WITH IDENTIFYING 4(D) RULE RELATED MANAGEMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND RECOVERY EFFORTS FOR FEDERAL PARTNERS.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "MARTEN AND FISHER SURVEYS." THE PURPOSE THIS PROJECT IS TO PROVIDE AN INITIAL ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECTS OF FIRE ON POPULATIONS, DISTRIBUTIONS, AND HABITAT REFUGIA OF THE MARTENS, FISHERS AND OTHER MEMBERS OF THE CARNIVORE COMMUNITY DIRECTLY FOLLOWING AN UNPRECEDENTED FIRE.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "A UNIFIED APPROACH TO EVOLVING FIA'S ESTIMATION CAPACITY." THIS PROJECT WILL DEVELOP AND EXECUTE A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR ENHANCED INTEGRATION OF REMOTE SENSING INFORMATION INTO THE FIA PROGRAM WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON SMALL AREA ESTIMATION TECHNIQUES. IT WILL PRECISELY DEFINE FIA INFORMATION USER NEEDS, CONDUCT RESEARCH INTO NEW ESTIMATION TECHNIQUES, AND DELIVER ESTIMATION CAPACITY TO USERS THROUGH DEVELOPMENT.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "FACTORS INFLUENCING OCCUPANCY AND DISTRIBUTION OF AMPHIBIAN SPECIES COVERED WITHIN THE PRIVATE FOREST ACCORD." THIS RESEARCH PROJECT EXPLORES STREAM-ASSOCIATED AMPHIBIAN (SAA) RESPONSES TO FOREST MANAGEMENT ACROSS BROAD SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL SCALES FOR SEVERAL SALAMANDER SPECIES AND COASTAL TAILED FROG. NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "RED TREE VOLE DEMOGRAPHICS IN WORKING FORESTS." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO EXAMINE TREE VOLE DEMOGRAPHICS IN YOUNG FORESTS (20-40 YEARS). VOLE SURVIVAL MODELING WOULD BE BENEFICIAL AND NECESSARY TO EVALUATE DENSITY, POPULATION ESTIMATES, AND POTENTIAL POPULATION TRAJECTORIES.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "CREATION OF BIOINFORMATIC TOOLS FOR RED TREE VOLE GENETIC ANALYSIS." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO TEST SNP DEVELOPMENT BETWEEN TISSUE AND FECAL PELLETS TO MOVE TOWARDS LARGE QUESTIONS (E.G., WHAT IS AND WHERE ARE POPULATIONS OF THESE DIFFICULT TO STUDY SPECIES). NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "CUMULATIVE EFFECTS OF POST-FIRE RIPARIAN FOREST MANAGEMENT ON VEGETATION STRUCTURE AND DIVERSITY ACROSS FIRE SEVERITY AND LAND OWNERSHIP." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO LOOK AT THE EFFECTS OF FIRE AND POST-FIRE MANAGEMENT ON RIPARIAN VEGETATION, RIPARIAN VEGETATION COMMUNITY STRUCTURE AND ITS EFFECT ON AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS, AND VEGETATION COVER OR SPECIES RICHNESS FOLLOWING DISTURBANCE WITH VARYING DISTANCE FROM THE STREAM.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "INTENSIVE FOREST MANAGEMENT (IFM) AVIAN POINT COUNT AND VEGETATION." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO DEVELOP AND DISSEMINATE SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION ON MANAGING FORESTED LANDSCAPES FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION WHILE SUSTAINING HIGH LEVELS OF TIMBER PRODUCTION. COOPERATORS ARE STUDYING THE EFFECTS OF IFM ON SONGBIRD AND ARTHROPOD ABUNDANCE AND DIVERSITY, AS WELL AS SONGBIRD POPULATIONS.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "GROUND TRUTHING STREAMFLOW DURATION CLASSIFICATION." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO SUPPORT A FIELD TEAM TO VERIFY STREAMFLOW REGIME ACROSS PRIVATE FORESTED LANDS. DATA WILL BE COLLECTED FOLLOWING USGS PROTOCOLS USING HIGH-RESOLUTION GPS DEVICES AND WILL WORK TO INFORM USGS AND USFS MODELING EFFORTS ON STREAMFLOW DURATION DURING SUMMER LOW FLOW.NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON OREGON COAST RANGE EVALUATION OF BIRD SPECIES AS INDICATORS FOR MANAGEMENT TRAJECTORIES AND EVALUATING NOVEL TECHNOLOGIES FOR HUMMINGBIRDS." THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS IDENTIFYING FOCAL SPECIES AND GROUPS THAT ADEQUATELY DESCRIBE FOREST GROWTH STAGES AND CONDITIONS SPECIFIC TO THE OREGON COAST RANGE WILL HELP MANAGERS USE THIS COMPARATIVELY EASY MEASURE TO EVALUATE RESPONSES TO FOREST MANAGEMENT ACTIONS. NCASI FOUNDATION SPONSORED WORK ON "NON-LETHAL MONITORING METHODS TO UNDERSTAND POLLINATOR COMMUNITY DIVERSITY AND RARE SPECIES IN CANNABIS AND MANAGED FORESTS." THE PROJECT WILL DEVELOP COMPUTERIZED SENSOR SYSTEMS TO IDENTIFY POLLINATORS, INCLUDING SPECIES OF GREATEST CONSERVATION NEED (SGCN); AND APPLY SENSOR SYSTEMS TO STUDY THE POPULATION DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT USE OF BUMBLE BEES IN CANNABIS AND MANAGED FORESTS.