Habitat supply refers to the supply of a wide range of habitats that are used by all species in British Columbia. This includes familiar, large vertebrates such as bear, deer and woodpeckers as well as less familiar species such as shrews and invertebrates. Unfortunately, our knowledge of the habitat requirements and our ability to predict the habitat supply for most species is poor.

Managing the supply of habitat of these thousands of species is conducted at two levels—coarse and fine. For a coarse-level management we know that all these plants and animals lived amidst variable and changing conditions before the advent of broad-scale land management in the province. By approximating those conditions we can maintain the habitat for most species, even if we don't know what they are. This coarse aspect of habitat supply can be thought of as Ecosystem Supply.

For rare or wide-ranging species, a fine level of management of habitat supply or habitat elements is effective and prudent. At this level the habitat requirements of a specific species are directly addressed.

To assist with our understanding of forest management and habitat supply, we can use models of Ecosystem Supply or, for single species, Habitat Supply. These models provide indicators of the quality of habitat supply (i.e., not species population dynamics). In British Columbia, for certain forest management processes (e.g., forest estate modelling for timber supply) it is becoming more common to consider the impact of management decisions on habitat supply. These decisions can affect silvicultural investments, harvest patterns, rate of harvest, rotation lengths and other forest management options.

In British Columbia, while some good work has been done on understanding habitat supply for a few species, there is a large need for expanding our knowledge and modelling capabilities. Many new initiatives such as a strategic plan prepared by the Forest Productivity Council Biodiversity Working Group, forest estate modelling projects under the Enhanced Forest Management Pilot Project and this web site under the Silvicultural Strategy are first steps to providing the tools and information necessary to better manage our forests.

If you are interested in more information or joining the network please email or call:

Don Morgan
Bag 6000, 3333 Tatlow Road, Smithers, BC V0J 2N0
Phone: 250.847.6387 or 250.877.1242
Fax: 250.847.6353