Hollows

See Project 7: Perpetuating tree hollows under the Coastal IFOA

"Overall, the researchers found:

  • based on data, less than 50 percent of hollow bearing trees are typically occupied by vertebrate hollow-dependent fauna; thus, using tree diameter and tree species alone to predict how many hollow-bearing trees occur will over-estimate the number of hollow-bearing trees suitable for vertebrate species
  • the number of hollow-bearing trees and number of trees with hollows suitable for occupancy by vertebrate fauna were able to be predicted using a combination of FRAMES outputs and hollow occupancy models
  • simulations for the Coffs Harbour Timber Zone showed the Coastal IFOA conditions perpetuate 8-10 trees per hectare with visible hollows and 2-3 trees per hectare with hollows suitable for occupancy by vertebrate fauna in the net-harvest area over a 200 year modelling period
  • in areas permanently excluded from harvesting (approximately 51 percent of the study area), trees with visible hollows were predicted to increase from a mean of 8 per hectare to 26 per ha and trees with hollows suitable for occupancy by vertebrate fauna were predicted to increase from a mean of 3 per hectare to 10 per hectare."

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