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This article discusses the concerns for long-term species resilience with habitat changes, focusing on the coastal giant salamander in the Pacific Northwest. The salamanders have a long lifespan and have been able to survive past changes, but over 40% of the world's amphibians are currently threatened. The article emphasizes the importance of understanding population trends and the need for long-term monitoring to accurately gauge the effects of habitat disturbances. It also highlights the challenges of managing salamander habitats and suggests that a portfolio of options considering different habitats throughout their lives may be more effective than fixed-width buffers. The article concludes by discussing the interplay between forest management and salamander survival, emphasizing the need for longer timelines to assess the effects of various management techniques. The research found that cold-blooded vertebrates, including forest amphibians, have slower aging rates and greater longevity compared to warm-blooded vertebrates. However, they can become vulnerable to rapid ecological changes. Genetic research also found that some populations of coastal giant salamanders have low genetic variation, making them more vulnerable to changing environmental conditions. The article emphasizes the importance of maintaining riparian buffer zones and connectivity between habitats to protect amphibian populations. The research suggests that a more dynamic and flexible approach to managing riparian zones is needed. [Extracted from the article]

Timber was a significant economic driver in many rural communities of the Pacific Northwest throughout much of the 20th century However, the number of timber-related jobs began declining in the 1980s, leading to hardship in many timber-dependent communities Since then, some state and local public officials have become interested in promoting forest-based tourism to boost local economies Jeff Kline, a research forester and economist with the USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, and Ian Munanura, a tourism expert and associate professor at Oregon State University, surveyed residents in Klamath and Linn Counties--two areas once heavily reliant on the wood products industry They wanted to learn about residents' attitudes toward tourism, and whether residents would support forest-based outdoor recreation opportunities in their communities The researchers found that local support for tourism depended on more than the economic benefits that tourism might bring to individual communities Alignment with personal values and desired quality of life also inf luenced local support for forest-based tourism Residents who viewed forests primarily as a source of timber and wood-products industry jobs were less supportive of tourism Those who viewed forests in a more multifaceted way were more open to tourism These findings, as well as a followup statewide survey, are helping to guide tourism research and policies throughout the Pacific Northwest [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Invasive annual grasses have long been known to increase wildfire danger in shrublands and woodlands of the American West. Ventenata (Ventenata dubia) is one such grass. First reported in North America in 1952 in Washington state, it is now expanding into previously invasion-resistant forest landscapes. Unlike cheatgrass, another invasive grass, ventenata can grow in sparsely vegetated rocky meadows. These forest scablands, often embedded within a forested landscape, have historically served as natural fire breaks. Lacking sufficient fuels, the scablands usually stopped fire from spreading into neighboring fireprone forests. However, when ventenata invades scablands and other open areas, it can create a highly flammable bridge between adjacent forested areas and act as a "fire conveyor belt" that facilitates the spread of fire across a landscape. Becky Kerns, a research ecologist with the USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, calls the ventenata invasion a "perfect storm" that is threatening forest resilience in the Blue Mountains Ecoregion. Not only is it contributing to wildfires, but those very fires may exacerbate the ventenata invasion. Forest managers in eastern Oregon are using maps, study findings, and other information developed by Kerns' research team and incorporating this information into proposed activities and other planning efforts to aid restoration and fuel reduction efforts while minimizing further invasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Notes that many researchers have asserted maternal "sensitivity" as the key feature of interactions promoting "secure" attachment relationships. Reviews literature addressing the construct of sensitivity, highlighting the problem of definition and identifying the range of behaviors typically used as indicators of sensitivity. (HTH)