Tongass National Forest

Wildlife Management Indicator Species

The 1997 Forest Plan identified 13 wildlife Management Indicator Species (MIS) to represent other wildlife in a variety of habitats across the Forest. The 1997 Forest Plan also identified monitoring strategies for each of these species to track population trends and other key information for future forest planning needs. An assessment of the monitoring information collected since 1997 indicates much of the information is of little use for shorter term results like what may be needed for forest planning analyses. This situation is not unique to the Tongass and many National Forests are reevaluating their lists of MIS, including the overall value of having MIS at all. A report was developed and has received interagency review. Results of the interagency review were incorporated into the MIS report.

No changes to the list of MIS are included in the 2008 Forest Plan amendment decision. During the Conservation Strategy Review, there was much discussion on the values of focusing monitoring on wildlife habitats instead of species population trends by themselves. As a result, the Monitoring and Evaluation chapter in the 2008 amended Plan is revised to be more focused, relative to the versions in the 1997 Forest Plan and the Proposed Forest Plan that accompanied the Draft EIS. Interagency discussions related to wildlife monitoring and the Tongass MIS are ongoing and it is anticipated that the current list of MIS may be revised in the future, but a change in MIS is not part of the 2008 amended Plan.

Work Product(s): The Wildlife MIS report was the primary work product for this work item.